Many plants will be harder to find this year

A number of plants will be harder to find this year, because there simply aren’t as many of them.

As for why, you can blame the same thing responsible for mask-wearing and social distancing and rampant business closures and unemployment.

Yes, the coronavirus pandemic.

But not in the way you might think.

The main reason for the shortages, according to Nancy Buley of J. Schmidt & Son, a wholesale grower of trees based in Boring, is that the pandemic kept people home, where they in turn noticed that their gardens could use a little — or much more than a little — sprucing up.

And with spending on travel and entertainment curtailed dramatically, those fortunate enough to continue working had money to use for that sprucing.

Which is how Oregon growers, some who considered temporarily shutting down last March because of the pandemic, instead found themselves dealing with unexpected and unprecedented demand for their plants and trees.

So they sold all their five- and 10-gallon plants. And their customers — both garden centers and online buyers — across the U.S. wanted more.

So they sold their two-gallon shrubs as well, including ones they would typically hold back to sell as five-gallon offerings later.

“It was order and re-order and re-re-order,” Curt Kipp of the Oregon Association of Nurseries said. “Typically, shipping dies down in June, but growers were still shipping in September.”

The larger sizes (10 gallon and above) of conifers will be especially hard to find, according to Deby Barnhart of Cornell Farm in Southwest Portland, as will woody shrubs and trees such as hydrangeas, dogwoods and redbuds.

Shortages are “across the board,” Barnhart said, adding it’s going to be a “difficult year” for retail nurseries to keep up with demand, especially when it comes to trees and shrubs.

Ron Guilford of Blooming Junction in Cornelius is aware of the shortages as well, singling out conifers, woody shrubs and ornamental shrubs in sizes five gallon and up. Essentially, he says, “anything that takes a long time to grow.”

It takes multiple years (five is a number used frequently) to get a plant up to a marketable size.

On the plus side, at least you shouldn’t have any trouble finding your favorite annuals, since there’s a new batch every year.

“They are doing fine,” the OAN’s Kipp said, and will be ready to purchase for spring planting.

For gardeners, the shortages could mean going with a substitute for their first choice — either a smaller size of the plant or another one entirely.

“Downsizing is not a big deal,” Guilford said, while explaining there should still be plenty of one-gallon shrubs to be found.

It’s also a chance to do some exploring, checking out some of the state’s smaller, independent specialty garden centers and nurseries.

“Try some places you’re not used to going to,” Kipp suggested, “or try something new plant-wise.”

Growers are expecting sales to be similar, if not bigger, than 2020, which many say was a very successful year for them.

Joan Dudley of Little Prince of Oregon Nursery, anticipating another busy year, said the Aurora-based grower has ramped up production, including of perennials in 4-inch pots and their ground covers in 3.5-inch pots. They expect to be able to meet the demand in the spring, but to be sold out by summer.