Plant Trends from the 2023 TPIE

| January 25, 2023 | Categories: Biophilic Design, Nature and Wellbeing, Plantscaping
TPIE bring nature inside sign with Jim Mumford
Welcome to The Tropical Plant International Expo (TPIE) 2023! Jim Mumford, founder of Good Earth Plants, went trendspotting at this year’s event in Tampa, FL. At 89% humidity, with showers and temps in the 70s, it felt very tropical. The TPIE is the CES for plant people: interior plantscapers, designers, retailers, media, and really anyone whose job involves plants. And just like a new tech launch at CES, new varieties of plants are shown here first. Jim started Good Earth Plant Co. 45 years ago, and his years of dedication to biophilic design earned him a place in the Hall of Fame at this year’s TPIE.… Read More

Sustainable Design Ideas for San Diego Stormwater

| January 5, 2023 | Categories: Architecture and Design, Biophilic Design, Blog, Environment, Good Earth Plant Company Tips, Sustainable Living, Water and Water Conservation
Green Roof Salesforce Park in San Francisco. Photo: Greenroofs.com
  Amid the megadrought, the worst drought to hit California in 1200+ years, we are now experiencing a Pacific storm with the terrifying name of a bomb cyclone. And while the atmospheric river it’s bringing with it sounds poetic, it’s anything but. This brutal storm is bringing heavy rains, damaging winds and subsequent flooding to parts of California. In San Diego County, we’re experiencing rains and winds that may lead to major flood events in some areas. Over the last decade, flooding has caused millions of dollars in property damage, even in times of average seasonal rainstorms. (source: San Diego Co Public Works) San Diego is a coastal desert.… Read More

Viva Magenta is Pantone 2023 Color of the Year

| December 14, 2022 | Categories: Architecture and Design, Biophilic Design
Cordyline fruticosa, known as the Hawaiian Ti Plant, is a stunning example of the 2023 Pantone Color of the Year - Viva Magenta. Photo: Erin Lindley, Good Earth Plant Company
Good Earth Plant Company first started writing about the Pantone Color of the Year in 2017. Design trends matter to our clients, but it was mainly something fun to do. The big surprise: how much it matters to you, too! After a few years of peaceful, soothing colors to get us through the pandemic, Pantone is ready for a party. The 2023 choice is a bold deep pink, “Viva Magenta.” Magenta is equal parts cool and warm, a pink with a hint of purple. It’s a color Pantone’s executives say represents an optimistic future. Pantone Vice President Laurie Pressman is quoted saying Viva Magenta represents a prevailing desire for optimism, resilience, outside-the-box thinking and technological innovation to create a better world.… Read More

Let’s Talk About Biophilic Design

| December 7, 2022 | Categories: Biophilic Design, Media Coverage, Plantscaping
There is only one thing I enjoy more than enriching peoples’ lives with plants at Good Earth Plant Company. It’s talking to people about enriching their lives with plants – especially when I get to speak to a big audience.  This week, I made my third appearance on the daily talk show “It’s Your Life.” It is a podcast, livestream, and live YouTube show. Hosted by Dr. James Cooley and co-hosted and produced by his wife, Michelle Cooley. The Cooleys invite people from all walks of life with different professions and areas of expertise. Dr. Cooley is a motivational speaker and a retired Navy Officer with 23 years of service.… Read More

Tips To Prep Your Plants For Winter Months

| November 30, 2022 | Categories: Good Earth Plant Company Tips, Indoor Plants
A sunny window feels good on a cold day for you and for your plants, too. Photo: Mary Kreuel / Creative Commons winter months
Even though we’re blessed to live and work in a temperate, plant-loving climate at Good Earth Plant Company, we still experience the change of seasons. Winter may be subtle, but it’s coming at us quickly. Meteorological winter starts December 1, and the winter equinox is less than three weeks away. Our daytime temperatures have dropped 20 degrees recently, and in some places, the nighttime lows are legitimately cold. At least they are to us! Your container plants living outside feel it too. Many need protection from the coldest winter weather. Even in a Mediterranean-style climate, it can drop below freezing at night.… Read More

Here’s To Your Health From Fix Medical Group and Good Earth Plant Company

| November 9, 2022 | Categories: Biophilic Design, Case Studies, Nature and Wellbeing
Fix Medical Group case manager Jesika Casey greets clients and visitors along with our moss wall and orchids. Photo: Jim Mumford
Good Earth Plant Company blog readers know our mission is to enrich peoples’ lives with plants. Those lives include our clients, guests, employees, suppliers, and everyone who interacts with them. What does “enrich” mean, exactly? The formal definition, according to Merriam-Webster, is “to make rich or richer, especially by the addition or increase of some desirable quality, attribute, or ingredient.” Money is the first thing that comes to your mind when talking about being “rich.” Who wouldn’t find life a lot easier if you had a lot of money? We didn’t win the Powerball this week, so we can’t help you there.… Read More

Use the Fall Time Change To Follow the Light

| November 2, 2022 | Categories: Biophilic Design, Nature and Wellbeing
When we ignore our need for connection to the environment, we suffer - including during the annual fall time change. Photo: Image by Julita
You may want to blame any blues next week on the coming election, but our relationship with Mother Nature is more likely to blame. The weekend before Election Day, we go through our annual change back from Daylight Time to Standard Time in the U.S. and Canada (unless you’re reading this in Arizona, Hawaii, or a few small spots). Turn your clocks back that still need human adjustments on Saturday night before going to bed. You’re welcome. Our public service announcement for the week is concluded. The 60 minutes we adjusted our clocks suddenly makes us aware we are slowly losing daylight.… Read More

Good Earth Plant Company Turns 45 and We’re Thriving  

| October 26, 2022 | Categories: Awards & Achievements, Biophilic Design, Case Studies, Good Earth Plant Company
Who knew how big Good Earth Plant Company would grow 45 years ago?
At this time of year, most people focus on Halloween. At Good Earth Plant Company, we celebrate something surprising instead of frightening: our anniversary! November 1 is the day I founded Good Earth Plant Company, which first opened on November 1, 1977, as a flower bucket stand. It gets harder for me every year to believe the entire 45-year trip. Explaining it is a challenge too, but I’ll give it my best try. Over the few years, hitting this milestone was far from a sure thing. How many recessions have I weathered? Each decade and then the big one in 2009.… Read More

Can Green Roofs Save The World?

| October 19, 2022 | Categories: Architecture and Design, Environment, Green Roofs
We might be underdogs like Rocky when it comes to fighting climate change, but we need to get off the canvas and fight to win. Photo: Jim Mumford green roofs save
Picking up where it left off in 2019, the organization Green Roofs for Healthy Cities focused on resilient cities at its annual “Cities Alive” conference this week in Philadelphia. Nothing would stop me from making the trip east this year to learning from my colleagues about the latest green roof initiatives and building methods. I first discovered Green Roofs for Healthy Cities in 2006. I visited Manhattan for the opportunity to work for a day with Leslie Hoffman of Earth Pledge NYC. We had met earlier in San Diego at a People for Livable Places event. I became enthralled with green roofs, but I had no idea at the time how to build one or even what they really looked like.… Read More

Get Dirty, Get Healthier With Horticultural Therapy

| October 5, 2022 | Categories: Architecture and Design, Biophilia, Biophilic Design, Case Studies, Nature and Wellbeing
I do a lot of thinking on my quiet canyon bench. It's much nicer than a traditional therapist's office. Photo: Jim Mumford horticultural therapy
Many people develop a love of gardening and nature as they grow up through older relatives as they care for their flowers, plants, or fruit and vegetable gardens. I spent many family summers enjoying the outdoors and learning about nature in a way that seems a little old-fashioned today. So many of my relatives have a love for nature. My father, Bob, became a much admired – and published! – nature photographer after retiring from the United States Navy. Mom Sandy is an avid backyard gardener and refuses to throw a struggling plant away, and rarely prunes. My daughter, Allie, loves nature – for her, it’s all about animals.… Read More