How to Choose Healthy Plants for Your Garden

When you first start your garden, there are a couple of options you have to get started, and that is that you can choose to purchase small plants to put in your garden, or you can try growing plants from seeds. While growing plants from seeds can be very rewarding, not all seeds take root and grow, because of this many gardeners choose to buy small plants instead.

Purchasing a plant from a reputable nursery is much easier than growing a plant from a seed. Seedlings have already begun growing and can be easily transplanted to your garden. However, despite this advantage, there are some problems with purchasing plants from a nursery. Some nurseries can destroy a plant by using the wrong or too many chemicals or fertilizers. Because of this you want to be very careful when purchasing plants so that you can be certain to purchase the most healthy ones that will then have the longest life span, and thrive in your garden.

Believe it or not, how good a plant looks has a lot to do with telling how healthy it is. If it appears to be robust, with lots healthy strong looking leaves and stems then this can be an indication that the plant is a healthy one. Leaves with holes, and stems that are wilted are signs the plant has not been properly cared for, and may not survive long in your garden. These are also usually an indication that the plant may be infested with bugs as well.

When looking for the perfect plants for your garden at your local nursery, you want to avoid the plants that are already flowering. Plants that already have flowers are more traumatized by the transplant from the nursery to your garden than plants that haven't had a chance to flower yet. Instead look for plants that just have flower buds, as these plants will have a better chance of surviving the move from nursery to garden. If for some reason you cannot find plants with buds, or you just have to have that beautiful flowering plant with the lovely red flowers, then cut the flowers off before you transplant it to your garden. If you don't odds are high that the plant will die.

Another thing to look for when buying plants at a nursery is the roots. Now if the plant has holes in the leaves and wilted stems then you will already know the roots of the plant aren't healthy and that that plant is not one you want to buy. The thing about roots is that sometimes the plant may just be beginning to go bad, but this will not be visible above soil, so if you check the condition of the roots this will ensure that you do not get a plant that is on its way to the afterlife. When you looking at the roots you want to search for brown, soft or rotten areas. Roots of plants should always be firm, well formed and hold the soil together. Basically if there are a lot of roots but not very much soil, or if there is a lot of soil, but only a few roots, then the plant is past its healthy stage and will not survive long. You should not buy any plants that have unhealthy roots.

If you do discover a plant that has unhealthy roots, leaves or stems, ask one of the nursery employees about it. Occasionally there will be another reason other than the fact that the plant is unhealthy, although this is rare. The important thing is to give the nursery a chance to explain, because there may be a good reason for the condition of the plants. While it is easy to purchase plants from a nursery and most nurseries do a good job with taking care of their plants, it is still a good idea to check for yourself. You also want to be very careful when transplanting plants as this can lead to health problems for the plant later on if not done properly. Try to educate yourself on any problems a particular plant might have with transplanting ahead of time and this will help to lengthen the life of your plants.

Choosing healthy plants is very important because not only will it ensure that your garden is a healthy one, but you will save money as well by not having to continue to purchase plants over and over because they are not surviving.