Ordering & arrival
Bare-root, plugs, bulbs and potted plants by mail: shipping seasons, hardiness zones, and what to do when the box arrives.
- Bare-root plants by mail: what they are, when they ship and how to plant them
Everything about buying bare-root roses, fruit trees, berries, asparagus and perennials by mail: why nurseries ship dormant plants without soil, timing, inspecting roots on arrival, soaking, heeling in, planting and first-season care.
- Hardiness zones and shipping seasons: when mail-order plants should arrive
How to use the 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, heat zones and frost dates when ordering plants by mail, why nurseries ship by zone, and how to choose ship dates for bare-root, potted plants, bulbs and seedlings.
- Ordering bulbs by mail: spring and summer bulbs, sizes, timing and storage
How to order flower bulbs by mail: spring-flowering bulbs for fall planting and summer bulbs for spring, bulb sizes, when to order and plant by region, storing bulbs until planting, pre-chilling in warm zones, depth, drainage and naturalising.
- Plugs, liners and potted plants: understanding plant sizes when you order by mail
What plugs, liners, quarts and gallon pots really mean in mail-order catalogs, how to compare value, which plants are best bought small, and how to grow on young plants after they arrive.
- When your plants arrive: unpacking, checking and caring for mail-order plants
A step-by-step guide for the day the box arrives: unpacking live plants, bulbs and seeds, checking them against the order, documenting damage, rehydrating, acclimatising, short-term storage, planting and claiming under a guarantee.
