How 'green' are consumers?

Since relatively little is known about gardeners and their ecological attitudes, practices or behaviors, a research team recently set out to determine how eco-friendly gardeners really are. The study provided some insight into what gardeners value in terms of eco-friendly products and how they may value certain aspects of sustainable plant production or certification programs.

The study sought to determine whether there were differences in gardeners’ eco-friendly attitudes and behaviors, such as recycling. The researchers’ underlying belief was that some types of gardeners may be more active in their environmentally friendly behavior, predisposing them to be more receptive to product innovations specifically designed to be eco-friendly. If consumers are more eco-friendly, they may value horticulture certification programs more.


Attitudes about the environment
An online consumer survey was conducted focusing on the types of ornamental plant purchases made by consumers, recycling behaviors, preferences for various types of plant container materials and demographic characteristics.

Survey respondents were separated into three groups: woody plant buyers, herbaceous plant buyers and consumers who purchased few/no plants. Several questions were asked to assess the participants’ attitudes about recycling and buying products made from recycled products.

Of the six questions asked, only one difference emerged. A lower percentage of woody plant buyers agreed or strongly agreed (10.5 percent) with the statement: “Sorting household waste for recycling is too much of an inconvenience” compared to non-plant buyers (23.8 percent) or herbaceous plant buyers (25 percent). In this case, some herbaceous plant buyers were more eco-minded than non-plant purchasers.

There were no differences in the percentage of the three groups who agreed or strongly agreed with these five statements:

1. When purchasing products, I check to see whether the package is made from recycled material.
2. A carbon-intensive footprint for a product means it takes a lot of energy to manufacture or ship the product.
3. I refuse to buy products from companies that are not environmentally friendly.
4. Recycling plastic pots is of more importance than using compostable containers.
5. When buying products, I check to see whether the package is recyclable.

Gardeners aren’t very different from non-gardeners in terms of their attitudes about the environment.