The Hijacking of Trends in Horticulture

When I began learning about horticulture, I was taught how to control bacterial and fungal diseases caused by excess water in the landscapes; we were taught to remove leaf litter to prevent the disease organisms from overwintering.  Merely a decade later, we are teaching students to keep leaf litter and other organic matter in order to protect the plants from drought and to return vital minerals to the soil.  During the last dozen years, I have been working and studying in the horticulture industry and I have certainly seen patterns of change as we scramble to keep up with climate change as well as shifting community priorities.  

Now we are two years into a global pandemic and almost every industry is having to pivot, but this time I do not see any pattern.  While thinking about the changing landscape of horticulture (pardon the pun), I read an article about the impact of the pandemic on horticulture specifically, (Bulgari et al., 2021).  This article helped me to see the future in a more positive light with the opportunity for us to reset our thinking and let go of things we do 'because they've always been done like this'.

Prior to the onslaught of Covid-19, the horticulture industry was relatively healthy.  Advancements in technology and automaton were allowing greenhouses and nurseries to increase production.  Landscape installers and maintenance companies could take on larger or more numerous jobs with more efficient equipment to do the heavy lifting and technology to communicate with employees.  With the urbanization of communities, green spaces were becoming valued for their physical, psychological, social, and environmental benefits, so much so that tax-payers were becoming more comfortable with the costs of their upkeep.   At the same time, horticulture was suffering the same labour shortage that other industries were experiencing, and horticulture education was seeing a decline (Brown et al., 2019).

     A large group of horticulture professionals in British Columbia were working on the problem of labour shortage when Covid-19 began, followed by wildfires, and then flooding and mudslides.  These events have shown the fragility of our supply chains, particularly for food production.  Farms like the one shown here (see image below), may not have been flooded at this time, but they have still been cut off by the destruction of our major roadways.  Growers have struggled to get the supplies they need, to bring in the harvests they’ve grown, and to get their produce to the market. 

Aerial view of my cousin's farm when the

dyke was holding back the flood waters. 

Image Credit: Robert Williams, (2021)

    The revenue from ornamental horticulture has also declined (Bulgari et al., 2021), but this is more likely the lack of inventory rather than a lack of demand.  I do not worry about the future of that sector though, because the pandemic has also increased the popularity of home gardening.  People are spending more time at home, and many are making changes and improvements to the gardens where they spend their time.  Home gardeners have also started to grow more food (reducing their reliance on imported fresh food) as well as see health benefits from the activities involved in working in the landscape, (Bulgari et al., 2021). 

    Given that British Columbia is still dealing with the pandemic, flooding, and extensive road repairs following the extraordinary weather events, there is much to be concerned about.  However, I feel optimism for the horticulture sector given its importance to our communities and the opportunities presented by the chaos.  In particular, Bulgari et al. (2021) bring to light some encouraging opportunities to rebuild the industry in a way that will foster resilience:

• Utilizing the most current hygiene practices to ensure safe food production (Bulgari et al., 2021) 

• Utilizing new media timely supply/sales/sharing of information (Peterson et al., 2018) 

• Creating multiple supply chains, including the reservation of a portion of local produce for local markets (Bulgari et al., 2021) 

• Integrating vertical farming, indoor farming, rooftop production, and other new methods to make the most of our growing space and shorten supply chains (Bulgari et al., 2021) 

• Supporting the use of green spaces for physical and psychological healing and overall health

    I personally hope that the demand for employees with the skills to apply these new techniques will increase the value of education in horticulture for employers and workers alike. This will rely on the instructors (as always) to continually update their courses to stay relevant and keep up with the current technology/industry needs.

References: 

Brown, A. J., Allen, P. S., Jolley, G. V., & Stewart, J. R. (2019). The Downward Trend in Postsecondary Horticulture Program Availability between 1997 and 2017, HortTechnology hortte, 29(4), 417-422. Retrieved Dec 14, 2021, from https://journals.ashs.org/horttech/view/journals/horttech/29/4/article-p417.xml 

Bulgari, R., Petrini, A., Cocetta, G., Nicoletto, C., Ertani, A., Sambo, P., Ferrante, A., et al. (2021). The Impact of COVID-19 on Horticulture: Critical Issues and Opportunities Derived from an Unexpected Occurrence. Horticulturae, 7(6), 124. MDPI AG. Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae7060124 

Peterson, H. H., Boyer, C. R., Baker, L. M., & Yao, B. H. (2018). Trends in the use of new-media marketing in U.S. ornamental horticulture industries. Horticulturae, 4(4), 32. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae4040032