It is tricky sometimes to pick out a good nursery to buy plants. Having ordered from many different places, I put together the following list for my ‘go to’ sources of seeds and plants that I used when installing permaculture style edible forest gardens here in the arid temperate steppes of Western Colorado.
I’m sure there are more great resources out there and I’d love to know about them.
Burnt Ridge Nursery
Burnt Ridge is by far my favorite source for perennial ‘permaculture’ plants. They have a great selection of fruit, nuts, berries, nitrogen fixers and other unusual native plants and berries. Their shipping methods are excellent and the plants are large and healthy.
Paonia Farm and Home Organics:
Paonia, 719 2nd St. 527-3522
Our local source and amazing selection of soil amendments.
In the spring they carry seedlings of many permaculture plants grown by Wind Clearwater.
CSU extension seedling program:
Ft Collins
Best for bulk bare root locally adapted trees/shrubs. Must buy in groups of 50.
University of Idaho Center for Forest Nursery and Seedling Research
Idaho
Another good and inexpensive source of seedling trees/shrubs, these can be bought in groups of 5 and are not bare root.
Western Native Seed
Colbran, Colorado
Best source for seed of Colorado and regional native trees, shrubs grasses, wildflowers.
Best source for seed of Colorado and regional native trees, shrubs grasses, wildflowers.
I consistently go to them for Yarrow, Purple Prairie Clover, drought tolerant lawn mixes.
Peaceful Vally Farm Supply
Grass Valley, California
Huge variety of seeds and supplies.
Huge variety of seeds and supplies.
I especially like their cover crop options and innoculants to ensure that nitrogen fixing plants fix as much as possible.
Trees of Antiquity
Paso Robles, CA
Huge selection of heirloom fruit and nut trees.
Huge selection of heirloom fruit and nut trees.
Horizon Herbs
Nice selection of seeds, seems like they often have unusual things that I can’t find other places.
High Country Gardens
Denver, Colorado
A little pricy and focused on ornamentals, but a great selection of regionally appropriate plants.
A little pricy and focused on ornamentals, but a great selection of regionally appropriate plants.
Their shipping methods are excellent.
Oikos Tree Crops
Kalamazoo, MI
Focused on interesting edible tree species and varieties.
Most of their plants are not regionally adapted and I was not happy with their shipping methods of live plants.
But, since they have rare and interesting stuff like Yellowhorn and Burr/gamble oak crosses I have ordered from them.
Suggest ordering from them only in the late winter when their plants are dormant.
Raintree Nursery
People have asked me about Raintree Nursery and having ordered 3-4 times from them I DO NOT recommend Raintree. In my experience, their plants are undersized, not healthy, and poorly packaged when shipped. Their amazing catalog makes it very tempting and they have a solid guarantee which they honor to replace plants that die. However, replacing dead trees does not give you back the hours and effort of planting them or the season lost while you wait for replacements the following year.
