A display garden with multiseasonal interest can show customers how to keep their landscape lively all year, as well as increase a company's sales and profits.

It isn't unusual to see landscapes come alive in spring and summer, as that's when the gardening season begins for many homeowners across the nation. Previously planted perennials reappear in all their glory, and garden lovers take their containers out of storage and start shopping for the perfect plants to make their yards exquisite. Yet when the sun sets on summer, these once scenic settings often times turn drab and dull, keeping many out of the garden.

Nursery professionals shouldn't assume, however taut a landscape empty of autumn and winter cheer is the result of an apathetic homeowner. For many people, that isn't the case. More likely, these novice gardeners simply don't know what is available to them when it comes to growing landscapes that offer interest throughout the year.

So how can nursery operations help their customers develop gardens that won't fade away with the end of summer? Twombly Nursery, Monroe, CT, has tackled this problem by developing and maintaining a multiseasonal display garden that educates visitors on everything from creating autumn and winter interest to using innovative plant combinations.

Seeing is Believing.
For landscape designers and homeowners, putting together an outdoor space that holds multiseasonal interest is sometimes impeded by the individual's inability to visualize how the finished area will look., They don't think to ask themselves, "If I plant this tree now, how is it going to look when it matures in the landscape?" Or, "How is this tree going to look with this perennial?"

Enter the display garden. Since 1994, Twombly Nursery has developed and maintained 22 display beds. And because owner Ken Twombly planted many of the trees that grace the company's property since the nursery established itself more than 30 years ago, mature specimens are plentiful. These trees have given the nursery a way to show visitors how some of the plant material it sells in its retail store will appear over time-as well as illustrate how various species look when partnered with other plants.

"Plant combinations are what customers have the most difficulty with," says Tom Bodnar, the nursery's marketing director. "Our display beds are set up separate unto themselves and also as part of a larger garden so customers can see how plants work together." For instance, garden visitors can witness how a mature conifer appears with a broadleaf evergreen or a plant with red berries, Bodnar explains. Additionally, customers looking for four-season interest can use the nursery's display gardens as inspiration. Above and beyond this, such spaces give customers and landscape designers a way to visualize how a design concept they may be considering will work.

But that isn't all display gardens can be used for - and many of the benefits these features offer are directly related to the operation that takes the time to develop and maintain their displays. For example, display gardens allow business to extend their own growing season, Bodnar says. "Having a display garden that is multiseasonal allows us to extend the season either end of winter," he explains. "It isn't all about winter, because our display garden also pushes sales in autumn, which the industry is now looking as a second planting season."

Another benefit of creating a display garden is that it gives the nursery operations a means of exhibiting any unique offerings. "Our display garden is great for showcasing the unusual plants we grow," Bodnar reports. "It gives plant enthusiasts the opportunity to see things that, until then, they had only seen in books."

Rising Sales.
Some nursery operations may not have as much room as Twombly Nursery to develop elaborate display beds. But according to Bodnar, a lack of space shouldn't stop green industry professionals from creating an area where customers can view what the company grows and sells. "It is imperative that no matter how much space you have, you must have something that shows what is possible," he advises.

Why? Perhaps the biggest reason is this leads to more sales, adding to a company's bottom line. Much of what is on display at Twombly Nursery is available for purchase at its retail center, making the operation an easy one-stop shop. "We find that our gardens are a destination point for us," says Bodnar. "Our display gardens tend to draw people here."

This partnering between display gardens and retail operation works to bring in customers, as well as provides a place to purchase any plant material that might catch a gardener's eye when wandering the property. Should a garden visitor notice a particularly nice planting combination, for example, he or she can purchase the same plants at the retail nursery - easy as one, two, three.

An Educational Experience.
Although the plants themselves are the driving force in Twombly Nursery's display gardens, the area also gives the operation a means of educating customers. "We do demonstrations on a variety of topics, including how to install an alpine garden or walkway," Bodnar says. "All of these demonstrations are done within the confines of the display gardens."

These demonstrations can also get attendees thinking about the features they would like to incorporate into their own landscapes, which again can lead to increased sales. "You'll get comments from customers about how much they've learned by touring the garden," Bodnar explains. "Everything from 'I didn't know this plant got this large' to, 'Okay, now I see how color combinations work."

In addition to various demonstrations, the nursery also leads tours through its gardens, giving visitors the opportunity to learn form professionals how different plants work together in the landscape. "We do lectures and walking tours both on and off season," Bodnar adds.

Such tours go a long way in helping landscape designers and howmeowners understand how to create visual interest in their yards after the prime gardening months have passed. "I think giving landscapes mutiseasonal interest has made a lot of progress," Bodnar asserts. "Autumn and winter interest are more subtle. You have to look a little closer at the texture of plants and needles and bark, but the interesting aspects are there."

The end of spring and summer doesn't mean your customers' landscapes have to turn from bright and lively to boring and gray. Homeowners can still have an interesting and colorful view, but it just may require a little innovation and some attention to detail - not to mention some more plants form your nursery. One way for growers and retailers to educate consumers on how to get the most out of their landscapes - throughout the four seasons - is to create and maintain a display garden. Having a place where your customers can visit and learn firsthand how to give their landscapes mutiseasonal interest can add beauty to their back yards and profits to your bottom line.