Things to do right now to jump on the bandwagon!

Know the current water restrictions in your area and make sure your customers know them - post signs, hand out flyers.

Promote native and drought-tolerant plants and label each item so the customer can find them and buy them. Your signs and tags should include all the necessary info for proper planting and care.

There are dozens of award programs out there - Georgia Gold Medal, Styer's, Perennial Plant Association, AARS to name but a few. If you sell any of these award winners shout it out to your customers. They'll be glad to know a plant is a winner in the ground, not just in marketing.

Don't forget about the birds and the bees. (No, not those birds-and-bees!) Outdoor living is about butterflies and birds, too. If you have plants that attract butterflies and birds be sure they're labeled and your customers can find them. Here's a handout that you can download and print yourself to give to your customers or post at your retail location. (I did this a couple of years ago and I know it needs updating.)

Promote the principles of Xeriscape. NO NO NO that doesn't mean rocks and cactus. Xeriscape is just common sense.
Click here for a free handout that makes sense. You can download and print it yourself to give to your customers.

If your nursery or organization acts Green in any way - recycling your soda cans, buying back empty nursery pots, practicing IPM, collecting irrigation run-off, routing delivery trucks efficiently, anything at all - make sure your customers know you're walking the talk.

Promote the benefits of all plants and landscaping - taking carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and putting oxygen in; shade and cooling; erosion control; bird and wildlife habitat; privacy/boundary concerns; curb appeal and re-sale value; outdoor rooms; storm water mitigation; beauty - there're many more. (I'll work on a handout for this.) Lawns, ground covers, vegetation and even hardscapes are critical to managing ground water and can assist in water management and retention, filtration and purification of a watershed. Landscapes and vegetative systems also increase the urban forest, reduce the urban heat island effect, improve air quality, reduce stream pollution and provide a more aesthetically pleasing and sustainable environment. (from UAC)

Use recycled materials. If you mail a newsletter or postcards or handout handouts use recycled paper and put the logo on them so your customers know you care. Several tag and label companies are now producing products that are not only manufactured with recycled materials but will decompose in landfills.