Drought's effects may not appear until summer
Last year's drought means the year ahead will be a tough one in the garden, several sources told The Washington Post. "It's hard to talk to someone about drought when it's pouring with rain," said entomologist Rex Bastian, v.p. of field education for the arborists group the Care of Trees. "But the trees remember. "Trees don't react quickly and often tend to show effects after the damage has occurred," Bastian said. Horticulturist David Yost, who runs a plant clinic at Merrifield Garden Center in Fairfax, Va., said homeowners should be prepared for such symptoms as dead branches, stunted growth and worse. "A lot of symptoms probably won't show up until the summer," he said.

Southeast seminar gives drought survival tips
Severe droughts, watering bans and plant selection restrictions have joined (and in some cases, surpassed) energy and labor as the biggest near- and long-term threats to the Southeast's green industries. A daylong seminar at this summer's Southeast Greenhouse Conference will examine how to survive drought-induced business and political climates. Sponsored by Branch-Smith Publishing, the event is June 19 from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. in Greenville, S.C.

Free poster created for Ga. retailers
A coalition of green-industry groups in the Georgia created a poster for independent garden retailers to help customers understand the new watering rules. The Environmental Protection Division (EPD) in Ga. allows homeowners to water new plants more extensively than current water rules allow, but only if the homeowner has registered online at EPD. "Currently, only 1,600 people have registered," said Sherry Loudermilk, exec. dir. of Ga. Green Industry Assoc. The Ga. Urban Ag Council also has a page of reference materials about water-use rules and guidelines. In related news, the Ga. Senate passed House Bill 1281, which prevents local water authorities from overriding state-level rules, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

Retailers warned against selling cypress mulch
A group of Texas Gulf Coast activists is urging garden retailers not to buy or use cypress mulch because of the harm the mulch's harvesting causes to the environment "We're talking to our retailers, nurserymen and area builders, asking them not to use it," Vivian Todd, incoming president of Magnolia Garden Club in Beaumont, Texas, said. "We're trying to educate as many people as possible." Todd said cypress mulch is harvested from coastal wetlands in Louisiana, reducing the ability of a wetland to withstand storm surge. Retailers cannot tell if the cypress mulch is from a coastal wetland or from an upland forest. Shell Plant Farm owner Roy Henslee told the Beaumont Enterprise newspaper he doesn't sell cypress mulch, and its appearance is a major reason. "Horticulturally, any mulch is better than no mulch. But cypress doesn't come close to other mulches," Henslee said.

Gas prices finally affect driving habits
Drivers are reducing the distance they drive, the first such reduction since 1980, Christian Science Monitor reported. The decline first became apparent in Dec. Gas prices, seen as the culprit, are expected to approach $3.50 by Memorial Day, and conceivably $4 by midsummer.

A marriage made in … Wal-Mart
While dozens of shoppers strolled the Wal-Mart in Eufala, Ala., one weeknight last week, a small crowd of family members, friends and Wal-Mart associates gathered in the store's garden center for a special ceremony. Samantha Goree and Billy Greathouse, both Wal-Mart employees, were wed. The couple said it made sense to marry at the local store: they met at Wal-Mart after Samantha took a job as a cashier last year. Billy has worked in Wal-Mart's receiving department for 7 years. As the ceremony was about to start, a well-wisher joked with Greathouse that a truck had just arrived and needed to be unloaded.

View from a blog
• A couple of garden retailers were among the winners of Midwest's first Show Us Your Sparkle in-store display and events contest for independent retailers. Open Register
• Going green in a home lawn-care program doesn't have to be a daunting task. Project: Green Industry