I left the Gardening Mega Trends talk at the GWA 2010 Symposium, a little disappointed, a little proud. I had hoped to hear about the Next Big Thing in gardening. But all that stuff they talked about, hey, it's not cutting edge in Minneapolis, it's mainstream.

Face it folks, we may be covered in snow half the year, but we're still ahead of the curve when it comes to the latest and greatest in gardening.

We're all over it, on top of it and going beyond. And oh yeah; gardening is hot, cool, even sexy.

The photos that follow taken this summer at the U's Demo Garden illustrate not only current trends exercised there but all over the Twin Cities, in backyards, front yards, boulevards, community gardens and school yards.

Scarlet runner beans with marigolds, food for humans and hummingbirds

Goldfinch dining on bugs before humans dine on chard

Apple tree surrounded by flowers and herbs

So tell me what you think is on the gardening horizon. Is it just a more widespread movement of these ideas or is it something totally different and unexpected? Dream, speculate...tell me what's the Next Big Thing.

Keep up with what's happening in the garden at The Garden Buzz, winner of the GWA 2010 Silver Award in Writing for Electronic Media.