Father-and-son gardening experts Mark and Ben Cullen (BComm’15) share their perspective on 2018 gardening trends. Ben studied agriculture at the University of Guelph before heading to Halifax to pursue his interest in the food industry through Dalhousie’s Bachelor of Commerce program.

Gardening trends are constantly changing. Never faster than now.

Some things don’t change (thankfully), like the sound of the wind in the trees, bird song and the daffodils that arrive each spring, while others do. Here is our list of the top current trends that deserve your attention:

1. Unique and heirloom plant varieties will gain traction as beginner gardeners build confidence and discover a world of wonders beyond the front page of the seed catalogue or the homepage of a seed company’s website.

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2. Indoor plants continue their takeover of apartments, condos and homes across Canada. This trend has been growing for a couple years now, so expect to see newbie-growers moving from bullet-proof spider plants and pathos into more exotic specimens, such as orchids, tropical hibiscus, or carnivorous plants, such as Nepenthes ‘Rebecca Soper’. Where indoor plants are concerned, it seems like the ’70’s all over again, minus the macramé.

3. Biodiversity will be important as ever as we learn more about threats to the Earth’s rain forests and green spaces closer to home. You can mark Mark’s words on this: in 20 years there will be as many insect hotels as there are birdhouses in Canadian yards.

Read more in “The Cullens: Here is our take on garden trends for 2018” on thesudburystar.com.

Learn more about Mark and Ben Cullen at markcullen.com.

Image: markcullen.com