Millennials are embracing Canada’s most popular outdoor leisure activity — and are entirely changing it, according to gardening guru Mark Cullen, who was in Newmarket last night for a Rotary Club event.
“They (millennials) are taking a different approach,” Cullen told local green thumbs and horticulture enthusiasts at Madsen’s Greenhouse.
“A broad sweep of impatiens and the picture-perfect lawn, that image is gone … what we will see in the next 20 years is a complete metamorphosis of the Canadian garden.”
Instead, they are focused on food and the environment.
Cullen, who has co-written a new book with his son, Ben, said the millennial generation is embracing gardening more so than the previous two generations.
“As (the younger generation) get older and they take on responsibility, they are going to change things in a very big way,” he added.
“I believe it is the most exciting time in the history of Canada to be a gardener.”
The book, Escape To Reality, will speak to and inspire both the younger and older generations, Cullen said.
Ben Cullen obtained his diploma in agriculture and is now following in his father’s footsteps and using his knowledge of gardening and the environment to help and inspire others, especially younger generations, to get their hands dirty and be more involved in the world of gardening.
Cullen described the new book as a crystal ball for how the world is changing gardening and how gardening is changing the world.
“It’s actually 52 essays on the gardening experience,” he explained.
Proceeds of the May 23 event went to the Rotary Club of Newmarket and the Highway of Heroes Tribute, a campaign that Cullen chairs and is very passionate about. Its mission is to plant two million trees along the stretch of Highway 401 from CFB Trenton to Keele Street, which is the route travelled by fallen soldiers who have served in the Canadian Armed Forces.
“We will have all the trees in the ground by 2022,” said Rebecca Harrison, fundraising and community engagement specialist for the Highway of Heroes Tree Campaign.
“We’ve been focusing on getting the 117,000 (trees) along the highway that are for those who died during their war service and then the other 1.8 million are planted in communities adjacent to the highway,” she explained.
Cullen is also a fan of Rotary Clubs and their contribution to local communities.
“We hold a lot of events and 100 per cent of all our money goes back into the community, whether it’s locally, nationally or internationally,” said Wasim Jarrah of the Rotary Club of Newmarket.
“I have the highest respect for these people and anyone who volunteers with Rotary is a hero of mine,” Cullen said.
Cori Proudluck came to the event as she is a fan of Cullen after meeting him at a Newmarket town hall event last year.
“We like listening to Mark. He’s really funny to listen to and very knowledgeable,” she said.
Her friend, Catherine Harleton-Strezov, said she loves gardening as it is a great escape.
“I can spend hours outside … time just goes by,” she said.
Cullen is a national treasure when it comes to gardening and landscaping.
In 2016, he received recognition for his contributions to the Canadian gardening community by being awarded Member, Order of Canada.
He is a spokesperson and horticultural consultant to Home Hardware Canada and his presence in the media makes him a well-known guru with fans all over the country. He writes a weekly column, answering questions and providing useful gardening tips, that is published in more than 30 newspapers in six provinces.
Cullen has written more than 20 gardening books and is the gardening editor for five gardening magazines. He publishes a monthly newsletter on his website with more than 20,000 subscribers and has 10,000 gardening questions answered.
