Weekend Reading 11/8/24

Welcome to Garden Center magazine's Weekend Reading, a weekly round-up of consumer garden media stories meant to help IGCs focus marketing efforts, spark inspiration and start conversations with consumers.

This week: The "beeple" who've collected 25,000 bees for wild bee research, pollinator gardens vs. perfect lawns, using both "cosmopolitan plants" and native species, and the resilience of independent businesses against Amazon.

Twenty master gardeners have collected 25,000 bees. Here's why, The Washington Post

The Washington Post introduces the "beeple" who are setting records and supercharging wild bee research in Pennsylvania.

Pollinator Gardens vs. Perfect Lawns: A Growing Movement, and Growing Tensions, Columbus Monthly

As the native plant movement grows, more people are creating biodiverse habitats at home. But they're clashing with neighbors who prefer manicured lawns, Joel Oliphint writes for Columbus Monthly.

Making Room for ‘Cosmopolitan Plants’ Among Native Species, The New York Times

The landscape designer Donald Pell believes using a wider palette with nonnatives from around the world can add joy to gardens, The New York Times reports.

Why some retail has been resilient against Amazon, Retail Dive

Experts say that indie shops have stuck around in the Amazon era because of the products they sell and how they sell them — and because of the people who are both buying and selling, Retail Dive reports.

Enjoy your reading, have a great weekend and we'll see you next week!