2025 Axiom Gardening Outlook Study graphic | Axiom Marketing
Interest in home gardening continues to rise despite concerns about the economy and inflation; however, respondents to a recent research study saying they spent more time gardening in 2024 dropped 10.9% from last year. In addition, respondents planning to plant more and expand their gardens in 2025 dropped 8.8% from last year.
The research, conducted by Axiom, a Minneapolis-based marketing firm serving horticultural, agricultural, and home improvement markets, found meaningful increases in time and money spent on gardening in 2024 and plans for 2025 among Gen Z and Gen Y segments.
“This is the first year since we launched the Axiom Gardening Outlook Study that we’ve observed decreases in time spent gardening and plans to plant more and expand their gardens,” says Mike Reiber, founder and CEO of Axiom. “These decreases indicate a potential leveling that merits further investigation. Despite these decreases, however, 4 in 10 respondents say they plan to spend more money on gardening in 2025 and plan to spend more time gardening in 2025.”
Gen Z and Gen Y Gardening Trends
According to Reiber, key findings among Gen Z and Gen Y include:
- Gen Z (65.4%) and Gen Y (47%) were the top two segments reporting the greatest increases in additional time spent gardening in 2024.
- Gen Z (46.2%) and Gen Y (43.9%) were the top two segments that are expected to spend more money on gardening in 2025.
- Gen Z (69.2%) and Gen Y (51%) were the top two segments that are expected to spend more time gardening in 2025.
Garden Shopping and Supply Trends
Reiber notes The Home Depot dominated garden supply and plant purchases; however, he believes independent garden centers (IGCs) remain relevant to home gardeners.
- The Home Depot was the top purchase source for garden supplies (32.2%) and garden plants (33.9%.) IGCs were 20% lower than The Home Depot for garden supplies and 19% lower for garden plants.
- When asked where they find the highest quality garden plants, 30.3% of respondents named IGCs with 24.7% citing The Home Depot.
- The top 3 reasons for visiting IGCs included: more plant choices (29.9%), new plant varieties (17.4%), and help choosing the right plant (13.8%.)
- When asked which retailer had the most knowledgeable store associates, 25.7% of respondents named IGCs with 23.7% citing The Home Depot.
- 62.8% of respondents had the same number of visits to IGCs compared to last year.
Online Gardening Trends
According to Reiber, websites and YouTube are important information sources where home gardeners learn about new plants and gardening supplies.
- 28% of respondents named websites as the most important place to learn about new plants and gardening supplies compared to 16.8% for IGCs and 11.8% for TheHome Depot.
- 38.5% of respondents named YouTube as the most important social medium compared to 18.4% for Facebook and 12.8% for Instagram.
For more information on the Axiom 2025 Gardening Outlook Study, download the report here: https://axiomcom.com/2025-gardening-outlook-study/
