GMG Creates Buzz for Clients at IGC 2011

The 2011 IGC Show was a huge success. Here are some reflections:

The Garden Media Group dinner at the Park Grill. Kathleen chats with Stephanie Cates from RESCUE! and our friend Eric Liskey from Better Homes & Gardens. And Marta Maria Garcia chats with #Garden Chat's Bren Haas and Jim and Michael from The Organic Mechanic Co.

The Folks from Campania chatted with the team from The Philadelphia Flower Show.

Of course, we went gaga for Jamie Durie. He is so nice, genuine and approachable.
A huge hit at the show was the launch of RESCUE! Stink Bug trap with the indoor light attachment. Move over stink bugs. We've got a trap for that.

Loved the new and old natives from American Beauties, particularly Black-Eyed Susan, one of my perennial favorites!

Hines launched its new line of colorful plants for the garden, Bloomtastics. The collection features new plants and tried and true under-used show stoppers.

Love the new brand from Costa Farms, Berneckers, a premium line of indoor plants for interior-scapers and IGCs. Did you see the flyer for National Indoor Plant Week?

And did you feel the new Organic Mechanic Seed Starting mix - perfect for starting seeds in pots or in the ground.

Suzi

Garden Media Group

Share Your Love for Mother Nature on Earth Day

Here at GMG, we're all about giving back to Mother Nature, so for Earth Day (April 22nd) we thought we would share some simple solutions for going "green" on this day and every day.

I guarantee you'll feel good as you garden with a purpose inside and outside your home while giving back to Mother Nature. It's that easy!

Gardening for the Birds & Bees

You don’t need to water or fertilize or spray with harmful herbicides and pesticides to grow a beautiful garden. Let Mother Nature do the work to save time, money and natural resources. Going native in your garden with American Beauties Native Plants attract wildlife and help maintain our fragile eco-system. They’ve teamed up with the National Wildlife Federation to help gardeners create a Certified Wildlife Habitat that brings life to your landscape.

Houseplants with a Purpose

When it comes to “green", plants are King. As the earth’s lungs, plants clean the very air we

breathe and give back oxygen, moisture and natural beauty. Since most of us spend the majority of our time indoors, houseplants are the perfect solution to purify indoor air from volatile organic compounds as they freshen our indoor spaces. Costa Farms offers fascinating facts about how houseplants clean the air, plant guide and care tips, videos and more at www.o2foryou.org.

Eco-scaping

Earth day can be every day with a sustainable landscape design. Today, professional landscape designers are helping their clients achieve “green” landscapes. According to Bobbie Schwartz, president of the Association of Professional Landscape Designers, “Some clients are asking for sustainable design because they want to lessen their use of natural resources. Others, faced with mounting water bills, are asking for sustainable design with a desire for landscapes that will thrive with very little water once established.”

A hot trend that's gaining in popularity is low and no-water gardening called Xeriscaping, a style of landscape design that requires little to no watering. “Xeriscapes don’t need to look like desert landscapes,” says Schwartz. "They’re just as applicable in the Midwest and can be a beautiful mix of trees, shrubs, perennials, ornamental grasses, and groundcovers when well-designed.” To find a professional landscape designer for great garden and landscape designs for your home, visit www.apld.org.

Healthy soil, healthy plants

Healthy plants start with healthy soil. Earth-friendly, peat-free and 100% organic soils like Organic Mechanics Potting Soil are rich in minerals, nutrients and ‘good bugs’. They help give plants the “boost” they need to help grow strong, healthy roots. Recognizing the natural goodness in Organic Mechanics soils, Organic Gardening Magazine has recently awarded them with its “Seal of Approval” for its organic soils and soil amendments. “Our seal of approval recognizes that Organic Mechanics potting soils are right in line with our mission to work in harmony with nature, says Ethne Clarke, editor-in-chief.

On Earth Day and every day, here’s a thought to remember: “To me, sustainable means two things: not harming the earth and leaving it better for future generations,” says Schwartz.

I couldn’t have said it better!

Stacey GMG

Stump Stacey, Martha Stewart Living garden editor, on #GardenChat tonight

When I first started working in the lawn and garden industry, one of the overriding characteristics of the gardening world were the number of ladies and gentlemen who work in it. Nice people and gardening seem to just go hand-in-hand.

And tonight, you get to chat live on #GardenChat on twitter with one of the nicest and most knowledgeable people in the business, Stacey Hirvela, senior associate garden editor at Martha Stewart Living and host of At Home in the Garden on MarthaStewart.com. The two met at the Costa Farms Social Summit a few weeks ago. (Stacey is pictured with our GMG Stacey here.)

And Stacey will be giving away my favorite soil -- Organic Mechanics. It's the caviar of soilless mixes.

Stacey's love of plants began with her grandmother, who always let her pick as many lilies of the valley as she wanted. In 1999 she attend the School of Professional Horticulture at the New York Botanical Garden.

After working as a rooftop gardener in Manhattan, she served as the horticulturist at Tavern on the Green restaurant for three years - only the second woman ever to hold the position. WOW!

Then Stacey found her home. In 2005 she joined the Martha Stewart Living staff and now works with out good friend Tony Bielaczyc planning the garden content for the magazine. And we think she does a great job sharing her knowledge and stories from the garden.

So be sure to tune in to#GardenChat on Twitter.com tonight and ask Stacey some really tough questions. I bet you won't stump her though.

Suzi, Garden Media Group

Organic Mechanics Soil and American Beauties Native Plants on CBS Early Show

William Moss was on CBS Early Show this morning talking about seed starting and used Organic Mechanics Soil and American Beauties Native Plants. William has great tips as always...Watch it here...

-Karen GMG

The Early Birds on CBS Early Show

This today from Tim Kane

American Beauties gets national exposure!!

That's right, our little native plant program hit the big time this morning on the CBS Early Show with an Earth Day segment that featured beautiful American Beauties plants shown in their full glory. Not only were the plants seen but the containers and tags were prominently shown and talked about by the host of the segment, William Moss.

The segment was about ways the gardener can give back to the environment and American Beauties plants were prominently shown and explained by the host William Moss as plants that support butterflies and hummingbirds by providing the food and shelter needed to keep them in the home landscape. The NWF certification plaque was also shown behind the plants. All in all, a great 60 seconds worth of exposure that was priceless!!

Thanks to everyone that helped us get this together with the usual short notice...Karen at Garden Media Group, Carrie at North Creek for getting the still images of hummingbirds and butterflies used in the segment, all the people at Prides Corner who dressed the plants and got them to the studio on time and all those American Beauties growers and partners out there that have helped grow the program to this point.
Tim
Tim Kane
Prides Corner Farms