Cultivate26 Live Blog
Friday, 7/10/2026
Hi everyone — John Morgan here from Bob’s Market and Greenhouses!
Cultivate25
This weekend I’m heading to Columbus for Cultivate’26, the big green-industry event put on by AmericanHort at the Greater Columbus Convention Center (July 11–14). It’s the premier gathering for growers, retailers, breeders, landscapers, and garden pros from across the country — packed with new plant varieties, product debuts, educational sessions, and plenty of networking.
I’ll be on the ground taking it all in and posting fresh updates right here on this Bob’s Market blog each evening. Expect quick recaps of standout sessions, first looks at exciting new plants and tools, trend notes, and anything that feels especially relevant for our Mid-Ohio Valley gardens and customers.
Check back Saturday, Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday evenings for the latest straight from the show floor. I’m excited to bring the highlights home to you — let’s see what’s new! 🌱
Stay tuned and keep growing, John Morgan
Saturday, 7/11/2026
The 2026 Rainy Trial Gardens
Today was a long day for me, but a mostly boring day for you … thanks to the weather. During the day I attended educational sessions that mostly focused on improving the quality of the events we host at Bob’s. I got some great ideas today for future workshops and experiences in the greenhouses and at the markets. Yes. Educational sessions are boring from your perspective because I really can’t share much due to recording and copyright restrictions, but over the years they have informed almost every decision I’ve made. Down to the platform that I’m using to type this blog post on currently. It also gave me a chance to reconnect with friends that I have made over the last 15+ years and make new friends today.
Now to the weather. Normally, on Saturday I would be going live on Facebook from The Ohio State University’s Trial Garden, but this year the heavens opened and a rainstorm fit for Noah was taking place when the bus arrived at the gardens. Considering I’m carrying my notebooks and a few thousand dollars worth of electronics, I didn’t want to risk it. Hit the button below to watch a YouTube video about the trial garden … with better weather.
Sunday, 7/12/2026
Today, I attended more sessions that you’ll see the direct result of in 2027. Mainly, the 2027 Garden Trend Report from Katie Dubow at Garden Media Group. I use this report along with other garden trends on the horizon to plan our content during those dark winter days when there’s not a whole lot of timely garden topics to be talking about other than the amount of snow covering your garden beds. It’s gives us all a little bit of warmth to push those winter blues away (and there might be a hint at a trend in there somewhere).
This afternoon I had a chance to walk the Trade Show floor and check out the new variety displays. Here is a very small sample of some of the beautiful blooms.
Monday, 7/13/2026
Today started off with the annual “State of The Industry” presentation where we heard from the new President and CEO of AmericanHort, Lionel van der Walt, an update from industry efforts on Capitol Hill by Matt Mika, and, of course, the economic outlook from Charlie Hall. Which, let’s face it, there’s no strait prediction on the economic outlook right now.
Up next, I attended some very insightful sessions giving me some helpful tools to add to my bag of tricks to bring you better content right here online. I also took some time to familiarize myself with a specific route I need to follow on the trade show floor tomorrow. During the school year at Bob’s, I give a bunch of school tours for high school FFA, Botany, and a bunch of other classes. I also work closely with Seed Your Future to do Green Career Week at Bob’s. Tomorrow Seed Your Future is bringing students, teachers, and administrators from colleges and high schools to Cultivate for guided tours of the trade show, and I’m going to be a guide.
Finally, I finished up the day by visiting Franklin Park Conservatory. The Palm House, the oldest part of the structure, is undergoing renovations right now, but there was something much more interesting. Right now they have a corpse flower on the cusp of blooming. The giant corpse flower, known scientifically as Amorphophallus titanum or the titan arum, is one of the most extraordinary plants on Earth. Native to the rainforests of Sumatra, Indonesia, it produces the largest unbranched inflorescence in the world—a towering structure that can reach heights of 10 to 12 feet. What makes it truly unforgettable is its rare blooming cycle, which may occur only once every several years, and the powerful stench it releases when in flower. The odor, often compared to rotting meat or a decaying corpse, is deliberately produced to attract carrion beetles and flies that serve as its pollinators. Though commonly called a flower, the dramatic display is actually a complex arrangement of many tiny flowers clustered on a tall central spadix enclosed by a dramatic, frilled spathe. After blooming, the plant retreats underground, drawing energy from its massive corm to eventually produce a single enormous leaf that resembles a small tree. Its infrequent, dramatic appearances make it a major attraction at botanical gardens around the world.
Also, I missed it, but Martha Stewart was at the trade show today! 🤯
Tuesday, 7/14/2026
Today was a bit different for me at Cultivate, and I think (pun intended) the seed of something great. Seed Your Future hosted tours of the trade show floor. Volunteers, like myself, lead small groups of college and high school students to booths that volunteered to give a short presentation about what they do in the horticulture industry. More importantly, many of these companies offer internship programs to students. This was a chance for them to connect face-to-face … in some cases with the owners of the companies.
My group consisted of mostly students from Columbus State Community College’s Landscape Design & Management Program. Usually, when I do a facility tour at Bob’s, I do most of the talking. I was blown away today by the questions these future professionals in our industry were asking. I’m sure I’m going to be seeing them on the trade show floor in the next few years as peers in our industry.
This year was a first run and it had some hiccups. I know I got lost a couple times even after walking the route the day before; however, this was my 16th time attending the trade show and I always get lost on the floor at some point, it’s just that massive! Also, due to scheduling conflicts, some of my group had to leave early, and we weren’t able to visit every stop. Once I got to know my group, I tried to take them to booths that fit their career goals. Overall, it was a great end to another great Cultivate.
