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Companies

• Bluestone Perennials, Inc.
• Brushwood Nursery
• Busse Gardens
• Chalk Hill Clematis
• Fairweather Gardens
• Garden Crossings L.L.C.
• Greer Gardens
• Homestead Farms
• Klehm's Song Sparrow
• Nature Hills Nursery, Inc.
• Park Seed Company
• Plant Delights Nursery, Inc.
• Sheffield's Seed Company, Inc.
• Silver Star Vinery Clematis
• Siskiyou Rare Plant Nursery
• Spring Valley Greenhouse, Inc.
• Thompson & Morgan, Inc.
• Wayside Gardens
• White Flower Farm

Buyers Guide Home

ACS's Online Buyer's Guide 2008-2009

Welcome to the ACS's Online Buyer's Guide 2008-2009. The guide is a resource consisting of information about American nurseries and suppliers throughout the United States. It contains information about companies that are selling clematis via mail-order and will be updated every two years. Our society made every effort to give all known clematis mail-order nurseries and suppliers a chance to participate in the guide because we want our members and fellow clematis gardeners to have as many choices as possible. The information was supplied directly to the ACS by those nurseries who chose to participle. It reflects their responses to a questionnaire that was provided to them by the society.

In the past, when you wanted to purchase clematis from your various gardening catalogs, you did not have a source to compare the clematis that these companies had to offer. This online guide is provided free of charge by the ACS as a benefit to gardeners who would like more information about mail-order companies that carry clematis. It gives gardeners a practical way to compare the price of each plant, the number of cultivars and species offered, the size(s) of plants available, the cost of shipping, refund and return policies as well as the mail-order company's philosophies and policies. I believe the data that has been collected will make purchasing clematis a more enjoyable experience.

Some companies use the size of their container and others use age to define their plant's size. We have asked the companies in this survey to use the size of their container instead of the plant's age. The reason for this is because the age of the plant doesn't necessarily give a true representation of its size. We must assume that a reputable mail-order nursery would ship plants that are commensurate with the size of the containers they use, so this way of determining the size of the plants they ship seems to be the most accurate way to determine what size plant you can expect to receive.

One thing to consider when purchasing plants via mail-order is that certain states are agricultural states governed by regulations and restrictions when receiving plants from other states. (Not all states have these restrictions.) If you live in one of the restricted states, the mail-order company from which you order must comply with these regulations by sending the clematis free of soil or by dipping their clematis into a Dursban (Chlorpyrifos) solution for a Phytosanitary Certificate before shipping their plants. The reason for removing the soil or the dipping is that these restricted states are concerned with insect infestations (for example: Japanese beetles and gypsy moths) affecting their agricultural crops. Both processes cost the mail-order nurseries extra money. These plants also must be shipped by air, adding to the buyer's cost.

Also keep in mind that most companies only recommend growing clematis in USDA zones 4 to 9. Sometimes their guarantee policies are solely based on those particular growing zones. But, despite what you may have read or heard about growing clematis in these hotter temperatures, you can grow many them in zones 10 and 11. They can even thrive. If you are unsure if a clematis is acceptable in your USDA Zone, please visit the Clematis A to Z section.

In conclusion, this online guide, along with the suggestions above, should better equip you to make an informed decision when purchasing your clematis via mail-order.

Edith Malek
President, American Clematis Society

Important note: All prices quoted by the mail-order companies are subject to change. The information in this guide has been provided by the companies who participated. Any mistakes or inaccuracies are purely unintentional.