Today we visited two popular nurseries in the Seattle area; Flower World and Swansons. G likes to visit to see how other nursery businesses are run and what is available.

Flower World is located on 15 acres near Malby. They grow most of their plants so they are able to offer lower prices than many other nurseries. It is also a very pleasant nursery to visit because it is well laid out with wide gravel paths and a display area with winding paths. They even have a small farm near by.

My biggest complaint about the nursery is also one of their advantages. They have large quantities of popular varieties and not a lot of unusual plants. If you need a typical bedding plant or tree, you can get a great price on locally grown stock. But if you are looking for the latest hot hybrid or something rare and unusual, Flower World is not the place to find it.

I took advantage of the great price to pick up a few primroses. I couldn’t resist getting a couple to make a cheerful pot of yellow primroses. I have it out on the deck so I can see them from the kitchen.

Swanson’s is a gardener’s paradise. They are currently building a several new greenhouses but it doesn’t seem to disrupt the business. Spring can be so chaotic.

The displays were gorgeous. Right now, they have pots of variety of different bulbs. They even had a few Lachenalia which brought back memories of South Africa. They also had several tempting containers. We enjoyed meandering through the selection. But as expected, it is not inexpensive.

They also have a conservatory, excellent gift shop and a small cafe. Perfect way to spend an enjoyable morning although it is very hard to leave without a car full of plants.