SPONSORSHIP

Growing with Plants is blog about gardening, plant collecting and anything which combines art, design excellence and the botanic experience. 

It is written by me - Matt Mattus, a life-long gardener and plantsman. 

Growing with Plants documents my adventures with all sorts of plants. Plus, it documents a broad range of garden projects - orchids to alpines, vegetables to greenhouse cultures, rare bulbs to trees and shrubs.  Basically, I document the day-to-day events in my personal garden and greenhouse. The blog is honest, personal and it appeals to a wide range of readers, from the creative aesthete, to the hard-core plant collector. It's lifestyle maeven-meets-plant society geek  - and best of all - all posts relate to a specific day, event or seasonal moment. 

Readers include the most accomplished botanists and collectors, the top botanic gardens, new gardeners and design-consious creative-types. From Hipsters to housewives, Growing with Plants appeals to more than your average gardening blog.

I’m also a graphic, product and brand designer for global design and development at Hasbro, currently working on the visual design on many branded integrated apps.

My garden, greenhouse and all related projects are purely a pastime/leisure time activity for me. I try to post every couple of days, which is not hard, as I am in the garden most every day if work is not too busy.

This site accepts payments and/or products and earns income or not from one or more of the below methods at any given time:

I DO NOT USE:

AFFILIATE PROGRAMS – I currently do not participate in the Amazon Associates Program. If I do decide to participate, any purchases made through these affiliate links would pay out a small referral fee, but at this time, I am not interested and prefer to keep the visual design of my blog, more curated and clean.

ADVERTIZING NETWORKS – I currently am not a member any cooperative ad networks such as Google Adsense or SAY Media. These companies feed ads into specific areas partner blogs, but again, I feel that this would not add value to this site as I could not actively monitor the ads served.

I DO ACCEPT:

SPONSORS and Private Ads – From time-to-time, I will accept sponsors on Growing with Plants. I try to limit the amount of these ‘sponsored posts’ and ‘placement ad’s’.  When a sponsored pot does occur on this site, it will be prominently labeled as such. I also, on occasion, will offer certain brands the opportunity to have small ads along the right side of my blog. These are always posted under an banner that will say SPONSORS. If an add does appear without the work SPONSOR, it is generally for a specific event, or a plant society (non-profit group).

PRODUCTS – I accept certain products for review (with prior approval from me), books, apps or media from publishers for potential review. I also occasionally accept products, garden and kitchen utensils, work clothing and other related items such as gardening tools, furniture and boots for review on this site. If I am compensated in any form, or given anything for free, I also disclose that within the relevant post.

PLANTS and PLANT MATERIAL - I am often asked to test plants, seeds or bulbs, both in my greenhouse, or in my garden. I raise vegetables, perennials, annuals, woody plants, alpines, orchids and particularly, bulbs –both tender and hardy. I am an authority on South African species, but I have the resources to raise most any bulb. I am extremely competent in raising plants, and in raising difficult seeds through maturity. I often document many parts of any growing process/project, and I welcome the most extreme challenge in raising most any plant, be it a rare orchid, or an heirloom fig.

Always ask me first, and then we can schedule a project, as I take these tests seriously, and I can only handle a few each season due to time constraints. Sometimes, there is a fee, othertimes, not – it all depends on the product, the relative value, and the amount of involvement I will have.

I write very honest reviews. Most plant reviews will take time, often as long as an entire growing season, but the end result is always well documented, with photos and results.  I prefer negotiate suggested posts in advance ( since certain plants may need 2 or 3 reviews throughout the growing season - plus a follow-up in the following year). Bulbous plants and container plants may require a longer planning period - but the results can be impressive, and highly effective. Remember, I am both a designer and an awesome plantsman (grower). J

Whenever I write about a book or product on this site, know that the opinions expressed are always mine. My positive opinion cannot be bought for any price.

If you are interested in any of the above, ask me for my Media and Partnership kit, and I will email it to you.

Thanks for reading!

Matt Mattus

Updated 08/2012.