SANTA BARBARA, CA — Por La Mar Nursery is an example of a company that found a winning niche and built a business around it. Its patented mini-roses became hugely popular in the mid-1980s and it became one of the first to sell potted roses to supermarkets. Now it is adding a line of indoor plants in three-inch terra cotta and tin pots with “smart care tags” carrying real-time care information on QR codes.

Muted tones of purples, greens, yellows and even browns are expected to be winners as consumers long for that earthy feel to bring a relaxed mood into their homes. These colors are considered natural and organic, reminding your shoppers of places they have been and more settled times. You don’t need to search farther than your local coffee shop or trendy grocery store to see these tones already in action, driving sales.

“We offer a complete and full selection of organic produce — from cactus leaves to broccoli — in our line,” said Simcha Weinstein, director of marketing for Albert’s Organics, headquartered in Santa Cruz, CA. “We handle well over 300 produce items in all.

Patsy Ross, vice president of marketing for Christopher Ranch in Gilroy, CA, said that the company’s organic garlic “looks great this year, and we have a very good supply. Look for a lot of domestically grown organic garlic from Christopher Ranch this year.”

Specialty cut-flower growers from across the county will flock to the Pacific Northwest Nov. 12-14 for the national conference and trade show of the Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers in Tacoma, WA. The theme of the show is Learning to Grow Together.

In the good old days, leaders would assess an employee, a business unit or a company, identify weaknesses, and set about to fix them. Nowadays, the idea is to find the strengths and build on them. That’s what the recent economic recession forced a lot of leaders in the floral industry to do. Three California flower growers are a good example.