Birds and Blooms Blog

People often ask me for recommendations on where to buy plants. I’m a huge supporter of local nurseries and garden centers. I also like to support my area garden groups and plant sales. (We have a fantastic Master Gardeners plant sale every year as well as a native plants sale at our local nature center.)

But as any plant geek knows, you can’t get all of your needs met in one place. Therefore, it’s good to know about the best online retailers. I pulled together my list of companies that I’ve personally bought from, so I can definitely vouch for them and recommend them to you. I like them for all different reasons, and I hope they help meet some of your needs as well.

What about you? What plant companies do you really like? Please share your suggestions with me. And tell me why you like them. Because if there’s one thing a gardener needs, it’s definitely more plants!

Great Garden Plants

Most of their plants are in big pots, and they are very healthy. They have many plant options available, but they are especially fantastic for unique coneflower varieties.

Bluestone Perennials

The garden in the front of my house was started with one of Bluestone Perennial’s pre-planned gardens. Don’t be afraid to try one of these kits. They are awesome, focusing on plants that are easy and low-maintenance. Then you can fill in as needed.

Annie’s Annuals

They have great selection. I once bought my mother-in-law some unique sunflowers from Annie’s. (It’s not always easy to find plants instead of seeds.) They have some really cool varieties.

Logee’s

They specialize in fruiting, rare, and tropical plants. I bought my mom a lemon tree from Logee’s one year, and I have my eye on an avocado next. Check them out for unique options of all kinds.

Burpee

They are still one of my go-to sources for veggie plants and seeds. If you’re looking for something specific for your vegetable garden, they probably have it.

Butterfly Bushes (Rose Franklin’s Perennials)

They have the best selection of milkweed that I’ve ever seen. Milkweed is surprisingly hard to find as plants, and they offer many great varieties.

Terroir Seeds (Underwood Gardens)

The couple that own Terroir Seeds are just delightful. We featured them a couple of years ago because they were one of the only places we could find that carried cucamelon seeds. Cucamelons are these adorable little veggie/fruits like a cross between a cucumber and a tiny little watermelon. Seriously, check them out.

Meet Team Kirsten! We’re birding for Cornell Lab of Ornithology in the Birds & Blooms 2015 Bird Day Challenge at The Biggest Week in American Birding on May 9. Donate and show your support for Team Kirsten at our Crowdrise campaign page. We’re raising money for Cornell, a world leader in the study and conservation of birds.

KIRSTEN SWEET
Kirsten is the senior editor of Birds & Blooms, and she’s been with the magazine for almost 8 years. This will be her fourth time at The Biggest Week in American Birding. It’s quite possibly her favorite bird event of the entire year! Even though her team came in second in last year’s challenge with 79 species in 3 hours, it was an absolute blast. It’ll be even better this year with an amazing team, birding for a great cause.

KEN KEFFER
Ken is a naturalist, author and environmental educator, currently living in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He used to call northwest Ohio home, so he’s familiar with the area where we’ll be birding. So not only will he be sharing his mad birding skills with the team, he’ll be our navigator. You might know Ken from his frequent articles published in Birds & Blooms magazine.

ASHLI GORBET
Ashli grew up on the south shores of Lake Erie in Ohio and began her studies of the natural world at an early age. She now lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She currently serves as the secretary for Rio Grande Bird Research, Inc., is a licensed bird bander, and is the project lead for her Black-throated Gray Warbler research project. Ashli is also the secretary of the New Mexico Ornithological Society and sits on the Steering Committee of the New Mexico Burrowing Owl Working Group.

PAUL RISS
Paul and his wife Rachel moved from Toronto to the country, where they spend time growing their own food and watching birds with their boy-girl twins. He has a love for birds and punk music, so he combined his two loves and created PRBY Apparel. The creative duo make and sell apparel designed specifically for bird-watchers. It’s seriously cool stuff, so check out his online store.

Please support Team Kirsten and Cornell’s bird research now. Even just $10 can make a huge difference!