How to Save Hundreds at the Plant Store

Do not head to the plant shop until you watch this video, because I'm about to show you how you can save hundreds of dollars at the plant store. My name is Nicole Burke. I'm on a mission to get everybody into the garden. I'm the founder of Gardenary, which stands for gardening is ordinary because it should be ordinary, because it used to be ordinary and we didn't have to spend hundreds of dollars at the plant shop. So before you go shopping, I have got a checklist for you to make sure you don't waste a single dollar. You make the most of every penny you spend, and you're going to save hundreds because I'm going to show you how you can do new things with your plants and grow more all the way. Are you down? Let's do this. So, number one, you need to know about your seasons. I teach this method inside of Gardenary. It is our four season plan and you'll learn about it in my book, Kitchen Garden Revival. Essentially, you, you need to know what season you're in and how many weeks you've got left in this season before you head into the next one. Here's a quick overview. Cold season is when it's freezing cold. You're probably not going plant shopping. If you're in the cold season, it's below freezing every day. There's always a chance of frost, no chance of plants. Cool season, the highs range from 35 to 65. There's always a chance of frost. Warm season is when the temps range from 65 to 85. There's no chance of frost. And then hot season is 85 and above. You wish there was frost, but there's not. You're really, really, really hot. So you want to figure out what season you're in and how long it's going to last. The way you do that is you chart out your temps, your highs and lows for every month. So let's say it's July, it's August, you're in the middle of hot season. Hot season is almost over. Next month you're moving down to the warm season. Then you're going to be in the warm season for two or three months. Then you're going to. Then you'll go to the cool season. So you want to know your seasons. Why? Because plants have seasons. Plants have seasons they like to grow in. So if you go to the plants shop, chances are they're selling plants from this current season and you've got like four weeks left in it. So you don't want to buy those plants because they're not going to be in the garden long enough to do anything for you. But the plant shop is trying to get rid of their inventory, so they've still got those plants on the shelves. So you're going to do some homework before you head to the plant shop. Figure out what season you're in, figure out how many more weeks you've got left in that season. That's going to help you know if it's worth buying plants in this current season or if you need to go ahead and jump to the next one. So that's step one to save hundreds of dollars at the plant shop. Step number two is to take photos of your garden before you go. So whether you've got containers, raised beds, whatever you're growing in, take some photos to find out your blank spots. In fact, if you can, do a little bit of measuring to figure out your square footage, all the space that's open in your garden right now or will be opening soon because the seasons are switching. Take those photos before you go. This is going to help you picture the plants you need to buy before you get there so you don't overspend at the store. And in a garden, we like to switch over the plants every single season. So when you figured out your seasonal dates, you now know if the season is going to be changing or staying the same in the next few months. Every single time the season changes, we're going to be pulling out the large plants and any of the plants that have finished for that season and then replacing them with the up and coming season. So when you take those photos, it's going to help you see which things are going to stay in the garden and, and which things are going to be removed over the next month or two. And this is going to help you set your priorities when you head to the plant store. Speaking of priorities, that is step number three. You're going to make a list of the things you definitely want to buy before you get there. Here are the plants that I always buy and the things that I don't buy as plants, too. The first thing I always prioritize buying at the plant shop are flowers, especially those that are grown from seed and take several months to become healthy, mature flowering plants. Those are worth the money from the plant shop. So things in the cool season, like pansies and violas, things in the warm season, like angelonia or marigolds, I will definitely put my money on buying those plants because I don't have the space to start those indoors, which is what I'd have to do otherwise. So buying flowers for the upcoming season are a super high priority for me. The next thing are perennial herbs. So if I'm missing rosemary or thyme or oregano, sage, marjoram, any of those herbs that I love to use in the kitchen and I know will last for years in the garden, those are definitely worth the money. Annual herbs are also worth the money. So in the warm and hot season, things like basil, so worth the money. And then parsley, cilantro, and dill, absolutely worth the money in the cool season. So whatever season you're in, prioritize getting perennial herbs. Those are the best, best ROI on your dollars. And then the annual herbs like basil, cilantro, parsley, dill, also worth the money. If you don't have those growing from seed in your own garden, beyond flowers and herbs, the next thing, and really the only other thing I prioritize buying as a plant are my fruiting plants. So you'll recognize this from the leaves, roots and fruit method. So fruiting plants aren't just sweet fruit. It's any kind of plant that produces a fruit that's got seeds inside a fleshy middle. So oftentimes we think, when I say fruit, you're probably thinking, oh, strawberries or watermelon. But I'm also talking about tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, squash, zucchini, beans, all those plants that produce fruit. That's what I'm referring to. So why buy these plants? It's because they're going to take longer in the garden. So these plants take a little bit longer, a couple more weeks, even up to months longer to get started. And then they've got a much longer Runway in the garden. So instead of producing at 60 days, they produce at like 90 days or 100 plus days. So these are the plants that are absolutely worth your dollars in the cool season, if that's what's coming up for you. You want to prioritize buying things like broccoli, cauliflower, cabbages, romanesco, Brussels sprouts. Those are fruiting plants in the cool seasons. Those are the ones that, that have more than just leaves that they're producing. They're producing this center flower that becomes what we eat on the kitchen table. So broccoli, cauliflower, romanesco, Brussels sprouts, cabbages. Those are worth the money if you're buying plants. If you're in the warm season, worth the money are eggplants, tomatoes, peppers, tomatillos, okra. Any of those plants that produce fruit in the Warmest parts of the year, those are absolutely worth the money as well. Now, there's a couple of exceptions here. So beans and peas, those are considered fruit, but they grow great from seeds. And then squash and zucchini and cucumber, those are also fruit, but they grow great from seed as well. So it's really just those heavy stem, those strong stem plants that need lots of time and that are going to go to flower or to fruit in the garden. Those are the plants you want to spend your money on. Those are definitely worth your hard earned dollars. Now let's talk about the plants I would not buy at the store. I wouldn't buy any kind of root plants. So if this store has potted beets or carrots or radishes, definitely not buying. And then potatoes, garlic, onions, those things, I would start from either a bulb or a seed at home, not from a plant. So if I, I've seen pots of just one onion growing in a pot, not buying that. Now, if I could buy a lot of onion sets, or if that One pot had 20 or 30 tiny little onions in it, that would be worth it, but otherwise not worth the money. So really, no root crops are being purchased at the plant shop. And then very few leafy green plants are going to be bought either. So almost all of the leaves that we grow in the leaves, roots and fruit system, they're going to be planted simply by seed growing right into the garden. You'll have the healthiest plants if you grow that way. And, and you'll get a lot more production. The plants will stay in the garden a lot longer if they start in the garden. There are two exceptions to this. I'll tell you in a second. But when it comes to romaine spring mix, butter crunch, all of those typical lettuces that we enjoy in a salad garden, I am not buying those as plants from the plant shop. I am absolutely just starting those from seed directly in the garden. The only two exceptions are kale and Swiss chard. That's because these are unique plants. They're biennials. They want to last in the garden for two years. So it's totally worth starting with the plants. They're going to be there for quite a long time. Whereas those leafy lettuces, those really soft, sweet lettuces, those are only going to be there for, say, 45, 65 days at max. All right, so you've already saved money on all these plants. Number one, you figured out what season you're going into. So you're not buying plants for the Season that's almost gone. Number two, you took some pictures, you figured out all your empty spaces in your garden. Number three, you made your priority list. You're buying flowers and herbs and large fruiting plants and you're skipping the roots and the leafy plants. Now it's finally time to get to the plant shop. So when you're there, when you're buying your flowers, your herbs and your fruiting plants, here is your checklist to be sure you're buying the healthiest plants possible. Very first thing, you want to check the base of the plant, if possible. You really only want there to be one main stem. A lot of times at the plant shop, they're going to over plant these pots so that they look fuller from above. But in actuality, these plants are kind of struggling for nutrients and water and space because they're packed too tightly in that pot. Now you can buy it and think, oh yeah, I got two for the price of one. But when you get home, these plants might not separate very well and you might end up losing one or both of them with the transplant process. So you could chance it buy two in one pot, hopefully get two for one, but you could also end up with two dead plants instead of one really healthy plant. So I generally prioritize plants that have already been thinned out and it's just one main plant in each and every pot. Next up, I'm going to pull the plant out of the pot and check for the roots. I want to be sure I'm buying a plant that is not root bound, where the roots are still white and nice and loose and have not wound themselves tightly inside of the pot. A root bound plant is a sign that this plant has been in the pot for way too long and is probably going to be stunted in its growth possibilities from here through the rest of the season. Finally, I'm going to check the plant for pest. So I'm just going to lift up the leaves and check the undersides of all these plants and just to be sure there's no pests already living there eating on the leaves. And it's a great time to just check the overall health of the leaves as well. With that three check process, you can make sure the plants that you're buying are as healthy as possible. And with this setup, before you get to the plant shop, you know that you're only buying the plants that are absolutely worth the money. So once you get these plants home, don't hesitate. You want to go ahead and get these plants into your garden. As soon, as soon as possible. The transplant process can be a little traumatic because plants like to stay planted. So once you get them into the garden, you want to water regularly for the next two weeks until these plants make their transition and they know they're in a safe place, that you're going to take care of them. Then you can ease up on the watering and just let these plants take their place and start to take over this garden you've prepared for them. So the secret to saving money at the Plant shop is making a plan before you get there, knowing the types of plants that are absolutely worth the money and then skipping past the plants that are not. Now that you know this, you're going to save hundreds of dollars at the plant shop. Not just today, but for many, many seasons to come. So if you want to know what plants you should buy and what season you're coming onto, you might want to check out the Gardenary calendar. You can check it out@gardenary.com calendar, download it for free. You can put in two dates and we will tell you every other date you need to know for the entire planting season. Then you know what plants you're looking for when you head to the Plant Shop this weekend. And when you get there, you're going to save hundreds of dollars. Thanks so much for watching the Grow youw Self podcast. If you want more details in growing plants, read this book, Leaves, Roots and Fruit. And if you want more on your garden set up, read this book, Kitchen Garden Revival. Whatever you do, I want to thank you so much for spending this time with me and making the garden part of your everyday life. It's why we're here and we're so thankful for you getting out there, heading to the plant shop, and changing the world with every single seed you plant. I'll see you next time on the Grow youw Self Podcast. Thanks so much for listening to the Grow youw Self podcast. You can keep listening anywhere you are. Love getting your podcast delivered on Apple podcasts, on Spotify, iHeartRadio, you name it, we are there for you. And if you want to read the notes and get our free resources to help you grow more, you can go to gardenary.com podcast.