Gardening : Eight Ways to Save Money When Buying Plants
Everyone is trying to save money these days, including gardeners. Unless you raise all your plant material from seeds or cuttings, or you have friends who can divide and share plants with you, buying plants at the nursery can be an expensive proposition. It’s easy to spend a hundred dollars on a dozen plants and a couple of bags of soil amendment and fertilizer in one Saturday afternoon trip.
However, sticking closely to a few guidelines will help keep costs down and, just as important, avoid wasting money.
1--The same rule applies at the nursery as at the grocery store: Don’t buy on impulse. You need the right plant for the right spot. To select appropriate plants, first study your garden to determine its soil type and sunny and shady areas and then research the plant material that interests you.
Disregard plants needing special conditions that you cannot provide, no matter how much you wish you could grow them in your garden. Pay attention above all to water requirements; if you do not intend to water often, choose proven drought-tolerant material. Having done your homework, make a tentative list and take it with you to the nursery.
2--Bring your favorite reference book with you. If you forget it, every good nursery has a well-thumbed copy of the Sunset Western Garden Book that you can use. If a plant isn’t listed, as is frequently the case with new offerings, ask the nursery staff for information before making a decision. You need to know haw fast and how large a plant will grow and what its care requirements are.
3--Unlike food, plants are cheaper in smaller sizes. Try to buy your plants in 4-inch pots or six-packs. Yes, they will take longer to fill in, but the monetary savings will be worth the wait. After all, for the cost of 10 plants in one-gallon containers at $5.99 each, you can buy thirty 4-inch pots at $1.99 each, or even 24 six-packs at $2.49 each, which will give you a total of 144 little plants. The only problem is finding the plants you want in small sizes. Keep looking and asking.
4--Inspect the plant carefully. Has it dried out too much or grown tall and leggy? Tip it out of the pot and examine the roots. If it has been in the pot too long and is root-bound you can either reject it or make sure that, when you plant it, you chop off the excess roots on the bottom and loosen or cut the roots wound around the sides.
If you look closely, you may even find some pots that contain not just one but two plants, thereby giving you twice as much for your money. By the way, nurseries sometimes give away neglected plants and it’s worth letting these have a second chance by cutting them back drastically when you put them in the ground and giving them plenty of fertilizer and water.
5--Buy and plant at the right time of year. Fall is absolutely the best time to plant or replace landscaping in Southern California. The weather is cooler, the days are getting shorter and less watering is required. The plants will have the whole winter to establish strong root systems, making them better able to tolerate drought conditions in summer. And if you are lucky, there may be winter rains to help the plants along.
However, in keeping with gardening habits learned in colder climates, many people still enjoy planting in the spring. If you are a springtime gardener, begin planting as early as possible to give the plants a good start before the long hot days arrive. Winter is almost as good as fall or spring for planting, but rain may make this impossible if the ground becomes saturated. By summer, the conditions become too tough for transplants, unless you are prepared to water every day or are planting in the shade.
6--Put your new plants in the ground as soon as possible or take good care of them if you have to keep them for future planting. Do not leave them for long inside a hot car or in the full sun. Store them in the shade and make sure they get enough water. The porous potting mix that growers use for young plants is excellent for promoting root growth but dries out very quickly. Ideally, do not purchase your plants until you are ready to plant.
7--Prepare the soil before planting. Good drainage is all-important. Dig up the soil and loosen and improve it by adding amendments as well as some fertilizer of whatever type you prefer to use. It doesn’t hurt to throw a handful of bone meal in the bottom of the planting hole, too. All the work of planting and watering will be wasted if the plants languish in an inhospitable environment, so do some research into this subject, too.
8--Don’t neglect your new plants once they are in the ground. Make a regular inspection tour of new plantings and try to find out why some may not be thriving. A common watering problem occurs when the pot ball has dried out and the water runs down the sides and into the surrounding soil and is not absorbed by the roots.
Try to loosed up the dried-out pot mix or, if necessary, pull the plant out and remove some of the material around the roots. In hot weather it may be beneficial to shade the plants for a few days.
