-
May 8, 2008 11:00 pm US/Central
-
Digg |
Facebook |
E-mail
|
Print
A Green Thumb's Guide To Best Plants, Best Prices
(WCCO)
Snow, rain and not enough sun -- this spring is enough to turn a green thumb brown.
"I like all the seasons in Minnesota, this is the first Spring I've been, 'come on!'" said Julie Weisenhorn, Master Gardener Program Director at the University of Minnesota.
Ask anyone who loves to garden about our long, long winter and they'll tell you -- enough already! It may be too early to plant but it's never too early to plan.
WCCO-TV wondered where you get the best prices and the best quality. So we shopped for the same plants at six different stores -- three big boxes, three well known garden centers and all on the same day.
We removed the labels and placed the plants in random order. Weisenhorn agrees to serve as our expert on quality. She uses a four point scale -- zero for the worst, four for the best.
Pansies
Maybe you're looking for a little color like some pretty pansies. Weisenhorn weighs in on "their weight".
"These two are probably my least favorite," she says holding the two containers of pansies from Home Depot and Menards. "This one (Home Depot) because it's so lightweight I'm wondering about the care and this one (Menards) just because the leaves are a little yellower."
Weisenhorn likes the pansies from Bachman's and Gertens best. You'll pay 13 to 21 cents more per flower, but Weisenhorn said they may last longer.
TIP: Weisenhorn said, "One thing about plants, annual plants in particular, is that you should fertilize when watering. Use a 10-10-10, or 10 nitrogen, 10 phosphate, 10 potassium mixture. It's a good practice to be in when you're working with annuals particularly in pots that way you keep giving them the nutrients they need -- the nice bloom, the dark foliage throughout the season."
Day Lily
Now for a perennial. We expect Weisenhorn to pick the day lily with the most buds.
"Even though this one (Gertens) doesn't look so hot right now, this may transplant the best because it's got the least amount of growth on it right now," she said.
It's also the best deal -- $6.99 at Gertens.
TIP: "Sometimes with perennials, you don't want the plant with the buds on it, especially early in the spring," says Weisenhorn. "You want to start with a plant whose form and growth is what you would naturally see in your yard right now."
Hanging Geraniums
But you may want to skip Gertens' hanging geranium. Not because of quality but price.
Weisenhorn gives five (Bachman's, Gertens, Linder's, Lowe's, Menards) of the six (Home Depot) geraniums perfect scores. But Gertens charges almost $27 -- $17 more than low price Lowe's.
TIP: Don't always go for the basket with the most blooms. "Very few blossoms right now are not so bad," says Weisenhorn. "When you start moving plants it keeps the stress level. If you've got a lot of bloom that plant may be overstressed. Buds are better than bloom they start the plant out better than if it is totally in bloom."
Junipers
We also look at shrubs. They take more space in your yard and take more money from your wallet. Right away Julie spots a problem with the Juniper from Linder's. It was the only one left when we shopped.
"It is kind of dying back in the center -- it doesn't have a lot of new growth in here. It's kind of got this big hole."
It got the worst score and it was the most expensive shrub -- $25! Bachman's earns the top score, followed by Gertens, then Lowe's.
"All three of these plants look really good," said Weisenhorn.
Weisenhorn said it's really important to inspect plants before bringing them home.
"You want to look underneath the leaves and see if you see any signs of flies," she said.
Look for yellow leaves too.
"It makes me wonder if it's been over watered or under watered a little bit," said Weisenhorn.
TIP: "Put evergreens in full sun," said Weisenhorn. "All the needles are they're leaves so you want to help them survive by giving them plenty of sun and plenty of water up until the freezing point, especially in that first season."
Vinca Vine
You may pay a little more at garden centers, but as the vinca vines prove -- sometimes you get what you pay for.
"This one might be in competition for this one," she said.
Julie gives perfect scores to the vincas from the garden centers. Better plants, but twice the price you'll pay at the big box stores.
TIP: Don't go for the biggest plant. A dense plant is better than one with a long trailing vine. "I like to start with a younger plant," says Weisenhorn. "It'll transplant a little easier it hasn't got so much foliage to support."
Price Discrepancies
We learn it pays to pay attention. Bachman's charged us a dollar too much for a day lily until we pointed out the price right on the plant tag.
Twice at Menards we were charged different prices from what was posted in the store.
We didn't notice that we paid more than double the tulip's posted price until we left the store. Then realized we were charged a dollar less for the hanging geranium there.
Final Comparisons
Because we couldn't find all the plants at all the stores, we can't compare price totals.
We can compare quality. When we average Judge Julie's scores we find two clear winners.
Bachman's and Gertens -- both score a 3.9 out of a possible four.
Lowe's is next averaging a 3, followed by a three-way tie -- Linder's, Home Depot and Menards which all scored 2.9.
More TIPS: Head to Terri's Blog.
(© MMVIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)