Five Tough Seeds to Sprout: A Gardening Challenge
Swift Garden Growth: Best Plants to Purchase from a Nursery
When it comes to building a swiftly flourishing garden, opting for plants from a nursery can save you immense time and effort. The following outdoor plants are perfect for nursery-grown goodness:
Horticulturists' Picks
- Hummingbird Mint (Agastache):
This charming, fragrant perennial, hailing from the mint family, is a must-have for any garden. Its allure is twofold, attracting hummingbirds and acting as a fantastic pollinator. Chuck Pavlich, an expert horticulturist from Terra Nova Nurseries, raves, "Few diseases or pests bother with the fragrant foliage and flowers." Lavishing your garden with hummingbirds, this plant turns it into a hummingbird aviation hub.
- Hardiness Zones: 3 to 10
- Light: Full sun
- Soil: Well-draining, acidic
- Siberian Bugloss (Brunnera macrophylla):
Also known as Alexander's Great, this long-lived, herbaceous perennial requires a nursery start to shine. Pavlich notes, "Few pests bother them, even deer turn their snouts up at them." Simplistic growth - just place in a partially sunny to shady spot, mix some organic matter in the soil, feed with slow-release fertilizer, water, and walk away.
- Hardiness Zones: 3 to 8
- Light: Full sun to partial shade
- Soil: Moist, well-draining
- Coneflower (Echinacea):
Colorful coneflowers enthrall with their daisy-like centers surrounded by vibrant petals in various hues. These cheerful perennials demand cold stratification when grown from seed - a hurdle you can skip by procuring them at a nursery.
- Hardiness Zone: 3 to 9
- Light: Full, partial sun
- Soil: Neutral or acidic, well-draining
Food Growing Experts' Selections
- Jacob's Ladder (Polemonium):
This long-blooming wildflower, named for its fern-like leaves, thrives in a nursery transplant. Its lavender blooms brighten your garden for a season-spanning panorama.
- Hardiness Zones: 3 to 9
- Light: Partial sun, shade
- Soil: Well-draining
- Rosemary (Salvia rosmarinus):
This aromatic culinary herb blossoms best from a nursery-grown plant. Valeria Nyman, chief product officer at Taim.io, encourages, "Its seeds take forever to sprout, and half the time, they don't bother! A young plant from a nursery is a shortcut to those piney, aromatic sprigs."
- Hardiness Zones: 8 to 10
- Light: Full sun
- Soil: Well-draining, sandy, loamy
Expand Your Nursery Options
For added convenience, consider plant shopping online from top-notch nurseries like Nature Hills Nursery, Planting Tree, or Fast Growing Trees. Enhance your garden without delay!
- To attract hummingbirds and serve as an excellent pollinator, consider adding the Hummingbird Mint (Agastache) to your garden, as recommended by Chuck Pavlich from Terra Nova Nurseries.
- Siberian Bugloss (Brunnera macrophylla), often referred to as Alexander's Great, is a great addition to any garden due to its long lifespan and resistance to pests, even deer, according to Pavlich.
- Coneflowers (Echinacea) are stunning perennials with vibrant petals surrounding daisy-like centers, and they're particularly convenient to grow from a nursery rather than from seed.
- For those looking for edible plants, Jacob's Ladder (Polemonium) offers long-lasting blooms and thrives in a nursery transplant, while rosemary (Salvia rosmarinus) grows best from a nursery-grown plant, as suggested by Valeria Nyman from Taim.io.
