In looking at what is trending in gardening in 2022, it’s clear that the pandemic has had a significant impact on how people are engaging with outdoor spaces at home. With lockdowns and social restrictions, these impacts have trickled down to the built environment and are affecting the way people design their gardens, what they’re planting, and even who has taken up gardening. According to the 2021 National Gardening Survey, 58% of 35-44 year-olds surveyed said they gardened more because of the pandemic. With the increased time most have spent at home, getting outdoors and in touch with the natural world by practicing mindfulness through growing has brought respite from the stress of the pandemic. Here are the top 5 gardening trends we expect to see in 2022.
Small Spaces
More people are getting into gardening, including those who live in small homes, condos, or apartments whose only access to the outdoors at home is a small courtyard space or balcony. According to the 2021 National Gardening Survey, 54% of respondents claim that they did more container gardening because of the pandemic and that they plan to continue doing so. This year we expect to see more paved spaces transformed into small outdoor havens, complete with floral and vines climbing fences and railings alongside containers full of edibles and blooms, like the Legion of Honor French Marigold Seeds shown here.
Bring the Indoors Outside
One of the hottest gardening trends of 2022 is creating more seamless transitions from indoor to outdoor spaces. For many, this starts with letting go of shortly clipped grass and trimmed yew bushes and using plants to soften the hard lines that sometimes divide home and lawn. Some are choosing complete indoor/outdoor design overhauls, incorporating a wall of windows or using the same flooring between connected indoor and outdoor spaces. However, there are plenty more subtle and less expensive options to attain the feeling of being embedded in nature right at home. Building an overhang on a patio space, such as a pergola, is a less expensive structural option that can be adorned with climbing plants, like the unique and striking Passion Flower vine. Adding comfortable seating in patio spaces surrounded by pots of flowering plants and tall grasses can make the home and yard feel more expansive and integrated.
Incorporating Edibles
Nearly everyone has felt the impacts of supply chain issues and inflation in recent days. It’s no surprise that growing your own food is gaining popularity in 2022. Lucy Bradley from NC State Extension’s Urban Horticulture program cites several reasons that growing food has increased in popularity.1 “First, people had more time at home. And with the initial supply chain challenges, they became interested in growing food,” says Bradley. “In fact, many seed companies ran out of seeds during the pandemic.” Incorporating edibles into the yard doesn’t have to mean tilling up a large chunk of space to dedicate to a vegetable garden. Many people are incorporating edibles into their ornamental landscaping to add visual interest including crops like Swiss Chard, kale, and vining veggies such as pole beans.
Gardening for Wildlife
An estimated 30.6 million U.S. adults say that they converted part of their lawn into a natural or wildflower landscape during the pandemic, a trend that is only expected to rise in 2022.2 As people become increasingly concerned about such things as pollinator populations and the fate of our planet, they’ve begun paying attention to their own hand in the matter. Native plantings are gaining in popularity among home gardeners as they can be a haven for bees, birds, butterflies, and other beneficial insects and animals. What plants will be popular in 2022? Regional Wildflower Mixes and State Mixes that are designed for your area and especially suited to your climate and the fauna/insects that inhabit it are quickly becoming all-the-rage.
Gardening for Climate Change
We would be remiss if we didn’t acknowledge the increased incidence of wildfires, record high temperatures, and treacherous winter conditions that have people feeling uneasy these last few years. Climate change not only impacts how we care for garden spaces, how we garden can impact our environment as well. Shifts in weather patterns affect everything from timing of plantings to watering needs in the garden. Selecting plants that are drought tolerant and particularly resilient to these swings can ensure that the garden thrives amidst these unknowns. Taking care when selecting and applying fertilizers and pesticides/herbicides can help keep groundwater clean and protect pollinators as can using sustainably produced and open-pollinated varieties. Eden Brothers has a wide selection of organic, non-GMO and heirloom varieties to choose from when planning your garden!
[1] https://news.ncsu.edu/2021/07/pandemic-gardening-tips/
[2] National Gardening Survey 2021 & National Wildlife Federation