Seed Potatoes in Stores Here

12 years ago

I told several people over the last few weeks that I would come back here and let y'all know when the seed potatoes and other plant material started showing up in stores here in south central OK. Or, at least, close to south central OK. Once they start showing up here, they usually start popping up in other parts of OK within a couple of weeks. (I wonder if this year's extra-cold weather will slow down the mad rush to get seed potatoes on the shelves far too early this year? I kinda doubt it.)

I haven't been to any stores in Ardmore in about a week, so cannot say that the seed potatoes are in stores there yet, but I was at the Wal-Mart in Gainesville, TX, yesterday (it is closer to our house than the one in Ardmore) and that Wal-Mart has the following on the shelves in the store: seed potatoes in bags, , bare-root strawberry plants in bags, bare-root asparagus crowns in bags, and other cool-season plants like some flower bulbs, dry onion sets, etc. I think I saw horseradish, but don't trust my own memory enough to be certain. There were not yet any seed packets or seed starting supplies, but I expect they will pop up on the shelves any day now.

Usually, the stores in Ardmore get their seed potatoes a little later than the ones in Gainesville, so I'll try to come back and tell y'all when I see them hit the store shelves in Ardmore.

And, remember this.....just because these plant products are on the store shelves now, that doesn't mean the weather is ready for us to plant them yet. However, if you like buying your plant products fresh (and I do) and before they have spend endless weeks on the store shelves in conditions that are warmed than they should be stored in, then you can buy them when they first appear in stores and then keep them in more suitable conditions in your home or garage.

It seems ludicrous to even mention this on a day like today when it is so cold, but that's how the retail system works nowadays. No one should feel compelled to rush out and buy seed potatoes a month or two before they can plant them. I usually see seed potatoes on the store shelves here from January through April and sometimes even May. Big box stores tend to get them in too early, but farm stores and nurseries usually don't put them out quite as early. I will see seed potatoes in big box stores in January, but usually won't see them in nurseries or farm stores until February.

Dawn

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Comments (5)

mksmth zone 7a Tulsa Oklahoma
12 years ago
Thanks Dawn

I imagine we are just a few weeks away from seeing the displays pop up around here. Although its way to cold and early it does bring hope of spring coming. I was just at a Walmart and they were starting to re-organize the garden center and had started putting fertilizer and stuff out. Home Depot had a seed display up but I think it was from last year.

I got so so much to do. My new place has an old neglected area that used to be a pretty good size garden. I just need some good warm days to get it ready for this year. Im trying to get in a little orchard area too. I already have 2 peaches I picked up on sale back in the fall. I plan to get 2 more and maybe a few plums. One of the ones I have is an Elberta and after reading how susceptible to BLS is it Im considering moving it either A long ways away or just toss it so it doesnt effect the others.. I only got $5 invested so Im not sure what Ill do.

Stay warm.
chickencoupe
12 years ago
Thanks, Dawn! I'll have a look see when we get out. We can't get out much, so I really appreciate you providing the heads up.
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soonergrandmom
12 years ago
When I turned on my computer this morning, it was -4, so I can't get too serious about gardening yet. We probably have 4 inches of snow, but the sun is shining. Our Mesonet hasn't recorded anything for 2 days, but Intellicast shows we are up to 10 degrees now.
Okiedawn OK Zone 7
Original Author
12 years ago
Mike, You might not have any trouble with the Elberta. My friend, Fred, grows Elberta with no problem, and the one I planted two years ago hasn't given me any trouble yet. Fred sprays and I don't spray and our plants perform about the same. However, we generally are very rain-challenged and rarely have the constant high humidity in spring and summer that much of central through eastern OK have. You might have more troubles with the Elberta because you do have more moisture and humidity.

Today we went to Denton and the Wal-Mart there had even less of the plants out than the store in Gainesville, but they did have 3 kinds of seed potatoes, two types of onion sets, some seed garlic and a couple of kinds of flowers.

Bon, You're welcome. I'll keep reporting what I see. Y'all don't need to be getting out yet. Don't you have snow, ice, sub-freezing wind chills and possibly the Abominable Snowman lurking out there in the cold? It seems like this would be a great week to sit inside by the fire and dream and plan.

Our weather overachieved today and got up to a whopping 34 degrees. Believe me....I am not complaining. Marietta's official low temperature of 6 this morning was a new record for this date, breaking the previous record of 12 degrees that dated back to the 1970s. We don't get real cold here real often, and I like it that way.

Despite the cold, I still have green foliage in the garden that looks fairly perky---perennial onions, garlic, catnip, chamomile and comfrey. Every time I see a little bit of green, my brain starts getting planting fever and I have to lecture it and remind it that this is the month of the frozen tundra, and February likely won't be any better.

Retail stores drive me crazy any more. Who needs seed potatoes in early January? Tomato transplants in early February? (Well, I do, but I'm not normal.) Bathing suits on the racks in February or March? School supplies hitting the shelves in June? Christmas trees in September? When I was a kid, the seed potatoes magically appeared in the stores on the weekend before the recommended planting date for potatoes in our area. Why can't life be that simple now?

Dawn
chickencoupe
12 years ago
Dawn

It was 50ÃÂ° in the shade Saturday. Luckily, I got the compost buried Saturday. Something told me I'd regret putting it off another day. We weren't watching the forecast, but woke to a blanket of snow on Sunday. Tonight it's so cold our little stove cannot keep up. It reads warmer highs tomorrow.

My indoor flax is sprouting. I even planted some seeds in the empty fish tank LOL