March 2010
Cover New Ground By Leslie Kirk and Jeff Collard

Embracing the newest trends in breeding, branding and merchandising groundcovers can help improve long-term sales as customers turn to this eco-friendly, robust option for problem landscape areas.

Groundcovers are rising in popularity as plants with eco-friendly aesthetic appeal become increasingly important to consumers. Grass is still the No. 1 option for expansive lawns, but busy homeowners often struggle to find alternatives that do not require a lot of chemicals, mowing or weeding, and to find solutions for problem areas in the landscape.

Groundcovers are generally classified as low-growing, herbaceous plants that spread and cover areas close to the ground. These plants rarely grow taller than 12 inches and feature resilient characteristics such as heat and drought tolerance. While these plants are lower-priced than many larger perennials, they can be an investment product for customers, with profitable outcomes for retailers.

With a sagging economy and radical climate changes, consumers are embracing the trend of modular landscaping. Homeowners have begun looking at small-stature plants as piece-by-piece or one-phase-at-a-time solutions for gardening, and a well-merchandised groundcover can make a great first impression. Urban dwellers are also embracing groundcovers for vertical gardening, small spaces and containers.

For 2010, horticulture professionals are embracing new standards in breeding, marketing and merchandising for groundcovers. Growers such as Terra Nova Nurseries have conducted studies to determine market demand, using this data to cultivate some of the most-anticipated groundcover varieties of the season.

Garden Splendor, a plant brand by Overdevest Nurseries based in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, has embraced the rising trend and integrated more groundcovers into its Showcase line and overall collection. The company has identified and developed marketing strategies to make groundcovers more appealing to consumers.

In the end, however, it is a garden center’s merchandising strategy that successfully sells groundcovers. Max Is Back, a garden center in Butler, N.J., is exploring the groundcover characteristics most appealing to its unique customers.

Market Appeal

Because of the wide selection available, groundcovers need marketing plans that emphasize information-sharing and clear tagging. Retailers should remain cognizant of available marketing and branding opportunities, as this might help determine the best products to sell and applicable partnerships to establish.

“Today’s consumer is exposed to more information than ever before, so the flow of quality information is important,” says David Wilson, marketing director for Garden Splendor. “I think consumers are aware of ‘groundcovers’ as a classification but turned off by the outdated images of junipers, ivy and other traditional groundcovers.”

Groundcovers need noticeable assets to persuade customers to stop and look, even if the basic hardy characteristic ultimately encourages them to buy.

“We are trying to help our retail customers… bydelivering premium plants during the specimen’s prime, so consumers see them at their best and arenaturally inspired by them,” says Wilson.

Garden centers can increase profits by partnering with growers that aim to ship products during their most desirable market stages. Some companies also offer unique tagging options, such as Garden Splendor and the Remember Me markers. This distinctive tag is anodized aluminum marker embossed and printed with the botanical and common names of the variety. Tags like these provide gardeners with permanent ways to remember what they planted so they can return to garden centers for additional purchases.

One on One With Customers

Selecting which groundcovers to sell and how to merchandise them can be accomplished by first conducting a bit of field research. Employees can ask customers for their input on what is most important to them in low-growing plants and about their common landscaping problems. Ask about customers’ specific landscape needs, weather and temperature concerns, and areas where plants just do not seem to grow.

“Our garden center realized a great need for deer-resistant varieties in the area,” says Richard Swet, perennial manager at Max Is Back garden center. “We try to make sure many of the groundcover varieties we sell include this characteristic. Aside from that, our customers are looking for easy-to-grow, low-maintenance groundcovers they can just plant, water a bit and forget while they spread and flower.”

With consumers busier than ever in their day-to-day lives, groundcovers offering year-round interest or extended blooming are also of particular interest. Marketing them with creative signage about their time-saving attributes can stop customers in the aisles.

“A favorite variety with multiple attributes is sedum ‘Angelina’, which has excellent deer, drought and heat resistance, and attractive color that changes with the seasons,” says Swet. “I’m also partial to the English garden classic lady’s mantle, which can take a lot of sun and provides beautiful chartreuse flowers.”

Swet recommends grouping groundcovers in a single area with clear signage, and keeping them low to the ground as a simple reminder of their purpose. Creative containers and small-space landscape displays can help provide consumers with inspiration regarding what they can do with these varieties at home.

Groundbreaking Groundcovers

Defining common landscape problems and understanding groundcover characteristics can separate successful varieties from ones that sell poorly at retail. Terra Nova Nurseries surveyed homeowners, retailers and growers to establish its annual breeding goals.

For 2010, Terra Nova Nurseries focused on introducing attractive, low-maintenance varieties with variegated foliage or interesting bloom features, and expanded market usage.

Terra Nova’s president and cofounder, Dan Heims, says winning varieties will avoid invasive qualities and offer eye-catching characteristics not typical to traditional groundcovers. He also suggests considering varieties that are often overlooked as groundcovers.

“We have made great advances in tiarellas (foamflowers), which used to be considered rangy or clumping plants,” explains Heims. “Our newest trailing tiarellas, such as ‘Cascade Creeper’, offer interesting foliage with tighter internodes, creating new, drought-resistant groundcover options that suppress weeds.”

Additional recommendations from Heims include improved “traditional” varieties, such as the low-growing, variegated ajuga ‘Sparkler’ and heucheras with H. villosa breeding such as ‘Electric Lime’ for added drought and humidity tolerance, persistent foliage and weather-resistance.

At retail, Max Is Back garden center is looking to soon expand its groundcover selection as this eco-friendly, low-maintenance trend continues to grow. And, as growers increase their breeding efforts and plant brands develop improved marketing strategies, groundcovers can be excellent, long-term revenue optionsfor retailers.

Leslie Kirk and Jeff Collard

Leslie Kirk is a public relations manager and writer, and Jeff Collard is a co-owner at Eberly & Collard Public Relations, a firm specializing in the home, garden, design and agribusiness industries. They can be reached through www.eberlycollardpr.com. For more information, visit www. terranovanurseries.com for Terra Nova Nurseries or www.garden splendor.com for Garden Splendor.