How to Avoid Buying Sick Plants

If you're looking to get your garden off to a good start, one of the best things you can do for it is to buy healthy plants. Sick plants, even on sale, are no bargain. They'll require extra care, and they may even bring disease and pests to the other plants already in your yard.

Who wants that?

Check each and every plant you're buying for these clues. If something doesn't look right, don't bring a plant home. And if you find too many plants that aren't right, shop somewhere else.

Insects. Never, ever buy a plant if you see any signs of insect activity or damage. This will be nothing but trouble. Inspect each plant for signs of insects crawling in the soil. These will usually be small brown bugs crawling near the roots of the plant, or small pale worm-like creatures. If you see any movement at all, don't buy a plant.

Also carefully inspect each plant's leaves and stems for discolorations or patches. These are signs of insect activity. Shiny, clear spots or webbing on the leaves and stems of a plant are also signs of insect infestations. Leave any plant with these clues at the garden center.

Wilting. Plants that are wilted have been stressed by drought. This weakens the root system of the plant. It also causes the plant to lose leaves. When you water a wilted plant, it will usually look much better after a few hours. But the consequence of wilting is that a plant's growth will be slow or stunted after you bring it home, despite any TLC you give it once you buy it. Make a wilted plant someone else's problem.

I have found that wilted plants are most common in big-box stores and grocery stores that sell plants seasonally. The prices as these stores are low, and that makes these plants a great deal if they are well cared for. But the staff at these stores may not have the knowledge to care for plants properly until they are sold, or the store may not employ enough people caring for the plants until they are sold.

Bad roots. If you can carefully remove a plant from its pot before buying, check the roots. Always do this gently, and then carefully replace the plant in the pot.

Look for plants with pale or white, and firm, roots.

Reject any plants that have mushy, rotten, or darkened roots. These are almost always dead roots. Also pass up plants that have sparse roots filling less than half the pot. Often, these were recently transplanted. Avoid roots that circle the pot many times. These roots must be unwound during planting, or the plant will not become established quickly. The process of unwinding the roots, however, can be difficult if roots are very tangled, and it may weaken or kill a plant that is extensively pot-bound.

There are a few plants (the American persimmon) that have dark roots. These dark-rooted plants should have roots that are firm and healthy.