Im trying to form a list of things people would want to purchase when they go into the garden dept. Think of what you would want to see, please if you can use common and latin names and cultivars if any in particular are wanted especially. Im going to send this list to my bosses so they can get a better idea of what we really want to see when we come in. Mainly houseplants and tropicals but will list anything you really want to see.
I know there are alot of things that they just wont do because it would not be cost effective for them but Im really trying to see if I can get more of what "we" would want to see and purchase.
If you have any other ideas please let me know Im up for all recommendations so I can send them in.
TIA,
Janet
I need a list....
I'm a DIY container person, so I'm always happy to see an assortment of plants in smaller pots so I can mix and match my own hanging baskets etc. I'm also delighted to find smaller and less expensive pots of some larger plant that I'm admiring. But I think the "general public" is probably more interested in bigger, showy plants and lush hanging baskets... and willing to pay the pricetag. If you're familiar with Dutch Plant Farm in Frederick, you know they have the space for both approaches -- and they're my favorite local plant store.
I would really like fertilizers and pest solutions to be easy to find. Some places end up splitting them up, and while I don't mind fertilizers over here and pesticides over there, it really bugs me to find rose food and African violet fertilizer in one place, bulb fertilizer in another, and Miracle Gro & Osmocote in still a different section of the garden department. I know you were asking about plants... but this is a pet peeve! ;-)
For tropicals, I love displays with a wide assortment of colors and textures in the foliage... rex begonias, episcias, African violets with variegated leaves.... blooming plants may not always be in bloom, so great foliage is a big bonus. Some places have such a "sea of green" in their tropicals display. *yawn*
I'm also personally not keen on gold variegation, so I get excited when I find cultivars with white variegation such as 'Silver Queen' pothos (rather than the common gold one)... and I don't know the name, but there's a snake plant (Sansevieria) with white/silver variegation rather than the usual gold that I rarely see. I think there's a lot to be said for carrying some more unusual cultivars of plants that are commonly grown and very tough... people see the general shape and think, hey I have/had a plant like that, and I didn't manage to kill it, and that one looks really cool...
OK, enough random babble. I'll think about this some more & post again. :-)
Janet, I would love to see garden shops carry euphorbias. Not the tropical kind, the perennial, hardy kind. They're wonderful garden plants but all but impossible to find in this area. Merrifield carries some nice ones but they're the only place I know to find any.
Heleniums are another perennial that I have yet to find at any local garden shop.
I don't know if this helps you but these are two very easy to grow, tough plants that are wonderful additions to gardens and no one carries them.
Critter, I agree with you that I like at least the option of buying smaller plants. I love it that Webers often has the same plant available in either a quart or a gallon pot. We have a couple of local places here that also carry good selections of $1 perennials in small pots. Since by the second or at least the third year they're usually as big as the gallon plants, I like being able to buy 3 or 4 or 5 of something vs just one.
Jill dont worry about the pet peeve or rambling thats what I need
Hart, those are great ideas and I will be sure to put those in my list too.
Keep em comin.
I would like to see garden Shops have some more "unusual" plants, rather than the same old-same old you see at most places.
In our area, I have never seen plants like Brugmansias and Daturas for sale. They are so easy to propagate and grow.
There are so many wonderful perennials that I never see sold in the average Nursery. Then, I do not shop at expensive places. maybe they DO carry the "unusual". The "mass suppliers" just stick to the common ones.
I would like to see the actual names of plants on the tags--names of cultivars included--and clear directions of how to grow it. Sometimes the tags does not even match the plant. It is, sort of, generic.
Personally (just for me)I would like to see a nice Shefflara Amate in maybe a 2-3 gal. pot so I can grow it to a bigger size. I love this plant! But--I am NOT paying $60 for one in a 10 gallon pot! Why is this plant so hard to find?
More heirloom Tomatoes.
Hey! They are no harder to grow from seed than any other ones! When i read on DG about all these names I never heard of, I wonder WHY more of these are not available for sale?
Seed packets of the more unusual veggies or annuals or perennials.
Smaller bags of Pro Mix. for the backyard gardener. NOT a huge bale!
More organic fertilizers and pest control products.
That's all for now. I am sure I will thionk of some other things as soon as i send this.
Gita