Top 9 Garden Center posts of April 2017

Throughout the month of April, the most-visited content on Garden Center's website included several stories of independent garden centers both opening new stores and closing locations down.

Video clips from our coverage of the 2017 California Spring Trials were also popular, as well as the saddening announcement of lifelong nurseryman Jim Zampini's passing, among other news and stories. We've compiled a list of the 9 most popular news posts, magazine articles and multimedia projects posted to gardencentermag.com in April, as ranked by total page views:

1. Petitti Garden Centers closes one of its nine locations - The Richmond Heights, Ohio, location was a retail outlet in a Sears department store, which also closed at the end of March.

2. Al's Garden & Home opens new location - The Oregon-based grower-retailer has opened a fourth store in a former garden center property, and refreshed its brand.

3. Jim Zampini dies at 85 - The lifelong nurseryman bred, selected and introduced more than 200 patented and trademarked plants to the industry.

4. Long-lasting sunflowers [video] - Sunfinity from Syngenta Flowers is an interspecific hybrid, giving it a longer life at retail, in the garden and as a cut flower.

5. Cultivate the kid connection - By making your independent garden center kid-friendly, you can build today’s business while investing in the future.

6. New garden center saves 42 acres from commercial development - According to the Oyster Bay, N.Y., Patch site, a land trust ensured the property will be forever used for agricultural purposes only.

7. California environmental health agency links glyphosate with cancer - Though researchers present conflicting reports, the agency became the first U.S. regulatory body to list the weedkiller as a known carcinogen.

8. Farmers market inspiration - Bushel and Berry's fresh new look harks back to traditional fruit packaging.

9. A portulaca with 'pizazz' - Danziger's new Pazzaz Nano portulaca turned heads with its colorful, large blooms.