The University of California Davis Arboretum has several plant sales each year, both in the spring and in the fall. I went to one on Saturday morning and finally remembered to bring a camera along. The sales are held at the new Arboretum Teaching Nursery which opened a few years ago, and the variety of plants they offer is impressive. Click here to see a list of the plants that were for sale today; this gives you a good idea of what to expect. Prices are generally in the $18-20 range for a 5 gallon plant, $10-12 for 1 gallon, and $7.50 for 4”.
In addition, the UC Davis Botanical Conservatory has a few tables with succulents, exotic houseplants, carnivorous plants, and other oddities. These plants are a real bargain. For example, I paid $4 this morning for a 2.5” Obregona denegrii cactus. This is a very slow-growing cactus, and a 2.5” specimen is easily 6-8 years old.
If you live in Northern California, I can highly recommend these sales. You’ll find plants that are hard, if not impossible, to find in commercial nurseries.
The UC Davis Arboretum will have a one more sale this spring, arguably the best deal of the season:
May 14 — End-of-Season Clearance Sale: reduced prices on many exceptional plants.
The next one after that is in early fall:
September 24 — Plant Faire: celebrating the Arboretum’s 75th Anniversary Diamond Jubilee.
In addition, don’t miss the plant sale at the San Francisco Botanical Garden on May 7th. Click here for more information. The selection is going to be amazing.
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| Lots of people trying to decide what to buy |
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| These are all 1-gallon plants in the $10-12 range |
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| Agave ‘Blue Glow’, for sale at $7.50 for a 4” container |
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| $4 succulents |
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| Half barrels demonstrating various themes. This barrel showcased “Color”… |
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| …and this one “Texture.” |
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| Along the outer perimeter of the Teaching Nursery there are beautifully landscaped beds showcasing the Arboretum All-Stars, “100 tough, reliable plants that have been tested in the Arboretum, are easy to grow, don’t need a lot of water, have few problems with pests or diseases, and have outstanding qualities in the garden.” |
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| Our haul this morning (I went with a friend) |
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