April 6, 2023

2023 Gardening Trends

Creating Your Backyard Oasis

2023 Gardening Trends

Over the past few years, there has been a rejuvenated focus on improving our backyards and outdoor spaces to create restful places in which we can de-stress, connect with nature, and entertain friends and family. While we aren’t seeing any major changes in backyard-focused trends, we are seeing a shift in desired aesthetics and how plants are utilized to elevate these spaces.

Whether you’re planning a complete backyard overhaul or looking to make small adjustments to enhance the landscape, here are 5 trends to look for in 2023.

Trend #1

Creating Restful Spaces

The emphasis on cultivating outdoor spaces we enjoy spending time in is still a prominent trend in gardening. Whether it’s for our own enjoyment, or for hosting friends and family, creating our own backyard oasis is a great way to relax and unwind.

Create cozy outdoor spaces with patio furniture, beautify the patio with container gardens, and enhance the landscape by planting your favorite perennials, trees, and shrubs.

Trend #2

Gardening to Unwind

We often think of spending time on the patio, enjoying the gardens we’ve created, as a way to de-stress. But, the act of gardening itself as a way to de-stress has become increasingly popular. Being outdoors, connecting with nature, and spending time focusing on the garden has been proven to improve our general health and well-being.

Maintaining plants, whether in the ground or in containers, doesn’t have to be a chore to cross off the list. It is a fun way to spend time outdoors, get our hands dirty, and even produce our own food!

Some of our favorite plants to get started with are:

  • Easy, fast-growing Annuals
  • Aromatic Herbs
  • Succulents (indoors & out)
  • Edible plants in containers (think Tomatoes, Peppers, and even Blueberries)

nostalgic gardens

Trend #3

From orderly, Victorian cottage gardens to scaled-back, Mediterranean designs, we’ve seen a revival of nostalgic garden themes.

Ordered Victorian Gardens

Heavily influenced by popular, Victorian-era TV shows, these gardens rely on repeat-blooming perennials, trees, and shrubs in soft color pallets. Think charming stone pathways lined with soft pink Dianthus blooms that wind through romantic arbors draped with wonderfully-scented Roses or Wisteria. Boxwood hedges and neatly trimmed shrubs provide structure in these whimsical-yet-ordered landscape designs.

Flowering shrubs perfect for Victorian cutting gardens: Shrub Roses, Lilacs, Hydrangeas, Butterfly Bushes

nostalgic gardens

Trend #3

Mediterranean Gardens

Mediterranean gardens are also becoming increasingly popular. Influenced by climate change and the need for resilient plants, these gardens feature structural foliage plants, tropical flowering plants, and hardy succulents. Potted topiaries, soft-textured herbs, and boldly-colored plants like Bougainvillea and Tropical Hibiscus accentuate the Greek influences in these gardens. Gravel pathways, stone walls and statuary, and terracotta pottery bring hardscape structure that underscores the minimal-yet-cozy vibe of these Mediterranean-influenced outdoor spaces.

Easy-care, sun-loving plants perfect for Mediterranean gardens include Olive trees, Boxwood, Lavender, Hardy Succulents, Bougainvillea, Yarrow, and Citrus.

Learn More About Mediterranean Gardening

Trend #4

Mixing Flowers & Edibles

Companion planting is a long-standing practice amongst all types of gardeners, especially vegetable gardeners. For more utilitarian purposes, we commonly see plants like marigolds tucked in and around vegetable gardens to attract pests away from our tomato plants or patches of spinach and strawberries mixed together to increase yield and hide ripping berries from birds. The newest trend in companion planting leans into the aesthetic of intermixing edible plants with landscape staples as a way to maximize the space we have to grow in. Picture gorgeous heads of cabbage intermixed with clusters of flowering perennials or a swath of blooming chives around structural evergreen shrubs. Maybe it’s the colorful stems and striking texture of Swiss chard providing a backdrop for flowering annuals.

Whatever combination works best for your garden, and your summer meal planning, try mixing edible plants in your landscape this season!

Trend # 5

Pollinator Gardens

Creating a space teeming with life & activity is one of the most important topics amongst gardening aficionados and new gardens alike. Sure, supporting the pollinators that frequent our gardens has always been important, but recent years have made this topic a driving force in landscape design. “What’s the best way to start supporting pollinators” you may ask. It’s actually fairly simple! You’ll just need to provide the primary essentials of nectar and pollen-rich plants for food, clean water sources for drinking and bathing, and shelter from the weather and predators. Read our Pollinator Gardening blog for more information on the best way to establish your own pollinator garden.

Some of our favorite pollinator plants to use include Milkweed, Sunflowers, Echinacea (aka Coneflowers), and Bee Balm.​

Learn More About Pollinator Gardening

Enhance your space with

New Plants for 2023

From new Proven Winners® Supertunias® to new colors in the Ice N’ Roses Hellebores series, we’re excited to offer a sneak peek of new Annuals, Perennials, and Shrubs that will be available at Petitti Garden Centers this spring.

View New Plants

Learn & Explore

Garden Inspirations

Looking for more garden inspiration? Check out our blogs on related topics, plus learn how other Northeast Ohio gardeners are displaying their favorite plants in their own gardens.

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