Over on the Open Register blog – “Blog with the garden retail community” – Sarah Martinez of (American) Garden Center magazine has been posting about the standardization of pot sizes for plants. She reported the opinion that standardization “would make it much easier for companies to reuse containers. Also, it would help pave the way toward more uniform recycling standards.” Seems fair to me. And any industry that uses the term “trade gallon” for a three quart pot clearly needs to get its act together.

But it would also help the consumer - of whom the two follow-up comments are noticeably dismissive. “A uniform standard would leave nothing more than price to compete on” says one commenter. So gardeners are incapable of looking at a weak plant and a healthy one, a small plant and large one, and telling the difference? And checking the price tag? No. That’s exactly how nurseries compete – on value: price and quality.

Then the follow up comment, in full agreement: “It's impossible for the consumer to compare what a 5 gallon Escallonia looks like at Home Depot compared to a 5 gallon Monrovia Escallonia.” Here’s the news: some nurseries grow good plants, some grow bad ones. Some grow both, I’ve seen both good and bad in Home Depot and from Monrovia. The consumer is not stupid – he/she’ll consider the plants and consider the prices. If they’re in the same size pots – well that makes it so much easier. Growers just seem to want to make it difficult.