Eating it up

As consumers take a closer look at how their food is grown and where it comes from, the gardening world is expanding. Many are choosing to start their own fruit or vegetable garden whether it’s a window box, a container, a garden plot or something larger. From the traditional tomato to the most radical raspberry, garden centers are seeing an increased demand for edibles across the board.

Learn how you can better serve your retail customers and your profits with this valuable crop.

Carrie Engel, retail greenhouse manager at Valley View Farms in Maryland, said about three years ago, orders for edible plants started building back up.

Citrus trees
Fruit trees are becoming a hot commodity, even indoors. Citrus trees, particularly lemons and limes, are becoming more and more popular, as are some more unusual varieties like figs and olives. New types of self-fruitful trees mean growers can get the fruit they want from just one tree, and multiple graft trees are providing several varied harvests in just one season.

“Citrus trees have been huge for us this year,” Engel said. “It’s just been nice and steady and there has been good availability this year.” For the last six years, USDA regulations prohibited the import of fruit trees from Florida, but garden centers are now free to import from the state and citrus trees are striking a chord with consumers. The interest in citrus has been so high that many centers now carry citrus fruits at the store and other products specifically for the citrus gardener.

“It’s not a difficult houseplant,” said Bryan Wave with Gethsemane Gardens & More. “The flowering scent does really, really well.” For an indoor grower, the scent is a big draw in the winter.

To help consumers feel better about their purchase, Valley View has been holding educational seminars.

“We bring in a fruit tree grower or wholesaler to talk to customers and employees,” Engel said. “Attendance goes up every year.”

Fruits and vegetables
Gardeners are looking for the ordinary and the extraordinary when it comes to fruits and vegetables. From the old standbys like tomatoes and strawberries to the more exotic like pink eggplant, golden raspberries or heirloom varieties, consumers are interested in a variety of options. Often customers are looking for something with a unique look, or something they saw at the local farmers market.

Berries in general, and pink blueberries in particular, have been a big hit this year at Valley View, and other garden centers have been taking advantage of regional interests as well. Trinidadian peppers seem to fly off the shelf in Maryland, where they are great for container gardens.

Bitter melon, a vegetable gourd, is extremely popular with the Filipino and Indian community, and sells very well at Gethsemane.

“As long as people know of something out there, they’ll give it a try,” Engel said. “Part of the strategy is to get the newest and greatest stuff to get them to try one more extra.”

The author is an associate editor with Garden Center magazine. Reach her at kspirgen@gie.net.