T&SG: POST COVID-19 HORTICULTURE WITH DR CHARLIE HALL

Tree & Shrub Growers: The post COVID-19 horticulture industry with Dr Charlie Hall

By Matt Ross

On 18th August, the Tree & Shrub Growers held an online meeting to discuss the American Horticulture sector during COVID-19 and what it could mean for trends in the Australian industry post-COVID.

Attendees had the opportunity to hear from Dr Charlie Hall, Ellison Chair in International Floriculture, Texas A&M University. The session was expertly hosted by Heath McKenzie of Australian Growing Solutions.

Charlie, as he prefers to be known, began his academic career at Texas A&M University in 1988. His expertise is in the production and marketing of Green Industry crops. He’s the Chief Economist for AmericanHort, Co-Chair of the Advisory Council of Seed Your Future and grew up in the nursery industry.

Charlie suggested that the impact of COVID-19 in America, largely mirrored that of Victoria’s, the boom of gardening,

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However, when the post-crisis recovery kicks in, traditionally, it results in gardening spend dropping at this stage. Charlie is hopeful that this time might be different; people have tasted biophilia and its benefits are fresh in the collective memories. “This is a health crisis. The health benefits of gardening are in high demand.”

At Government level, Charlie believes urban greening projects that were ‘shovel ready’ will proceed but is concerned that, traditionally, green projects tend to be sacrificed when there is a recession. He was quick to point out that spending on green projects negates future environmental and health crisis and that with more foresight Government’s would see green spend as a saving in the long run.

“It’s my mission to help people understand plantlife is essential, it’s not a luxury item. We’re not there yet but collectively we must keep telling them that the environmental and health benefits are too significant to ignore. We need to educate people to put a dollar value to what we do, we do that by understanding what it is that people value and what they are willing to pay for. I believe that those things are the health and environmental benefits.”

The experience people are having of working remotely is also leading to more people leaving cities to seek slower living, with greater connection to nature. This phenomenon is known as de-urbanisation. There’s an increased willingness to spend locally and support local businesses, and whilst this has many benefits, it may well result in increased costs in the long term as global trade in impacted.

Charlie shared an anecdote of what he believes is effective marketing of plantlife. “A local grower that grew short term crops that they couldn’t sell, had the choice of disposing of the crop or finding a creative use for it. They decided to take the crop of Easter Lily to local nursing homes, hospitals, fire stations, and so on. They filmed and shared videos of people

who were truly moved to receive these plants and sharing that joy resonated with many others. It put a tangible value on the plants that others could relate to.”

Charlie believes that individual businesses sharing their own messages of the benefits of plantlife, is more impactful than a strategic, conventional whole industry marketing campaign.

Charlie also spoke of the importance of exposing school children to gardening and horticulture. “We must reach these young people before they get to university and make their career choices. Our industry is full of career variety and opportunity. That’s what we do at seedyourfuture.org”

Amongst all the things we can’t impact right now, we still have many choices in the way we steer our businesses. Charlie wants us all to focus on our business core values and core stock, and use them to guide our future.

Charlie was a wonderfully, engaging guest and shared some fantastic insights. A big thank you to him for giving us his time and sharing so generously. It was fantastic to bring together industry figures from across Australia to share and learn from one another. Proving that meaningful collaboration can continue despite the logistical challenges.

The Tree and Shrub Growers of Victoria is the largest sectional interest group of the Nursery & Garden Industry Victoria (NGIV). The group consists of members of the NGIV involved with nursery plant production and allied trade and provides fantastic networking opportunities across all areas of industry.

Contact NGIV to find out more and learn how to become a member of the Tree and Shrub Growers of Victoria.

About the author

Dr Charlie Hall, Ellison Chair in International Floriculture, Texas A&M University.