Why Buy From an Online Nursery Instead of a Big Box Store
When you order your plants online‚ you’re getting healthy plants‚ a greater selection‚ and plants that have been growing in the field or nursery‚ shipped out at exactly the right time for planting in your zone․ Plants sold at a big box garden center have been on a truck and then a parking lot for weeks‚ while plants sold by a specialty grower like TN Nursery are dug or potted and shipped expressly for your order․
That distinction is important‚ perhaps more than most realize․
The Big Box Problem
It would be hard to find a garden center in April not selling slabs of perennials that had been piled up three weeks earlier by a wholesale grower hundreds of miles away‚ without anyone ever watering them‚ checking to see whether the pots are root-bound‚ or looking for pest pressure․ By the time you buy that hosta or that hydrangea‚ it’s already stressed and you’re the one who has to nurse it back to health after planting․
Online nurseries that propagate their own stock have no middle step․ TN Nursery‚ for example‚ grows its plants in Tennessee soil and climate‚ in other words‚ this company has already acclimated its plants to the humidity‚ clay soil and temperature swings that residents in USDA zones 6 through 8 face․ A plant grown in the Southeast and shipped to a Southeast garden has an advantage over one trucked in from a nursery in Oregon or California․
You Get Actual Plant Knowledge‚ Not a Teenager Pointing at a Sign
Ask an employee at a big box store to share the ideal soil pH for blueberry bushes‚ and they’re going to shrug their shoulders․ Specialty online nurseries live and breathe this stuff․ Good ones provide complete information such as sun requirements‚ mature size‚ bloom time‚ hardiness zones and soil moisture requirements on the product page‚ and staff in their customer service departments are usually able to answer questions such as “will this survive a hard freeze in East Tennessee” or “how far apart should I space these for a privacy hedge?”
Most of the key questions concern first-time gardeners‚ who don’t know what to ask․ If you’re planting your first foundation bed‚ for example‚ knowing that a Knock Out Rose needs at minimum six hours of direct sun‚ and that a river birch wants constantly moist soil and will sulk in a dry sandy spot‚ will save you a season of frustration‚ and a dead plant․
Selection You Won’t Find Locally
Of course‚ local garden centers carry only what sells well and ships easily in bulk․ You can find most annuals‚ popular perennials‚ and whatever shrub is trending at the moment․ But online nurseries carry all of the things a local center doesn’t have room for‚ or the foot traffic to clear out․ You can find native wildflowers like Black-Eyed Susan and Purple Coneflower‚ shade-loving groundcovers‚ and bare-root fruit trees․
If you’re trying to plant a pollinator garden or native plant garden bed‚ look for fern‚ wildflower and native shrub offerings of TN Nursery because those plants not only look good on the shelf tag‚ but they thrive in the southeastern United States․ You’re not buying whatever is on the truck that week․
Timing Is Everything: How Online Nurseries Get It Right
Here is something that most articles on this topic do not stress enough: timing is arguably the single biggest factor in whether a mail-order plant survives․
Reputable Internet nurseries will ship according their USDA hardiness zone and the current season․ For example‚ a customer in Zone 6 (e․g․‚ part of Middle Tennessee around Nashville) would receive dogwood seedlings in early spring․ A customer in a few warmer rural pockets of Zone 8 of Middle Tennessee may receive their seedlings a few weeks sooner․ Bare root trees and shrub seedlings are shipped in a dormant state (from late fall to early spring)‚ rather than wasting energy on leaves․ Potted perennials and ferns can be shipped from spring to early fall‚ provided extremely high temperatures or hard freezes are not predicted during travel․
A nursery that ships to everyone‚ the same day‚ no matter where you live or what the weather is like‚ is not doing you any favors․ Look for one that ships according to your zip code or hardiness zone․
Real Talk on Cost
Online nursery plants are not always cheaper‚ as a gallon-pot perennial from a big box store may be cheaper than having it shipped to one’s door from an online store․ But consider survival rate․ There’s no value in a $12 plant that dies within the month because of how it was handled before you bought it․ The $22 plant‚ shipped at the proper size‚ in the proper season‚ with roots‚ is worth every cent through the entire growing season․
Bulk pricing also favors online nurseries: if you are planting a 20 Leyland Cypress privacy hedge or filling an entire shade bed with two dozen ferns‚ online nurseries are more likely to offer you per-unit pricing discounts for volume that garden centers will not be able to match․
What to Actually Check Before You Buy
There are a few things that separate which nurseries you can order from and which ones you should skip:
Plant listings should provide information on the plant’s mature size‚ sun and shade requirements‚ and its horticultural hardiness zone range․ The nursery should guarantee your order to arrive in good condition․ A reputable nursery will replace or refund plants that arrived damaged or dead for a short period of time‚ usually 30 days․ Read how they ship plants․ Do they talk about packaging roots in moist packing material or putting them in sleeves? These sorts of details usually mean these people have shipped a lot of plants and know how to keep them alive during shipping․
The Bottom Line
Specialty online nurseries grow plants that are appropriate for your climate and ship them to you at the appropriate time for your climate to ensure arrival alive․ Online nurseries have actual horticultural knowledge to draw upon to help you‚ sometimes even native and regional varieties that will not be found on a big retailer’s shelf‚ and a level of care you will not receive from a big store․ For gardeners in Tennessee‚ or anywhere in the Southeast‚ ordering from a grower who knows first-hand what it is like to garden in the 6 through 8 zones‚ makes all the difference in whether a garden struggles for the first year or takes off․
