Plant Nurseries: How to Choose a Mail-Order Nursery That Actually Ships Healthy Plants to Your Zone
If you are ordering from a mail order plant nursery‚ you must be as concerned with which nurseries are the best for getting plants to you in a state that are growable in your yard‚ as which ones are physically closest to your house․ You could use the criteria of how accurately a nursery follows its hardiness zone designation‚ when it ships‚ or how well it packages roots․ Get those three right‚ and a mail order nursery can usually beat a local garden center for price and selection․ Get them wrong‚ and you'll be replacing dead perennials by June․
That's more important in Tennessee and the Southeast than it is anywhere else because we've got USDA zones ranging from 6b (Knoxville and the Cumberland Plateau) to 8a (Chattanooga and Memphis and the other warm pockets of the region)․ If a nursery doesn't ask for your zip code before recommending plants or just sends the same catalog to Minnesota and Mississippi‚ that nursery isn't going to check whether any of the plants it sells there will survive a Tennessee winter and our humid late-summer heat․
Where Local Garden Centers Excel‚ and Where they Fall Short
But local inventory is really just what fits on a truck and sells well in a local market․ For example‚ if you are looking for native Southeast groundcovers‚ erosion-control live stakes‚ or a rare fern for shaded hillsides in Tennessee‚ a lot of local on-the-ground centers simply won't carry them․ Instead of the more specialized stock that serious gardeners and landscapers want‚ they are stocking annuals and other generic shrubs and seasonal color․
This is where a Mail-Order nursery wins․
TN Nursery and other online-only nurseries may also offer plants that are more appropriate to the Southeastern region‚ native perennials‚ shade garden ground covers and erosion control plants like live stakes‚ which are not of interest to impulse buyers at their neighborhood garden center․ Plants ordered online may be grown in the climate zone of your residence‚ while those at a brick and mortar store may have been grown in a cooler or warmer zone․
Being a knowledgeable nursery‚ mail-order nurseries will also ship bare-root and potted plants at a time when the plants are dormant as well as when conditions‚ such as temperature and humidity‚ are favorable for planting․ For example‚ a nursery is likely to ship dormant bare-root perennials and shrubs in late winter or early spring (Tennessee is February‚ March‚ and April) rather than when they are in leaf in July on a hot day․ If a nursery tries to sell you a dormant hydrangea or a live stake in the middle of August when you haven't ordered one‚ that's a warning sign‚ not a selling point․
How to Actually Vet an Online Plant Nursery
The following is the order in which to check if ordering:
Include the hardiness zones of each plant to help visitors recreate the gardens at home․ "Grows well in most climates" is not helpful․ If it doesn't say zones 6-8 (or that it's suitable for the Southeast)‚ your nursery is using generic copy‚ not growing knowledge specific to your area․
Bare-root plants should be shipped with moist packing media (sphagnum moss or shredded paper) and well-hydrated roots (not dry‚ brittle or shriveling)․ Potted plants should be shipped soil intact and well packed or padded so the plant will not be dislodged during shipment․ Inquire if it's not listed on the website․
Realistic size and maturity claims․ If the nursery sold you a 3-year-old established fern for eight dollars‚ the fern is probably not three years old‚ or it is a very small fern․ If size is important‚ compare using inches or gallon pots․ Claims of age are meaningless․
A stated guarantee window․ Very reputable nurseries will offer some kind of replacement or refund guarantee if the plant arrives in bad condition or doesn't take root within a stated window (30 to 90 days)․ No guarantee at all usually means no quality control‚ not even behind the scenes․
The care instructions are sent with the delivery․ They are small but differentiate from those labels․ A nursery that provides‚ at the point of sale‚ planting depth‚ watering frequency and sun requirements specific to your plant type will be investing in your success after the sale‚ not just the sale․
Timelines you should actually expect․
If you plan to plant bare-root perennials and shrubs‚ you should do so within 3 to 5 days of arrival․ Don't let the package sit on the front porch for two weeks․ Water in thoroughly at planting and keep plants well watered (but not saturated) for two to three weeks until well rooted․ Groundcovers and erosion control plantings should be monitored and watered if necessary for the first 4-6 weeks of the growing season‚ but they will not be fully rooted until the end of their first growing season․ The plant should be good for at least one week‚ without wilting; for woody plants such as live stakes‚ it can even last longer․
If you have heavy clay soil (like most of middle and east Tennessee)‚ mix compost or aged pine bark into the planting hole․ Pure clay drains poorly‚ and in a heavy rain‚ water will puddle around the root ball․ It is a common cause of death for mail-order plants‚ even when they are otherwise in good health․
The Bottom Line
A local nursery will let you view and touch the plant before you buy it‚ while a mail-order specialty nursery will not․
