I'm not much of a gardener, but I know it's time to get my lawn and garden ready for the growing season. There are lots of places in the county to get gardening supplies and plants, including every grocery and hardware store, it seems, but which ones are the best? Fortunately, my neighbor is pretty much a pro and has lived in the county for a long time. Here's what she's recommended to me.You can start at the River Hill Garden Center on Route 108 in Clarksville. This once cozy little shop has morphed into a home and garden superstore, with a broad selection of plants, garden supplies, indoor/outdoor furniture, home decorations and even a pretty good selection of greeting cards. You can probably find everything you need there, and it's fun to find things you don't need, but sometimes you pay more for the all-in-one convenience. Still, it's a great place to wander for your wish list, then comparison shop elsewhere if you have the time.
For trees, shrubs and perennials, my neighbor and I are fans of Sun Nursery on Bushy Park Road in Woodbine. They have a great selection, a knowledgeable, helpful staff, volume discounts and a good warranty on plants. I've also used them for landscaping design and was pleased with the service and results.
For annuals, we trek over to Frank's Produce and Greenhouses at 6686 Old Waterloo Road in Elkridge (phone 410-799-4566; no website I can find), more or less behind the Costco shopping center. They have a wonderful array of annuals in flats or hanging baskets, and they're also good for produce later in the year. Walking through their Quonset hut greenhouses and wishing I had such a green thumb is a welcome springtime ritual.
Outside the county, the Burtonsville branch of regional powerhouse Meadows Farms often has good deals on plants. Stadler Nurseries in Laytonsville is also excellent (and has a very informative web site). Stadler runs a spring and fall sale on trees (just missed the spring one, sorry) that includes free delivery and planting.
So now it's time to get to work. If only someone could come up with a garden that would weed itself...
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4 comments:
Two things here:
I love to buy flower seeds in bulk from http://www.wildseedfarms.com/
You get a quick response, it's much cheaper than buying those small seed packs, and you get a lot of information about what to expect from the plants themselves - like how quickly they'll start growing, how much a sq ft a pack will produce, an ounce, a l/4 lb and how much square footage for a pound. It's unbelievable how many seeds are in an ounce and an ounce isn't very expensive.
Also, I use the free tool from www.startyourclicking.com to help me find the best buys online. When I used this free tool I was amazed how many places offered hollyhock seeds and this free tool shows the PICTURES - you don't have to "weed" through a lot of text.....Martha
This is a great list of places, and I second the recommendations for River Hill (pricy, but nice plants) and for Frank's and Meadows Farms (better prices, less completely unique items).
For a huge selection at great prices, I also recommend Behnke's Nursery in Beltsville. It's easily accessible off Rte 1, and it has spectacular selections at really good prices.
http://behnkes.com/website/
For mulch, go to the Alpha Ridge Landfill in Marriottsville. Full pickup truck full of mulch for only $25.
It is good to walk and look at prices because vary greatly from place to place ...
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