The 9 Garden Trends That Are Popping Up Everywhere In 2022

If you’ve jumped on the gardening trend the last few years, you know how satisfying it is to watch your plants and flowers thrive. In fact, plenty of research has shown spending time in nature is good for you both physically and mentally. While we may be getting out more and not be spending quite as much time at home as in previous years, we’re still investing a lot of effort into making our homes a peaceful retreat from the world, whether it’s hosting family gatherings or entertaining friends. Even if you only have a small patio or balcony, creating your own little oasis is one way to embrace the soothing powers of nature.

RELATED: 25 Summer Flowers That Can Boost Your Curb Appeal

Here are the top gardening trends that we’re seeing everywhere this year (spoiler: They’re pretty much all low-effort, high reward, so you can spend less time weeding and more time enjoying your yard).

1. Low-Maintenance Plantings

If you want an Instagram-able garden but don’t want to tend it all the time, many plants offer tons of color with little effort from you. Look for plants that provide season-long color. Ball Horticultural Company’s garden experts suggest flowers such as begonias and petunias that bloom from the time you plant them in spring until the first hard freeze in fall. Plant flowers in garden beds, fill window boxes with draping plants, and strategically place containers on patios, lining front steps, or arranged in the corner of your deck.

Try Planting: Beacon Impatiens ($17), Bees Knees Petunias ($23)

2. Pollinator Gardens

According to the U.S. Forest Service, pollinators—such as butterflies, bees, moths and hummingbirds—are responsible for assisting more than 80 percent of the world’s flowering plants to reproduce. And no pollinators=no food! Help support these populations by planting the flowers and plants they love, such as lantana, butterfly bush, sunflowers, sweet alyssum, milkweed, calendula, coneflower, cosmos and zinnia.

Try Planting: Sunflower Mammoth ($5), White Knight Sweet Alyssum ($10)

3. A Combination of Perennials and Shrubs

Perennials and shrubs are a great investment in your garden because you plant them once and they thrive for many years. Make sure you choose perennials and shrubs that will survive winters in your USDA Hardiness zone (find yours here), then keep them watered as they get established the first season or two. Don’t get frustrated if they seem like slow starters; many perennials and shrubs take a few years of growth before they reach their full glory.

Try Planting: Lakota Fire Coneflower ($35), Hydrangea Incrediball ($22)

4. Meadow Gardens

Meadow gardens are becoming increasingly popular for supporting pollinator populations, attracting wildlife and offering a changing view through the seasons. They have a rustic look, often serving as a more environmentally friendly alternative to a turf lawn, because they call for grasses that need little watering and plants that don’t necessarily need topsoil or compost. But they’re more complex ecosystems than you might think, and it’s not as simple as removing grass and planting a few packets of wildflower seeds. If you’d like to experiment with meadow gardening, start small, such as using part of an existing planting bed, a small section of yard or the sidewalk strip between your lawn and the road. If you don’t have space anywhere else, another way to bring meadow garden elements to your landscape is to plant containers of herbs that pollinators love.

Try Planting: Provence Blue Lavender ($14), Monarch Butterfly Plant Collection ($34)

5. Using Plants to Boost Curb Appeal

One of the biggest trends Ball Horticultural Company is seeing is that after spending so much time close to home, many of us still are prioritizing curb appeal by making our homes look inviting with colorful plantings of every type. To boost your home’s welcoming feel, flank the front doors with non-stop bloomers, add flowering shrubs and foundation shrubs to soften harsh edges, and plant edging plants to finish off beds.

Try Planting: Superbells Double Blue Calibrachoa ($10), Megawatt Begonia ($34)

6. Cottage Gardens

Historically, European cottage gardens evolved from spaces where flowers, herbs and edibles were raised together in tiny backyard spaces or large walled estate areas. During Victorian times, the style took off as a way to maximize space, without there being too much order in planting. Today, when it comes to cottage gardens, more is more! Every space is crammed full of flowers and herbs in a riot of colors with winding paths, roses, fragrant flowers, flowering vines and a garden bench that encourages you to stop and enjoy the view.

Try Planting: Drift Coral Rose Groundcover ($20), Borage ($6)

7. Growing Your Own Food

With a continued interest in sustainability, more and more people are learning to grow their own food, according to Ball Horticultural Company. If you don’t have a huge plot, you still can grow veggies such as tomatoes, peppers and greens in containers or raised beds. Start with easy-to-grow options for your first garden such as herbs, lettuce, beans, cucumbers, Swiss chard and radishes.

Try Planting: Sweet Hot Thing Pepper ($7), Rosemary ($14)

8. Cutting Gardens

Cutting gardens are a lovely way to enjoy a non-stop succession of flowers for bouquets. You don’t need a huge space; tuck plants in between perennials and shrubs in existing garden beds or plant a large container with cutting garden favorites such as dahlias, cosmos, lady’s mantle, black-eyed Susan and pincushion flower. Don’t forget that you don’t need a huge selection of mixed flowers; even a single flower can bring you joy when placed on a nightstand, kitchen windowsill or end table.

Try Planting: Cosmos, Double Take ($6), Black-eyed Susan, Goldsturm ($25)

9. Getting Kids Involved

Exposing kids to gardening early teaches them respect for our natural world, shows them the wonders of butterflies and bees, and gets them away from all that screen time. Plus, it’s just plain fun for kids to dig in the dirt. Invest in a kid-sized pair of gloves, watering can and tools such as a trowel to give them ownership. Then let them decide what they want to plant in a container garden of their own, such as fast-sprouting, easy-to-grow plants such as lettuce, sunflowers and beans.

Try Planting: Sunflower Super-Snack ($11), Leaf Lettuce ($5), Kentucky Wonder Pole Beans ($5)

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