Walmart plants

[anisa]

i think that the plants in most big box stores are coming from a handful of wholesalers.

maybe having success comes more from reading labels and understanding what will work for the needs you have to meet.

as for roses, i have no clue. i do know that my mom is cheap, and she likes roses, and hers have done pretty well for 20+ years! they probably came from superstore or walmart or some similar place

[darwinsmistake]

that ould depend on the walmart i ve bought lots of plants there some do great some dont sometimes u gotta take the chance

[GoJays]

Super big thanks, everyone! I won't be buying any roses from WM. When DH came home, he basically agreed that your favourite plants are better purchased from a garden store. He did say he thought the plants at HD and WM were flown in from southern states and weren't as hardy as ones grown locally. I'll be buying my roses at the specialty places. They have to be hardy to survive me!

Lecale, did you work in a garden centre?

I'll have to replace my Peace rose that didn't survive the winter. Does anyone know how you can tell if a rose is never going to grow again? I think it's dead but I'm not exactly sure....

It should have brought new growth by now.. my two rose bushes have all kinds of fresh shoots on them. Cut one of the branches - if you see green wood it's still good, if it's brown it's done.. keep cutting back til you see green wood. If you don't see any then I'm sorry, it's dead. One of my two roses is a peace rose too They smell lovely

[lecale]

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[Sally888]

As long as the plant looks healthy etc it should be fine. I've bought stuff from specialty stores before that did horrible

[lecale]

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[marstec]

^ Just make sure you isolate newly purchased houseplants for a week or two so that if there are any bugs or disease, you don't spread it to your existing ones.

About the roses being alive or not, the live canes are greenish...if you can snap them off, then they are dead. Try scraping a bit of the cane and see whether it's alive. Sometimes the rose comes back from near the base. If it's grafted, it might mean the rootstock is alive, but not the graft (the rose you planted). I would give it a little more time.

A couple of years ago, many of the roses and clematis died in our area due to a sudden cold snap in the Fall. I bought replacement roses only to find that my roses hadn't actually died...they had severe die-back but managed to come back at the base.

[Lynn49]

I have always bought my plants directly from the greenhouse. The bigger ones like munrovea sell to the stores anyway, so better to go to the source. The prices are usually pretty good, especially if you a buying lots. I always purchase smaller plants and fertilize them after I replant into my pots and in to time they are huge. Oh how I love spring and summer

Oh, I SO agree with you about spring! Planting and watching plants (mostly) thrive is so satisfying.
I've already planted my first Dutch onion sets for some nice green onions...we'll plant every 2-3weeks for a constant supply, and leave some to grow into nice big ones!

[nightlite]

Last year I went to 're-do' my front garden. Now I am admittedly a newbie gardener but not ONE plant I planted from Walmart lasted.
Every plant I planted from Costco is kicking and alive and thriving.

All my perennials didn't 'take' and wilted and died. My lilies fell over. And my favourite was the Japanese Spirea which was a nice medium sized plant that literally kicked the curb overnight. All the leaves just up and died. It wouldn't even re-grow itself (that is try to bud new leaves) and I was left with what looked like a giant tumbleweed in the front garden.

Now I am terrified that the Hosta plant that I got from there has that virus. I need to see how that (if) it grows up this year.

Never again. When we went to get our tree for the backyard this year, we went to a real nursery. Paid more but at least it's from a reputable grower and they have a 2 year warranty on it. I am getting all my garden stuff from there as well this year.

[toban]

I bought a Mandevilla (sub tropical or tropical) flower last year at Walmart. It bloomed like crazy last summer. Cheaper compared to private garden centers. I love tropicals and have grown canna lilies, mandevilla without an problems even though there not for our climate zone. Just a shorter growing period.

I've had luck with some of the Walmart annuals such as marigolds.

I have a few rose bushes from private garden centers and have never bought any from Walmart.

I'm not sure which Province you live in, but there are roses grown for our garden zones in Canada. For example, where I live, Morden series is one that is geared for our climate. I have two Morden roses and I never have to cover them in autumn. They bloom every year. If you check private garden centers I'm sure they would have info on climate specific roses for your area.

Last year Home Depot had a good sale on wave petunias. I bought 3 packs and they bloomed like crazy too.

[Snow Queen]

One plant to always avoid at Walmart are the Bonsai plants. Although they can still seem green and full of life, usually they are already dead. I believe most of them don't start losing color until a few months after they are dead (ie: junipers).