The best planting times are spring and fall, but it can be all too easy to choose the wrong plants for your garden. By doing so, you risk ending up with an empty wallet and a garden floor full of struggling, diseased or even dead plants. Luckily, visits to the nursery can be enjoyable and successful as long as you arm yourself with the knowledge. This way you will ensure that you come home with beautiful, healthy garden plants. Here are some practical tips that can help you prevent bad purchases and other problems.
Plan the purchase of plants for your garden carefully
Before you go to the nursery, it is important to know the garden area you are going toadd new plantswant to study carefully. In addition, the planned place for planting is an important factor for selection. Exposure plays a crucial role here. Does the area receive full sun, filtered sun, or shade? In which direction does the plant location point? For example, areas facing west often receive hot full sun in the late afternoon, while north facing areas tend to be more shady.
Sites suitable for growing that face east receive morning sun and afternoon shade, and south facing sites receive an even amount of sunlight throughout the day. It is also important to find out how much space a particular type of plant needs to grow. If it's a large area, you may need several smaller plants or a single plant that grows large. The type ofGarden soil is for plantingequally important. There are three main types of soils – clay, loam and sand. Often specific garden plants have a preference for a particular soil type.
Avoid impulse purchases
It can be easy to fall in love with the vibrantly flowering plant prominently displayed in the nursery. So avoid making a bad purchase without knowing where it will go in the garden or whether it will thrive in your climate. This may cause your newGrowth has a reduced chance of survivalhas. Unfortunately, it is not uncommon for some large chain stores to sell plants that are poorly suited to the particular climate in which they are located. It's best to walk past this pretty plant unless you have time to do a little research.
Before purchasing, work with a landscape designer who has local plant knowledge. Also try speaking to a master gardener who can provide you with helpful information. Most garden plants come with their own instructions for use in the form of a plant tag. Information you can find on the label includes the name of the plant, how big it gets, when it blooms, what exposure it needs, and how much water it needs. Not all information is always listed on the label, but you can do a little research online using the name.
Recognize the signs of unhealthy garden plants
Unfortunately, there can also be some unhealthy plants on the garden market. In such cases, there are warning signs you should look out for so you don't bring home a diseased plant. One of the signs is yellowing leaves. This can be an indicator of nutrient deficiency, overwatering, or both. When plants have been growing in their container for too long, their roots begin to grow in a circular pattern. This makes it difficult for them to absorb water or nutrients. A sign of this is the bound roots that grow through the drainage holes in their container. You can simply ask the gardener to carefully pull the plant out of the pot so you can see the root system. Diseased plants also have a thick root mat on the bottom and sides.
Pests or plant diseases are other possible warning signs. Plants in the garden center can harbor harmful insects,Fungal infestation or diseaseswhich can infect neighboring plants in your garden. Therefore, check the leaves for spots or speckles, which may be a sign of damage. Insects tend to hide under leaves or on stems. Another enemy of healthy plant growth is weeds. Take a close look at the top of a plant's root ball to make sure there aren't any weeds lurking and trying to hitchhike to your home. You can easily pull it out before growing. If the leaves begin to wilt, it is obvious that a plant at the nursery has not been watered enough. Sometimes all plants need a good watering to recover.
Buy plants for the garden with buds instead of flowers
The flowering plants immediately attract attention as you stroll through the aisles of the nursery. However, as tempting as bushes in bloom are, it is wiser to purchase a plant that has not yet bloomed. Imagine coming home with a hydrangea covered in colorful flowers and you plant it. You will enjoy your flowers for a long time. However, a large part of her flowering took place while she was in the nursery. The time during which the flowers remain open in your home is therefore significantly limited. Additionally, transplanting new garden plants is stressful and may cause flowers to drop.
So the temptation to buy a larger, more mature plant could be a waste of money. For example, a younger perennial or shrub is better able to handle the stress of planting than an older one. Smaller plants also initially grow faster than larger ones and cost less, while also requiring less time to plant. However, there are times when a larger plant is a better choice. If you're looking for an instant impact or have opted for a slow-growing plant, size may be your best bet.
Choose native plant varieties and pay attention to the guarantee
Garden plants have a much higher chance of survival if they are planted close to where they are grown where the climate is similar. Exotic plant varieties introduced from a different climate may not have had the opportunity to acclimate to new weather conditions. For example, some plants enjoy the mild, Mediterranean climate. Delivering plants from such areas to hot, dry or cold mountainous regions may therefore be a wrong decision if the plants do not have a chance to gradually adapt to a change in temperature.
Does the nursery you purchase from offer a guarantee? There are some plant sellers, usually larger companies, that offer guarantees in case plants die within a few months of being grown. However, many smaller, local nurseries do not do this. The reason for this is that they cannot control how the customer waters or cares for the plant, which can lead to its death. Therefore, if you choose a plant that is not easy to grow, you should find a nursery that offers a guarantee for it. However, you can always purchase a plant that is easy to grow in your area, so a warranty would most likely not be necessary.
