Comments on: Grow Local

By: M

Tue, 20 Mar 2007 12:55:51 +0000

Add Emerald Gardens to your list. It’s on the access road along Highway 290 before you reach the “Y” in Oak Hill. I’m a shade gardener and usually find a good selection of healthy, shade-loving plants. It seems many Austin nurseries are expanding their space for selling pottery, while reducing their space for plants. Emerald Gardens is not one of these.

By: Emily

Emily — Tue, 20 Mar 2007 02:31:16 +0000

Any ideas of where I can go to get some soil delivered to my home? I am starting a container garden and need quite a bit! Thanks!

By: r sorrell

r sorrell — Fri, 09 Mar 2007 14:34:17 +0000

Shoal Creek Nursery is my neighborhood favorite, but if you live North, try It’s a Jungle on N. Lamar. They have an INSANE collection of orchids and seas of roses (both antique and modern).

By: Pam/Digging

Pam/Digging — Fri, 09 Mar 2007 12:59:35 +0000

The two best nurseries in town for plants that are suited to our climate, staffers who know their plants, and great garden accessories are Barton Springs Nursery and Natural Gardener. Unlike some of the good but small in-town nurseries (and actually, BSN is pretty much in town), both places have fairly extensive grounds to show off a variety of plants. Natural Gardener in particular has huge display gardens that are a pleasure to explore just to get ideas.

Add in all the other nurseries you mentioned, and Austin really is sitting pretty with a lot of great choices.

Oh, and for North Austin/Cedar Park folks, don’t forget Hill Country Water Gardens up on Hwy. 183 north of Lakeline Mall. Yes, their pond displays are gorgeous, but they also have a great selection of plants and pots.

By: Julie

Julie — Fri, 09 Mar 2007 02:05:03 +0000

I like looking for plants to be an adventure, more like thift shop shopping. Finding something “out of place” helps me appreciate plants and flowers I might otherwise have overlooked. So It’s About Thyme is my favorite. The staff is sweet and low -key, things are inexpensive, and best of all it’s peaceful, just me and the twittering finches on many a visit.

By: Annie In Austin

Annie In Austin — Fri, 09 Mar 2007 00:54:29 +0000

Red Barn is an interesting local nursery, where I’ve bought a lot of plants and shrubs. The south location closed a couple of years ago, but there’s one up near 183 & McNeil, handy for those of us who live in the north part of Austin.
Hill Country Nursery on Pond Springs Road has nicely grown herbs, annuals and vegetables of the conventional, rather than heirloom, variety – also native plants.

I love the Natural Gardener, think Great Outdoors is terrific, found good stuff at Shoal Creek Nursery and I’m glad I got to Floribunda last fall.

I’ve also found cool plants at the Sunset Valley Farmers’ Market.

Annie at the Transplantable Rose

By: Susan

Susan — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 23:48:37 +0000

I’m sorry to hear about Floribunda. Always sad to see a good garden shop leave the neighborhood. I bought an excellent terra cotta urn there a year or so back at a great price. Barton Springs Nursery is my main garden shopping spot, though. I was just there this afternoon, in fact, although I just wandered without buying. Thinking and planning. I’ll be back, sooner rather than later, I’m sure. And Big Red Sun and Gardens are always great for inspiration.

By: Rantor

Rantor — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 15:45:51 +0000

I like the alphabetical order. Sledd’s does still have little red wagons for the neighbors. The plants at Sledd’s are always extremely healthy and a visit is so easy to combine with a trip to FreshPlus. Gardens and Big Red Sun are beautiful places to visit just as a treat for the eyes and because the unexpected may be found. I’d be happy to reside at either business. Breed & Co., one of the remaining family-owned hardware stores in town, has a little operation selling this and that for the garden, including plants. Those looking for started plants to grow in pots or to set out in their vegetable gardens beginning at this time of year are likely to find starts of heirloom tomato plants and modern ones that do well around here, as well as herb plants, and surprises, including chile pepper varieties, at the South Austin Farmers’ Market, Saturdays year-round in El Gallo’s parking lot across from St. Ed’s from 9 am to 1 pm. These are organic, by the way.

By: Tim

Tim — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 15:16:40 +0000

I need to check out “It’s about Thyme”. They’re just down the road from me. And it’s not anywhere near Buda (well I guess if you take IH-35, but why would any self-respecting Austinite do that except at gunpoint?). It’s only about a 10 minute trip from where Florabunda used to be, and it’s probably 10 minutes from the LadyBird Wildflower Center. which is another great place for inspiration. I went during the winter while it was free to get a list of plants that look good all year long.

By: M1EK

M1EK — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 14:38:38 +0000

Sledd’s – it hits the sweet spot between “way too precious” (Big Red Sun) and “can I really call myself an environmentalist if I had to drive this far out of town” (many others).

Of course, I used to buy plants for pots on foot there (they’d let me borrow a wagon to bring them home) – so I’m probably remembering with rose-colored glasses.