During the height of my move to the new apartment, I made a last-minute run for more packing paper. The place I’d plan to buy the paper was closed, which sent me hightailing to Home Depot, the only place I could think of on short notice between where I was at the time and my old apartment.
I got the paper, but also took a spin through the gardening section. Ordinarily I eschew big box stores for gardening supplies, but they had racks of seedlings out, and I couldn’t help but at least try to stop by.
I found the tomato varieties, many of the seedlings stretching tall and glorious from their little plastic pots. It has been so long since I’ve been able to think about tomato seedlings and planting some of my own, and it was thrilling to hang out and see those familiar leaf shapes again.
I looked up and down the aisle to make sure I wasn’t being watched, and then pressed a Big Boy tomato leaf between my fingers, trying to squeeze out a little of that green, spicy scent. I lifted my hand to my nose, and…
…smelled nothing but powdery potting soil.
I tried again. This could not possibly be, right? Tomato leaves with no scent? It made positively no sense.
But I had the same result, no matter how many tomato plants I mauled in my hunt for that familiar smell. Finally, I left, sheepish and sad for the people who would, no doubt, buy those seedlings. I have no scientific backing for this claim, but it seems to me that if the leaves have no scent, it’s likely the tomatoes will have very little flavor, as well.
on Apr 7th, 2010 at 7:37 am
I can assure you that I’ve purchased tomato plants (even heirlooms) at Home Depot many times and they were fantastic once I got them home and planted them. (Plants are plants, I don’t it matters where they are being sold. Not sure what you are thinking Home Depot might do to the plants, but I think you you’re worrying about nothing here.)
on Apr 7th, 2010 at 9:18 am
you’ve made me want to go home and squeeze your seedlings! which by the by are growing really well. they should be ready to come home soon …
on Apr 7th, 2010 at 9:19 am
gad. what a horrendous sounding comment. you know what i mean. lol
on Apr 7th, 2010 at 10:09 am
Kalyn, plants are, for the most part, plants. But I do think it matters where they’re being sold, because I think it matters whether a seller is thinking about them from an industrial, high-volume perspective, or from a good-for-the-earth, thoughtful-about-species-diversity perspective. This is why I moved to either growing from seed or buying seedlings from places like Seed Savers, which spend a lot of time thinking about the things that I value.
It’s not that I think Home Depot “does” anything to the plants, it’s that they don’t think beyond massive sales of cheap, lower-quality product. In that context, the heirloom label isn’t any different than the “free-range” label on a lot of chickens. Obviously plenty of people disagree with me — Home Depot does very well with their plant seedling sales, as do plenty of the other box stores — but seedlings (whether they are tomatoes or not) should smell green and good. Not dusty and bland. And this particular set of them? Was frighteningly bland. If that’s the kind of product I wanted, I could just go to the grocery store and buy my tomatoes there, instead.
Pilar, I know exactly what you mean, and I can’t wait for my seedlings from you! :-)
on Apr 7th, 2010 at 10:11 am
I’ve been witness to tons of people asking Nigel Walker of Eatwell Farm, “what’s wrong with my tomatoes?” He always asks where they bought them, and they usually say Home Depot. The tomatoes are not the same — the seeds are mass created and there’s little room for personality or differentiation. And they don’t always produce “farmers market” results.
Also, the NE tomato blight last year was spread via the big box stores’ tomatoes seedlings, and not small local garden centers.
I think it’s a “to each their own” issue — if you’re someone who tends to buy food from big supermarkets and big box stores, then buying tomato plants at Home Depot is probably a logical step. But if you are someone who spends a ton of time tracing where her food comes from, and thinking about those connections, then it would make sense that you’d want that type of connection to your seedlings as well.
on Apr 7th, 2010 at 1:22 pm
My seedlings at home are so fragrant they are almost too much! I cannot imagine a scentless seedleing. Truly wierd.
on Apr 8th, 2010 at 7:43 am
I don’t know what would explain the lack of aroma from these plants — might it be related to the age of the plant or the air temperature?
For the most part I’d agree with @Kaylnskitchen that plants are plants, but TIMING is another matter. It’s quite likely that those tomatoes were started a while ago so that the store could capture customers in the throes of early tomato frenzy: those people who need to put their tomatoes in ASAP. And so Home Depot has their seedlings started in January or February, then sitting on the shelves for far too long, which can lead to poor in-garden performance. The tomato experts at Baia Nicchia say that waiting until April or May to plant is the way to go. And they put their money where their mouth is, keeping their seedlings out of the markets (Farmers markets, Magic Gardens in Berkeley) until later than the big box stores. By waiting, you’ll reduce the chance of freeze damage, moisture-related diseases, and more. They have a good explanation of their philosophy on their blog: http://baianicchia.blogspot.com/2010/03/stick-it-to-man-plant-your-tomatoes-in.html
FWIW, I plan on buying a few Baia Nicchia seedlings this weekend or next — definitely a Maglia Rossa and one or two other small varieties.
on Apr 9th, 2010 at 7:46 am
Jen, well said. I had completely (not sure how) forgotten about the tomato blight last year, and yes — you’re absolutely right about how it spread. Scary, that.
Andrea, I know!
Marc, that timing point is definitely a solid one. That photo was taken in the latter part of February, and the seedlings were big — I actually wouldn’t be surprised if they hadn’t been planted even as early as late December, to be honest. Enjoy those Baia Nicchia seedlings! I’m off to check out that blog.
on Apr 10th, 2010 at 7:11 am
I concur. Scientific or no, I wouldn’t have bought them either!!
on Apr 13th, 2010 at 1:03 pm
I disagree with Kalynskitchen. She say’s, “plants are plants, it doesn’t matter where you bought them.” So a loaf of Wonderbread is the same as artisan bread from one of those small hand crafted bakeries you frequent? They are both bread after all. Nonsense.
Home Depot buys all their vegetable plants from Bonnie Plants, a large wholesale concern with headquarters in Alabama. They we’re the source of the Late Blight that attacked the East Coast last year. http://thegoldengecko.com/blog/?p=785
Where you buy your plants does matter. Not just in who you support with your dollars, but the ultimate quality of the plants.
I am wondering if you saw any heirloom tomatoes for sale there? It was my understanding that Bonnie Plants would only grow hybrids this year, since they felt the Late Blight of last year was in their heirloom stock. If they don’t sell heirlooms then the public that buys from The Depot will never experience the taste heirlooms are known for. Marc is correct in his comment above concerning when to plant.
It does matter where you buy your plants!
Sorry I haven’t kept up with your blog as of late. I do see you Twitter feeds but failed to change my reader settings when you moved the blog address. Forgot what I was missing :-)
on Apr 13th, 2010 at 5:32 pm
[...] at The Inadvertent Gardener Genie laments “the unscented tomato seedlings of Home Depot.” She left the store, “sheepish and sad for the people who would, no doubt, buy those [...]
on Apr 15th, 2010 at 8:05 am
[...] to point you in the direction of Trey Pitsenberger’s blog, and Trey’s take on the issue of the unscented Home Depot tomatoes I highlighted last week. Trey’s post mostly points back at me (echo…echo….echo…), but I think he provides a really [...]
on Apr 15th, 2010 at 8:27 am
Yes I guess I am truly sorry I left a comment on this post, but now that the tomato snobbery is in full fury I’d like to add that the plants I buy at my home depot are Bonnie brand (which a commenter on Trey’s post (someone who owns a small garden store) says is a long-time brand that they trust. I was just trying to make the point that when you get the plants home, it’s how you grow them that makes the most difference. Maybe I was a bit too harsh in how I phrased my comment, but you have completely embarassed me by all this uproar over tomato plants now.
on Apr 16th, 2010 at 2:29 am
Michelle, appreciate your weigh-in on this.
Trey, glad to see you back and commenting, and I will admit I did not know that re: the source of the blight. Interesting…
Kalyn, I’ve been a visitor to your garden and can vouch for the fact that you grow your plants with great care and thought — please don’t think I’m disputing that for a second! I appreciate the debate and conversation you sparked with your comment, and I also especially appreciate the fact that you returned to talk further about it. It takes all perspectives to support a blog, and though we might respectfully disagree about the plant sourcing, I think we do agree about the benefit of home-grown food. And no one should be embarrassed about that — if that creates an uproar, well, all the better!
on Apr 21st, 2010 at 9:36 am
I’ve recently visited several stores and Bonnie is carrying heirlooms this year in all their stores.
on Apr 21st, 2010 at 10:29 am
Allen, thanks for that information.
on Jun 11th, 2010 at 5:46 am
[...] after the local hardware store employee sent me hightailing it in search of dirt, I decided a return to Home Depot was the most obvious solution to the problem. The day was getting ever-later, and I still needed to [...]