Here is the latest video on fertilizing vegetables in containers. It's so important to feed vegetables grown in containers.[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ov_0YlwIVzo[/youtube] Feeding keeps the plant healthy and growing. It also vital for the best tasting fruit. I actually like using a organic based fertilizer that has added micro-nutrients. Here in California we are not allowed to label fertilizer organic if it contains micro-nutrients. How strange. As a matter of fact I am going to cover this strange labeling issue in a later video.
Meet Gordie, The Golden Gecko
Meet Gordie the Golden Gecko. He has a bit of an accent since he is 
from down under, but he moved to northern California a few years ago and gets along just fine here. He hopes to amuse and educate our customers in how best to enjoy our unique climate and topography. Since he is from elsewhere, like so many others in the foothills, it's easier for him to relate to the unusual gardening conditions here. He is especially fond of Mediterranean plants including our natives. He tends toward organic gardening.
I would love to come up with a whole series of informational material that utilizes Gordie's unusual talents, but for now Gordie just wanted to introduce himself.
G'day mates!
Fertilizer sales great in a less than stellar year.
Fertilizer sales for us this year have been huge. We have never sold so much including specialty fertilizers like bat guano, alfalfa meal, bone meal, blood meal, etc. In a year where shrub and tree sales seem flat it's good to see interest in maintaining the plants so high. I would have to guess it's because of all the interest in growing your own food. 80% of our fertilizers are all organic so that has been a plus. Easy to promote. 
We are expanding the fertilizer section to include more of the specialty fertilizers that we seem to be asked for. In addition the soil amendment sales have been great too. We have sold more full pallets to individual's than ever before, especially the Foxfarm Ocean Forest.
It what has been an underwhelming year overall the fertilizers and potting soils have been very bright. Big ideas for this next year.
Connecting
Wanted to talk about the comment made by Victor Flaherty at my post titled, There is no nursery industry. He has found out it's hard to get people to pool together for advertising. Out of 10 independent garden centers in the Huston area only one, besides his own has committed. Everyone wants to wait and see what happens. This is why it's even harder to get a national campaign together.
He is what I am doing. Writing this blog and getting involved with other bloggers. I have met and talked to people who I would have never conversed with before. This is good as it has opened up worlds of possibilities. Bloggers are a small proportion of the population. Never the less they are some of the most intellectually curious people around. That's why they blog. Same goes for gardening professionals who blog. They are the people I most want to connect with. They will be the ones that have the new ideas that will reinvent what we do for the better.
Because of that I feel that we will connect without much effort. That's what I love about this medium. The unexpected consequences that occur when you just get out and participate. Rather than trying to get a group that will commit on some plan of action, let's organize a group that will allow the free exchange of ideas among like minded individual's.
How to start?
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Start a blog separate from your customer oriented website or blog. Start one where you can talk about the things that interest or worry you in our businesses. It can be separate from you company website if so inclined. Posting doesn't have to be frequent.
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Start reading blogs.
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Link to the blogs you like.
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Visit blogs that you like. Become involved in the discussions going on and comment when so moved. After a while they may link to your site because you showed an interest, communicate honestly, and they like what you have to say. Sometimes blog owners just forget to tend to the blog roll. If not at that point it's o.k. to ask. There is a new category at my blogroll, "garden center or nursery related websites."
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Now we are linked together. By visiting Technorati or subscribing to the blogs feed you will be able to keep up on what's going on and who's saying what.
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Visit the Golden Gecko Garden Forum. Register and use the “Business of Gardening Section†We created it for those of us in the garden businesses.
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Now let simmer.
I am filled with ideas and hope from the commenter's at this blog. Everyone wants to do something. We are just not necessarily in agreement on what needs to be done. That's fine. The first step has begun, we are beginning to find one another because of our mutual interests. I think the key is just putting ideas out there and seeing what transpires. Everyone wants to speed things up, since we are all getting a little spoiled by the immediacy of the web. This is just the beginning.
Troll + blog + garden center= bad publicity
Do you know what a troll is? No, I am not talking about garden ornaments but rather the Internet type troll. Wikipedia say's, “An Internet troll, or simply troll in Internet slang, is someone who posts controversial and usually irrelevant or off-topic messages in an online community, such as an online discussion forum or chat room, with the intention of baiting other users into an emotional response[1] or to generally disrupt normal on-topic discussion.
One of the wonderful things that the Internet is doing is putting the power back into the customers hands. The customer can start a blog and write about their experiences, good and bad. This comes as quite a shock to some nurserypeople, and their first reaction is to strike out at people who are perceived to be unfriendly to the “garden industryâ€. One person some might perceive to be unfriendly to the “industry†is Amy Stewart, author of Flower Confidential and a blogger at Garden Rant.
Check out this post at Garden Rant, the accompanying photos, as well as the very first comment. This first commenter is the troll. The comment that “ You write about and criticize the garden industry as though you are some sort of expert. The photos shohw an overgrown mess withvast disorganization along with lack of rythum and and ano design talent whatsoever.†Follow the link for the commenter, parsons wayneright and you are sent to Tropic Al's BBQ Review (I left the link to that site out intentionally). I figured the comment was designed to get you to click the link to see who this was, but instead are directed to a web site hoping for business or higher rankings.
When you leave a comment at most blogs a link to your name is created. This way you can see who wrote the comment. If you want to stay anonymous, that's o.k. No link is created. But when you are mis-lead by a false name it makes you feel "fooled" and not likely to return to that site again. Lost business! The false name at the comment doesn't help in a world where just about everything you do online is just a Google away.
Trolling does nothing but make those of us who fall for it, like me, angry. I have known Amy for a few years now. She does not mince words when discussing the horticulture businesses. So what! How refreshing! The fake name with the re-direct to a BBQ website is why I write this. If you want to speak your mind then sign your name. Amy does.
More horticultural enterprises are becoming involved or trying to become involved in the great discussions going on at garden blogs. There seems to be a mis-understanding as to what a garden blog is. I noticed this with the Stepables promotion that was commented on at Garden Rant a few weeks ago. Read this post entitled How to Talk to a Blogger.
Most garden bloggers are not involved in the media business, they are my customers. Even if they don't shop in my store they shop at some garden center somewhere. Not only are they customers but now they have a voice, and perhaps a following. Why would I want to pick a fight with my customers in a public forum? My customers have their beliefs, some of which I may not agree with. The one thing they all have in common is a love of the garden. That's what I love about my business. I can work with (almost) everyone if they have a interest in gardening.
Just a few years ago Garden Rant didn't exist, nor did Open Register, or Todays Garden Center. Garden Center's that blogged could be counted on one hand. Starting a blog now has never been easier. If you feel you have something to contribute start one today! Look to Open Register and Today's Garden Center for examples of how horticultural media can use blogs to join in. There are also a number of new garden center blogs that are examples of nursery people reaching out. Remember everything you say at a blog is forever. You are the company and what you say will be around a long time.
There is no nursery industry
Actually there is no one nursery industry. The comments from the last post I am participating!, would indicate others see the same thing. The nursery industry has fragmented. There is no one voice of the industry. There are different factions with different ideas on which way to proceed. It's like the restaurant industry. Mc Donald's is a far cry from that little Italian Restaurant down the road. Sure they both sell food. That's about where the similarities end.
I could see getting behind a concerted effort to promote the local, independent, WELL RUN, garden centers. The key is well run. Let's face it, some independent nurseries are not, and I wouldn't want to be involved in a campaign that included them. That is the crux of the problem in any large advertising campaign concerning the nursery industry. The message that drives a person to embrace Scott's/Miracle Gro is not the same message that we have.
What's the solution? I don't know! I do know that the only thing we can do is try to provide the best service, plants, and customer experience we can muster up. If we do it right the customer will spread the word. Right now the means to spread the word is in it's infancy, but it will grow. Sid tells of the new wireless internet 'cloud' caused by the combined effort of interested and organized citizens that is beginning to cover the San Francisco area. In the past few months they say they've connected over 50,000 people to the Internet. Strange and wonderful things are afoot
I am particpating!
I wanted to address the comment from Steve Cissel at my last post, "Got Plants?". Steve says, “it is really easy to sit back on the ranch and lob pessimism and one liners into the mix.†He continues, “ What our industry needs is creative thinkers (like you) to roll up your sleeves and participate.â€
Steve says that they “need creative thinkers, like me to roll up my sleeves and participate.†My sleeves are rolled up, and I am participating the only way I can, through my blog. If the organization wants input from creative thinkers why not offer the meeting on live video feed. That way the small garden center owner who can't leave the nursery during the spring season can participate. Why is this thing scheduled for early June? I am not heading across the country this time of year. I choose to reduce my carbon footprint by not flying all the way to St. Paul.
I did find a web page, Project Green Industry which is written by Green Beam. I have added it to my blogroll. According to the web page, “Steve Cissel, CEO and founder of 10-20 Media, proposed building a national marketing campaign around the 'oxygen footprint', an antidote to the carbon footprint concept that every third-grader has become familiar with by now.†The article continues “Cissel is so gung-ho about the oxygen footprint idea that he already has purchased several Web domains: oxygenfootprint.com, oxygenfootprint.org, O2footprint.com. 'Every which way you can configure it, I have it,' he said.†It continues, “He envisions a well-funded promotional campaign that will result in everyone knowing the answer to 'What’s your oxygen footprint?' just like they know the answer to 'What’s your e-mail?'".
We need to focus at the local level. Instead of trying to hit that home run with a national "Got Milk" type campaign, we should be putting people in contact with local garden oriented business that care about what's going on in the community and are willing to talk about it. It's through this "small and local" thinking that people might gravitate towards gardens and gardening.
"Meet the local garden center or florist who makes a difference everyday in your community."
That's my idea.
Got Plants?
Wanted to address this article from Open Register on “The First National Green Industry Summit†This group wants to develop a “national marketing program for the horticulture industry. Mandatory check-off programs like 'Got milk?' and 'Pork, the other white meat', along with voluntary programs like the National Rifle Association’s safe-gun storage campaign, were held up as examples.†Sure, who wouldn't like to hit a gold mine like “Got Milkâ€. The problem is it doesn't just happen. Looking at a hit like “Got Milk' and trying to replicate that never works.
Why do we need a national ad campaign? Here we are in the midst of a huge interest in vegetable and fruit gardening without any advertising. Nurseries are saying they can''t keep up with the interest. People seem to have found out and started vegetable gardening without any advertising. Advertising has changed. The idea of a national ad campaign is so old school I can't believe they are thinking of it. Of course that's why nothing was decided at the summit. To many conflicting ideas on what's the best way to proceed.
In the end they decided they need “to hire a professional facilitator who can guide participants through the process of writing a mission statement and then lead the group toward selecting a program message everyone can get behind.†Oh boy, here come the professionals. Sounds like a money pit to me. Far better to spend less money on advertising and more money on making sure that the customer has a great experience when they come into your store.
It's not easy being an organic nursery in Santa Cruz.
I was surprised to learn that Surf City Growers, who I had written about earlier was closing. They had caught the eye of Sunset magazine as they we're an all organic nursery. According to their e-newsletter, “The nursery has been set back on the growing side due to the invasion of the Light Brown Apple Moth in Santa Cruz County.†They have had to spray with Bt regularly. The letter continues, “After spraying, the crops have to be covered for a period of 10 days, after which they are re-inspected before they can be released for sale. In addition, none of the expenses are being subsidized.â€
This moth is a huge concern out here and the nursery business is taking the brunt of the costs. According to KPIX, “The Santa Cruz County Farm Bureau estimates wholesale and retail nurseries lost about $2.8 million in forgone sales and investments toward fighting off the moth from April to December 2007.â€
These nurseries are required to do this spraying at their own expense. The article at KPIX talks of one nursery that sustained $50,000 in lost sales due to being shut down while the nursery was inspected.
So far here in El Dorado County we have been spared the trouble you see in Santa Cruz. Of course that could change with one discovery here. We are inspected regularly by the county agricultural department, and all new shipments from out of the area are inspected. Lets hope we don't have the problems Surf City had to deal with.
Conserve water and grow healthier plants.
Here is the latest video we put together. Considering that the governor recently declared a water emergency, we want to do our part. Mulching is something we advocate around here anyway. Our summers in the interior of California are hot and dry. Mulch is especially beneficial for newly planted areas. Often its the difference between life and death, for the plant. We are going to address this issue more in the future. We want to make sure we give people an option for preserving and enjoying their gardens during water shortages. It's a natural choice here, where the summers are dry anyway. Look for more videos discussing various ways to help conserve water this year, and thereafter. .
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EI3MN-fBR-k[/youtube]
Here we go again, govenator declares water emergency
This last week our govenator declared a state of emergency because of our states current water crises. We have so many crises when it comes to water, too much some years and in the case of this year, to little. We have little or no rain in summer normally, but this year we came up a little short during the winter. So now, according to The New York Times new construction projects are being put on hold across the state. Meanwhile Sacramento water companies are now encouraging neighbors to turn their water wasting neighbors in. Oh, the busy bodies will be busy this year.
Having been born and raised in this state I have been through about four other serious droughts. With every drought that comes along we learn new methods of conservation, find new plants that take our summer droughts better, and sell lots of drip irrigation equipment. I can tell you though that if the drought continues next year the nurseries here will be in the same situation nurseries in the south found themselves in last year!
One thing the article from the Times mentions is building 3.5 billion of new water supplies. Of course that's no good as " environmentalists have vehemently opposed, in part because they find dams and storage facilities environmentally unsound and not cost effective." Furthur, the "state’s agriculture industry, which uses far more water than urban areas, is being asked to contribute little to conservation under the governor’s plans. As more building projects are derailed by water requirements, the pressure on farmers to share more of their water is."
I don't know how environmentally friendly having no food to eat will be. If your thinking you'll grow your own, where will your water come from? How this state can continue to grow or even sustain the growth we have right now without new water projects is hard to understand. I am all for conservation, but we haven't had a new water project in over twenty years! The state has continued to grow during those twenty years, yet our water supply hasn't. My prediction is if the drought continues into next year that will change real fast.
We don't get any rain here during the summer anyway. All our rain comes during winter. So we are already going to be dealing with the ramifications of this drought now. Our planting season is over. Now it's people coming in for some spots of color, fertilizer, pest controls, and stuff to sustain what they already have planted. This will go on through summer until the fall planting season, which will be wimpy because the physiological effect of all the drought talk. Then winter will arrive hopefully with rain. If not, the county we live and do business in might do what it did 20 years ago. Ban all new plantings unless you are on a well! That hurts!
Our state is a state of extremes. This winter we could have floods and all this drought talk could be over, for a while. It will rear its head again and again as long as our state continues to grow people without growing our water supplies, as well as conservation. If anyone has a better answer I would be willing to listen.
I'mmmmmm Baaaaack!
This is me after tech. support!
Our first video
Monica and I took our Canon Powershot and filmed a short video. We titled it "How to sharpen your pruning shears." It was un-rehearsed and shows it. Never the less it was fun. As a matter of fact we are going to do a series of them dealing with all sorts of garden related themes. I am just blown away by how easy it is to shoot these things and upload them to the web. I know I 'll want to get into editing and different setup's in the future. For now its fine with us to just use the little camera and have some fun.
Serendipity
It's easy to miss the little serendipitous event that happen in your life. I sometimes think that if we didn't feel so harried and stressed in our lives we would pick up more on these magical moments. I write this blog without many expectations. It's another way for me to express myself and I enjoy communicating with the various commenter's that come to the blog. It's fun to hear from people over the world, including fellow nursery people. On such person is Jodie of Glenwild Gardens in Bloomingdale, New Jersey, who occasionally visits and comments at this blog.
The other day a lady came in from Carmichael, near Sacramento came to visit the nursery. How did she find out about us? She is a high school friend of Jodie, and was told by Jodie she might like to visit us! Who would have thought that a connection made more than half way across the country, via the internet would result in a new customer?
Over at The Golden Gecko Garden Forum, Steve from 10-20 media.com has a great post on how the best way for independent garden centers to use the Internet might be. He mentions making sure that the focus is on local customers. Of course you get to decide what local means to you. My contact made in New Jersey brought me a customer here. What a wonderful and amazing world we live in!
A new feature at thegoldengecko.com
Before this blog The Golden Gecko Garden Center had garden forum. It worked well except we found it very difficult to post pictures. That was one reason we started this blog, it's easier to post pictures. Other than that I liked the idea that anyone who was registered could start a conversation at the forum, and anyone could answer. We started up the forum again! It can be found here. What's neat about the forum is any number of topics can be brought up over time. One of the first forums is for those of us in the business of gardening. If you feel you can contribute or just want to check in and see what being said at the forum all you have to do is register, log in, and your ready to go. To register you'll have to use your e-mail address. I can assure you we don't collect e-mails for any other reason than for registering.
We will add topics to the forum as we, or you see fit. I started the “business of gardening†forum since I thought those of us in the various garden trades could use a place to meet, comment, and learn. My blog is a great way for me to start a conversation, but what if you want to start one but don't have a blog? Now you can post your thoughts and feelings at the forum. The goal is for anyone to be able to use this without my input. I will jump in if I have something important to say, but entire conversations can take place without my involvement.
The forum will expand to include subjects other than professionals and their interests. We want to start local conversations about gardens and gardeners in our area, as well as conversations that have interests outside our geographic area. The possibilities are endless.
You'll find a link at the bottom right hand side of this blog. There will also be a link at our main website thegoldengecko.com. When we send out our e-news to our mailing list customers the forum will have a link on the e-news so people can visit right from there. We want to see if we can get more of our local community involved, so forum topics concerning the dust up over native plants requirements in Placerville , or the looming water restrictions we could face, could be addressed.
Check it out and let me know what you think. Has anyone else in the garden center business had any experience with forums at their business? Are there any other garden centers doing this?