One of the top gardening trends on social media is to replace the lawn with more garden space. People are not lazy and avoiding lawn care, but rather your customers are quickly becoming more ecologically and environmentally mindful.

Lawns drain resources, lack biodiversity and are not sustainable. With some information in your toolkit, you can encourage your customers to switch to less lawn and more garden.

A Little History

In the 17th century, having a large, vibrantly green lawn was considered a status symbol among Europeans. As time has gone on, North Americans have become obsessed with having lush, well-maintained, green lawns. On average, an American yard contains 60% lawn, so we have grown to love this status-symbol-turned-aesthetic preference.

Why the Switch?

This trend will have your mindful customers aware that lawns consume trillions of gallons of water, millions of gallons of gas (that’s a lot of mowing), and millions of pounds of pesticides per year. They also support very little wildlife because most lawns only have one or two species of grass that are consistently cut down and manicured.

This gardening trend is gaining real traction with increasing attention towards climate change. The younger generation loves to stay up-to-date on social media, so we recommend utilizing it to educate on why lawns are not eco-friendly or why more garden is better than more grass.

Why Is Having Less Lawn and More Garden Trending?

As previously mentioned, the general gardening customer base is quickly acquiring a growing awareness of the environment and its needs. They are trying to:

• Cut down on fossil fuels.
• Use less water and pesticides.
• Support and attract more species.

Not only is mowing a lawn a lot of work, thus inspiring more “lazy lawns,” but customers are looking for alternatives to this tradition that encourages poor environmental etiquette. Now, it’s up to your client base to decide where they will extend their gardens, but they will need your help with suggestions on how to do it!

“More Garden” Inspiration

The Wildflower Garden

Your customer will be an integral part of attracting more wildlife species by growing multiple native plants from their region. Coneflower is a beautiful and practical go-to that grows in most regions, and we, along with nature, love it. Bees, butterflies, and birds need us, and with less lawn and more wildflower gardens, they have more chances to mate, pollinate, and thrive in nature. Saving the bees with wildflower gardens is an excellent approach to promoting this trend on social media!

Establishing a wildflower garden can take a bit of work; it’s up to you to make it easy. Here are a few ways to engage the customer:

• Stay informed—educate staff on the benefits of a native garden so that they can speak confidently to any customer about the topic.
• Create displays in your store for native plants; include helpful information with the displays.
• Offer classes for your customers and educate them on this issue—how can they help, and why should they participate?

The Perennial Grasses Garden

Perennial grasses are visually attractive, offer privacy, year-round interest and they can be a great hangout spot for bees and birds. You can inform your customers that many varieties, shapes, sizes and colors are available, so the options are abundant. Once your perennial grasses establish, they won’t need much watering.

The Rock Garden

Rock gardens are generally drought-tolerant; once established, they require very little water and maintenance. This trend could include:

• Rock pathways for stepping, such as flagstone.
• Oversized pebbles/rocks to fill open areas.
• Large quarry rocks placed in the garden amongst other shrubs or evergreens.
• Bonsai trees and low-growing evergreens, such as junipers, cypress and cedars.
• Perennial succulents, such as hens and chicks or upright sedum.
• Low-growing spreading stonecrop.

The Vegetable and Herb Garden

Encourage your customers to bring a healthy lifestyle and balanced diet into their backyards with this thriving trend. Not only will they be cutting back on the amount of lawn they have, but they will be feeding their families from home, reducing transportation emissions.

Whichever option your customers choose, they will be doing their part in being more environmentally aware and making eco-friendly choices within their control. With your help, they are sure to succeed. We highly recommend utilizing social media to raise awareness and educate your audiences on this impactful trend!

Start Here.
Start With Us

The highest return on your investment is a consistent marketing campaign that delivers engaging content and directs customers to your website. From writing your blog to designing and delivering your newsletter and promoting your knowledge on social, we do it all so you can focus on running your Garden Center.

Discovery calls are free! Contact us today for information about our services.

(1) Hubspot. How Interactive Content Can Help You Increase Your Leads by 47% [Customer Story]