On, Comet! on Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen! On Garden Catalogs.

Snowflakes falling. Catalogs filling our mail boxes. Visions of spectacular gardens filling our heads.

What are some of our best garden catalogs?

Old House Gardens, 536 Third St., Ann Arbor, MI 48103-4957, TEL:734-995-1486 (M-F, 8-4), www.oldhousegardens.com. “wonderful old bulbs that are seldom available elsewhere and play a significant roll in saving these old species. They provide the history of each plant, have a very good Web page and an informative electronic newsletter. They use good environmental practices. In addition, they sell great garden books with a focus on old-fashioned flowers and historic landscaping. Value Excellent. Some of the bulbs are expensive, but where else does one find the true T. Clusiana, for example? Service very good. I've had several of my emails answered very thoroughly by the owner himself. Unique Choice of Varieties? That goes without saying. This is the only source for many of our heritage bulbs.” -Karen Sutherland

Klehm’s Song Sparrow Farm and Nursery, 13101 E. Rye Road,
Avalon, Wisconsin 53505, TEL: 800-553-3715, www.songsparrow.com. “The photos in the catalog and the website are gorgeous and they offer new and unusual perennials I haven't seen here yet or are hard to find. Value? It isn't a value...I almost always pay more, however when you spend say, over $100, they sent me free unasked for plants.  In one case I ordered 2 intersectional peonies which were quite expensive and they sent me another peony which I have moved 3-4 times.  I think that Peony has turned out to be one of my favorites now. Service? Excellent. Unique Choice of Varieties? Yes, for tree peonies, integrifolia clematis.” -Lori McCabe

Venero Gardens and Nursery, 5985 Seamans Dr, Shorewood, MN 55331
TEL: 612-474-8550 “ I like everything about this little gem! The owners,  Jay and Dory Venero have got to be the nicest, hardest working people I know!  They took a passion for gardening and turned it into a small business. They offer on-site retail sales and are only open by appointment.  If you haven't been to Venero you are missing a real treat right here in Shorewood, MN.  Every time I've gone it has been with a group of gardening friends and between the friends and Dory we have all shared and learned something new. Jay and Dory have built a dream spot...  We definitely make a day of it, often going to lunch afterward to share more that we've seen. They have many potted plants for sale but if you see anything in the gorgeous display gardens , Dory will dig it up, with her luscious soil, and pot it beautifully for you on the spot.  On several visits we called ahead using their catalog and our orders were potted for us when we arrived. Most of the varieties dug up are in 2 or 3 gallon sizes so the value is exceptional. They also offer coupons in the catalogs that will lure you there at different times of the season. As expected, the prices are higher than what you'd pay at a big box or bigger nursery, but the service, the selection, and the overall experience is priceless.  If you love plants as much as I do, this place is very special and I highly recommend the trip.  You will just love it!” - Lori McCabe

Dutch Gardens, 144 Intervale Road, 144, Burlington, VT 05401, TEL: 1-888-821-0448, www.dutchgardens.com . “I find that their tulip and dahlia bulbs are consistently of great quality.  I find that lily bulbs (asiatic, oriental) frequently arrive in questionable condition.  Daylilies arrive is good shape. And many perennials that I've tried come as such small and immature stock that it can take several years to get established or never do.  I should note that on the first occasion I ordered lilies that did not come in good shape, I called them and they were very accommodating in issuing credit. So, for some time I had only ordered the tulips, dahlias and daylilies, but this spring was tempted to try a couple more perennials that I had not seen in garden centers.  I got a chocolate vine and hardy fuchsia that both thrived and established well in one season.  Now we'll see if they survive this winter. Because of my mixed results with them, I had not tried other companies.  As I said, I'm looking forward to seeing feedback on them.”--Terry Hayes

White Flower Farm, P.O.Box 50, Route 63, Litchfield,Connecticut 06759, TEL:1-800-503-9624, www.whiteflowerfarm.com. Both Judy MacManus and I enjoy this catalog. The color photography is stunning. The plant descriptions are professional and are almost like taking a course in perennial horticulture. Prices are much higher than in other catalogs, but the company does carry some exclusive offerings. Recent reviews at Dave’s Garden Watchdog complain about smaller than expected plants.

Two websites to check out for mail order catalogs are:

(1) CYNDI'S CATALOG OF GARDEN CATALOGS, www.gardenlist.com, It bills itself as “The home gardener's one stop to find all the mail-order gardening catalogs in the US and Canada - over 2000 of them!” Catalogs are conveniently listed in categories.

(2)Dave’s Garden Watchdog, http://davesgarden.com/products/gwd/, This is the place to go when you want to check out customer experiences with a mail order garden supplier. There are 6,144 vendors listed with 36,670 comments posted. Interesting reading, both positive and negative, about your favorite garden catalogs.

Where do I find that plant? The place to visit, if you are having a hard time finding a particular plant variety, is the Andersen Horticultural Library at the Minnesota Arboretum, Chaska, 3675 Arboretum Drive, MN, TEL: 952-443-1405. It has access to Mail-order sources for over 70,000 plants; 200,000 references to 75,000 plants worldwide; and complete information and linkage to 1,200+ nursery and seed catalog firms

Thank you for your input and I welcome new catalogs to visit, so let me know about them.

Next Month:

Avoiding Crying After Buying...Wise Mail Order Shopping.

Happy Gardening,

Joe Baltrukonis