Re: Mail order

I totally agree with Jim.  I think it is a regional thing.  Most plants that 
grow in our (southern Texas) are hard to find mail order.  It seems that most 
mail order are either geared for northern plants or tropicals.  Tropicals are 
cheaper and easier to find locally, for the most part.  I too, enjoy seeing a 
plant before I purchase it.  I suppose with a longer period in between growing 
seasons it is more feasable for growing annuals from seed, but here, we enjoy 
our one month of down time every six months....it's really much easier just 
to purchase the annuals in bulk ready to plant.  

I can't speak for Florida, but I know here in Southern Texas, the big box 
stores really are no competition (with the exception of some annuals) for the 
local nurseries.  The local nurseries offer the plants that grow much better in 
the area.  The box stores recieve their plants through orders from the main 
offices that are located in colder climates, and therefore usually do not carry 
many plants that are suitable for the area.  Some box stores, with 
knowledgeable dept. managers will get permission to bring in some suitable plants from 
local growers, but very rarely and limited quantities.  This is very frustrating 
for the manager who would like to offer the plants but cannot. 

P.S. my apologies for not being around for the past months, it's been a rough 
summer. Hope to be able to catch up with months of saved digests.  

Noreen
zone 9
Texas Gulf Coast
In a message dated 12/1/2003 4:12:18 PM Central Standard Time, 
gardenchat-owner@hort.net writes:
> I never got much beyond the seed-buying stage with mail order houses. I 
> can't imagine buying bedding plants from them when the chains [Home 
> Depot, Lowes, Wal-Mart] have them before one could receive them via 
> mail.
>
> Rather, I've spent many, many hours roaming the countryside searching 
> for local [or nearly local] retail outlets and garden club pant sales. 
> I don't know why exactly. I just guess that I feel better if I can see 
> the real item before I buy it. Also, I've found that one can 
> occasionally find genuine buys at small, out of the way nurseries.
>
> The first ground orchids we bought, for example, were in 1-gallon pots 
> from the back bench of a nursery in West Palm Beach. The pots were 
> definitely overgrown--maybe 10 or 15 plants per pot--and the price was 
> right [less than $5.00]. They were also blooming, so we knew what 
> colors we were getting.
>
> I know this is not always practical in northern places. And it's 
> certainly not practical if you are interested in bulbs other than 
> daffodils, grape hyacinths, and tulips. But it works for most things 
> that are well-suited to the climate.
>
> I read the negative comments about TyTy and was struck more by the 
> naivete of the buyers than by the apparent veniality of the seller. I 
> can't imagine buying a palm, even a trash palm like Sabal palmetto 
> [state tree of Florida and South Carolina], mail order. Just doesn't 
> compute.
>
> Island Jim
> Southwest Florida
> Zone 10

---------------------------------------------------------------------
To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@hort.net with the
message text UNSUBSCRIBE GARDENCHAT
Other Mailing lists | Author Index | Date Index | Subject Index | Thread Index