Garden coaches have only emerged on the gardening scene in the past few years but already it seems as though they’re passing their use-by-date. With a new generation of gardeners blooming due to the “I-want-to-grow-my-own-organic-veggies” trend – but wanting that to happen within the next 30 seconds, or else – is the game up for garden coaches? Will the real growth trend this year be the need for garden babysitters?

Garden coaches are gardening guru’s who consult and mentor newbie gardeners to care and understand for their plants and their yards. They will give advice, offer suggestions and assist the newbie in specifics as set out in the agreed TOS (terms of service). They offer a special set of skills and should be able to demonstrate, at least, these 8 qualities of a good garden coach.

But, is this really what newbie gardeners want? The impression that I, and others, get is that novices from the upcoming generation are all about having it done for them. In other words, they’re not looking for a coach per se, but would happily employ the services of a cheap plant babysitter if someone were offering the service.

For this generation, gardening is something that happens once and if it fails is then relegated to the “too-hard” basket. They are still inspired to grow their foodstuffs organically but aren’t willing to put the time and effort into mastering the “art” of gardening.

Instead of being coached, these upcoming novices are really looking for a service where they can plant their own garden yet leave it for someone else to make it look good. As the plants progress, and succeed, their enthusiasm may increase but until that happens it really needs to be taken care of by someone else – similar to a wet-nurse for celebrity mothers.

So, while garden coaches may still find a niche to explore, the real growth trend for gardening professionals probably hasn’t even been started yet. But, the opportunity is beginning to expose itself.