Better Quality At Home Depot or Lowes? (nursery, plants, greenhouses)

[Ted Bear]

Meh. They drag 'em in by the truckload....same supplier/different supplier this week because they were cheaper. It's all just a commodity to them.

I use a local grower---he starts everything from cuttings, which probably all come from the same place as every other store. It makes me feel better to be giving my money to a "local" who at least has some knowledge of what he is growing/selling.

For bigger stuff--shrubs and trees, I use a local garden center because they offer a lifetime warranty, and their prices are "roughly" the same as the big box store.

[texdav]

Its more about the warehouse atomosphere at HD than the products they sell ;IMO.

[seasick]

Whichever one has a manager who has the brains to have someone WATER THE PLANTS is the one to go to - seriously -

[Meemur]

I end up shopping at both because I can never find what I want at one store in one trip anymore.

Lowe's usually beats Home Depot in lumber quality and prices in my area, but HD has a greater stock of plumbing supplies.

Menard's is the home of truly cheap crap, but sometimes that's fine for certain projects. They have a better stock of landscape bricks and molded concrete blocks (for use in gardens) than Lowe's or HD.

[ocngypz]

My Lowes takes better care of their plants than my Home Depot.

Their selection is better as well.

[Lost Roses]

I also have a Lowe's across the street from Home Depot, and the garden center I use is a block away. I shop them all!

I was buying birdseed at Walmart this weekend and spotted a bunch of plants that had gone through the seven-inch snowstorm on Mother's Day and had been marked down because they looked bad. I scooped up several Mandeville and a couple of Hibiscus for half-price. Took them home and cleaned them up and they're just fine. Can't plant my containers yet because it's too COLD!

[Bulldogdad]

I have three HD's and three Lowes within 10 miles of each other. All seem to be the same. The newer ones have larger selections because the nurseries are larger.

However I get almost all my plants from a wholesaler and buy direct from the grower when possible.

[prospectheightsresident]

Lowes just has a cleaner look to me, which helps. Having written that, I've found some pretty crappy/rude workers at Lowes, much more so than at the Home Depot, here in NYC. At the end of the day, though, I'll shot at whichever one gives me the best deal/is most convenient to get to.

[txtoal]

Lowes. I am all about supporting local businesses but the ones near me have the exact same thing as a big box store does, no return policy and prices marked up 2 times higher....can't do it. Been there, done that, several times. Fortunately the Lowes near me does have people who actually know what they are talking about, especially for our region.

[NickMan7]

Originally Posted by prospectheightsresident

Lowes just has a cleaner look to me, which helps. Having written that, I've found some pretty crappy/rude workers at Lowes, much more so than at the Home Depot, here in NYC. At the end of the day, though, I'll shot at whichever one gives me the best deal/is most convenient to get to.

I agree with this. Lowes has an outwardly more attractive appearance, but I actually prefer my experiences at HD. The staff at my local HD are MUCH friendlier. I have seen the same workers for many years and they generally seem content with their jobs.

As far as the garden centers, I feel the same way, at least about the two stores most convenient to me. HD runs cheaper than Lowes, on average, and just has a better selection, particularly with annual veggies, herbs and flowers. Lowes has lots of racks of veggies, but way too many of the same type of tomato or herb. HD has more of a selection. Neither store does a great job of tending to the plants, but then you have to consider that Lowes and HD ARE NOT NURSERIES. The people who work in the garden center generally do so on a seasonal basis and work elsewhere in the store the rest of the year. They water and that's it. The plants go so fast they rarely sit for more than a week anyway, so as long as they get some water a few times, there's not much to complain about. I pick the healthiest looking plants I can find and that's all I care about.

Ford, Chevy, Dodge. To each their own.