by Connie Oswald Stofko
When you go out to buy plants this weekend– or at any time– turn to your local garden centers.
They often have interesting plants that you can’t get in the big box stores.
More important, many of the garden centers are growers, too. They know about plants and have folks on staff who can answer your questions. For example, if you say you don’t want to spend a lot of time maintaining your garden, they’ll know to steer you to plants that don’t need much watering or deadheading.
You can find local gardening businesses by clicking on any of the ads you see on this site, or go to our Gardening Directory.
If you want to find a particular plant, contact garden centers directly. Each garden center has its own specialties. Their stock varies from year to year. And of course, while they may have dozens of specimens of a particular plant on hand one week, the next week they could be sold out. See a list of gardening business in our Gardening Directory, and click to find their contact information.
And don’t make this weekend the only time you shop for plants. Memorial Day isn’t a gardening deadline; it’s more of a starting point. You can still plant tomatoes in June. You’ll find healthy, flowering perennials at garden centers in July. In August and September, look for different kinds of annuals than you’ll find in spring.
Visit garden centers throughout the summer– and autumn– to see what’s new.
Always do. Shop locally for the best plants since many grow them in our conditions.