Despite more than two-billion-dollars in losses from the
2004-2005 hurricane seasons…a new report finds ‘environmental
horticulture’ continues to grow faster than all other
agricultural industries in Florida. Plants you’d find at a
garden center or nursery are the backbone of environmental
horticulture. Add to that landscape design, installation and
maintenance and you’ve got an industry that generates more jobs
than any other segment of Ag in the Sunshine State…and more
economic impact than all but Florida’s lumber industry.
According to a new University of Florida survey, the economic
impact from the industry grew at nearly 8-percent annually over
the past 5 years to around 15-billion-dollars last year. The
study’s co-author, U-F researcher Alan Hodges, says big chain
stores like Home Depot and Lowe’s have driven most of that
growth. “More than any other type of outlet they are the ones
that have relentlessly driven down prices for plant products and
made them much more affordable for the average person.” H