If you’re like me, half the fun of starting a new hobby or activity or anything is the prospect of getting to go shopping.
You have your list of plants in hand, you have your area for your garden all picked out, whether it’s a few square feet of yard or a couple containers—you might even have your site prepped and ready to go. And if you don’t—because it’s still early in some parts of the country—don’t worry. You’re ready to go out there and get some plants! It’s time to go shopping!
As far as I’m concerned, this is one of the best parts of having a garden. I love going to the local garden center and standing in the doorway of the greenhouse and looking at that sea of possibility, all those little plants and square containers and round containers, all begging me to take them home.
But before you go crazy, and I know that’s easy to do, let’s hit the brakes and consider a few things.
Where do I start?
It can all be a little overwhelming. We have the “garden centers” at the huge sprawling big box stores, and then you have your regular independent garden centers that sell everything from asparagus to zinnias. You have farmers markets, where people are selling plants in pots, and you have little roadside stands.
But that’s why you made your list, so you would know what to look for and to keep this from becoming too overwhelming.
So, where to start? If you have time, go and check out all of them. Browse, peruse. Enjoy looking at all the vast variety in the big garden centers, admire the local sellers at the farmers market and roadside stands for their initiative and entrepreneurial spirit. But if you don’t feel like buying on these first outings, that’s fine. Don’t buy. We’re looking for specific plants, the ones on your list. And we’re looking for native plants. That narrows down the list a lot and will help you resist temptation.
How do I know if it’s native?
You’ll know that plants you’re looking for are natives because hopefully you did your homework earlier and figured out which plants are native in your area. When you go to the store, though, that sea of plants in front of you can be a little overwhelming. How do I know what I’m getting is a true native?
I blew by this a few blog posts back, but let’s go into it in a little more detail.
Every plant (every living thing, in fact) has a scientific name, in Latin, attached to it. This Latin name tells us which specific plant this is, which is pretty helpful to us, because a lot of plants go by a lot of different common names. If you look at a plant’s label, you’ll usually see both that plant’s common name and its Latin name. If the Latin name is by itself with nothing after it, you know which specific plant this is and that it’s in its original form.
When a plant has been bred for certain characteristics, though, like color or height or cold-hardiness, that plant then gets an additional name, the name of its variety. Farmers and gardeners have been breeding plants like this for thousands of years, and many gardeners still breed plants as a hobby, for example, with roses and irises, the same way people breed dogs or horses. Giving the plant a varietal name let’s everyone know that that variety is the result of someone’s hard work. It also lets plant companies copyright their work, so no one else can cash in on the specific varieties they developed.
So if a plant’s label lists just the Latin name by itself, such as Echinacea purpurea, which is the scientific name for the purple coneflower, a common coneflower native to my area, I know that the plant I’m holding is a purple coneflower in its original form. It hasn’t been hybridized or selectively bred to give it new and different characteristics from the original that’s been growing wild in my area for millennia.
However, if the Latin name is followed by another name in quotes or an “x” or “var.,” I know that I’m looking at a varietal. And that’s okay. It just means it’s not the plant in its original form.
There’s still some question as to whether varietals of native plants are as good for pollinators as the original native [link to a study?], so don’t feel guilty about getting a few varietals. I have a few myself.
But for best results, make sure the bulk of your microprairie natives are the originals. I couldn’t resist the orange coneflowers, but I got them to supplement the regular native purple coneflowers that form the core of my new microprairie. That way, I know that’s best for the pollinators that come to my yard.
How do I know it’s a healthy plant?
Starting out with a plant that’s healthy before you ever put it in the ground is crucial. It’s one of the biggest factors for success in the garden.
First, stand there and look the plants over. Are they standing up nice and perky or are they limp? Are they a healthy looking deep green (assuming the plant is supposed to be green—some aren’t) or do they look grayish or yellowed? Do they look stocky and sturdy or do they look spindly and wimpy?
Check the soil in the pot. It should be damp but not soggy and not bone dry (unless it’s a succulent, in which case it can be dry since you don’t want it overwatered, but it also shouldn’t be limp). Check for leaves that are turning brown around the edges or dried up completely. That means it’s been underwatered. If a lot of the leaves are yellow and limp, that means it’s been overwatered. It’s normal to find a few dried-up or yellowed leaves around the bottom of the plant, but it should only be a few, and the rest of the plant should look thick and green and healthy.
Overall, it’s important to pick plants that look bright and happy. If you start with a healthy plant, you’ll have a lot more luck than planting an unhealthy one that may never recover. If they don’t look happy and healthy, move along.
Now, sometimes plants that have just been dug up and repotted for sale will look sad because they’re under temporary stress, and they will perk up after a bit. You’ll see this especially at a roadside stand or when you or a friend are digging up and dividing plants yourselves. That’s okay as long as they get some water right away and kept in the shade for a bit, especially if they’re shade plants.
But in general, these rules of thumb for a healthy plant are true of any place you buy plants from. If the plants don’t look happy and healthy, keep moving. You want plants that have been cared for.
How do I know it’s safe for pollinators?
And then, lastly—and maybe most importantly—ask if the plants are free of neonicotinoids and other systemic pesticides that can harm pollinators. Systemic pesticides are pesticides that are sometimes added into the soil. The plant absorbs it, making the plant poisonous to anything that eats it. The cause-and-effect link isn’t completely settled, but most responsible plant sellers won’t use neonicontinoids on plants that pollinators may visit. If it doesn’t say so on the plant’s tag or pot, be sure to ask. A systemic pesticide may be good for the appearance of the plant, but it’s deadly for pollinators.
And there you have it. Half the fun of starting a garden in the spring—at least for me—is getting to go out shopping for those plants. So go and have fun, but just keep these three simple steps in mind when you go, and you’ll be able to pick out happy, healthy plants that should do well in your garden.
Later on, we’ll talk some more about how to divide plants, which is a great way to give and get more plants and share with your friends, and because, frankly, native plants can sometimes go nuts when they’re on their home turf, because they’re that happy to be there.
In the meantime, happy shopping!