Buy Local!
Healthier garden, healthier economy… it’s a win.
Your soil is prepped, the weather is perfect, and you’ve planned an ideal assortment of veggies and flowers for this year’s raised bed garden. As you consider where you’ll buy seeds and starter plants, we’d like to urge you to skip the big box retailers and seek out local nurseries and garden stores.
This post from a nursery in the D.C. area gives a great list of reasons why locally-grown plants will be healthier, the most important being that they have not been mass-produced and shipped. Who wouldn’t be a little stressed and exhausted after a long trip in a container truck? Instead, opt for a plant that is rested and ready to grow. And our environment will benefit from one less item being shipped over long distances using fossil fuel.
Local plant vendors are small business owners who need our support now more than ever. They are less likely to be spraying scary, pollinator-killing chemicals on their seedlings, will be a great source of advice for how best to care for the plants, and are generally just really nice people!
So please read on to learn more about the local plant scene in the Piedmont Triad! This is by no means an exhaustive list, and we didn’t even get around to talking about things like spring plant sale fundraisers put on by various Extensions and gardening groups. No matter, this should be enough to inspire you to stop in to whatever local plant nurseries you may pass by, or hear about from friends. They could become your new favorite go-to vendor!
List of Piedmont Triad-area local plant sources in this post:
Rail Fence Farm
Myers Greenhouse
WS Fairgrounds Farmers Market
Cobblestone Farmers Market
The Corner Farmers Market
Philosopher’s Physic Garden
Elderberry Creek Nursery
Hillcrest Farm
Frank’s Perennial Border
AB Seed
Piedmont Triad Farmers Market
Guilford Garden Center
Our Favorites
Our favorite source for starter vegetables and herbs, Kenneth Vanhoy and family can be found each Saturday morning at Cobblestone Farmers Market, offering a wide variety of healthy plants at really fantastic prices. If you struggle with knowing the best time to plant certain types of vegetables, just follow Rail Fence - if they aren’t offering a certain type of vegetable yet, that’s all you need to know.
After a long winter stuck inside, there is nothing like a trip out to Myers Greenhouse to get the garden energy flowing. Located on Stratford Road near Clemmons, Myers has been selling every type of plant imaginable, from herb starts to houseplants, for decades. Take a stroll from the greenhouse out to the perennial area…you just never know what you’ll find! Their prices are unbeatable and the staff is incredibly friendly and helpful. Make sure you have cash handy, because they don’t take credit cards!
Not sure what type of seeds you need? AB Seed, located at the Piedmont Triad Farmer’s Market, has racks upon racks for you to choose from. They’re also a great source for high-quality, NC-produced Daddy Pete’s soil and soil amendments, as well as organic fertilizers and trellis materials. Addicted to flower pots and planters, creative lawn ornaments and/or bird baths? Make sure you’ve got lots of room in your car.
Farmers Markets
Veggies, eggs, honey, pastries… and also locally grown plants! Here are a few of the larger local markets, where we’ve found great starts and perennials.
Saturdays, 8:30 AM - 12 PM
1001 S Marshall St SW, Winston-Salem, NC 27101
Open every Saturday on the Winston-Salem Fairgrounds
6 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Enter through the parking area off of 27th Street.
Saturday from 8-11 am at the corner of Walker and South Elam Avenues (2200 Walker Avenue, Greensboro, NC 27403) in the Sticks and Stones parking lot.
Free street parking and parking at Suds and Duds available.
7:00 AM - 6:00 PM 7 days per week
2914 Sandy Ridge Rd, Colfax, NC
Perennials, Herbs & Shrubs
Tracy Lounsbury is a beekeeper with an impressive knowledge of plants and how to propagate them. Not only does he offer an eclectic selection of native plants and shrubs, he also has old favorites for sale, all at very reasonable prices. Order online and pickup at Cobblestone or Acadia Foods (check his website for this week’s offerings and pickup plan). In addition, if you’re a fan of heirloom and hard-to-find tomato varieties, Mr. Lounsbury has you covered!
Hillcrest Farms has been selling plants and flowers at the Fairgrounds Farmer’s Market for over 20 years. They are a great source for perennial flowers, vegetable starts, houseplants and cut flowers. Our pollinator garden is full of salvia and coneflowers purchased from Hillcrest over the years. This business is a local treasure!
Located in Pfafftown, Elderberry Creek is a new, and very welcome resource for the native plant crowd in our area. They stock varieties rarely found at most other local nurseries, and are incredibly knowledgeable about native substitutes for the “old standards” type of big box fare. They also have an area where non-natives and herbs are sold, and sometimes offer workshops on site. Check them out!
The thing we love best about a visit to Frank’s is the “I’m Local!” signs that can be found throughout the sales area, which list the beneficial animals (bees, butterflies, birds) that each native plant is likely to attract, as well as sunlight requirements, eventual height, and color. It makes planning a new flower bed incredibly easy! They always have a great selection of plants that thrive in shade, and Daddy Pete’s products to plant them in!
Guilford Garden Center
Located near Guilford College, Guilford Garden Center has been supplying plants and gardening supplies to our area since 1963! Their plant selection is well rounded and ranges from trees to house plants and everything in between. With garden cats wandering peacefully about the property, it’s just an all around fun place to visit and shop.