A Snapshot of Native Plant Growers In the U.S.

In 2022, I had the opportunity to dive deep into production factors that native plant growers use and how that compares to firms growing and selling non-native plants in the U.S. To set the stage, 4,641 U.S. growers participate in the study with 43% growing native plants and 57% growing non-native plants. Most growers were in the Southeast, Northeast, Midwest, and Appalachian regions. We found that Northeast and Appalachian regions had higher portions of native plant growers than non-native plant growers. Interestingly, firms selling native plants use a more diverse set of sales channels (1.3 channels) and average number of plant types sold (4.6 plant types) than non-native plant sellers (0.7 sales channels, 2.0 plant types). Native plant sellers also had a larger portion of their business designated as wholesale and retail (42% wholesale, 27% retail) compared to non-native plant sellers (37% wholesale, 24% retail). But a smaller portion of their businesses were designated as landscape services (15.8% for native plant sellers, 21.2% for non-native plant sellers). Native plant growers also reported using a more diverse array of IPM strategies than non-native plant growers, which may reflect the broader range of plant species grown and their unique care requirements. Regarding plant types sold, non-native plant growers had a larger portion of their annual sales from annuals, flowering potted plants, foliage plants, and other plant types than native plant growers. Conversely, native plant growers had a higher portion of perennials, shade trees, evergreens, deciduous shrubs, and broad-leaf evergreen shrubs. To read the full report, please visit https://doi.org/10.3390/su14116774.

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