sherwin dubren wrote:
How does time come into play... same time to plant stock from one nursery or another... and of course money comes into play, who do you think you're fooling, that's the main reason for buying anything from big box stores, it costs less. And what surprise?!?!?
You had best know what you're doing before buying nursery stock anywhere... there is no chance that the staff at any retail nursery is more useful than at another unless one has had personal experience with a particular staff member's expertise... except that in my experience I've found the staff at the big box store nurseries to be far more accomodating with schlepping and loading. I don't necessarily rely on retail nursery worker's plant expertise, that's my responsibility to learn prior to shopping.
Why would a clerk come out of nowhere with that kind of information, and if you already know the answers to your questions that makes you grossly disingenuous. Your story is not believeable, it sounds like something made up by someone with a grudge against the big box emporiums. Plants would be labeled with planting instructions and typically fruit tree tags list pollinating requirements. Someone with a degree in horticulture wouldn't be schlepping plants around any retail nursery. Anyone considering growing fruit should educate themselves about what to plant and how before ever visiting any plant nursery. Folks don't go to Lowes to learn horticulture anymore than they do to learn heating and cooling... occasionally one will by pure accident encounter an employee with expert knowlege but at the wages paid at any retail nursery I'd not count on it... one can learn all they need to know about fruit trees on the net. Folks shop at big box stores to save money regardless what they buy, they should have already armed themselves with the knowlege required for what to choose. If one is too lazy to do research on their own they can always go to the dedicated plant nurseries where they'll pay twice as much and still will be just as likely to receive incorrect information, probably more likely, becaue places that charge more are more likely to not admit not knowing so would dispense BS instead. In my experience the help at the big box nurseries have no more horticultural knowlege than what anyone can read on the plant tag, anytime I've asked a more technical question they've said I don't know... can't get more honest. Retail plant nurseries pay little more than minimum wage... no education is required to schlepp plants, bales of planting medium, and watering hoses about. However the nursery stock at either is exactly the same, comes from the same local wholesalers/growers. Also the big box stores don't hassle folks about returns whereas the independant nurseries typically institute all sorts of escape clauses for not replacing plants or returning full purchase price. Another point to consider is that the typical independant retail nursery buys all their stock in one fell swoop in order to take advantage of bulk discounts... that same stock sits in what is virtually a parking lot the entire season hoping for a buyer, it gets sun, it hopefully gets watered regularly, it gets knocked about by folks looking, and the nicest specimens are sold right away and not replaced... what's left doesn't go into the ground until someone buys and plants it. Whereas the big box stores are gigantic accounts, they get freshly dug shipments weekly, even daily. It's pretty silly not to shop the big box nurseries first, especially for newbies like the OP who really have no business purchasing the more costly less common plants until they gain some experience, at least enough experience not to need to ask the nursery help about pollinating.
There is lots of info available about fruit trees but it's best to research ones own area.