Taken from Eclectic Gardener @ http://www.teachinggarden.org/
Written by Alan Hickman

One of the side-effects of writing about gardening is that marketers occasionally offer free stuff in the hope that they’ll get a bit of column space. Mostly, the notices go from letterbox to bluebox in one easy step, and even if, say a book, does make it in to a column, regular readers well know that the review might not be exactly what the promoter may have had in mind.
Earlier this month an email arrived which in part read: "We have selected you as one of an elite group of writers to participate in our trialing project because you have helped continue educating gardeners across Canada about Proven Winners® ColorChoice® and Gardenimport." Just the sort of flapdoodle that would be rewarded with a quick trip to ‘Delete’. The saving grace in this case was that, over the past twenty-five years, Gardenimport has built a reputation as a mail-order source of quality plants, and president Dugald Cameron is well respected in the world of gardening.
The deal was simple enough: in return for comments and observations, Gardenimport would ship eight shrubs, which will be new introductions in its 2009 spring catalogue. (2 Lo & Behold™ Blue Chip Buddleia, 2 Bloomerang™ Syringa, 2 Let's Dance™ Moonlight Hydrangea, and 2 Hibiscus syriacus Blue Chiffon)
It also so happens that one of Peel Teaching Garden’s projects is the development of a wedding garden, and two curved shrub borders are being planted to create photogenic backdrops to the flowerbeds. Eight free shrubs will fit in just dandily!
Although the fairgrounds are private property, the gardens are open to the public year round so anyone who cares to can go to see how the shrubs are doing. Over the next five to ten years the ‘trial’ will give visitors a good idea of how the plants cope with the rather harsh environment of the windswept Peel Plain.
Last fall, the initial planting in the shrub borders was courtesy of Humber Nurseries Ltd., also with plants carrying the Proven Winners brand. All those shrubs have survived the winter - including one hibiscus which was run over and shredded by some ignorant fool on a snowmobile who drove across the garden after most of the snow had melted.
Consumers are long used to the idea of product branding in grocery stores and on all manner of manufactured goods. It has been more than a hundred years since ‘Heinz 57' gave customers the assurance of pure unadulterated foods, and mention ‘Model T’ and people born decades after the last car was built know it’s a Ford. In the marketplace, a recognized brand gives customers confidence and it is a powerful promoter of sales.
Branding of plants is something much more recent and gardeners are only gradually becoming aware of its presence in nurseries and garden centers. There are many brands which have created a local or regional presence in the plant sales arena but Proven Winners has perhaps become the most widely recognized of the plant brands in North America.
Building and maintaining continent-wide brand recognition costs millions of dollars and that expenditure would be entirely wasted if the products marketed under the brand did not meet consumer expectations. From a purchaser’s point of view, the brand assures a certain quality and reliability. From a retailer’s point of view, branding results in a degree of customer loyalty and the prospect of repeat sales.
There is no doubt that the plants sold under brand names represent some of the very best introductions of the world’s most talented plant hybridizers and researchers; but, gardeners should always keep in mind that brand names are primarily marketing tools.
It is telling to look at a criteria list for a plant to be selected for branding: ‘colorful, easy growing, impulse appeal, showy foliage, multiple seasons of interest, superior retail presentation, long selling window, low maintenance and plenty of wow.’ Four of the nine descriptors are mostly hype and the others are attributes of plants which are suited for mass marketing.
Branding costs a lot of money and the only source of income is the consumer. When you go to the grocery store, you can buy a couple of litres of Pepsi™ for $1.89 or some not Pepsi brown-fizz for ninety-nine cents; either one will quench your thirst. At the nursery, you can purchase a ‘regular’ dark-leafed elderberry, which will be hardy and will serve well enough in a shrub border, or you can buy Black Lace™ and pay a premium for the cachet.

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