Wandered through a local big box over the weekend.. looking for plants (lowes)

Noticed they have they Easter displays out, some really nice potted hydrangeas. I
raise big leafed hydrangeas myself... so I'm looking and it suddenly dawned on me....
These look like branches that have been cut off a blooming bush and stuck into a pot
of soil.

Duhh... no wonder a lot of them will never grow... they're CUTTINGS, in full bloom with
all the leaves. For years I always though these were actually rooted plants that would
grow in the container until they could be planted...... boy am I dumb !!!

It took me years to figure out that all those colorful holiday season poinsettia's were
also just cuttings taking off a blooming bush...no wonder they die after the holiday
season passes.

Anyway... continued out to the shrubs and azaleas. Saw some nice specimen azaleas,
glossy foliage, white flowers. Checked the fact tag and saw these beauties are
for hardiness zone 8. The store is in zone 6. No way they would survive the winters.

And they have a complete display of encore azaleas, maybe a dozen different
varieties, none of which have a hardiness zone listed on the plants, but are
actually zone 7's or higher and will not overwinter here.


It makes me think about all the 'weekend' gardeners who will buy these plants... put
them in the ground and then wonder why they don't survive. Sure they have a one
year warranty (store credit only) but who can find a receipt after a few months.

You would think the big box stores would be more careful in what they sell. I
guess making a buck is more important. Perhaps this is also why a lot of
people feel they don't have a 'green' thumb.

Peter (who used to not have a 'green' thumb, but is slowly improving thanks to this ng).