In this video I’m going to show you how to get free plants for your organic vegetable garden. It’s 100% legal!
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have you noticed garden centered transplants just like these are getting super expensive in this video i’m going to show you some tips on how to get free transplants from the garden center and it’s 100% legal first of all i have to say i hardly ever buy transplants they’re very expensive way more expensive than buying seeds and they’re actually you get less variety than if you were to look through a seed catalog and depending on the transplant they could actually be less robust and actually grow slower than just planting the seed to begin with so what are the advantages to transplants from the garden center well if you choose the right ones they will be off to a faster start and they will give you an earlier harvest than having to plant the seeds and wait for that whole process to take place and then take care of them until fruing time they can also rescue you from a mistake or they can rescue you from pest and disease issues that wiped out your seedlings and you just don’t have the time or the heart to start all over again let’s face it it’s much easier to go to the nursery and buy nice big transplants than it is to go through the seed starting process not quite as rewarding but easier it feels like especially on youtube there is some kind of taboo around buying garden center transplants the thing out there seems to be if you don’t grow it from seed you’re not a real gardener let me know in the comments if subconsciously you’ve kind of picked that up on youtube and i might have put it out there myself not even knowing i’m not sure where that all came from but there is no shame in starting your garden from transplants due to an issue i had this year i my garden is way behind where it should be so a little over a week ago i went to a a local garden center and i bought a bunch of transplants when i was at the garden center i realized how much of a taboo there actually is because i ran into a viewer there who came up and talked to me and she had transplants in her cart and was actually a little embarrassed about it i could tell well i could tell and she said that and i told her “hey look at my cart it happens there’s no shame in it don’t worry about it.” the main disadvantage um other than the variety you get from seed is the cost of the transplants some of it just doesn’t make financial sense at all like i saw a pot this size with one head lettuce in it it cost $5 now i don’t know where you are but i can go to the local organic grocery store and get a head for probably a little less than $5 and i didn’t have to water it feed it grow it for a couple of months cabbage is another one you get one cabbage head might be huge but one cabbage head from one seed and it takes a long time for cabbage to produce i mean i planted mine in what october november and they’re just now uh most of them are ready to harvest so it would be $5 for that cabbage at the garden center and then months and months of water and food and care to get one cabbage head so you really want to buy things from transplants if you’re want wanting to save money uh that produce a lot of fruit over a long period of time and then that makes it somewhat worthwhile but there are other things that you can do little secrets that garden centers don’t want you to know about that can maximize your dollar so let’s go over what i spent last week at the garden center on these transplants so i have six-packs here little six cell things and then i have um pots just like this the six-packs were $4.99 the pots were also $4.99 so i could get six plants for the same price as i can get one now you might think that in that one plant maybe it’s a little bit bigger a little bit little bit further along but take a look it’s not always the case not to mention a lot of times in a pot especially if they’ve been growing there a while and they’re large they might be a little bit rootbound like this one might be i can’t even get it out right now and so that has stunted their growth so when you put in something like that that has its growth stunt that’s sage it smells so good something that’s had its growth stunted in a pot like this versus newer maybe even smaller uh transplants that come in a six-pack as long as they’re not rootbound they can take off even quicker than a larger plant in a larger pot so when you look at anything at the garden center i really recommend that you loosen it up pull it out and just make sure that the roots look good that they don’t have they’re not spiraling around and around at the bottom and you see more roots than soil you don’t want that put it right back and check for another one so price-wise in almost all cases six-packs are going to be your best bet that’s why i don’t shop for transplants at home depot or lowe’s or some of your big box stores because they really carry mainly bonnie plants and they only come in a larger pot for a larger price tag now one thing you want to look at and it can be uh can make a pot like this so if you are if all you have is a big box store um and you can only get pots like this look for one that has multiple seedlings growing in the same pot this one has three this is butternut squash i can get three different plants out of my $4.99 here so still not as good as $4.99 for six plants but it’s better and then look at the six-pack here of okra there are two to three okra plants in each cell 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 o plants for $4.99 that’s a good deal not as good as seeds but we’re not talking about that right now or look at this basil a six-pack with probably 50 to 100 transplants in here so how i would divide this is i would just tease it apart so these okra first just kind of tease them apart you can actually dunk them in water and get most of the soil off of them that makes it a little bit easier to uh separate the roots and then get a clean six-pack with some premoistened potting soil and then just gently plant them right into that soil try to spread the roots out a little bit don’t make them one big clump and try to hold your plants by the leaves and not the stem a leaf rips off your plant can still live same thing with the basil it’s just going to be a little bit more tedious of a surgery because there’s so many more plants here but i always love to see how many i can get singled out and separated out of a clump like this now you can also plant these after you divide them into the ground directly um i prefer to put them back in a six-pack or something like this so you can control them just a little bit better i’m actually going to take these and protect them uh because when you do trans you’ve done a little bit of surgery they’ve had roots broken they’ve been handled so i’m going to put them in the house under my growite for about a week or two until i really see that they’re starting to grow they’ve got a couple sets of leaves on them new sets and then i will put them outside after hardening them off now if you are planting them directly into the ground if you don’t want to take the trouble to go through those extra steps make sure you put some potting soil in the hole don’t just put it in the garden soil those roots are used to very fine soil and they want to be able to kind of grow through that and get a little bit older and more mature before they head into your heavier garden soil so just make a little nest and and put them in there water them in well and they should take off just fine by far my favorite way to uh get plants started vegetable plants is by seed more variety save you money but in a pinch or if you need it or you just don’t have the time to look after seedlings these are some tips that i hope will help you out if you learned something please give the video a thumbs up consider subscribing if you haven’t already and i’ll see you guys next time
39 Comments
Love this. To your point – nothing wrong at all with buying transplants vice starting from seed. Some folks just don't have or don't want to take the time to germinate seeds on their own. I also think purchased transplants is a great way for new gardeners to learn and grow their skills before jumping into seed starting.
Thank you for showing how you separate seedlings. I have struggled with mine when planting by seed and having a few with double plants.
I had to buy plants this year because of having to move. That was a sticker shock. I used to buy some at certain grocery stores because they were cheaper. But even they went up. I used coupons to save this year. I used cheap methods to grow too.
I grow mostly flowers and propagate most of them myself. I find that youtube is full of people designing gardens full of proven winners plants. I wish there were more that actually started there plants from seeds and cuttings.
I'm homebound (don't drive) and have to buy everything online. Try that for crazy expensive. They'll charge $15-30 for a plant plus shipping and sometimes end up sending you a "just potted" seedling. 😡
Bonnie plants??
I 100% prefer to direct sow. That said, I don't have enough frost tree days to do everything that way, no do I have the space, natural light, or $$ for a grow set up indoors. My peppers are always bought as starts along with herbs or flowers that didn't work in winter sown jugs if I decide I can't live without!
When I was a kid, there was a commercial greenhouse a couple of blocks from my house. They would throw out plants that turned a little brown. Everyone in the neighborhood would go to their flower dump and take home plants for free. It was great.
Ive always liked from seed, I started them indoors in a grow tent
My eggplants were eaten up by insects. I was able to pick up transplants at the co-op. Saved us.
Yes. I’ve noticed that. This year the weather was so erratic that I started some seeds mainly my beans, cukes, peas, & some tomatoes, chard, & zucchini. The broccoli & some cabbages in 4 to 6 cell plant. The one seedling of zucchini that had 2 very large plants for 3.99. I also bought 4 iceberg lettuce for $3.29. Because they are hard to grow from seed for me. So i’m happy my broccoli is already shiny small heads.
I was just now able to put out my overwintered peppers because nightime temps are staying above 45°. They all look like dead sticks 😢 so seedlings from the nursery may be in my future.
I work at a small town grocery store. We get plants from the local FFA. They start at 3.99 a six pack. They drop a few weeks later fifty cents or so. They do get root bound so need planted right away, but we've never had a problem with them.
I go through and pick the dead flowers and dry for seed. Lol lol. I always have a little ziploc in my purses. 😂 i deD headed flowers outside Cracker barrel restaurant lol. 😊
I could never understand why people buy cilantro transplants.
What is wrong with the Bonnie brand?
It’s a process trying to grow corn STILL. Got beans sunflowers need peppers and cukes so headed to Sturdevant Wi. Millagers it’s June so looking for deals also you can restock in early July what you really need is good supply of soil order bulk sq. Yards if you use containers.
I bought a 6 pack of celery because I’m not home at the time seeds would need to be started. There were 18 plants so I shared with others. There are some things I’m willing to pay for and others that I will always start from seed.
I have used taurine to improve big box transplants . Reducing ROS and weakened roots.
We like to use transplants for a jump start or when the seeds are behind. Try to save when u can )
Like how you thought outside the box for creative content. Much needed video on how to take advantage of overcrowded older pots of seedlings.
I have no guilt buying a 6 pk of romaine lettuce then plant seeds among them for a fast and continuous harvest
Great tips! I too got transplants but also did seeds. Can you tell me how to protect my "organic" garden tomatoes from the dreaded green worm. Had a nice tomato coming along only to find a nice hole make by worms. Finding small ones currently but can I do something to say wrap around the tomatoes to protect them and also my melons?(Hahah. my fruit which hasn't grown big enough to produce melons.
❤Absolutely 💯 percent learned something❤Love it❤
I'm confused as to your definition of transplant. Potted plants?
You rock! That’s all I wanted to say.
I refuse to spend $5 on one plant… I agree, look for multiples 🙌 and separate. OR look for 6 packs that aren't "name brand".
Thank you for sharing.
I get my seedlings from my cousin. She starts them from seed and sells them at a local hardware store.
Nah I didn't pick it up. But I live in an area with a short growing season. If I want tomatoes, I need to start them when it's 20 below outside and it's a NIGHTMARE
Our nursery here is pretty fairly priced too luckily
Incidentally I've noticed more germination issues with expensive seeds than those from the dollar store.
I'm going to be drowning in beans that's for sure
I prefer to plant my seeds, but this year my zucchini didn't sprout so I bought plants at the garden story. Most my tomatoes came from seed but I wanted a special variety so I bought a plant.
My basil was like that too… for some reason… I have a hard time growing herbs from seed
I personally don’t feel like a failure buying certain transplants. However, many plants grow better from seed. I primarily buy pepper 🌶️ transplants because I never start the seed inside in time. I live in zone 6 so we have harsher weather for warm loving plants. So I think some transplants make sense.
I've never even thought any sort of way about people buying plants from garden centers. I do perennials, every winter I try to grow some stuff from seed but that's mostly because I go a little crazy missing gardening for 6 months of the year in MN and it is ALOT cheaper than buying 20 plants but realistically starting stuff from seed vs buying the plants means you end up waiting on average an extra year for the plants to really mature.
Our Lowe's allows dumpster diving. Free plants. Just ask. Loads of perennials.
Man this guy talks too much
So from time to time I still buy plants but once I get there which established then I will then try to propagate them or at one point let them flower like from Bonnie's products I got a pineapple sage if you see it recommend you buy it the plant is very vigorous and production in its beautiful pink flowers that hummingbirds love they taste so good and a salad and it's easy to let flour very similar to collecting seeds from basil now I have a ziplock full are seeds of Italian Basil Thai Basil and pineapple Sage and this year I didn't have to buy them because I would germinate them in a very cool fashion in a 4-inch pot what about 16 seeds grid it out planted in it if they grow you could gently remove the soil from the pot and slowly shift the soil from the roots and separate each plant and then you have yourself multiple plants that you can plant into their own homes this year I now have five pineapple sage plants so the productivity of the flowers once they start blooming is going to be ridiculous
I definitely notice a bias on YouTube against buying transplants. I don’t have much time to care for seeds and seedlings so don’t have a lot of choice. When I can I will sow seeds because as you say you can choose from more varieties.