We’ve got the dirt on latest garden trends

It’s a good bet that if you’re a Manitoba gardener, you’ve been green-thumbing your way through seed catalogues and magazines since February. It’s April now, and that browsing may have gone to brooding over some fresh new ideas for 2025.

Those new ideas are reaching way back in time to gardens that reflect native species, sustainable practices, and wildlife-friendly plantings.

Bernie Whetter, owner/operator at The Green Spot Home & Garden in Brandon (greenspotbrandon.ca) shares a few ideas on the trends for gardens in 2025 — and the big one is growing native plants.

He says using plants native to a region fits in with the “keep it local” movements.

“Native plants are going to establish themselves better and they re-create the biodiversity from centuries ago when the buffalo roamed these parts,” he says.

These plants have a good chance of success because they are hardier.

“If you’ve heard of regenerative agriculture, this is doing that in a way. We’re regenerating what was. There’s a move to put things back and we can do that with native plants,” he says.

Most native plants are perennial.

“Perennials are a good thing because we’re not disturbing the soil every year,” he says.

“Disturbance changes the soil structure and the microorganism activity that’s going on. Perennials are deep-rooted, and they’re creating exudates (sugars) out of their root system, which feeds those microorganisms. You create this little biosphere where they’re all living symbiotically and it helps to make all this healthy.

Examples of native plants that Westman region gardeners should have success with include: black-eyed Susan, asters, goldenrod and sage.

Forage gardening is also trending this year. Forage gardens will include edible plants, and flowers for cutting.

Medicinal herbs can also be a big part of a foraging garden. Plants could include borage and basil.

“Echinacea is an example. We’re not eating the vegetation from that, but Echinacea is made into pills we take at the onset of colds,” he says.

“And a lot of these plants are used in naturopathic medicine which is much older than our Western medicine.”

Cut flowers are also for foraging gardens and they could include sunflower and black-eyed Susan.

The foraging garden is also for friendly wildlife like bees and birds.

“The name kind of gives it away but bee balm (monarda) is one,” he says.

Large and small Alliums (onion family) — think chives and plants that look like giant chives — are a good choice. Bergamot and Echinacea are also bee friendly.

A bee hotel will welcome your more neighbourly bees.

“We’re talking about the solitary bees, mason bees and leaf cutter bees. They create their own individual home for their egg laying. We would put them close to the garden so they’re not going very far and they’re able to pollinate right where they live,” he says.

“And the beauty of them is that they are not stingers so we can get up close and personal with them to see what they’re doing and they’re not going to bother you.”

Small space and containers plants are a nod to the “let’s get small” aesthetic.

“Typically in the small containers, we’re using succulents and cactus and things like that. We do have a native cactus that’s more like a prickly pear,” he says.

“You could use that if you’re looking to make a cactus garden and you could leave it outside for the winter because this is its home. But most people are not doing that.”

Instead, he suggests Buddleia as a local plant for small containers or vertical gardening.

What about plants that are not very thirsty?

“That’s going to include most native plants because our prairies went for long periods with no rain, so they developed hardiness to water deficiency,” he says.

Echinacea makes another appearance and Gaillardia is also water wise.

“A lot of the native grasses are very drought tolerant. The clovers, Bee Balm, Monarda, bergamot, goldenrod — those ones that we mentioned earlier are all drought tolerant,” he says.

Whetter says gardeners who are thinking about water conservation are looking at xeriscape gardening.

“A xeriscape landscape is where you use more rocks and plants that don’t need as much moisture. That’s where native plants could be happy and where you’ve got an attractive display of plants that makes you happy, makes the bugs happy, and again, you’re keeping it local,” he says.

He says one big punch of colour is trending in Canada.

“This year we’re seeing a resurgence of red. I’ve heard that talked about amongst various gardening groups that red might be the colour this year because of “Keep Canada Strong” and “we’re not for sale” kind of thing,” he says.

Whetter says the trend for native plantings is here to stay.

“Gradually, we are seeing increased consumption of the native plants. We’re bringing in more and more natives all the time and they’re in demand,” he says.

As for availability of these plants, he says the greenhouse is filling up.

“We’ll start seeing most of them move out by the second week of May and then by the third and fourth week of May, we peak in terms of what people take home,” Bernie Whetter says.

“We’re excited about the year again,” he says. “We’re just like farmers, we’re eternal optimists.”

» wendyjbking@gmail.com