Gallup Survey results revealed

Washington, D.C.

According to the American Nursery and Landscape Association, U.S. homeowners are turning to landscape, lawn, and tree care professionals in record numbers, spending an all-time high $17.4 billion on outdoor "home improvement" in 1999. More than 26 million households hired a green professional, a 23 percent increase over the previous year, and that number could rise to 29 million in 2000, according to a just-released Gallup survey.

Spending on landscape design, installation, and construction accounted for just over $8 billion, a $900 million increase from the previous year, with 2.4 million more households hiring these professional services. "Our members continue to report robust business," observed ANLA President Thomas Pinney, Jr., Evergreen Nursery Co., WI, offering that "strong consumer confidence, increasing time poverty, and a continuing appetite for home improvement," are driving these increases.

The Gallup survey was sponsored by the ANLA, the Associated Landscape Contractors of America (ALCA), the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA), the National Arborist Association (NAA), and the Professional Lawn Care Association of America (PLCAA). It was conducted in cooperation with the National Gardening Association (NGA).