Plant Inspiration
Finding new and interesting plants has gotten a lot easier. The ubiquitous garden Web sites are loaded with “Top Ten” plant lists for sun, shade, wet, dry, fragrance, and fall color. You can Google them up by searching for “The Top Ten Dwarf Conifers” or “The Best Weeping Plants for Small Spaces.”
Online research is fine for rainy days and mid-winter reverie, but it’s never the same as getting out to smell the roses.
Locally, many Kentucky garden clubs sponsor home garden tours each year; there’s always something new to be found just around the corner.
Statewide, there are many arboretums to visit for great garden room plant ideas or to take classes.
The Arboretum–State Botanical Garden of Kentucky, Lexington
(859) 257-6955
www.ca.uky.edu/Arboretum
Baker Arboretum, Bowling Green
(270) 846-2397
www.wku.edu/bakerarboretum
(Due to a fire, the Downing Museum, on the same grounds, will be closed for at least a year. The arboretum is still open on a reservation-only basis. For updates, check the Web site.)
Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest, Clermont
(502) 955-8512
www.bernheim.org
Boone County Arboretum, Union
(859) 384-4999
www.bcarboretum.org
Yew Dell Botanical Garden, Crestwood
(502) 241-4788
www.yewdellgardens.org
Western Kentucky Botanical Garden, Owensboro
(270) 852-8925
www.wkbg.org/pages
THERE ARE ALSO MANY PLANT NURSERIES in Kentucky that sell rare and unusual plants. Many have indoor and outdoor showrooms where you’re welcome to browse, ask questions, and fill your shopping cart. A few include:
Baeten’s Nursery & Greenhouses, Union
(859) 384-4769
www.baetensnursery.com
Brian’s Botanicals, Hillview
(502) 957-4365
www.briansbotanicals.net
Hillview Garden & Floral, Bowling Green
(270) 782-0200
www.hillviewbg.com
The Plant Kingdom, Louisville
(502) 893-7333
www.plantkingdom.net
(Our monthly Garden Guru columnist is Shelly Nold of The Plant Kingdom.)
Integrity Nursery & Outdoor Living, Owensboro
(270) 684-4959
www.integritynursery.com
Kendrick & O’Dell Landscaping Inc., Cold Spring
(859) 441-3552
www.kendrickodell.com
Reminiscent Herb Farm Nursery & Landscaping, Florence
(859) 525-8729
www.reminiscentnursery.com
Springhouse Gardens, Nicholasville
(859) 224-1417
www.springhousegardens.com
Worm’s Way, Erlanger
(859) 525-9676
www.wormsway.com
If your business sells rare and unusual plants and we missed including you on the list, let us know by sending the center’s name, address, phone number, and Web site to email@kentuckyliving.com.
For more information on great sources of new plants in other Kentucky nurseries, contact your local garden club or your local Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service agent (to locate your local office, go online to www.ca.uky.edu/county, then click on your county on the map).
Read the Kentucky Living March 2014 feature that goes along with this web exclusive, Gorgeous Garden Rooms.
