Market buzz

IGC Show Chicago features Martha Stewart keynote

The 8th annual IGC Show in Chicago’s Navy Pier included a Q&A with Martha Stewart, conducted by show producer Jeff Morey. The ballroom was standing room only, and Morey said it had been his dream to share the stage with her and have the opportunity to interview the industry icon.

Much of the interview was about Stewart’s gardens and how she developed an interest in gardening. She said she had Polish parents, and “I was told, ever since I was born, that Poles are the best gardeners.”

She has an affinity for roses and peonies (she has a 300-foot circle of peonies on her property), but has established a variety of gardens at her homes, including a massive edible garden that feeds her family and sometimes her staff at Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia.

She talked about the importance of introducing gardening to children, especially edibles, so they understand where their food comes from.

She also told the audience a few things about herself they may not have known. She loves weeding, she said, keeps 200 chickens at a time and loves shopping at Terrain. “I spend much more money on seeds and plants than I do clothes and shoes,” she said. “I’m much more interested in plants.”

Though the interview was mostly about her life and gardens, she did have a few suggestions for garden centers, such as inviting the younger generation into stores by offering weekday workshops about building a raised bed garden from scratch that start after 7 p.m. She also said while big box stores carry cheaper products, independents can carry high-quality items such as tools to attract customers. She also said she wishes she saw more high-end, pre-potted containers available at stores.

The chicken keeping trend is also catching on, and portable chicken houses would make a “perfect product for a garden center,” she said.

Independents have an advantage over big box stores, she said.

“So many of our larger stores are focused on the bottom line and profitability, that they are not always focused on the customer,” she said.

Toward the end of the conversation, Morey asked Stewart, whose Martha Stewart Living products are sold at Home Depot and Kmart, about whether she’d consider a line exclusive to independents. She didn’t confirm one way or the other, but suggested it could be a possibility.
 

Overdevest Nurseries partners with chef Jonathan Bardzik to make edible line consumer-focused

Overdevest Nurseries is teaming up with celebrity chef Jonathan Bardzik to make its herb/vegetable line a full-fledged, garden-to-table, consumer-oriented offering. In addition to the collaboration with Bardzik, Overdevest is enhancing the program’s eco-friendly point-of-purchase presentation with a new pot wrap to complement its biodegradable e-pot and a retail-ready rolling rack with attention-getting POP signage.

The program will also be supported with a large library of gardening and cooking video shorts, specifically produced for consumer end-users.

The new Footprints Edibles with its tagline, “Naturally Grown/Naturally Delicious,” was introduced to the industry this summer at IGC East in National Harbor, Md.

As a celebrity spokesman for Footprints Edibles, Bardzik will work hand-in-hand with Overdevest to educate and enthuse prospective gardeners (and current gardeners) on ways to enjoy the edible varieties offered in the program. He’ll share recipes using Footprints  Edibles, incorporate the program in his farmers market demos (which Garden Center magazine wrote about in the August issue) and appearances at participating retail garden centers, and be the host in a library of video and online how-to’s that will inform novice and expert home chefs.

Bardzik, a long-time advocate within the horticulture industry with a highly respected garden center background, has developed a reputation and enthusiastic following across the United States, touting the pleasures and benefits of cooking with farm and garden-fresh, seasonal, and local ingredients.

He shares his culinary joys and passions every Saturday, in season, with live cooking demos at Washington D.C.’s historic Eastern Market. Bardzik recently released his first book of recipes, “Simple Summer: A Recipe for Cooking and Entertaining with Ease,” and has an extensive online presence through his website and social media.

For more,  www.overdevestnurseries.com, www.jonathanbardzik.com

Michigan Garden Plant Tour showcases new varieties, display gardens

The 2014 Michigan Garden Plant Tour kicked off July 28 and concluded August 8. The tour included eight stops peppered across the state of Michigan, ranging from Monroe in the east to Grand Rapids in the west. Each stop featured an array of plants being trialed or displayed in the Michigan climate. A bevy of new varieties were on display. Editors from Garden Center, Greenhouse Management and Nursery Management magazines visited each of the stops and came back with a plethora of video content to share. Check out the dispatches online at www.gardencentermag.com/media

National Garden Bureau announces ‘Year of the’ crops for 2015

The National Garden Bureau, the non-profit organization promoting gardening on behalf of the horticulture industry, has announced the three crops that will be featured in the 2015 “Year of the” program.

• For annuals, 2015 will be the Year of the Coleus.
• For vegetables/edibles, 2015 will be the Year of the Sweet Pepper.
• For perennials, 2015 will be the Year of the Gaillardia.
   

As always, the National Garden Bureau Board of Directors selects crops that are easy to grow and genetically diverse with a lot of new varieties to choose from.

Breeders, growers, brokers and garden centers are urged to consider these flowers and plants when planning for the 2015 season as the publicity generated from this program is substantial. To view the publicity generated from past programs, visit the National Garden Bureau website and click on “Press Room.”

By November of this year, National Garden Bureau will have photos of numerous varieties of all three crops (provided by members) posted on its website. NGB also provides fact sheets, fliers, handouts, signage and more.

After November 1, all of the above can be downloaded for free from the NGB website. These tools will help the home garden industry promote the crops to consumers and encourage gardening with these specific crop classes.

For more, www.ngb.org