Garden Center celebrates 30th anniversary, announces return of print magazine

In 2026, Garden Center will once again publish a print magazine.

The issues will be mailed quarterly and will follow the seasons, starting with a Spring issue featuring insights from our highly anticipated annual State of the Industry Report, followed by a Summer issue with the coveted annual Top 100 Independent Garden Centers List.

Fall will spotlight the year’s new plant varieties, including from the California Spring Trials and Cultivate, and the Winter issue will feature our annual Spring Survival Guide to help retailers prepare for the busiest time of year.

To receive your first 2026 issue, which will mail in March, be sure to start or update your free subscription today.

It's a fitting announcement to make in 2025, which marks Garden Center’s 30th anniversary.

Why, in a time when many publishing companies are abandoning print, are we embracing it?

It’s simple. We listen to our readers and partners, and we heard you.

In early 2024, the GIE Media Horticulture Group made the strategic decision to shift Garden Center from a monthly print plus digital publication to an exclusively digital magazine.

As Editor Patrick Alan Coleman noted at the time, “We’ve been pushing IGCs to embrace a digital future for years. We’ve been telling you to improve your websites and preaching the importance of digital marketing. We’ve been talking about video and social media. … And what holds true for the world of IGCs holds true for the premier independent media outlet for the industry.

“We’re following our own advice, plain and simple. The change means that we will be more nimble, open to more voices and able to diversify our content in dynamic ways.”

That’s still true. No longer publishing a print magazine monthly means we get important information out sooner, tell more stories and do it on more platforms, like through our Fertile Ground live monthly digital event, our in-person Garden Center Conference & Expo and the GIE Media Horticulture Group’s podcast series, The Growth Industry.

We redesigned our newsletters so that they would be more engaging and responsive. Through our 2024 State of the Industry Report, which was published exclusively online and won two national awards, we were able to share important data in new, interactive ways. That focus on innovation and creating an excellent digital experience remains.

At the same time, we kept hearing from readers and partners that they missed the impactful storytelling and quality design of Garden Center. They missed the excitement of getting the issue in their mailbox. Retailers who ranked on our annual Top 100 Independent Garden Centers List questioned if they’d still receive a commemorative poster.

This year, we decided to publish a commemorative July standalone issue, which not only featured the Top 100 list and profiles about some of the ranking companies, but also the same business management advice we’ve always championed. The issue debuted at Cultivate’25 and was also featured at the Garden Center Conference & Expo, a show dedicated entirely to the IGC market.

We completely ran out of copies at both shows. Many people stopped by our booth asking if we’d consider publishing an issue for our State of the Industry Report.

We heard you.

We are grateful to have an audience as devoted as this one, and we’ve always valued feedback. Without the industry being willing to share stories, we would not be able to do what we do. The people who make up the independent garden center industry are special — and we’re proud to partner with you and share ideas and stories to contribute to your success.

While we will maintain our commitment to deliver digitally, we also can’t wait to return to our print magazine roots.

Don't forget to start or update your free subscription today to get our first 2026 print issue, mailing in March!

Read the press release about this announcement here.

Michelle Simakis is publisher of the GIE Media Horticulture Group, which includes Garden Center, Greenhouse Management, Nursery Management and Produce Grower magazines.