On Sun, 9 Mar 2003 07:18:41 -0700, "Dwayne" wrote:

(...)

Lowes, Wal Mart Etc. are all fine places to buy your plants. The only
problem with them is that those located in my town might have plants that
aren't for my area. I bought Thompson grapes one year and had them planted.
Then took a pruning class at the university there. At the College I was
told that Thompson grapes would not survive in that state. They never made
it to the next summer.

(...)

People around here started to demand Lowes and Home Depot and other box stores
have a Texas native plant table or ten. It took them a year, but they got it
together and started shopping the local growers. The labels are excellent,
giving cultural information, plant size at maturity, taxonomic information and
Heat Zone information (which is key down here).

You are right, though. I learned very quickly when I first moved here from Long
Island how I needed to get lists of native and adapted plants from experienced
gardeners, or the Extension. Consumers need to take some responsibility, IMO.
There is still no getting around this problem of labeling.