Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Fall Plant Sales!!!

People often ask me where I get my plants. Some plants came from independent nurseries, but the majority of my plants came from special event plant sales. I like these sales because they often include less common plants that you cannot find in nurseries. So mark your calendars because three great sales are coming up in the next few weeks.

The first sale is this Saturday, September 14 from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM at the Texas Discovery Gardens at Fair Park in Dallas. If you are a member of TDC, you can go to the preview sale on Friday. Click the link above for more information and a list of plants that will be available.

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One of my favorite plants from a past TDC sale is Blue Mistflower, Chromolaena odorata. This is the last plant to bloom in my garden each year, if we do not have an early frost. This photo was taken last year on November 17. Click here for a prior post about this plant.

The next sale is on Saturday, September 28 from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM at the Randol Mill Greenhouse in Arlington. This sale benefits the Molly Hollar Wildscape. Click the link for a plant list and additional information. Be sure to visit the Molly Hollar Wildscape, which not at the same location as the plant sale.


One of my favorite plants from a Molly Hollar sale is Golden Groundsel, Packera obovata. This is a slowly spreading groundcover for partial shade that blooms in early spring. This photo was taken March 13, 2012. Click here for a prior post about this and other yellow flowers in my garden.


The last fall plant sale (that I know of) is at the Fort Worth Botanic Garden on Saturday, October 12 from 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM. The North Central Chapter of the Native Plant Society of Texas will be selling native plants at the event. Click both links for additional information. Plan on spending some extra time enjoying the gardens after you buy your plants.


One of my favorite plants from the FWBG sale is my Toothache Tree, Zanthoxylum hirsutum. I also have a closely related Hercules Club, Zanthoxylum clava-herculis, that I obtained at the Molly Hollar sale. (Is it strange that I know where all of my plants came from?) Both trees attract a number of pollinators when in bloom. This photo was taken on April 7, 2012. Click here for a prior post about these trees. 



The trees also serve as host plants for giant swallowtail butterfly caterpillars. And if you have a toothache, you can chew on a leaf or stem to numb your mouth. I was brave enough to chew on a leaf recently. It did numb my mouth.

All of the plants mentioned above will be available at the respective sales. Get there early for best selections. Quantities are sometimes very limited.

8 comments:

  1. Well, bummer Michael, I`ve gone back to work on Saturdays! Have you ever found any jewels at Dallas farmer`s market?

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    1. I don’t get out to the Dallas Farmer’s Market that often, Randy. When I have, it seems like the only plants around are the same ones you would find at the big home improvement stores.

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  2. I'm curious on the difference between Chromolaena odorata and Conoclinium coelestinum. I would have pegged your photo for the latter, not the former.

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    1. Misti, Chromolaena odorata is more of a open woody shrub that freezes to the ground in the winter. Mine has some branches that are six feet tall now. Conoclinium coelestinum, like Conoclinium greggii, is a herbaceous groundcover that usually only grows a foot or two high. All of these plants are great for attracting butterflies.

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    2. Great, thanks for the clarification. It was hard to tell the perspective on the closeup.

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  3. I think it is pretty normal to know where you got items in your precious collection. Might be concerned if you didn't.

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  4. That butterfly with the eye pattern, amazing!

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