Buyers Beware: Gardening Catalogs Start Arriving

It's something we in the industry both like and hate at the same time: gardening catalogs pouring forth through the mail and millions of people anxiously waiting the arrival of the next pile.

The reason for this like-hate relationship is that these catalogs "introduce" plants that are so new they aren't readily available in quantity to others until the second or third year (special arrangements were made ahead of time to allow a slow, controlled release the first year at a high price and profit to the originating grower). Many times, the plants either aren't hardy in this zone, or can't readily be found since it's a new introduction and will take a couple of years to reach mass marketing, or the colors don't match the pictures when it blooms (since the pictures were retouched), or that's the only color it comes in to date (hybridization is still ongoing and it will be years until enough varieties are available nationally).

So enjoy the pretty pictures, dream a good, dreamy-garden setting, but be prepared to special-order new introductions and pay a hefty price from these catalogs for the privilege of having them first on your block.

Routinely, we get hold of plants that are "firsts" for the area and introduce them and are then copied by those other so-called Garden Centers & Nurseries. Before you order expensive plants from pretty catalogs, call us about availability; you might save a fortune.