Editor Patrick Alan Coleman shares results of Hopeful Consumers Accidental Neglect Trial Garden

In 2024, my wife and I inaugurated the Hopeful Consumers Accidental Neglect (HoCAN) Trial Garden. The HoCAN typifies the kind of care many home gardeners provide their beds. Plants may be planted in the perfect spot, or they may be plopped in the most convenient “close enough” spot.

They might be doted upon one weekend but then suffer days and days of guilty neglect due to kids’ sporting events, second jobs, grocery shopping, emergency home repairs and the general ennui of being a modern working parent. It’s a tough trial.

As I did last year, I offer my end-of-season results. Here are standouts from the HoCAN this year, with plant and brand names cleverly disguised to show we don’t play favorites.

We at the HoCAN have been incredibly eager to start growing our own food, so we were excited for the small tomatoes from a storied veggie brand with a name that always makes my 12-year-old giggle.

The small, orange F₁ variety named after a mythical beast did very well and was a staple in my work salads until mid-summer. Then, a non-mythical deer went bananas on the plant, and I felt demoralized. But to my great surprise, despite being savaged, I had one last bountiful harvest.

Two “Syn”-fully lovely flower varieties hit the HoCAN this year and performed incredibly well. One of the varieties, a bright yellow begonia, was a sweet vision in a pot and has bloomed beautifully and nonstop since late spring. Even in early October, the blooms are still coming when competitors have petered out, with their dark foliage creating a wonderful backdrop.

From the same brand, a bloom named after crazed fans was planted in the hottest, driest, sunniest bed. These fan flowers also performed very well, offering a subtle flowery show along a rocky border.

From the only brand I know with a Z in its name, I planted a whole row of impatiens in a problematic shady spot. This variety named for both sun and moon did very well, throwing up color from spring until mid-summer. The same brand provided a show for the stoop-side garden too, and we loved the funny-faced flowers and constant performance of an angelonia that should never be alone. It’s still blooming as of Oct. 13.

I also want to call out standouts from a brand known for spirits. Two lovely varieties named after the Japanese word for cute had a hot pink and lilac colored party in the dry bed.

And finally, a brand that has the receipts for coming in first showed up in a big way with a variety basket named after tropical climes that took 30 seconds to plant and a whole season to enjoy.

I look forward to 2026, when the HoCAN returns again.

Patrick Alan Coleman
Editor | pcoleman@gie.net