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From the Archives
Update: Trial Plants from Hort Couture
Way back in May, I received a beautiful shipment of plants from Hort Couture. I have been meaning to blog about them ever since, but for one reason or another just never got around to it. Very bad. Maybe if these plant gave me something to complain about, I’d have blogged about them sooner.
As it is, to date I have nothing but glowing praise for the folks at Hort Couture. They know what they are doing, without a doubt.
My first impression of Hort Couture started with the web, as I know it has for many other garden bloggers. Their web site is beautiful, they have a good presence on Facebook, and every communication I’ve had with them has been very professional. So we’re off to a good start.
Then came the shipment. I’ve had plants shipped to me before, sometimes from professional growers, sometimes from fellow gardeners. I’ve never received a shipment of plants as beautiful as this one. Not only were the plants well-secured (no soil dumping out all over the place, no broken stems or bruised foliage) but they looked as fresh as if they’d just been boxed an hour ago. The large coconut coir pellets the plants were grown in were nicely moist, but not sopping wet. A lot of care went into how these plants were shipped, and I appreciated it.
Now: the plants. I received three different types of plants. They were:
**’Black Krim’ tomatoes (They sent me tomatoes. I love them already!)
**Calibrachoa CATWALK
**’La Crema’ Sage
And the plants are absolutely thriving. I planted the ‘Black Krim’ tomatoes in my sideyard garden, where they are adding to the annual July tomato jungle. They are full of healthy looking green tomatoes – I can’t wait to start harvesting them!
The Calibrachoa are planted in my awesome chicken planter. I love the way they spill out and over the sides. I have to admit that I smile at this planter/Calibrachoa combo every time I walk past it and into the sideyard garden. The plants are healthy, and have been blooming non-stop since late May. I want to grow these again, without a doubt.
I added the three sturdy little ‘La Crema’ sage plants to my herb bed. They have been through drought, being stomped on by toddlers, and going from a partly shaded setting to being in blazing sunlight all day due to my tree being cut down. They have held up beautifully — tough and pretty — two things I definitely admire in a plant.
All in all, I am very impressed with Hort Couture. I’ll update again before the end of summer to show you how everything looks as the season progresses.
Mandatory Disclaimer: I was provided plants for review by the company, with the understanding that if I wrote a review, it would be an honest one.
5 comments
5 comments to “Update: Trial Plants from Hort Couture”
Blackswampgirl Kim, July 16th, 2010 at 10:31 am:
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You will ADORE the ‘Black Krim’ tomatoes, I think! They’re so freaking delicious (smoky/rich) that I always plant one, even though they don’t yield as well as ‘Cherokee Purple’ do.
That ‘La Crema’ is cute, but literally ALL of the non-silver culinary sages that I have planted just don’t measure up taste-wise, IMHO. So what do you think of the taste of that’La Crema’ in the flavor department?
Joseph Tychonievich, July 16th, 2010 at 12:04 pm:
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Black Krim is one of my favorites as well! I like it here in the north because they do pretty well with cool springs and summers. And the flavor, of course, is amazing.
meemsnyc, July 16th, 2010 at 1:20 pm:
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I’ve never heard of this company before, but I’ll check it out!
Colleen Vanderlinden, July 16th, 2010 at 1:52 pm:
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Kim — I cannot wait to try them! So excited. Totally with you on the variegated sages. I have a plain old common sage and it’s much more flavorful than this is.
Joseph — I was impressed with how well it did during our cool, wet late spring weather this year. They held up really well. Can’t wait to try them!
Meemsnyc — They have mostly annuals on their site, but they seem to be branching into culinary items as well. Definitely worth a look.
Monica the Garden Faerie, July 20th, 2010 at 10:27 am:
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OMG that chicken planter is awesome. I think Pinky would look really cool perched next to it! I’m trying Black Krim this year, can’t wait until they’re ripe either.