Quote:
Van Engelen and their retail arm
John Scheepers are my current favorites on price and selection- Van Engelen has a $50 minimum, but that's not a lot to spend if you are relandscaping a whole yard and in addition can buy several hundred bulbs! Scheepers has the same varieties but no price minimum and smaller numbers. They have herbaceous peonies in addition to every bulb you could think of.
If you're buying landcape-size plants rather than propagating ones, you're almost always better off buying from the best retail nursery you can find and spending money on healthy growth rather than shipping. On the other hand, checking out Burnt Ridge at the Oly Farmer's Market (disclaimer: owner is a friend, and I was a vendor at OFM back in the olden days) and making a point of getting to the Donated Plants area at the Washington Park Arboretum (open rarely and worst of all during the day during the week) is always a good idea. ALSO: if you know what you want and can have the holes dug ready for the plants, the Lawyer Nursery (near Lacey) clearance sale in May is a great place to get big, healthy, professional landscape grade plants for cheap.
I've said a lot about
Raintree and would recommend their plants and service without reservation.
The plant sale area at Rhododendron Species Foundation often has shade plants which are hard to find elsewhere.
Also,
Forest Farm has something that looks like every plant in the world, and ships big plants in big pots for not-the-worst-shipping-charge; it helps to have a good plant encyclopedia by your side to supplement the catalogue, though.
Joy Creek Nursery is the place I buy clematis, campanulas, and other perennials; they sell a wide selection of shade plants and some speciality shrubs and small trees which are not easy to find otherwise.
I have Opinions about all rose nurseries, but the most important of them is that you're always better off buying in person. Recommendations upon request.
