There has been a huge impact celebrity influencers and social media has on driving millennials to be more active gardeners.
“Statistics from our research show that almost 50% of millennial gardeners use YouTube to search for growing inspiration, 38% use Facebook, 32% use Pinterest and 18% use Twitter,” said Gary Philpotts, chairman of the Common Sense Gardening initiative.
“28% of respondents said they actively followed celebrities who they felt were relevant to them, with 23% saying they followed celebrities who garden. Additionally, 32% said that social media influences their garden decisions. Proof, if it were needed, of the power social media and celebrity influencers can have on all aspects of our lives,” add Philpotts.
27% of respondents agreed that they find tips and inspiration from following celebrities, 25% aspire to have gardens and garden rooms like those of celebrities and unsurprisingly, 11% want to replicate celebrity lifestyle trends.
Other research reveals that celebrity influencers like Sienna Miller and Kelly Brooks are on a mission to make gardening sexy while health-conscious celebrities like Reese Witherspoon and Jake Gyllenhaal have taken to gardening so they can cultivate their own produce.
Greenery is making its way into the fashion world with succulents and ferns sitting pretty alongside the latest high street pieces in London outlets. Fashion celebrity icons like Kate Moss and Alexa Chung have expressed a love for all things leafy and beautiful houseplants have become an ‘it-item’ for high-end buyers.
Green-thumbed millennials are turned-on by the latest in gardening trends, and houseplants are certainly one of the most popular options, mainly because they are low-key, low-maintenance and yet give gardeners some serious ‘social’ credibility.
Common Sense Gardening’s 2018 research, conducted with 18-40 year-olds, revealed that 39% of respondents felt that the garden is the new living room, with 25% believing that garden care products are fundamental to the proper maintenance of their gardens and 37% saying they needed a faster impact solution to their problem areas.
“There is clearly a need to continue to help millennial gardeners grow their own social media presence by sharing details of their magnificent gardens and or, houseplants which replicate those of celebrity gardeners,” said Philpotts.
“The Common Sense Gardening initiative provides a key role in helping gardening millennials achieve just that, by providing online advice around the safety of garden products, assisting with any gardening issues and providing tips on the safe usage, storage and disposal of the garden products they use on a day-to-day basis to eradicate their problem areas.”