Plant Shortage Report

Landscape material procurement marketplace GoMaterials released a report today detailing the severity of 2022 plant shortages. According to the report, “The sizes impacted by the shortages are consistent with last year’s trends. 1-3 Gallon pot supply remains severely impacted for shrubs, perennials, and ornamental grasses. For conifers, 6’ to 9’ height sizes and for trees 2” to 4” caliper varieties are the hardest to source in 2022.” But shortages aren’t the only impact. The most notable highlight of the report is the estimated 16% rise in the prices of all materials across the most common categories in 2022. In 2022 there’s a greater fragmentation in the plant shortage trends across the states. While the shortages in the North are more pronounced for shade trees and conifers, the Southern states are still reporting a severe shortage of perennials, shrubs, and groundcovers. This is reflected in the higher average price increase for trees in the North and ornamental grasses in the South. Both categories were reported to have a 27% increase compared to the last year. Perennials and shrubs with severe shortages in the South follow closely with 25% and 19% price hikes, respectively, for 2022. Some of the plant and tree varieties experiencing “severe” shortages in the South include: Southern wax myrtle; Dwarf Yaupon Holly Schillings; Indian hawthorn; and variegated shell ginger. Varieties in the North include: green giant arborvitae; Norway spruce; eastern hemlock; and ginkgo tree. Plant shortages have deepened since 2021 due to rising fertilizer costs (up by a ...