Received catalog order. Is it too early to plant? Zone 5a

Today I received plants that I ordered from a catalog, but am not sure what to do with them. I live in zone 5a, and the weather forecast is predicting snow this week. I received the following plants (all bareroot): Thuja - Green Giant, Jack in the Pulpit, Virginia Bluebells, Hosta, Dicentra spectabilis, Vinca, Clematis. Is it too early to plant these? If so, when should I begin planting in my zone? If it is too early to plant, how should I care for them until I can plant?

I hate it when they ship plants so early. You can try potting them up for a couple weeks. This cold weather has to let up sooner or later.

I would hold them inside until your average last frost date. New plants in particular will not likely survive such cold temperatures and snow. Do you have a grow light you could put them under until you can plant them outside? I have a big counter with lights hanging over it where I sit mine until the weather is right for planting. The trees should do fine in a garage if you have one. Keep them all watered and they should be fine.

When I lived in Montreal (Zone 5, 5a, 4-b depending on the year), one didn't plant anything outside until the middle of May. Some years it could have been earlier but it was akin to flying in the face of the Lord. Middle of May was the beginning of the gardening in those latitudes.

I now live in Florida (Zone 10), where we plant whatever we want pretty much any time of the year.

Best of luck with all that.
Sylvain.

I don't know where the plants came from, but chances are it was from somewhere in a warmer zone than you are or they had them in some sort of greenhouse or other protected area, so if they're used to life in a warmer zone and you plant them out and then get some cold weather it could be a big problem, on top of small plants being more susceptible to cold in the first place. So I'd also suggest potting them up and keeping them inside for a bit.

Zone 5er here, keep them in the house, even if you pot them up close together for now. I never put anything in the ground until May 1, but if you do put them out earlier, be prepared to cover if needed. I keep a few empty pots for this.

Thanks everyone for all the suggestions. I can pot them up and keep them in the kitchen. I don't have counter lights, but there are french doors that let in a lot of natural light. I just hope they make it until May, as I can kill any indoor plant on the planet, and that probably includes outdoor plants kept inside :) I do have some spare pots that I've been saving, now I know why....
I ordered the plants from Rich Owen/Exciting Gardens, located in Bloomington, IL, which is also a zone 5. I don't know if they receive stock from a warmer area, or if they use greenhouses in Bloomington. Is it common for catalog companies to ship this early, or is this probably just a mistake? I've ordered through the mail before, but this is the first year that I had the time to pick out my plants and order before the warm weather arrived. If it is common, I'll wait until May next year to place my orders!

Since they're in the same state as you it could be there was a week of nice weather and they decided to ship knowing that the plants wouldn't hit any cold weather between them and you. Next time you order, check if the company you're ordering from will let you specify a delivery week--many places will do that. They'll typically have a date they won't ship sooner than depending on how cold your zone is or what sort of weather the plants might have to travel through to get to you, but if their earliest shipping date to your area is a little earlier than you want, you can often request a later date.

Anytime I receive a bareroot plant, I always pot it up before planting it in the garden. It stands a better chance of survival under a more controlled condition. Use good potting soil. Once it starts to grow, you can re-plant it outside if weather is above freezing at night. Until then, leave the potted plant outside and bring it in if snow or cold threatens.

I have also kept plants in my refrigerator until planting time. This keeps them dormant.

but Blomma where would I put the milk? ;)
Last year I dragged about 20 plants & shrubs in & out of my garage for a month waitng to plant them. I'd be in bed at midnight thnking oh my god did I bring the plants in?? lol
But if you wait too long to order, that plant you really really want gets sold out. I'm chomping at the bit here for the warm weather, i'm in zone 5 too. And I'm sure the neighbors think I'm a lunatic, I was running around with sheets covering plants at midnight in May last year for every frost warning.

The poor plants don't know what to think. We've had snow the last two weekends.

Many companies will let you place your order and pay (which reserves your plants) but then request a later shipping date. Even if they don't have that as part of their order form on the website, chances are you can call them and request it. That way you don't have to worry about missing out on things and you also get your plants at the right time. I'm sure there are some that don't offer that option, but pretty much anyone I've ever ordered from will let you have some flexibility on shipping dates.

I just received my replacement order from a HORRIBLE company that noone should ever do business with, EVER. this is my 3rd replacement order from them.

the strawberries they sent me have literally rotted into one big glob, it is 10 plants in a bag and I can't even separate them.

2 of the blueberry plants have what looks like some sort of mold or moss growing on them

The fruit cocktail tree is already showing buds that are opening into leaves

The shrubs and Rose of Sharon's are also not dormant, they all have buds showing or leaves already forming

I'm on the line between 5b and 6a and they are calling for snow.


Will they go back into dormant? Its going to be at least 3 weeks before I can plant them but I don't want to ruin the growth they already have....

Anything that's rotten is probably beyond saving. For the others, if they're already planted outside I'd probably play it safe and throw a sheet or something over them so that the tender new growth isn't damaged. If they're indoors then I'd try to keep them there until your last frost date is past and it's safer to plant them outside.

I am not much of a flower gardener so I may be way off base here, but it may be an idea to give your new plants a month or so in the pot as a sort of quarantine. Then you have a chance to spot any problems before they can spread to your established plants.

Just my 2cents worth here...which is half of what it used to be...but just be sure and check the plants now and again if you put them in direct sun from your french doors. I have fried many a newly growing plant from the sun coming through glass doors and acting as a magnifying glass! For 'Survivor' it would have been a God send. A fine line between just enough and too much. In the meanwhile, I will be praying for warmer temps up your way!