How "Green" and Sustainable is our Green Industry?

The Topic of the Day at the Mobley Plant Farm Open House Sept. 28 was that Green Industry practitioners really ought to show leadership in adopting sustainable practices, and they invited some great speakers and had terrific demos and workshops to examine this point. As a working definition for sustainability, “Meeting the current needs without eliminating the potential for the future to meet theirs” was used.

Dr. Allan Armitage emphasized “the right plant in the right place” concept, naming plant favorites from his UGA Test Gardens that withstand the local climate without pampering. Sustainability is not a fad but is here to stay, he noted, citing trends including color, containers, low maintenance and recycling. He is a big proponent of Mobley Greensleeves, a paper sleeve surrounding a ball of growing mix that eliminates the need for plastic pots, is faster to plant, saves labor costs and biodegrades in the soil. He called them “sausages” of potting mix (they are bottomless) and said he’s used them successfully in the test gardens for five years. Mobley people go the extra mile to pick up and reuse/recycle the trays they use to deliver Greensleeves plants to their customers.

Another company demonstrating CSR is Garden Debut(R)'s parent company, Greenleaf Nursery Company in Oklahoma, an industry leader with a long history of good environmental stewardship. Their voluntary water recycling program and comprehensive eco-friendly fertilization and insect-management systems received third-party validation and awards from the U.S. EPA: Environmental Excellence and Pollution Prevention Award, the Sierra Club: Earth Care Award and the Environmental Leadership Award from the Southern Nursery Association, all for forward-thinking and voluntary action.


At the open house Dr. Richard Ludwig quoted a study from about 18 months ago showing 46% of landscape customers have zero interest in sustainability; 26% are green washed (green in theory but will not change any behaviors) and 6% will use green practices if they are cheaper or easier than current behavior. This leaves only 20% who actually make an effort to be green and only 2% advocates who have changed their lives based on principles of sustainability.

As an industry, Ludwig continued, we create artificial environments. Despite that hurdle, the new goal is to make them functional; environmentally friendly; cost effective; visually pleasing; and profitable. He urged landscapers/retailers/designers to provide a better customer experience by educating clients to invest in their landscapes, to lower energy costs by smart plant placement, to save water through irrigation technology, and so forth, thereby increasing customer satisfaction and trust. Only then will customers be open to redirection on the matter of sustainable procedures and organic products, which may be a tad more expensive but are better for the community overall.

At the recent 2010 Garden Writers Association annual symposium in Dallas, Keynote Speaker Kierstin De West had discovered a different and more hopeful perspective. De West’s SHIFT Report was based on 5,000 responses from across North America, and she found that people are starting to make lifestyle and purchasing decisions based on integrity and social responsibility. When people feel connected to the community their sustainable behavior increases. I know we are all hopeful that this research predicts the future.

I won a homemade pumpkin pie at Mobley's Open House, so I feel pretty connected. Let me hear what you are doing to connect with your community!