QUALITY BEDDING PLANTS ARE NEEDED FOR GARDENS

Choose top quality bedding plants for your garden and then get them off to a good start. Apply the same strict standards to buying bedding plants that would to choose a melon or corn on the cob. Buy fresh, high quality plants.

Bedding plants are young plants that have been grown in green houses form seeds or cuttings for those persons who do not, or cannot, start their own. These plants can be vegetables, herbs, or flowering annuals (that live for only one year), biennials (that live for two years) or perennials (that live year after year, one hopes.)

Even though there may be 100 or more different species of bedding plants available at retail greenhouses or garden centers, the method for choosing a good quality bedding plant is the same.

Look for plants that are well proportioned with stocky stems. Avoid plants that are leggy or limp.

Leaves should be a rich, green color. If, instead, the foliage appears mottled or if the edges of the leaves are curled, the plants may be suffering from pests.

If the lower leaves are turning yellow, it could be because the soil the plants are grown in got too dry. When the soil mixture has been allowed to dry out completely, the plant's root system can be permanently damaged and the plants may never flourish.

Bedding plants are grown in individual pots or flats of 24 to 72 plants. These flats can be sub-divided into packs, compart-mentalized units called cells, containing from two to 12 individual plants. If there is a choice, choose packs with large deep cells spaced as far apart as possible. These larger cells allow plants to develop bigger root systems. They also will not dry out as quickly.

"Many gardeners ask whether it is all right to buy bedding plants already in bloom," says George Lucht, president of Malmborg's garden center in Brooklyn Center, Minn. "Most bedding plant annuals are currently being bred to withstand transplanting in bloom. However, most annuals will come into full bloom faster if existing blooms are pinched off before transplanting."

For gardeners who want their flower beds to show color immediately, he recommends choosing bedding plants grown in pots, which usually measure between four and six inches, rather than in smaller packs. These larger pots offer a greater plant mass and a more established root system, which helps plants adapt faster to transplanting.

It is best that plants be transplanted on an overcast day or late in the day to minimize stress from the sun. Before transplanting check to see if the soil in the packs or pots is moist. If not, thoroughly drench the soil. Then wait a few minutes for the water to saturate the soil.

Usually the plants pop out easily when the pack or pot is turned on its side and gravity separates the root ball from the container. But not always. If there is a slight resistance, gently squeeze the bottom of the cell to loosen the roots and try again. Usually they will pop right out.

Mr. Lucht also recommends loosening the soil before transplanting to a depth of about six inches by using a spade or a trowel. Then, dig a hole in the ground about the size of the root ball with a trowel, dibble, large spoon or even your hands. Hold the bedding plant by its root ball, not by its stem or leaves, and set it in the hole. Securely tamp the soil around the plant, making sure that the ground level and soil line of the plant are at the same height. Then, immediately after transplanting, thoroughly drench the bed, watering slowly, evenly and deeply.

During the next few weeks, until your transplants become established, provide extra care by keeping the soil somewhat evenly moist. Pay daily attention to the plants, taking care to water when the surface of the soil feels dry. During one of these waterings, provide extra nutrients using a 10-10-10 or equivalent liquid or glandular fertilizer according to the instructions on the product's label.

Mulches around newly planted bedding plants help minimize weeds, and help the soil retain moisture. There are many different mulches that can be used, such as organic mulches, pine needles, peat moss, compost or shredded leaves or bark.

Impatiens is by far the leading bedding plant. Petunias, which was the one time leader, now ranks second. Geraniums are third, begonias fourth, marigolds fifth, sweet alyssum sixth, dusty miller, and pansies are tied for seventh, New Guinea impatiens is eighth, salvia and vinca are tied for ninth and tomatoes rate tenth.

Buying fresh, healthy, quality bedding plants will assure that your garden gets off to its best possible start.