Today I am going to share a few reasons that you might consider for buying plants from a local farmer rather than buying them at big chain store garden centers. Usually the plants at the garden centers are perfectly fine, healthy looking plants and it is pretty convenient to just grab a couple while you are already there. So why bother buying them from a local grower? There are a few great reasons.
1.) When you buy locally you can talk to the grower and ask what the varieties are, whether they were grown organically or not, which ones they like the best and anything else you might want to know.
2.) When you buy from someone local the varieties are probably more adapted to your area rather than just the same varieties that are shipped to stores all over the country. For example we try to grow varieties that do well in our cooler, shorter season, after all we are growing these varieties ourselves in our market garden. We can also help you select the best plant for your micro-climate. Around here you may want something different if you live in a high mountain valley than if you live down by the river.
3.) They are often no more expensive or even cheaper than at the big stores. I saw tomatoes at one store today for over $3 each and another store for 2.94. We sell ours for $3 or 4 for $10 which is only $2.50 each.

I went to two different stores today to compare prices on tomato plants. I found that neither one was cheaper than the ones we sell.
4.) You often get many more fun varieties to choose from if you want to try something new! We have several varieties of hybrids and heirlooms to choose from ourselves while other local growers also have several different varieties all adding up to a pretty huge selection!
5.) You are supporting a local family, business, and the local economy.
These are just a few reasons to buy local garden plants. We will have lots of plant starts at the Chewelah Farmer’s Market this spring and so will several other vendors. We hope you will come down and ask us lots of questions about our plants.!
Where do you like to get plants? What is your favorite vegetable variety to grow?
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