Demand for Native Plants is Incredible!
Demand for Native Plants is Incredible!
Last year we set a record at Carolina Native in the number of plants that left the premises. Overall, we anticipated an increase in demand, responded with expansion, raised overall inventory by over 20%, doubled perennial inventory, and even had adequate staff. Apparently, it was not enough. First of all, we’re sorry to all of our clients, both wholesale and retail, that we cannot meet all the demand that is out there. Secondly, we are in the process of expanding and, more importantly, reexamining our plans and strategies for the next 3 to 5 years. Expect significant news in the upcoming months.
In the meantime, why do we think the demand in native plants is exponential?
- Influencers outside horticulture and the normal gardening press: Audubon Society, National Wildlife Federation, Sierra Club, Bee City and Bee Campus USA, Wild Ones, and countless local and regional organizations constantly remind their members to plant only native plants. Their constituencies makeup millions and millions of people.
- Climate Change: over 60% of Americans now recognize this as a vital issue. They also realize restoring native ecosystems is something that can be done locally, and gardening with plants indigenous to their locale is an easy thing to do.
- Millennials and Gen X get it. They were all taught in Kindergarten that Monarchs need milkweed. Lessons regarding ecosystems and their interdependence are constantly reinforced throughout their science education in primary school.
- Birds, Bees, and Butterflies. Pick one. Who doesn’t have a bird feeder? Pollinators are in the press all the time, 70% of our food depends on them. Who doesn’t love butterflies? People get it and understand the fact that they all require the plants they evolved with over the millenia.
These are just a few examples of the reasons why we think the demand of native plants is expanding quickly. There are many more, our google alerts list them from all over the US on a daily basis. Carolina Native supports all efforts to get more native plants in the ground.
