Buying plants

fredx · April 30, 2013

Are there any good sources for buying starter plants??

Will try growing from seed next year

Thanks

kath · April 30, 2013

Welcome to T'ville, Fred. Selected Plants and Cross Country Nurseries are 2 that I know of who sell great selections of plants.

kath

afrance30 · April 30, 2013

I ordered some (ok, alot) of tomatoes and peppers from Cross Country Nurseries this year after hearing a lot of great reviews. My plants should arrive this week. The site is http://www.chileplants.com/

dpurdy · April 30, 2013

Most of your local nurseries will have tomato plants for sale. You can place a call to them and ask what they have available or you can check out a Lowe's. Lowe's will sometimes have some heirloom varieties along with hybrids.

Dak · April 30, 2013

I'd second the idea of supporting your local nursery. My experience of plants from big box stores has not been good. I gave up on Lowe's when the specific varieties I picked out all turned out to be nondescript cherries.

If I were to order plants this year, I would try the clones offered here, nice selection.

tlintx · April 30, 2013

I tried Lowes and Home Depot, and found the selection ok but not exciting. And overpriced. Walmart had much bigger, cheaper plants, but also not exciting types.

The most obvious "local nurseries" had lots of grass and shrubberies, but few tomatoes. Worth checking, but kind of disappointing. Those are the ones that put out flyers in the mail.

This year, I finally found a place that seems like what other people are talking about when they say "local nursery". I basically googled "native plant nursery" in google maps and started visiting websites until I found one that looked promising. Specializing in natives seems to be a good sign.

I also scored some nice plants by following a local pick-your-own vendor home from the farmer's market.

Not really, I just felt like dropping by after seeing their booth at the market, and they had a ton of pepper and tomato plants outside.

I prefer to buy locally, but if it comes down to driving to the nearest big city vs ordering online, I'll probably order online.

kath · April 30, 2013

Some people here sell their own heirloom tomato plants via craigslist- that might work for you.

habitat_gardener · April 30, 2013

Farmers' markets are a good place to look. I found a new vendor who sells a huge variety of tomato seedlings at one of the local farmers' markets. Among others, I bought Black Vernissage, Portuguese Monster, and Bread and Salt.

Cole_Robbie · April 30, 2013

Quote:

Originally Posted by habitat_gardener

Farmers' markets are a good place to look.

I agree. I sell plants at my local farmer's market. Once a year or so I will put up a craigslist ad as well.

Redbaron · April 30, 2013

Welcome to Tville Fred.

Vespertino · April 30, 2013

I don't care much for the plants at large chains like Lowes, Home Depot or Wal Mart. I prefer the ones sold at local nurseries. They're more likely to carry plants and tomatoes that grow well for your area, not to mention heirlooms and more unusual varieties. I had very good luck and an excellent selection at a local nursery near me, I stopped shopping at other places altogether.

RebelRidin · April 30, 2013

I would also suggest you try a search on Craigs List. You just might find that great local supplier you need.

Welcome to TVille!

greenthumbomaha · May 1, 2013

You might call the extension office of your local university. They would know of master gardener plant sales in your area. They can also direct you to farmers markets. Lots of good advice from those folks too.

OldHondaNut · May 1, 2013

The ones at the local Lowes and HD are good when they arrive. The care after delivery is variable. Bonnie is usually the supplier and they offer good transplants and lately, a great deal of variety. I grow my own but I always want to see what is being offered. Like the others here, I would recommend a local nursery if you can't grow your own. But in a pinch, you can get a 4 or 6 or 9 pack from the big chains and still have so much better fruit than store bought.

Edit: I don't recommend the larger potted plants. The smallest size is best, don't be fooled by the gallon pot with 3 tomatoes already set. It is a BAD sign of stress and that it rushed to seed.

DanielA · May 3, 2013

Our local greenhouse has a wide variety of veg plants including many heirloom varieties, and they sell the 3.5 inch pots for $1 each. They are a huge operation ( sunrise farms south of Chicago).
After investing in starting supplies I'm wondering if it made financial sense, but I hope that it may pay for itself if we can stay away next year.

April 30, 2013	#1
fredx Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: Florida & Georgia Posts: 20	Buying plants Are there any good sources for buying starter plants?? Will try growing from seed next year Thanks

April 30, 2013	#10
Redbaron Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 4,488	Welcome to Tville Fred. __________________ Scott AKA The Redbaron "Permaculture is a philosophy of working with, rather than against nature; of protracted & thoughtful observation rather than protracted & thoughtless labour; & of looking at plants & animals in all their functions, rather than treating any area as a single-product system." Bill Mollison co-founder of permaculture

April 30, 2013	#12
RebelRidin Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Maryland's Eastern Shore Posts: 993	I would also suggest you try a search on Craigs List. You just might find that great local supplier you need. Welcome to TVille! __________________ George _____________________________ "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is it’s natural manure." Thomas Jefferson, 1787

May 1, 2013	#14
OldHondaNut Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Zone 8a Posts: 120	The ones at the local Lowes and HD are good when they arrive. The care after delivery is variable. Bonnie is usually the supplier and they offer good transplants and lately, a great deal of variety. I grow my own but I always want to see what is being offered. Like the others here, I would recommend a local nursery if you can't grow your own. But in a pinch, you can get a 4 or 6 or 9 pack from the big chains and still have so much better fruit than store bought. Edit: I don't recommend the larger potted plants. The smallest size is best, don't be fooled by the gallon pot with 3 tomatoes already set. It is a BAD sign of stress and that it rushed to seed. Last edited by OldHondaNut; May 1, 2013 at 12:49 PM.

April 30, 2013	#2
kath Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: zone 6b, PA Posts: 5,664	Welcome to T'ville, Fred. Selected Plants and Cross Country Nurseries are 2 that I know of who sell great selections of plants. kath

April 30, 2013	#3
afrance30 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2010 Location: Cincinnati Posts: 212	I ordered some (ok, alot) of tomatoes and peppers from Cross Country Nurseries this year after hearing a lot of great reviews. My plants should arrive this week. The site is http://www.chileplants.com/

April 30, 2013	#4
dpurdy Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Norwich, New York Posts: 255	Most of your local nurseries will have tomato plants for sale. You can place a call to them and ask what they have available or you can check out a Lowe's. Lowe's will sometimes have some heirloom varieties along with hybrids.

April 30, 2013	#5
Dak Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: CA Posts: 494	I'd second the idea of supporting your local nursery. My experience of plants from big box stores has not been good. I gave up on Lowe's when the specific varieties I picked out all turned out to be nondescript cherries. If I were to order plants this year, I would try the clones offered here, nice selection.

April 30, 2013	#6
tlintx Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: SeTx Posts: 881	I tried Lowes and Home Depot, and found the selection ok but not exciting. And overpriced. Walmart had much bigger, cheaper plants, but also not exciting types. The most obvious "local nurseries" had lots of grass and shrubberies, but few tomatoes. Worth checking, but kind of disappointing. Those are the ones that put out flyers in the mail. This year, I finally found a place that seems like what other people are talking about when they say "local nursery". I basically googled "native plant nursery" in google maps and started visiting websites until I found one that looked promising. Specializing in natives seems to be a good sign. I also scored some nice plants by following a local pick-your-own vendor home from the farmer's market. Not really, I just felt like dropping by after seeing their booth at the market, and they had a ton of pepper and tomato plants outside. I prefer to buy locally, but if it comes down to driving to the nearest big city vs ordering online, I'll probably order online.

April 30, 2013	#8
habitat_gardener Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: California Central Valley Posts: 2,543	Farmers' markets are a good place to look. I found a new vendor who sells a huge variety of tomato seedlings at one of the local farmers' markets. Among others, I bought Black Vernissage, Portuguese Monster, and Bread and Salt.

April 30, 2013	#11
Vespertino Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2013 Location: Southlake, TX Posts: 743	I don't care much for the plants at large chains like Lowes, Home Depot or Wal Mart. I prefer the ones sold at local nurseries. They're more likely to carry plants and tomatoes that grow well for your area, not to mention heirlooms and more unusual varieties. I had very good luck and an excellent selection at a local nursery near me, I stopped shopping at other places altogether.

May 1, 2013	#13
greenthumbomaha Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Omaha Zone 5 Posts: 2,514	You might call the extension office of your local university. They would know of master gardener plant sales in your area. They can also direct you to farmers markets. Lots of good advice from those folks too.

May 3, 2013	#15
DanielA Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: South Chicago Posts: 13	Our local greenhouse has a wide variety of veg plants including many heirloom varieties, and they sell the 3.5 inch pots for $1 each. They are a huge operation ( sunrise farms south of Chicago). After investing in starting supplies I'm wondering if it made financial sense, but I hope that it may pay for itself if we can stay away next year.