Thought I would share a little article I wrote last winter. Hopefully all the links work.
Mail Order Sourcing for Gardeners
Gardening catalogs provide a jolt of inspiration and excitement for the next season. They have been available for countless years and most are full of beautiful plant photos and usually also have a huge assortment of plant materials. Catalog shopping is very relaxing and convenient for anyone, even with a busy schedule. Mail order catalogs provide today’s gardener with an easy source of new plant varieties, old favorites and chance to try the out-of-the ordinary with a reasonably low investment.
There are many gardening suppliers that offer a mixture of product types, such as plants, seeds, supplies, decor, books etc. Today, mail order catalogs are readily available in print & on-line versions. Lynnette Westfall of Valley K Greenhouses www.valleyk.com near Camrose, AB commented that although most of their customer orders are placed on-line, there is an increase in sales after the issue of a printed catalog. Many gardeners enjoy flipping thru the catalogs over downloading the pages on the internet.
Most hard copies are full of awesome photos & product info. The Dominion Seeds print catalog (www.dominion-seed-house.com) utilizes different icons to increase the detailed plant information in least amount of printed space Most on-line catalogs offer very detailed plant information, including specific planting instructions, optimal growing conditions and care recommendations. Supplier web sites provide an easy way to research plant information & suitability to your garden.
Many mail order suppliers offer seasonal catalogs. Suppliers often post specials on their websites. Veseys www.veseys.com have several seasonal catalogs & Internet promotions throughout the year. Catalogs targeting spring planting are available late fall into early spring. Catalogs targeting fall planting are released in mid summer. Suppliers will state order deadlines & applicable promotions, which will give you an order date guideline for product availability. Mail Order companies will accept orders by phone, fax or on-line.
Calgary is in a cold climate short growing season in Zone 3A. Our average last frost is May 25 and sourcing via mail order allows for earlier harvests & flowers in our growing area. The number of weeks to start early on seeds packages are in reference to May 25. Sources such as William Dam Seeds www.damseeds.com or Gardens North www.gardensnorth.com specialize in unusual & rare seeds that suit our cold climate gardens. Your planting method (starting indoors, winter sowing, direct seeding or transplanting) will determine the required delivery date. Suppliers have delivery date guidelines regarding perishable items, which on occasion may be negotiated.
Aside from the satisfaction of starting plants & watching them grow, mail order sourcing is an economical way to increase the number of plants in your garden. Some suppliers, such as T & T Seeds www.ttseeds.com utilize promotional enticements to market their products. Extra savings are also obtained by grouping an order with a friend to share product and/or shipping costs.
Mail orders offer a large variety of plants & seeds, which gives a home gardener an opportunity to try new varieties, Heirloom & Hybrids. McFaydens www.mcfayden.com consistently offers new specialties, not available locally or first time on the market.
In addition to a sneak peek of what’s new, a home gardener can expect quality seed & healthy plants. Individual supplier guarantees are stated in their catalogs and they do package the shipment with care to ensure the product is safely delivered. If you choose an US supplier, such as Park Seeds www.parkseed.com contact them directly regarding duty and shipping charges. Some international suppliers have a Canadian distribution depot such as Thompson & Morgan www.thompson-morgan.com .
There are many resources to find Mail Order Suppliers. Some options are: recommendations from gardening friends, ads in your favorite gardening magazines, or doing an internet search, such as www.google.ca . There is an excellent on-line database www.gardenlist.com that allows you to search by plant type or country and includes supplier ratings. Another important resource is the Calgary Horticulture Society on-line Forum that members contribute valuable information daily. Reference Books, such as "The Prairie Gardener's Sourcebook" by June Flanagan & Donna Fremont are also worth a look.
There are a huge number of mail order suppliers & it would be difficult to list them. Utilizing the resources, you can choose to buy locally or source through a supplier that specializes in specific products. Your specialty search may have some of these results: herbs (www.richters.com), roses www.pickeringnurseries.com , grasses www.bluestem.ca , alpines www.rockgardenplants.com , bulbs www.botanus.com , tools www.leevalley.com , and much more.
Do compare the seed count per package for a true comparison. William Dam Seeds www.damseeds.com appear to have the best cost per seed ratio.
A number of suppliers have decades and even centuries of experience in this business, such as Stokes www.stokeseeds.com which started in 1881. They also have their own trial gardens. Most suppliers offer quality products at competitive prices. Mail order shopping has a number of benefits, but the key reward will be the new additions in your garden. Happy gardening.
This message was edited Dec 20, 2008 10:08 AM
Seed Catalogs in Canada
Great article! Since it was minus 20C outside when I woke up this morning, I needed something to remind me that spring is coming. For many years I have been buying Sutton's (British) seeds from the (Canadian) Gardenimport Inc catalogue, and getting good germination. I mostly sow straight into the garden, as I've got a purple thumb when it comes to sowing seeds in pots or trays.
Great article, thanks, I urge all DG'ers to use the Garden Watchdog to check sources out, it would have saved me lots of grief over the years!
Living in a small town many of my garden plants and seeds are from mail order companies.
What gets me is that some Canadian catalogues such as Dominion Seed House do not guarantee most of their listed perennial plants for zone 2 and below. They say you must choose plants and bulbs with a hardiness zone that is equal or inferior to yours in order for their guarantee to be respected. Many of their plants that they sell are absolutely hardy in my zone.
I especially love those companies that offer free delivery ;)
Sharon
Found this surfing one time thought it might interest someone. It is a mail order resource of all garden mail order companies world wide there is a section for Canadian companies to search. It is at www.gardenlist.com if the link doesn't work you can find it if you Google "Cyndi's Catalogue of Garden catalogues."
You caught me at a weak moment-- just ordered some seeds...Bad Lisa, Bad!
Some info that I thought I would pass on:
Stokes has an adder of 8% to catalog pricing. Apparently this does not apply to small seed packet size items. It only applies to the bulk buys sold by weight and all accessories.
Veseys sent an email to all their customers that are in their data base on Dec 31 stating that an order of anything for $50+ would qualify for $25 off. A 2nd email earlier this week states the discount is only applicable to spring bulb and perennials. You need to call them to get the discount on all. The promo expires Jan 9th.
Thanks for the heads up joanna!
Please read about Vesey's in GW before you order.