Nature’s Best

Jennifer Polanz

The popularity of organic and natural products continues to trend upward, pushed by an increasing awareness among consumers of sustainability efforts among producers and manufacturers. Younger generations especially were taught about the importance of sustainable materials, as well as reducing, reusing and recycling, which is impacting their buying habits now. That provides some opportunity for garden retailers to tout the natural products our industry offers to a new generation of consumers. Here are just a few options for 2025 and beyond.

Bamboo for the Birds
I saw this one at the BFG Expo in Cleveland in September—Panacea Products offers a line of bamboo birdfeeders and birdhouses called Ultimate Renewable Bamboo. They’re eco-friendly, durable, and naturally weather and insect resistant. There are eight options available, many of which have a jute rope for hanging. There’s also a 28-piece Bird and Nature Products Display for retailers to use in store.

Repot Recovery
This is an interesting concept for a product: Repot Recovery from Sol Soils. Founder Travis Thein described it to me in terms of a workout—think of it like a post-workout recovery protein and vitamin shake, but for plant recovery after they get repotted. “It’s a blend of three different proteins (seaweed, whey and soy), and includes a ton of micronutrients,” he said. “So it does a great job of calming the plant back down after the shock of repotting.” It can be applied via soil drench or sprayed directly on the leaves as a foliar spray to help boost root growth. As an added bonus, Sol Soils partners with Switch2Zero to plant a tree for every bag sold to support Eden Reforestation projects worldwide.

The Magic of BioControls
The folks at Mycorrhizal Applications will be offering a new lineup of five plant health products for organic use under the Magic Gardener brand based on solutions found in nature and refined by their professional science team. The five products are: Biological Disease Control; Fungus Gnat Killer (I’m looking forward to that one as a chronic overwaterer); Caterpillar Killer; Mycorrhizae for Fruit, Flower & Vegetable; and Mycorrhizae for Trees & Shrubs. The packaging is bright and eye-catching, and they’ll be sold solely through independent garden centers. This is a sneak peek—the line will be available for pre-order in Fall 2025 for retail in 2026.

Plant-Based Tags
Proven Winners continues to build awareness around its Eco+ Grande plantable and compostable containers, and for 2025 they’re adding a 100% plant-based tag option that looks (and feels) identical to their plastic ones. Growers order them as a package, the Eco+ Grande containers and the tags, and right now they’re available for annuals only. They’re made of the same material as the Eco+ pots, but they don’t have the nutrients that are incorporated in the pots, said Marketing Communications Manager Kate Spirgen. They’ve gotten questions already about how they’ll hold up in hot, humid greenhouses and she told me that to break down they need heat and moisture far beyond what you’d get in a retail store or at a greenhouse. GP