Many people garden for fun, but most don’t know you can actually make good money doing it. Seriously, it’s quite possible, and people all around the world are doing just that. In particular, you can make nice money growing ornamental grasses in a backyard nursery. Here’s how:
There are thousands of varieties of grasses, but only a few hundred are known as “ornamental grasses” due to their distinctive color or form. Also, ornamental grasses range in size, from six-inch tufts to twenty-foot giants.
Plus, their popularity is continuing to grow, for practical and decorative reasons. Landscapers like ornamental grasses, because they have a variety of uses: ground covers, specimen plants, privacy screens and more. Ornamental grasses are also frequently used in cities because of the ornamental grasses’ tolerance for poor soil and air pollution. And don’t forget about decorators and floral arrangers. They love to use ornamental grasses as cut flowers and everlastings. There simply are a huge amount of uses for ornamental grasses.
Another attraction of ornamental grasses is that they are easy to grow. Once your ornamental grasses are established, they need little care. Some watering might be necessary if you live in a dry climate. Most ornamental grasses won’t need fertilizing either.
When thinking about what you’d like to grow in your backyard nursery, you’re probably left with the question, what should I grow? If that’s the case, it’s time to do some research. Talk to landscapers and other people, and find out just what they’re looking for. You also need to keep in mind which varieties are best suited for your local growing climate. If you can grow what people want, and keep your prices reasonable, you could see a lot of business.
To get you started, here are some of the best ornamental grasses to grow:
- Blue Oat Grass – When it is fully grown, it’ll look something like a blue hedgehog. It prefers a well-drained soil and plenty of sun.
- Feathered Reed Grass – This is simply one of the best to grow. Not only is it easy to grow, but it can also tolerate most soils and drought.
- Giant Reed – This ornamental grass can top out at twenty feet in height and has bamboo-like stalks.
- Northern Sea Oats – Upon first look, these look like a three-foot tall bamboo plant. The leaves can be counted on to turn a bright bronze color in the fall.
Many ornamental grasses are also being grown for drying. Some include:
- Rabbit Tail Grass
- Switch Grass
- Eulalia Grass
- Plume Grass
Once you’re ready to sell your ornamental grasses, you have a variety of options. Some include: farmers’ markets (you can sell to homeowners eager for unique varieties), selling directly to landscapers (a good source for repeat business!), mail-order sales (place inexpensive classified ads in gardening magazines if you have hard-to-find varieties) and many more. Try a few and see what works best for you.
In very little time, you could be growing plants for profit with your own backyard nursery business. To learn more, read How to Start a Profitable Backyard Plant Nursery.