At last, cold days are behind us for a while and the soil is warm enough for digging. After months of planning and dreaming about the garden, it's finally time to actually plant something. The fun starts with that modern urban rite of spring, going hog-wild at the plant nursery and buying everything in sight.
Wait a minute. If you've been reading this series on the fundamentals of gardening since the beginning of the year, you don't really think we're now going to break the pattern and advocate throwing your careful plans to the wind, do you? Of course not. The first five months, in which we introduced you to the process of mapping your garden and employing design principles like balance and scale, weren't just a way of spinning our wheels for winter.
"The people who have thought out what they want to do in the yard and what kinds of plants they are looking for always have an advantage," says Dave Tyznik, who owns the Planter's Palette nursery in west suburban Winfield. For those people, the nursery is less overwhelming. Stocked with hundreds of annuals, perennials, shrubs and trees, a good nursery can send a gardener into sensory overload--which often results in confusion and frustration.
It's easy to edit the nursery down to a manageable size, though, if you come armed with information on the spaces you want to fill. The basics would include:
- How much sun and shade the area gets;
- the eventual height and width the space will allow plants to reach;
- the usual natural moisture conditions (low-lying areas generally stay damp longer, sandy soil dries out faster); and
- whether you're after annuals, perennials, shrubs or trees.
Beyond that, you may have spent winter and early spring drawing up a careful plan that specifies exactly which plants you want. Either way, the key is to show up at the nursery prepared.
It's hard to resist impulse buying in a springtime nursery filled with floral energy and exuberant new greenery. But Tyznik and Tony Fulmer, nursery manager at the Chalet nursery in Wilmette, both recommend limiting your impulse purchases to two categories: annuals and perennials. "If an annual doesn't work, you only have to live with the mistake for one growing season, and maybe not even that long," Fulmer says. "Perennials are easy to move. But trees and shrubs are big and difficult to move. They need a year after transplanting to work on their roots before they can start growing again, so they're the ones where it's most important to choose very carefully."
Toward that end, Tyznik suggests that for each spot where you want to plant, "Keep in mind the major feature you're after. Is size what matters most here? Or is it bloom color?" Hold tight to that attribute but let loose of the qualities that are less important to you while checking out the various substitutes the salesperson has in mind. If you came in after a dwarf lilac to go beneath a breakfast room window 4 feet high, for example, don't settle for a French lilac that will climb to 15 feet and block the window. If fragrance is the main attraction, ask the salesperson to recommend other fragrant shrubs. If it's color, ask by color.
Once you've narrowed the list of all plants in the nursery down to the ones that work for you, you'll want to pick the best individual specimens available. The experts have some very useful tips on getting the best plants in stock.
For best results, buy these in the four- or six-inch pots rather than in the little plastic six-packs. "The bigger they are, the better the roots are likely to be," says Tyznik. Little plants aren't bad, but they're slightly less likely to grab a foothold in the soil and start to thrive before the beastly summer weather hits. To minimize the risk of your bed of annuals looking sickly in the heat, spend a little more for bigger, more vigorous plants. This may not be practical if you're buying large numbers of annuals for a sweeping bed of color.
Roots again. While perennials usually don't put on their best show until their second season in the ground--after they've had a chance to root into the spot--you can give them a head start for the first year by buying plants with hearty root systems. Although he knows other nursery managers will be horrified at the idea, Tyznik suggests tipping perennial pots on a side and sliding the rootball out of the pot for an inspection. If the soil all falls apart, that may indicate that the root system is small or weak. "If the roots are out to the sides and edges of the pot and looking white and healthy," Tyznik says, "that plant has a better chance of starting well."
Many nurseries discourage customers from making such inspections, which can damage plants if performed too often or too vigorously. Ask a salesperson to do it for you.