海角大神

After I finished planting my summer flower garden -- hot-weather varieties such as zinnias, marigolds, dahlias, petunias, and so on -- I congratulated myself, then suddenly realized I had left an open space in the south flower bed, where I had taken out some snapdragons.

So what was I to plant in that empty spot? As I mulled it over, I remembered that I hadn鈥檛 grown asters for a couple of years. So that was my choice -- .

I generally grow half my flowers from seed and plant the other half from bedding plants I get at local nurseries and garden centers. But it was now too late to try to start China asters from seed, so off I went to see what might be available.

Hunting for asters

I headed for one of the big-box stores first since it was close. I prefer the tall China asters, because they make such , although some of the dwarf kinds make good border plants.

I looked over the assortment of bedding plants and saw no asters at all. So I asked, and the nice young sales assistant said, 鈥淣o, sorry we don鈥檛 have any asters right now, they鈥檙e a winter flower!鈥�

I don鈥檛 like to argue with the sales help, so I thanked her and headed for the next big-box store. There the nice young assistant said 鈥淪ure, we鈥檝e got some right over here,鈥� and he led me over to a bench that was loaded with zinnias.

I told him to read the label, and that they were zinnias, not asters. He wasn鈥檛 in the least upset, saying 鈥漁h, they aren鈥檛 the same thing?鈥�

I didn鈥檛 comment further.

So I headed for the only real nursery we have in the vicinity and looked around, and saw no China asters. So again, I asked. The lady, I think the owner, said, 鈥淣o, sorry, we don鈥檛 have any. We ordered some last year and again this year, but they never delivered any.鈥�

I had one more big-box store to go by on the way home, and I decided if they didn鈥檛 have any asters, I would have to rethink my plan, and plant something else in the open spot.

This last store didn鈥檛 have any either. The clerk, who was watering at the time, said, 鈥淛ust a minute, I鈥檒l find them for you.鈥� Then she led me over to a large display of vinca and said, 鈥淗ere they are, any color you want.鈥�

I hesitated to correct her, but I did anyway, much to her amazement. So she said, 鈥淲ell, try them anyway, or over here, how about some lantana, or over here some of these in the four-inch pots?鈥�

My solution

I thanked her, said no, and went over to a display of and got a six-pack of them for my open space.

I think I know why the wholesale growers don鈥檛 supply China asters to garden centers. They are a slow crop, germination isn鈥檛 always good (aster seed is viable for only a year), and they won鈥檛 bloom in the six-packs (shoppers look for plants in flower).

Maybe those are poor reasons not to supply them, but it鈥檚 their decision.

So next year, when I'm planning my flower beds, I鈥檒l plant China aster seed.

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Gerald Burke is a travel and horticultural writer who lives in southern California. He spent more than 30 years in the seed business and is a member of the Garden Writers Association. To read more of what he has written here at Diggin' It, click here.