Transplanting Instructions for Potted Plants & Plugs

Welcome to the wonderful world of native plants! To ensure satisfaction with your plants, please read and follow these Planting Instructions.

Happy Planting!

Spring Orders

Your plants may arrive in various stages of growth. We often ship our plants in a dormant condition, to minimize stress during transit. Dormant plants typically have little or no foliage, and may appear to be dead. Please do not worry! The little guys just haven't awakened from winter yet.

Early spring plant orders will typically arrive in a dormant state. Mid-spring orders may have some dormant plants along with some actively growing, green plants. Late spring shipments will often contain mostly growing plants, but there may also be some dormant plants included.

We recommend that you install your plants into the ground as soon as possible after delivery, weather permitting. Dormant plants are especially resilient, as they have no tender foliage that can be damaged by a late frost. Most native plants can tolerate a light frost, in the range of 24-32 degrees F., even after they have leafed out. If in doubt, wait for the weather to improve before setting out your plants.

Fall Orders

Your plants should be green and actively growing upon delivery. We usually prune our plants back in fall, to facilitate ease of shipping and transplanting. If you receive your order later in the season after a hard frost, you will receive dormant plants with little or no foliage.

Plant Care and Installation

1. Immediately remove your potted plants from the box and packing materials.
2. Place the plants in a cool and shaded area that does not receive direct sunlight.
3. Thoroughly water your plants. Give them enough water so that the entire soil mass is wet and water is draining out the pot bottom.
4. Let your plants re-hydrate in the shade for 24 hours.
5. Plants dry out very quickly when exposed to heat and wind. If you are unable to transplant within the next few days, place them in a protected area out of direct sunlight and wind. Check them once to twice a day for watering needs.
6. Dig a hole that is about the same depth as the soil of the potted plant. Remove the plant and soil from the pot and position in the hole so that the soil level of the potted plant is slightly below the surrounding soil surface. Fill soil in around the plant completely, firming the soil as you go. Covering the potted soil mix with just a little garden soil helps reduce wicking of moisture out of the potted soil mix.
7. Mulch fall transplants with 3-4 inches of weed-free straw or leaves after they go dormant in late fall. This will help protect them over winter. Remove most of the mulch in early spring so they can emerge from the soil easily.
8. Use the enclosed pot tags to mark your plants, so you can find them later. This is especially important with fall transplants.

We are dedicated to providing you with a wide selection of quality plants, and excellent customer service. Our shipping crew takes prides in its attention to detail with each and every order. Your satisfaction is the key to our success. We want to make absolutely certain that you are pleased with your plants from Prairie Nursery. Therefore, all of our plants are Guaranteed to Grow. We will gladly replace any plant that was planted in the proper soil and properly cared for, but failed to thrive. Please allow two months for your plants to develop before declaring them dead, as some species require a while to emerge from the soil and begin active growth.

We hope that this information is helpful to you in growing and establishing your native wildflowers and grasses. If you have questions or comments about our plants and how best to grow them, please do not hesitate to contact us. We thank you for choosing Prairie Nursery as your native plant source. We truly appreciate your business!

Sincerely,
Neil Diboll - President

Betty Bless - Plant Division Manager

And Everyone at Prairie Nursery's Plant Division Growing and Shipping Crew.