It has been said time and time again: Your garden business needs a blog.

It's not just about driving traffic to your website, but a green, glorious company blog sets you apart as an authority in your field.

Plus, blogging is a great way to offer expert advice and gently remind your customers that you are the “go to place” for information and ideas, and heck, even products!

However, maintaining a garden blog is an investment of time, energy, and creativity. Fresh ideas and interesting topics that free flow in the first few weeks may be more difficult to come by on a regular basis.

Read on to discover 3 simple tips to keep your garden blog fresh and top of mind for your customer, too!

“Dress up your yard” is slated to be a BIG garden trend in spring 2014.

As the weather warms up, homeowners want their gardens and outdoor living spaces to be a place where they can entertain guests on the weekends or relax after a hard day's work.

Flowers are no longer the only way consumers are adding pizazz to their yards. Gardeners and home stylists of all kinds are going the extra mile and dressing up their gardens in a number of creative ways this spring.

From decorative planters to creative DIY projects, people are constantly looking for the newest way to set their garden apart.

See how your garden business can take hold of the "Dress Up Your Yard" garden trend this spring below.

From organic produce to reusable grocery bags, concern for the environment is having a BIG impact on countless aspects of life. 

Due to this eco-friendly emphasis, an interest in eating healthier, and efforts to reduce wasteful spending, the gardening world is getting a face lift!

The lawn and garden industry has become the third most profitable market, bringing in around $58 billion annually.  But it’s not stopping there! 

Garden Media predicts that this number will continue to steadily increase on a global scale.

One big reason gardening will continue to grow is due to the growing number of DIY gardeners. Below Garden Media dishes on how the DIY gardening trend will keep growing in 2014--and how your garden business can capitalize.

Holiday-themed campaigns and real-time marketing are a big trend right now.

And, this year, spooky flowers and garden accessories are hot, too. They're popping up everywhere, from Urban Gardens to Sunset magazine.

It's a natural fit though. Halloween is about things that go bump in the night, and what better decorations than those that are ALIVE! 

Below are 9 garden plants and products that will add something unexpected to your Halloween décor this year for a unique, spooky twist on the typical.  Because we know- you’re anything but typical.

Big news! Garden Media Group has released the 13th annual Garden Trends Report!

Finding happiness and balance in the garden is the theme of the 2014 Garden Trends Report, which identifies several lifestyle shifts and 12 garden trends for 2014.

If you want to be on top of things and love hearing about the hottest consumer, garden, home, and lifestyle trends, you'll want to download our trends report. If you love talking about trends and want to use them to grow your brand and maximize your garden business, you'll want to join us for "Trending Thursday" every Thursday here on GROW!  

Looking ahead, Garden Media sees six balanced sets shaping greener lifestyle choices people are making for their homes, gardens and outdoor living.

Below is a snippet of Garden Media Group's 2014 Trends Report. Download the complete report for all the details and predictions for 2014!

It goes without being said that at Garden Media Group, we LOVE plants. We think, write, promote, market, and revel in all kinds of plants and horticulture accessories day in and day out.

But, today, January 10^th, we want to stand on rooftop gardens and shout our love for one special kind of plant today: the houseplant! In fact, January 10^th is and always will be houseplant appreciation day.

After all, we’ve got a heck of a lot to be thankful for; houseplants are more than just a pretty face—though they truly are beautiful, aren’t they? Go ahead, revel in the day!

Buy a new houseplant, share your love by gifting a plant, sing to your plant today, whisper a thank you in its leaves, whatever works for you, works for us too! As long as you celebrate and appreciate the houseplant, we (and your houseplants) will be more than happy!

The branding article in print in Green Profit.

I recently wrote an article about image building and rebranding for Green Profit magazine and wanted to share: 

"You know what they say about first impressions lasting a lifetime? Baloney! From people to brands and politicians, this country is all about second chances. You just have to know how to reintroduce yourself properly and to the right people.

You've perhaps seen this French flower promotion on Acres Online or on Facebook, “Hello madame, which is your preferred flower?”  It worked getting my attention! Yet that is so rare in today's advertising climate. 

October is finally here. The brisk air and shorter days give way not only to the fall season, but also, to the Garden Writers Association (GWA) Symposium and the introduction of new garden products and plants for 2013.

The GWA Symposium is the most highly anticipated event of the year for professional communicators in the lawn and garden industry. This year the 64^th annual Symposium, held in Tucson, Arizona from October 12^th -16^th, will be attended by some 600 print and broadcast garden communicators and bloggers from around the world.