Retailers prep for spring, nursery industry said doing well

Retail garden center owners, wholesale nursery growers and commercial landscapers are optimistic about having a good year in 2015.
Louisiana nursery and landscape professionals recently returned from the Gulf States Horticultural Expo in Mobile, Alabama, and buyers are stocking garden centers around the state for the spring season.
Demand for landscape plants continues to be higher than the current supply, especially in some tree and shrub commodities.
Rapides, Washington, Tangipahoa, Plaquemines, St. Tammany, Iberville, Lafayette, Evangeline, East Baton Rouge and Avoyelles are the leading parishes in Louisiana in wholesale production of nursery crops.
“These days, color seems to be the constant theme among garden center owners,” said AgCenter horticulturists Allen Owings. “Customers want plants with color – annual bedding plants, herbaceous perennials, hanging baskets, hydrangeas, azaleas, Knock Out roses or summer-flowering trees like crape myrtles.”
Garden centers generally get busy with the first nice weekend weather in February, and the major spring selling season goes until Mother’s Day, he said.
Chris Herrman, manager at Clegg’s Nursery in Baton Rouge, says sales of vegetable transplants continue to be strong. Herbs and vegetables grown in containers are popular. Fruit tree (citrus, peaches, pears, plums, etc.) and small fruit (blackberries, blueberries, muscadines, etc.) sales are steady. Low -maintenance shrubs continue to do well. Gardeners want smaller sizes and lower maintenance.
Jim Lastrapes, owner of Lastrapes Garden Center in Opelousas, says business was better in 2014 than 2013. He attributed the good spring to the harsh winter of 2013-2014. Lastrapes Garden Center is projecting continued sales growth in 2015.
Surveys of gardening consumers show that the main answers being sought when working in the landscape are selecting the right plant, knowing when to plant, when and how to prune, how to deal with poor soil, knowing how much to water, selecting plants for sun or shade, how to make raised beds, using container planting, and handling nuisance wildlife, Owings said.
The commercial landscape season goes year-round now, but the major initiative with new landscape projects and landscape cleanup normally starts in February. “It’s not just plants anymore,” Owings said. “Home and commercial irrigation systems installations are also up significantly the past three years.” People are also adding pools, outdoor kitchens and outdoor entertainment areas. Stay-cations (vacation at home) have been popular the last couple years. This leads to dollars spent on home improvement projects.
New plantings at wholesale nurseries are significantly up from recent years. The 2014 AgSummary published by the LSU AgCenter reports wholesale nursery crop production in the state at around $165 million.
“Retail sales of plant material in Louisiana is probably in the $500 million range annually, while commercial landscape installation and construction projects account for $900 million or more,” according to Owings.
Nursery growers and garden centers are encouraging Louisiana consumers to buy locally grown products. Also look for plants recommended for Louisiana – such as Louisiana Super Plants announced each spring and fall by the LSU AgCenter.