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FeedReady, Aim, Shop
Dig up the details before you set foot in the garden center
By bonnie blodgett
Most gardeners are more than happy to share their plant sources, as well as their opinions about why this or that sort of operation is your best bet for finding good plants at affordable prices.
While I love showing up at the garden center with no clue about what I’m after, such visits seldom end well. My advice to you is to go with a shopping list and take advantage of several types of sources to compile that list, including specialty catalogs and websites.
But don’t be too quick to click on the “add to cart” button when checking websites. You might want to call around locally and see if a garden center near you has the plant. They can tell you how they think it will grow in this part of the country and in your particular site.
Despite the endless flats of annuals you find at the garden centers in springtime, most do not excel in this category. Why? Perennials are considered serious plants; annuals, frivolous. It’s risky for retailers to carry lots of interesting annuals. How many customers are going to shell out ten bucks for a plant that will be thrown away at the end of the season?
If you want to grow out-of-the-ordinary annuals, you have to find them elsewhere. It’s already too late to start them from seeds indoors, but many annuals can be sown directly in the garden and they won’t keep you waiting all summer to bloom. Those are the ones to look for, if you’re ordering seeds now. Be sure to check to see how long before they flower.
If you’re really serious about growing sublime geraniums (I’m referring to the tender pelargoniums, not the hardy cranesbill geraniums), shop the seed catalogs. They have everything. Two of the best for annuals are Thompson & Morgan, a British supplier, and the Park Seed catalog. Most garden centers stock humdrum geraniums, because most geraniums in Minnesota are sold to people looking for a bit of red or pink to brighten a front stoop. Go beyond the front stoop, however, and you’ll discover that pelargonium is a huge and enormously diverse genus, worth a closer look.
Likewise, bedding begonias are hardly representative of what this magnificent plant family has to offer. I’m talking about rex begonias, pond lily begonias, and so on—begonias whose big, colorful, and richly textured leaves are the main attraction. Serious gardeners propagate such plants from cuttings, and trade them back and forth.
Heirlooms tend to be prolific self-seeders, so if you buy these rather than sterile hybrids, they’ll probably come back next year just like perennials do, just not where you expect them. Seeds fly around the garden and come up where they land. The nonprofit Seed Savers Exchange is a great place to purchase heirloom seeds.
Obviously, anything big will be much cheaper to buy close to home—I’m talking trees and large shrubs. If you want instant gratification (a full-size specimen, now), skip out-of-town suppliers.
Buying bare-root trees and shrubs can save you money, but plan their arrival carefully and examine them immediately. A bare-root plant ready for planting could get badly damaged if the weather is not warm enough.
My first stop when I’m not looking for anything in particular is the farmers’ market, just because it’s fun. The plants (including herbs and vegetables), as well as most food items, are homegrown and priced competitively. I’ve also been known to pick up a few plants on impulse at the supermarket, the food coop, Ace Hardware, or even Home Depot. While the selection is limited and I have to scrutinize the plants carefully, I often find great bargains.
On the other hand, for sheer shopping pleasure, nothing beats a trip to a fine garden center that offers lovely displays (and inspiration), a specialized selection of interesting plants, and a well-trained and courteous staff. The cognoscenti think nothing of traveling to Hayward, Wisconsin for Winter Greenhouse, which is also a Hindu community. Funkie Gardens in Prescott, Wisconsin, just twenty minutes east of St. Paul, sells an exceptionally fine variety of unusual plants, notably shade specimens and martagon lilies, in a beautiful setting.
If you are a novice, head to such a place this spring and I guarantee you’ll be much more likely to stick with gardening. Plant-buying will feel less like shopping at Toys “R” Us two days before Christmas, and more like a real holiday. Plus, for a few bucks more, you’ll know you’ve bought the right plant for your site. And what’s more important than that?
Before you put that one in your cart...
Buying plants locally means you know precisely what you’re getting—if you know what to look for. My suggestions:» Labels. Make sure plants in pots are clearly labeled. A good label tells you the plant's name, its size when mature, and tips on preferred soil, sun exposure, feeding, and pruning.
» Health. Mildew or yellowing leaves might indicate a vitamin deficiency or illness. Don’t be shy about upending the pot to have a look at the roots.
» Roots. If the pot is cracked or roots are coming out the top or bottom, the plant is rootbound and might not grow well once planted in the garden. Girdled roots will keep growing in circles and eventually strangle the plant. If you buy a rootbound plant, spread out the tangled roots when you place the plant in the hole. Don’t be put off if the rootball completely fills the pot, though. If it doesn’t, you’re paying for soil instead of plant.
» Weeds. A few weeds in the pot (along with the plant) are okay, but a nest of them could mean the plant was starved by competing growth. The weeds could also be a sign of neglect.
» Insects. Other things feed on plants besides weeds—aphids, grubs, and spider mites. Closely examine the plant’s leaves (undersides, too) for signs of trouble. Don’t buy a plant with gauzy webs attached to its stems, or chewed or discolored leaves.
» Shape. Choose the bushy plant over the leggy, straggly one (even if the latter seems larger). As for flowering plants, check out a budding plant of the same type to make sure you like the flower color, but take the plant with the unopened buds to the checkout counter. That way you’ll know its bloom period is in the future, not the past. —B.B.
Resources:
Ornamental grasses: Earthly Pursuits, 410-496-2523, www.earthlypursuits.netPrairie plants: Prairie Nursery, Westfield, Wis., 1-800-476-9453, www.prairienursery.com
Shade plants: Shady Oak Nurseries, grown in Waseca, available through Tangletown Gardens, 5353 Nicollet Ave. S., Minneapolis, 612-822-4769, www.tangletowngardens.com
Hardy Alpines & Rock Garden Plants: Gardens of Rice Creek, 1315 66th Ave. NE, Blaine, 763-242-5009
Cutting-edge anything: Monrovia plants, www.monrovia.com
Perennials: Song Sparrow Nursery, Avalon, Wis., 1-800-553-3715, www.songsparrow.com; Ambergate Gardens, Chaska, 952-443-2248, www.ambergategardens.com; Busse Gardens, Big Lake, 1-800-544-3192, www.bussegardens.com
Basic buying and browsing: Bachman’s, www.bachmans.com; Linder’s Garden Center, 270 Larpenteur Ave. W., St. Paul, 651-488-1927
Bonnie Blodgett publishes The Garden Letter, and is writing a book about smell.
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