Some estimates say that if we can’t reduce the amount of carbon currently entering the atmosphere each year, we will all be doomed somewhere around 2050. However, there are other effects of climate change that are nearer to home – one of which being that there are more people in America’s gardens than ever before, and that the selection of species is beginning to change course towards more resilient species.
Many of the United States zones are experiencing longer bouts of warmer weather and milder winters. So, gardeners are shifting their priorities throughout the entirety of the planting and growing season.
1. Resilient Species
With seasonal change now less distinct and predictable with longer summers and shorter winters, gardens that dramatically and graphically evolve over the seasons are becoming even more prized. For example, plants displaying a stark winter beauty (form, bark, or color) with high contrast to leafy spring have become highly sought after.
The second is a demand curve that’s off the charts for plants that do more for the longer duration of our warm weather (such as hydrangeas, roses, lilacs, and other flowering shrubs that bloom again).
Vegetables that like a moderate environment or that are ideal for the zone to the north of yours that you’ve sometimes been able to grow should likely be avoided, since 2019 is predicted to be a hot one.
2. Plants of a Thousand Uses
It used to be that a simple hedge would fit the bill, but now, with home lots getting smaller and with less time for gardening, consumers are snapping up “one and done” plants that do double or even triple duty in the landscape. Also in play here is mindfulness about plants for attracting wildlife, growing food, and creating more overall green space.
This translates to big demand for plants that flower + fruit + have great fall foliage, Waterwise + feed birds + provide privacy, native + provide winter interest + fragrant, etc.
3. Woodland Gardens
Cool, mossy, and damp, small space woodland gardens bring a welcome sense of organic zen and a respite from digital overload, especially in dense urban areas where they can help to mitigate the effects of pollution. It’s like bringing “forest bathing” to the city with a mix of ferns, mosses, coral bells, Hostas, and Anemones in high contrast, almost unnatural, places for a garden-style that’s gaining ground. We’ve tracked a marked increase in consumer demand for all types of woodland plants over the last three years with no signs of slowing down.
