Sunny days, big smiles, and messy hands… If that’s what springtime means to your child, then it’s time to get outside and get growing! April is national Kids Garden Month, an initiative spearheaded by the youth-focused nonprofit KidsGardening to inspire and encourage kids to get into gardening.

Gardening benefits children in countless ways. From hands-on learning about science and biology to physical fitness and creative play with colors and textures, home gardening helps children steward our natural world while learning – plus it’s a “screen-free” activity!

If you’re stumped on how to get started, never fear! We’ve got three tips for getting your kids excited and inspired to garden!

In today's culture, customers ideas, passions and wants change at the drop of a hat or at least at the drop of a new trend.

Companies have a moving target they are working hard to please - their customers. 

Today's culture of self-care has some companies and industries in trouble. 

So, what are they doing to change that? Read more to find out.

Purple Reign is the next deep dive of Nature’s Rx for Mental Wellness, the theme for the 2018 Garden Trends Report.

If you missed the other deep dives, here are Breathing Rooms, Social Network, Climate Controlled, Make a Splash and Imperfect Gardening.

Look around you, purple is the color of 2018. In fashion, in the home and… in the garden.

Ultra Violet was named Pantone’s color of 2018 as well because it communicates originality, ingenuity and visionary thinking that points us toward the future.

But what does that mean for your garden or your health? 

Imperfect Gardening is the next deep dive of Nature’s Rx for Mental Wellness, the theme for the 2018 Garden Trends Report.

If you missed the other deep dives, here are Breathing Rooms, Social Network, Climate Controlled and Make a Splash. 

Nowadays people are overstimulated and overworked. There seems to always be something going on, but sometimes it is best to take a step back and enjoy the imperfections. Especially in the garden.

More people need to practice the ancient Japanese Wabi-Sabi. Wabi-Sabi appreciates imperfections in life and the ability to age gracefully.

When applied to the garden, the practice is relaxing and enjoyable.

Make a Splash is the next segment of Nature’s Rx for Mental Wellness, the theme for the 2018 Garden Trends Report, we are diving deeper into.

If you missed the other deep dives, here are Breathing Rooms, Social Network and Climate Controlled. 

There’s tremendous support for water as a decorative feature and environmental tactic. Preparing the garden to embrace storms and excess rainfall will not only help save water but also help to control storm water runoff.

The growing trend of filtering water with plants helps with healthy water management, while still keeping beauty in the garden.

So, where do we begin?

2018 is officially here!

This year Garden Media Group is taking a break – a mental break that is. Our focus for this year is mental wellness and with that comes a few resolutions to make that happen.

Before we jump into what resolutions we are looking forward to, let’s take a look back in 2017.

Brands did some great things and some not so great things. In the spirit of growing, let’s see what we can learn from 2017.

Use Your Voice: Thousands of women stood up and spoke up with #MeToo. This led to a cover of Time magazine as “Person of the Year.” As Trump took office, companies raced to get their brand in order to see what they were going to do to help immigrants have a voice of their own.

Using your voice doesn’t mean speaking out against every issue – it does mean backing the issues your brand, customers and employees might be dealing with.

Podcasts and Videos: It has been shown time and time again video marketing is here to stay! How-To videos are great for millennials and vlogger influencers are trending like crazy. Podcasts are picking up quickly. Branded video content being featured or even sponsoring a podcast is a great way to get your name out there in a new niche.

Narrow it down: Brands that have narrowed down their audience and created content for specific people have hit the nail on the head. Netflix did a great job of this while promoting the newest Stranger Things season. They used era specific photos and hints to really drive the nostalgia of the 80s.

Continue reading to see what resolutions to follow in 2018.

Technology is arguably the best invention to happen since sliced bread. It allows us to FaceTime with far away family members, watch our friends live their lives through social media, know the great things happening all around the world and show off our achievements for our friends and family to see.

On the other hand, being plugged in all the time is exhausting. As a society we are constantly distracted, not being present in real life situations, missing out on once in a lifetime moments. We are stressed out with the notifications popping up on our phones, the constant emails coming through and the strain our eyes experience staring at screen for hours on end.

As a result, our physical and mental wellness is suffering, yet we can’t break the pattern. It has become the norm so much so that we aren’t realizing how it affects our bodies on the day to day basis.

One by one, let’s work on taking a break from the demands of the internet and devices and have a digital detox.

Trust me, that Facebook post will still be funny later.

Continue reading for three ways to go on a digital detox – even if you are surrounded by technology.

Summer is the best time of the year to be outside — soaking up some sun, being in nature and enjoying the day. You may also find that it is the hardest part of the year to be stuck in an office, losing out on that summer glow and daydreaming about being anywhere but your desk.

While it may be hard to focus on what is in front of you, with some readjusting (and some motivation), you can get back on track to power through this season!

Continue reading for 5 tips on staying productive this summer.

Memorial Day Weekend is right around the corner and at Garden Media we’re finalizing our travel plans, getting excited to visit family or friends, or simply looking forward to a long, relaxing weekend.

Unfortunately, this isn’t the case for everyone.

Project Time Off, a movement powered by the US Travel Association, encourages people to take a vacation. Research shows that year after year, fewer Americans are using all of their allotted vacation hours. While many think skipping out on vacation and working extra hours is beneficial for their careers, it may actually have the opposite effect.

Read more to learn how going on vacation can improve your business.