Flower and Plant Catalogs, Online and By Mail
Looking at flower and plant catalogs was a late winter tradition when I was growing up. These days I would be more likely to look at one online. You can have your choice in most cases, although many catalogs are now only available online. This lens is my curation of some of my old favorites as well as some interesting new catalogs I've found. The greeting card images scattered throughout are from my online Zazzle shop that features my flower photography and art.
Flowers in the Getty Garden by Dawn Zarimba on Flickr using a Creative Commons Commercial License. As with every image on this lens, do not reprint elsewhere without attribution.
Flowers in the Getty Garden by Dawn Zarimba on Flickr using a Creative Commons Commercial License. As with every image on this lens, do not reprint elsewhere without attribution.
Flower Catalogs of My Childhood
These are the catalogs that my mom and I pored over during the dreary cold days of January and February. When I was very small mom would order seeds and start growing them in the basement by March. That's what people in Iowa did in the 1960s. I remember vegetable gardens in most back yards.
- Burpee Seeds and Plants
- This was the catalog that my mom ordered seeds from when I was a little girl. One year she let me order the children's vegetable garden kit.
- Jackson & Perkins Roses, Shrubs and Bulbs
- Jackson & Perkins catalogs provided hours of drooling over beautiful roses that we knew wouldn't last long in the Iowa winters. I used them to learn how to draw roses.
- Schreiner's Gardens: Iris
- These catalogs were mainly the domain of my maternal grandmother and we got the leftovers. I used the iris photos to draw and make watercolors from.
- White Flower Farm
- White Flower Farm came along later after my cousin married a woman from New England. She knew all about White Flower Farm and so we started ordering catalogs. There were some unusual things in it and it all seemed much more refined.
- Breck's Bulbs
- Spring bulbs as well as dahlias, gladioli, begonias, asiatic lilies, iris and other perennials.
- Gurneys Seed and Nursery
- Catalog filled with just about everything you can think of.
- Park Seed
- Another general catalog that carries just about everything.
The American Horticultural Society Guide to Plants and Flowers
The American Horticultural Society Encyclopedia of Plants and Flowers (American Horticultural Society Practical Guides)
Amazon Price: $49.95 (as of 05/31/2012)
This lushly illustrated and exhaustive gardening reference, an update to the 1989 original, is sure to gratify greenthumbs all around the U.S.: comprising three main sections (the plant selector, the plant catalogue and the plant dictionary), it's an excellent resource for anyone looking to fashion a beautiful and environmentally sustainable garden.
Heirloom Seed Catalogs
- Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
- 1400 heirloom varieties located in Mansfield, Missouri and Petaluma, California.
- Seed Savers
- Based in Decorah, Iowa, seed savers members share seeds with other members.
Daylily Plant Catalogs
- Walnut Hill Gardens
- A daylily hybridizer located four miles from me. Their gardens are stunning in full bloom.
- Bloomingfields Farm Daylily Nursery
- Extensive online catalog where you can choose by color, by season, or by name.
Rose Catalogs
- Jackson and Perkins
- The name in mail order roses. They have trees, shrubs, perennials, and bulbs, too.
- Heirloom Roses
- Oregon rose growers who import more than 500 roses from England and Europe.
Bulb Catalogs
Tulips, crocus, daffodils, dahlias, gladioli, etc.
- Old House Gardens Heirloom Flower Bulbs
- This is really more of a website than a catalog, but I wanted to add the heirloom option.
- Michigan Bulb
- Michigan Bulb has been around for a long time. They really have a little bit of everything but bulbs are their specialty.
- Brecks Bulbs
- Bulbs from Holland.
Iris Catalogs
- Schreiner's Iris Gardens
- The perennial (no pun intended) iris catalog. I'll warn you, though...no iris are as blue as they show in the photos.
- The Irises of Shadowood
- This person may call themselves a hobby iris grower but they have a huge collection! Grown in Minnesota so they are sure to be hardy.
Wildflower Catalogs
- Prairie Moon Nursery
- I went to a class sponsored by this nursery and they are very knowledgeable.
- American Meadows (TM)
- Wildflower seeds by region.
Collectible Garden Catalogs
Vote for Your Favorite Flower
"Mock Orange Blossom" by flower_garden
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The Latest Flower Catalog Blog Posts
- Santa Fe Railroad Advertising, Beatles Songbook and Nostalgic Soda ...
- Come look through hand-tinted cards, old Valentines and Easter cards, Santa Claus die cuts, pages from turn-of-the-century flower catalogs, prints, brochures, celebrity pictures and autographs, many images can be enlarged and framed for home décor and ...
Flower Catalog Tweets
"Peony Fireworks" by flower_garden
Make a note card at zazzle.
My Garden Inspired Art
Tell us about your garden
Plus any other comments
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SandyPeaks
Dec 25, 2010 @ 1:58 pm | delete
- When I first moved into my own home, I would spend hours poring over catalogs before choosing what to grow. Now that my present garden is well established, I use catalogs to choose new spot plants. Blessed by a SquidAngel.
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Twmarsh
Mar 8, 2010 @ 7:58 pm | delete
- Great collection of catalogs here. Thanks for the info. Five stars!
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