MisnerFullerton834

When you buy a plant at a nursery or garden centers you want one which will perform it's best when you get it home. If it's an annual you want to see it covered in flowers all summer long and for a shrub you want to see it making a bold statement in the garden. I've laid out here a few tips for buying the best quality plants.

Any plant should be well established in its pot. If it is newly potted you will be growing it on through its 'baby' stages with an increased risk it won't survive. If the surface of the compost looks loose and fluffy or the plant lifts from the compost when you gently pull on the stem it may mean it's a plant to avoid.

Check it's not Starved

At the other end of the spectrum are plants which have been in their pots way too long. Check whether it has a thick mass of roots growing from the bottom of the pot. Also take a look at the color of the foliage. If it is turning yellow or bronze (and that's not the natural color for that variety) then it is probably starved of fertilizer and will take longer to grow away.

Another sign of a pot bound plant is the amount of weed growth. It is perfectly healthy to see a few small weeds around the top of a pot, but if a weed is well established then it may prove impossible to remove without damaging the plant. Also watch for weeds which have perennial root stocks (such as dandelions) and for anything growing within the central crown of the plant which will prove difficult, if not impossible, to remove.