Demetrius told me about this story a few weeks ago, but I never got around to reading the whole thing for myself. On break today, I saw a story in the Business section of the Columbus Dispatch:
Scotts’ turf war
Miracle-Gro brand sues tiny startup over packaging, eco assertions
…and resolved that I would actually post something about this tonight.
The makers of garden products Miracle-Gro and TerraCycle are as different as mature plants and seedlings.
The Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. is a $7 billion global business with broad brand recognition, a 59 percent market share and Roman columns framing the entry to its corporate headquarters. TerraCycle Inc. is a fledging startup with $1.5 million in annual sales, an infinitesimal share of the market and a graffiti-covered warehouse with used tires on the lawn where the rose bushes were before someone stole them out of the ground.
But Scotts sees similarities between the two plant-food makers. So, the Goliath of plant products sued late last month, accusing TerraCycle of copying its look and falsely asserting that its organic products are better than synthetic ones such as Miracle-Gro’s.
“I don’t think their claims are valid,” said TerraCycle Chief Executive Tom Szaky, a 25-year-old Hungarian-born entrepreneur who dropped out of Princeton in 2003 to create an eco-friendly company. TerraCycle’s products are made from worm waste and packaged in used plastic bottles and jugs.
“They’re claiming that (the colors) yellow and green are theirs,” he said, referring to Scotts.
He added, “Miracle-Gro has sued us over advertising. I’ve never bought an ad.”
…
TerraCycle, which has yet to turn a profit, has created the TerraCycle Defense Fund through its Web site to help defray legal costs.
Click here to read the rest of the article, and here to check out TerraCycle’s web site. Visit Sued By Scotts to donate to the TerraCycle Defense Fund, to find a store near you, or to purchase TerraCycle products online. (There are also links to PDFs showing other lawn and garden products with yellow and green labels.)
This is a frivolous lawsuit. It’s only purpose is to drive these people out of business. That’s how major corporations eliminate competition that is small, but has the potential in the future to effect their profits. It ain’t the invisible hand of the market, it’s the heavy hand of high priced lawyers doing the dirty work for clients willing to spend the money it takes to eliminate their competition.
Scotts can take their chemical crap and shove it.
I use Miracle Gro, but only for container gardening; chemical fertilizers are counterproductive in actual earth because they kill the microorganisms that help maintain the fertility of the soil, creating an endless cycle of dependency on more chemicals. For in-ground growing, I use several organic fertilizers — bat guano from a supplier in Texas, bagged compost, etc.
I will, however, not be buying any Miracle Gro again, and I will be writing Scott’s to let them know that. Capitalism, when it works at all, only works when consumers have free choice among a variety of alternatives. If Scott’s can’t handle that, they’re in the wrong country.
For now, I’ll just go with my own home made compost.
You had a diary up the other day about your lawn maintenance. Do you have anything posted anywhere with details on how you do all this. I’m sitting on an acre here. The previous owners were anal retentive chemical users. We’re about the complete opposite. So, really, any tips you can pass on would be greatly, greatly appreciated.
I don’t have anything additional to the information in that post. But I find that simply mulching the clippings and fall leaves back into the lawn keeps it pretty healthy. Going this route will yield a lawn with a mixture of plants and not just grass, but it is green and quite drought resistant.
And how, exactly do you do that? A mulching leaf blower, or is there more to it? And when you say, you get things other than grass, do mean you get more weeds? Not that I have a huge problem with that. I wish I felt confidant that the chemicals used by the previous owner were thoroughly dissipated because I’ve got dandelions and nettles galore, which are very nutritious.
My mower is a mulcher, most of them are these days. In the fall I don’t rake the leaves, I simply run over them with my machine. During the mowing season, I don’t bag the clippings. They simply get mulched back into the lawn.
Yes, you will have more weeds but it actually looks okay. As to the chemicals, the good/bad news is that they are very water soluble and dissipate quickly. Unfortunately this also makes them quick to get into aquifers/reservoirs.
It’s not just fertilizers and weed control. Pest maintenance contracts are very popular in suburbia. They come out regularly to make sure that you don’t have anything icky in your yard like insects or spiders. I’m pretty sure we’ve waited long enough for our yard to be safe again, but I still worry about rain runoff from the neighbors.