How many gardening catalogs?

I have just a few..mostly to see the pictures and info. I don't order from catologues as I am lucky to have several great garden centres nearby. I also like to see the plants first hand before buying. Lots of seeds readily available here too.

Seed catalogues are like the Sears, Pennys and Montgomery Ward Christmas catalogues were when we were kids and shopping for our presents. My imagination went wild with what could be done with all that stuff and now I'm the same with seed catalogues. Just sit and dream about the garden from heaven that I would love to create. Of course, they need to be the glossy, picture-full kind to get the imagination rolling, but then I find new names in the others and have to go searching for a picture of it. I can imagine spending the whole of winter doing this, LOL. Then if I get 1/100th of those dreams created, I feel accomplished.

Too many to count! They are stacked in a basket next to my bed, propped up on a low dresser nearby, tossed in a big basket of catalogs in the den, and probably a few in my car (I gotta have something to read while I'm waiting to pick up kids!)

I'm a member of the American Hemerocallis Society, so I get all the fancy daylily catalogs. I have a stack half a foot high of cataloges with 100-250 dollar plants. (No I don't buy plants that expensive, LOL).
I'm thinking of joining som more societies just for the pretty plant photos that come in the mail as a result.
I get some of the regular catalogs, and do order things that I haven't been able to find around here.

I actually sorted down to only about 15 this year, but then I requested 2 new catalogs last week, so what can I say?? I order seeds, books and very few supplies. This year, I've ordered some plants and my DH forced me to order several rose bushes. He had to twist my arm, honest!!

Gardening catalogs are what help me get through the winter months and keep a focus that spring really isn't far away.
It would be a really gloomy January - March without them.

It's fun to see or read the gardeners catalog! Read them over and again when it's bored! LOL.(No I don't order them when if I need so bad so I order it). Have a fun for gardeners sooner.

I get piles and piles too, but can't figure out why some places send me multiple catalogues -- different covers, but identical inside, they come a few weeks apart, same name, address, etc. I have 4 from one company; 3 from 4 other companies, 2 from several other places. So odd.

I keep my old ones to prop up my seed trays under the lights! Very easy to control the height that way -- just yank a few out at a time :)

Kathleen, I do hope your arm is OK by now ;D

One of my favorite winter time activity is reading and browsing thru seed books and the like

I get piles of them, only use a few, as most things we order are wholesale and most companies don't wholesale.
Getting to use the online catalogs more. Easier once you get used to it & don't have the paper waste.
ßernie

I look after a couple of small flower gardens at the Apt. where I live. Its a small cry from a half acre I had but its better than just haveing the patio. Right now I have just bought an inside jasmine plant and now that is is done
blo oming I want to know how to prune them back? thanks meanjean

Only 7, which is pretty much here (we don't get piles as you). I only ordered from 2 companies, with my 20 friends, much cheaper that way ;)

While I love getting piles of catalogs in the mail; the major orders only go to two or three of the companies. I do try to order a couple new things from some of the others; but most of my gardening is for FOOD & that's too important for things I don't know will produce well here. Our garden development is way ahead of building the house -- what can I say -- we're Okies!

I get piles and piles of catalogs. Made out my seed orders and sent by end of Jan. have received most of them, think I sent 10 or 12 orders, not a whole lot for each one. i did order several different kinds of poppy seeds. There is an area on my bank where I have been trying to grow them for a couple of years, now realize there were too many poplar roots in the area. Also have several plant catalogs besides the seed ones., Haven't pared my list down there yet. rutholive (Donna)

I have "piles and piles" too! I love looking through them to see all the new cultivars for the next growing season. It especially helps at this time of year! It helps me to get through the coldest, snowiest, and grayest days of winter!

Talk about "wetting one's appetite"! You almost have to "tie me to the train tracks" to restrain my enthusiasm & impulse buying urges, because ALL the plants/flowers would look GREAT in my garden!!! Anyone fighting the urge to buy to much also??

I have to fight my urges too! I got a $140 cash for christmas and by that night I had it spent at Burpee and Dutch Gardens. Now I found out about Bluestone and that is just too much input for my little heart! I just went through and noted what I found interesting and it added up to $600! My hubby is very supportive but I know he doesn't understand why plants are worth paying for. It's an addiction!!!

angie

Yes I have tons of catalogues, some 5 years old! Places where you subscribe to magazines will put you on a mailing list for catalogues, do get extra copies sometimes, but that's OK cause I give them to friends/family, and also cut out pictures to keep in my journal, spend many, many hours browsing and planning, helps me through the winter too! Spring is coming?? According to our groundhog it is! Already making plans for 2004 if I get through all that digging and planting and getting bit by bugs in 2003! Ya gotta love it! Saw a new echinacea 'razzamatazz' in a US mag., oh you guys are lucky, can't wait.

I love meeting all our new friends here at the Pollbooth! Welcome, all of you :)

I got 2 more in today's mail; one was from Springhill. I didn't get one from them at all last year; the new one says nothing about the change in ownership and other issues that are very important. Maybe they hope the general public isn't aware???

Since I moved all the catalogues still go to the old address since they say "or current occupant" and are mostly sent bulk mail. So none for me to drool over this winter. But the PDB makes a very wonderful alternative and it costs me nothing to drool there since it does not have an order form in it! (OK. Almost nothing...I still have to pay for windex and paper towels to clean my nose prints off the screen)

Many catalogs duplicate other catalogs but I can't help myself. The next catalog may contain something I have not seen before!

8 catalogues here. There are only 2 I don't order from, 1 of them is very good and I don't know why I still haven't made an order in the 4 years they've been sending me a catalogue! It has some wonderful Daffs, I suppose it just comes in at a time of the year when I'm not considering buying them (April).

One of the great things we have in the UK is the Plantfinder and Seed Search books. (Seed search also lists world wide sources).If I'm ever looking for a particular plant I go to these first and find that a lot of the nurseries listed have web sites so I've moved away from the paper catalogues to an extent. Another great source for me are the plant fairs, now all I need do is get the money together to get what I want ;)

Edit to add
Sheesh I'm slow, the plant societies list a lot of the seeds I'm after too. I wonder if it will ever come to a day when I don't have the paper catalogues come through the door.

This message was edited Thursday, Feb 13th 4:26 PM

I love my catalogues, especially the old ones, they have helped me identify plants, at least I have a starting point even though the names have been changing. I love old journals from societys as well. I just used an 1980 journal last night to identify a plant. I collect succulents, and have old catalogues dating back to 1964. CSSA JOurnals I have dating back for 50+ years. These are a must have for me. Norma

I'm a catalog junkie and my mailman has back problems just from delivering to our house! I don't save them all, it just wouldn't be possible unless we got a storage building. I have shopped through catalogs for years and years, I hate going to stores. Consequently I must be on everyones list.

I also have many plant and seed catalogs and while I don't keep them from year to year I find them invaluable as a learning tool and also I do order from them for the unusual plant that I don't find in the local nursery.
I will travel for miles and miles to a new plant nursery or garden center, but as a general rule ordering from catalogs has been disappointing for me.
I ordered from Hydrangia Plus this year as there were 3 Hydrangia's that I have been wanting and not able to find locally, I am hoping they will be fine, and look forward to getting them.
I am a brand new member and this is my first but not last reply.

This message was edited Sunday, Feb 23rd 9:53 AM

YES, I LOVE MY CATALOGS! I have quite a few. I like to read at night and they are right by my bed. They are very helpfull in planting suggestions and planting hints, also. Everytime I see an advertisement for a new one I don't have, I order it! They are a great to identify a plant you are not sure of.