After a few false starts over the past year or so, I’m extremely excited about finally getting very close to opening the on-line garden center for Bella Jardins Boutique. woohoo! One reason it took so long is I couldn’t figure out exactly what I wanted to sell. Do I sell everything that the independent garden centers sell? Do I specialize in just a few plants? Do I sell plants, containers, and potting soil? Do I sell synthetic fertilizers or organic fertilizers? What what what is it that makes me happy to sell???
After a lot of soul searching and visiting of various garden centers to see what I liked and/or didn’t like about them, I finally decided that BJB is gonna fill a void that I feel needs filling: native plants. I’ve noticed that a lot of garden centers in this part of East Texas don’t have a “native plant” section. Instead, the natives they do have are mixed in with the rest of the exotic and Texas adapted plants. Which means you have to know exactly what it is you’re looking for or hope they have an employee who specializes in native plants who can answer questions. I’ve also been talking with people as to what plants they want in their gardens, and the word “natives” keep popping up. So natives it is!
What does this mean for you? Well, it means that you’ll be able to buy plants that are native to either Texas, the Southeast, or to somewhere in the US. I’ll make sure you have plenty of info on every plant so you can decide how much of a native purist you want to be. The plants will be the same sizes that are in the garden centers: containers anywhere from 4″ to 15-gallon.
I’ll also have a few Texas Adapted plants for sale because there are some that are just too cool to pass up, and lots of herbs. But. I will not sell plants such as pansies or dianthus or vinca or impatiens or those other annual bedding plants you see in everyone’s gardens. Nor will I sell any plant that’s on the Texas exotic/invasive list.
BJB will be a niche on-line garden center not only because of what I sell but also because of who I sell to. I don’t have a store-front garden center for you to come to, nor will I ship plants. What I will do is deliver the plants to your home, which means I’m limiting sales to the following East Texas counties: Panola, Marion, Harrison, Shelby, Rusk, and Gregg. Delivering the plants to a specific local area instead of shipping everywhere is why I can sell plants up to the 15-gallon sizes instead of just the tiny plants most on-line garden centers sell. There is no delivery fee for orders over $25, and only a $5 delivery fee for orders under $25.
The plan is to have the on-line Boutique open the beginning of April. I’ll start adding plants to the Boutique for you to drool over and add to your wish list. If there’s any plant in particular that you’re looking for, just let me know and I’ll check with my suppliers to see if I can get it for you.
I’m very much looking forward to getting back to doing what I love best: helping people find the right plants for their gardens.
Have a great rest of your day, and happy diggin’ in the dirt!
Jeanni and Ziva
Beautiful Gardens Begin Here