Cha-ching! (4-9)

So, how many annual Spring Expos have you hosted? At Wedel's Nursery, Florist & Garden Center in Kalamazoo, Mich., this year's recent extravaganza marked the 17th time the company has sprung spring on customers in that fashion. 

Andy Wedel, garden center manager, said the store's staff loves to take advantage of the notion that people are itching to get outside, garden and plant. And, boy does it take advantage. The event, called the Kalamazoo Flower and Garden Show, draws 4,000 to 5,000 people each year and features 30 free seminars on everything from birds to roses, annuals to perennials and herbs to wildlife.

Wedel said people have been known to come from four states to the show – it’s not unusual for the parking lot to be full – because the expo offers such a hands-on variety of gardening and landscaping information.

What was this year's "hot" trend? "Miniature gardening has caught on like you wouldn’t believe,” Wedel said.

While he's taking note of all the Cha-ching! from the event, you probably should just take note.

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