Katie McCoy Dubow, president of Garden Media Group, walked us though current trends in the gardening business, identified through exhaustive research into consumer behavior. The overarching theme connecting the 2026 Garden Trends is “Lemonading.” With technology moving at a rapid pace, horticulture matters more than ever, Katie stressed. 

“Playfulness helps us feel grounded,” she explains. In response to the “Great Exhaustion” caused by the stresses of modern life, many people have a craving for simplicity, beauty, and connection.  They are redefining success as emotional wellbeing, rather than financial stability. “We are motivated to try something new, even if it flops,” Katie adds. “Lemonading can mean turning our outdoor spaces into joyful, living experiments!”

Here are the Lemonading Trends Katie and her team have identified:

1. Purpose-driven Gardening: The act of gardening, by its nature, is a form of living philanthropy, as it is an investment in the community, the planet, and the self. People are recognizing this. Certified Wildlife Habitat Registrations are up; brands that support local initiatives enjoy increased customer trust; and round-up campaigns, that is, asking customers to round up their purchase amounts for a charitable cause, are successful. To make the most of this aspect of gardening, Katie suggests that businesses choose a mission that aligns with what their customers care about, and tell a story. Introduce experiential giving, that is, connect your chosen mission with interactive workshops or community events. Customers that feel like partners in your brand’s mission will be loyal customers. 

2. Precision Gardening: The effects of climate change—fire, flooding, drought—present gardeners with increasing challenges. It behooves businesses to tailor their brands to meet their customers’ needs. Offering hyperlocal, site-specific, data-informed strategies for growing resilient landscapes will cut customers’ guesswork and build trust. Katie suggests positioning your brand as a trusted garden advisor with precision guides, classes, and tools.

3. Level Up: Never heard of cozy gaming? Take a look at Harvest Moon and Stardew Valley for starters. It turns out that gaming and gardening are not antithetical. These and other video games prioritize relaxation, and often involve activities like farming and gardening! One popular game released by Roblox this year is called Grow a Garden. How can a business tie in to this trend? Katie suggests creating plant collections inspired by popular games, or hosting meetups or in-store game nights. But make sure this is an authentic initiative, she cautions. Either play the games yourself or find a staffer who does. 

4. Personal Museum or, Curating Identity: Collecting is making a comeback! And plants are a fast growing collectible category: rare cultivars, new colors, variegated foliage, plants that support pollinators. The theme of collecting can extend to identifying the insects your plants attract, or foraging. Collecting can teach seasonal awareness, transform the mundane to the meaningful, and emphasize observation. Plant collecting in any form, says Katie, is slow joy.

5. Botanical Bento: “The Bento Box isn’t just a container, it’s a concept.” It’s about experiences designed with care, efficiency, and elegance—“small scale, highly considered, and deeply satisfying.” Katie suggests pairing plant palettes with experiences (“Grow Your Cocktail Garden,” for example), or curating seasonal “garden bento” boxes, beautifully packaged, and coordinated by pollinator type. “Lovely moments made accessible” can be seen as the antidote to doomscrolling—perfect for our times.

6. ‘Bark’itecture: Did you know that 70% of gardeners own pets? And many potential gardeners think that pets and gardens are incompatible. Correcting this notion opens the door to more plant buyers! Businesses can do this by featuring curated collections of pet-friendly plants such as bee balm, lavender, and Nepeta ‘Cat’s Pajamas’, or helping customers redesign their outdoor spaces with pets in mind. Gardens are not just for people, says Katie. They’re for your dogs and cats, too (not to mention backyard chickens and pygmy goats).

7. Kusumi Colors: Quiet joy makes another appearance with the understated elegance of the 2026 color of the year, Faded Petal, “a soft blush kissed by ash.” Look up “Nancy Meyers Interiors” to find out what this trend is all about. Refined coziness, nostalgia, romanticism are embodied in the Kusumi color palette. You’ll see it in rose colors and plant collections. Katie suggests hosting pressed flower workshops, or marketing Kusumi-inspired planting combos with a “Press it and preserve it” idea for each flower.

   You can download the complete 2026 Garden Trends Report here.