Lovely cactus and flowers inside the plant nursery.

13 Tips For Choosing The Best Plants At Your Local Nursery – The Epic Garden Bargain Guide!

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I can’t believe it’s already June! Our New England garden is bursting at the seams with lovely tomato plants, peppers, tea herbs, beans, pumpkins, and a veritable armada of butternut squash. But what if you’re behind schedule? Fear not, fellow green thumbs! Your local nursery is here to save the day.

Choosing plants at your local nursery is like having a cheat code for your garden. And this guide will help you level up when you visit them and get the best deal possible.

Lovely cactus and flowers inside the plant nursery.

Sound good?

Then, buckle up, and let’s dig in!

13 Ways To Find Healthy Nursery Plants – Our Garden Bargain Guide

Here’s how to save cash and get the best deal when shopping for healthy plants and seedlings.

1. Check For Chaos Garden Bargains!

Spirea plants alongside some lovely bushes and shrubs growing in the nursery.

Most of the nurseries I visit have bargain zones. These are the island of misfit plants that aren’t selling well, are almost out of season, or are underperforming.

Usually, it’s okay to skip these less-than-desirable plants. But, if you have a backyard chaos garden, the discount zone is your hidden garden treasure. See what veggie seedlings you can snag for a few bucks and plant in your garden. With a bit of luck and much love, you’ll have a harvest that gives you a tremendous bang for your buck!

2. Look For Crops You Love To Eat!

Thick juicy peppers growing in the nursery garden.

Seek the veggies that please your taste buds the most. There’s no point growing Brussels sprouts if they make your kids run for the hills!

Also, consider how many veggies your family can realistically devour. Start small and grow what you know you’ll eat.

If you end up with extras, set up a mini farmers market in front of your house or gift them to friends and neighbors. Everyone loves free food, especially when fresh produce costs climb faster than Jack’s Beanstalk.

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3. Consider Market Availability

Yummy tomato plants growing at the plant nursery.

Think about the veggies on the shelves at your local grocery store. If they’re as common as muck, you might prioritize other varieties in your garden.

Also, consider the cost of fruits, veggies, salads, and herbs and choose accordingly. For example – the cost of fresh nectarines and honey-crisp apples is so high where I live, in Massachusetts, that you’d think they were solid gold! So, I’ve got these two fruit trees growing in my humble front yard garden!

(Now I have more fruit than I can shake a stick at. As long as the squirrels and birds leave some for me, that is!)

4. Prepare For Care And Commitment

Browsing a beautiful plant nursery in Greater Boston, Massachusetts.

Gardening is like raising a farm animal. It’s hard work, and things can go wrong. One day, your tomatoes are thriving; the next, they’re struck by blight. Or your zucchinis are doing great until the squash bugs launch an invasion.

But while gardening requires patience and resilience, the rewards are worth every drop of sweat! Remember, the best fertilizer is the gardener’s shadow.

5. Buy High-Quality Seeds – Buy Local!

Epic orchid plants growing in pots at the nursery.

Growing native plants is like throwing a party for native pollinators. Bees, butterflies, hummingbirds, and other garden visitors will thank you for the feast! Plus, native plants are adapted to local conditions, making them easier to grow. So, support your local nursery and the environment by going native!

Read More – Our Guide To Growing Epic And Delicious Butternut Squash At Home!

6. Inspect Leaves And Stems

Dwarf pine trees and other colorful shrubs in plants inside a plant nursery.

Leaves are like a plant’s medical record. Yellow leaves might mean too much water. Brown spots could be a sign of disease. And holes? Well, you’ve probably got a caterpillar munching away. So, play plant detective and look for clues to ensure you choose the healthiest plant possible.

Avoid foliage with holes, mushy leaves, webbing, black spots, or oozing leaves. Avoid stems with cracks or wounds.

7. Check The Soil

Lovely fruit plants growing in potted containers at the local nursery.

Soil is more than just dirt. It’s a plant’s pantry, water storage, and foundation. If it’s too dry, your plant might be thirsty. If it’s waterlogged, your plant’s roots could be drowning. And if it’s hard and compacted, your plant’s roots might struggle and need more room to grow. So, don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty and check the soil!

Avoid soil with pest eggs, webbing, stickiness, or a tightly packed, hardened, or dry texture.

8. Examine Roots

Potted ginseng plants with impressive and thick roots growing in the nursery.

Roots are like a plant’s hidden half. They take up water and nutrients, anchor the plant, and communicate with other roots. If they’re circling the pot, the plant is root-bound. If they’re brown and mushy, they could be rotting. Due to the threat of stunted growth and stress, you might look elsewhere in either case.

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9. Pest Inspection

Inspecting the leaves on a baby plant seedling at the nursery.

Nurseries are usually as pristine as a royal garden. But sometimes, aphids and spider mites sneak past their defenses. These miniature invaders might wreak havoc on your backyard garden plants. So, keep your eyes peeled for any unwanted hitchhikers!

(The last thing you want to do is introduce these hostile invaders to your home garden. So, double-check.)

10. Choose Unopened Flower Buds

Colorful flowers growing in the plant nursery.

Choosing plants with unopened flower buds is like buying a movie ticket for a show about to start. You’ll enjoy the whole spectacle of blooming in your garden. That’s how you get the best bang for your buck!

11. Plan And Consider Timing

Hundreds of potted conifer trees from a plant nursery.

Before you visit the nursery, consider your local growing zones, first date of frost, and growing schedule. Do you have enough time to produce your desired crop before winter? Some plants are sprinters. They burst forth in a few weeks like overeager marathon runners. Others are marathoners, taking their sweet time to mature.

So, calculate the days, weeks, or months needed. Doing so is the metaphorical equivalent of having a roadmap and calendar for your garden.

12. Engage With Nursery Staff

Taking care of potted flowers at the plant nursery.

Nursery staff are walking plant encyclopedias. Be bold and ask questions. And don’t be shy. They’ve heard everything. “What plant should I grow this time of year?” “What’s this plant’s Latin name?” “How often should I water this?” “Do you think this plant would survive a zombie apocalypse?” They’re there to help!

13. Smell The Soil

Several potted snake plants growing in the nursery.

Yes, you read that right! Give the soil a good sniff. A pleasant, earthy smell suggests well-draining soil and a thriving plant. Ordinary folks might think you’re a garden kook for smelling the soil. But it’s okay. All homesteaders are a tad kooky! (Yes. Me included, lol.)

13 tips for choosing the best plants at your local nursery.

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Conclusion

So there you have it, gardening geeks! Your epic guide to scoring the best plants and deals at your local nursery. These are the best tips and tricks we leverage to almost always get the best deal and value.

What about you?

  • Are you going to buy plants at the plant nursery this year?
  • Are you going to get fruits, veggies, flowers, or herbs?
  • We love buying baby plants at the nursery. But some gardeners consider it cheating! Do you agree?
  • Does your nursery have a discount zone? See if you can score some seedlings for a buck. You might find a killer deal!
  • Do you know of more tricks for getting good deals at the nursery?

We love brainstorming with fellow plant fanciers and hope to hear back!

Thanks again for reading.

Have a great day!

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