April Showers Bring May Flowers; Your Guide to Local Garden Nurseries in Lansing, Michigan

Spring is in the air... as much as it can be in Michigan anyway. Being the end of March/beginning of April, everyone is longing for the warmth, the sun and to dig into those gardens. Soon those with green thumbs will be searching out the local garden nurseries to pick up the supplies needed to create that stunning flower garden, or veggie garden. So where in the Lansing, Michigan area do you go to get the best deals as well as the best quality gardening supplies?

The Best of the Best
When talking about the best garden nurseries in Lansing two local places boil to the top. Which one is best really depends on how far you want to drive and what you are looking for.

West Lansing/Delta Township:
Horrocks Farm Market
(517) 323-37827
420 W Saginaw Hwy, Lansing, MI 48917
www.shophorrocks.com

Beginning as a small farmer's market, Horrocks is one of the favored local garden centers in the Lansing area. Besides the huge stock of garden vegetables, Nursery stock, flowers, candy, cheese, wine, specialty foods, and meat are also featured. During the gardening season, the outdoor greenhouse is filled with trees, shrubs and flowers of all kinds. Horrocks also includes two separate indoor retail buildings. The main building is open year round is is the market of the establishment. Here you can find groceries as well as an abundant supply of fruits and vegetables. This area also includes seasonal gifts and floral. The second, smaller building contains all of your gardening supplies including soil and fertilizers. A huge selection of seeds and bulbs are also available. Prices at Horrocks are extremely reasonable and the quality matches what you would expect from a small local farmer's market. The employees are knowledgeable about their goods and are able to help select the best plants for your project. Ever since I can remember, Horrocks was THE place to go. The only difficulty I've had there is parking. Since the lot grew so quickly. It's generally best to visit on off peak times, especially during the spring season when everyone working on their gardens and landscaping wants a great deal.

East Lansing/Haslett:
Van Atta's Greenhouse and Floral Shop
(517) 339-1142
9008 M-78, Haslett, MI 48840
www.vanattas.com

Located in Haslett, Van Atta's is a top name in gardening and landscaping supplies in the Lansing Area. With over 28 years of greenhouse experience, Van Atta's is open year round providing a nursery garden center in the spring/summer and a floral business all year round. So what can you find at Van Atta's Greenhouse and Floral Shop? Van Atta's is a full service florist and gift shop that specializes in unique home and garden gifts, gift baskets, trees, shrubs, perennial, annuals and fresh floral arrangements. Housed in a 7,000 square foot greenhouse retail space, Van Atta's has a huge variety of trees, shrubs, perennials and annuals needed to make your landscaping look great. With 28 years of business also comes the expertise needed to assist customers in choosing - and keeping alive - the landscaping supplies they need. In addition to the garden nursery, Van Atta's offers a range of classes/workshops to help customers learn how to create with gardening materials.

More Garden Centers to Consider
In addition to these two garden nurseries, there are a sprinkling of other nursery garden centers that come highly recommended.

Home Harvest Garden Supply
4870 Dawn Ave
East Lansing, Michigan 48823
517.332.2663
www.homeharvest.com

Home Harvest is celebrating its 26th anniversary this year and specializes in gardening tools and supplies. Home Harvest is open year round, including available for online sales and also has a seasonal greenhouse with nursery flats.

Wildtype Native Plant Nursery
900 N. Every Road
Mason, MI 48854
Ph: (517) 244-1140
http://wildtypeplants.com/

Wildtype has limited retail hours, but they grow native plants using high quality growing materials. During the spring season, Wildtype will be open both Saturdays and Sundays from 11 to 4. Online and phone orders are always accepted and plants can be picked up at a pre-arranged time.

The Quick and the Cheap
Now if you know what you need and want to get in and out quick without a lot of expense, you can always head to one of the larger chain stores that also have a garden center. In the Lansing Area, those places include Meijer, Wal-Mart, Lowe's and Home Depot Primarily. Though the greenhouse lots are not as extensive as what you would find in a specialized garden center, there is usually a wide variety with decent prices. At both Home Depot and Lowe's the garden center employees are generally knowledgeable to assist with proper selection of supplies.