I Managed a Garden Center for Years – and I Know These 6 Plants Give You the Biggest Bang for Your Buck

If you want to get the most for your money at the garden center, it helps to know which plants give you the biggest return on your investment. Some plants grow quickly enough to create a privacy hedge in just a few years, while others provide landscape interest across multiple seasons. Many produce absolutely beautiful blooms, while others can be easily propagated to fill out your landscape for free, without spending another dime.

I'm Gardening Know How's Digital Community Manager and in-house plant shopping expert. I'm also a former garden center manager with over 20 years of experience, so I know which plants give gardeners the biggest bang for their buck at the cash register.

This is the latest installment in my Garden Center Secrets series, where I share Insider tips only garden center employees know to help you shop smarter at the nursery. Here are the plants worth spending your money on.

1. Panicle Hydrangea

If you want a plant that definitely earns its keep in the garden, panicle hydrangeas (Hydrangea paniculata) are hard to beat. Unlike some other types of hydrangeas, these reliable bloomers produce flowers every year, regardless of when or how you prune. This takes away one of the biggest frustrations gardeners have with hydrangeas: wondering whether you’ll actually get flowers this year.

This species also puts on a spectacular show, producing large, cone-shaped blooms that often emerge in one color and gradually change to richer, more vibrant shades as the season progresses.

Depending on the cultivar, they can grow in full sun or part shade in USDA zones 3–9, and a small, inexpensive 1-gallon plant can become a substantial landscape plant in just a few years. Plant several together, and you can even create an attractive flowering privacy hedge.

And there’s another way these hydrangeas can give you more for your money: they’re surprisingly easy to propagate from cuttings. In fact, I have even propagated them accidentally after leaving some of my clippings on the ground over winter.

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2. Cranesbill Geranium

When it comes to getting the most bang for your buck from a perennial, few plants can compete with hardy cranesbill geranium ‘Rozanne.’ The price of this plant may catch you off guard, as it can cost a little more than some other perennials (though Nature Hills stocks them for about $20), but this is one plant where the extra investment is well worth it.

This is one of the longest-blooming perennials you can add to your garden in zones 4–8. Its violet-blue, saucer-shaped flowers appear in abundance above deep green foliage that remains attractive even when the plant isn’t blooming, and the blooms just keep coming from late spring well into fall.

But here’s where ‘Rozanne’ really earns its keep: that little plant you bring home can grow into a 2-3 foot clump in just a season or two, without becoming invasive. It can handle everything from moist soil to well-drained conditions and even periods of drought. It grows happily in full sun or part shade, making it an easy fit for just about any spot in the landscape.

And once your plant gets established, it can easily be divided and replanted elsewhere in the garden. So that initial investment can eventually give you even more plants to fill your landscape.

3. Autumn Brilliance Serviceberry

Serviceberry (Amelanchier × grandiflora 'Autumn Brilliance') is one of those trees I think just about every landscape should have because it offers something for nearly every season. It’s an especially useful small landscape tree, spanning zones 3–9, and you’ll often find it offered in both tree and shrub forms. The tree forms are compact enough to plant safely near the corner of your house, making them an excellent choice for foundation plantings.

You can pick up a small starter serviceberry at Walmart for a reasonable price.

I picked serviceberry for this list because it provides something interesting in just about every season. In very early spring, small white flowers cover the branches, often blooming before many other plants have even started to wake up. That makes them an important early source of food for pollinators when there aren’t many other flowers available.

Those flowers are followed by sweet, edible, blueberry-like fruits that can be enjoyed by both people and wildlife. So you get a harvest for yourself while also adding an excellent food source for birds and other wildlife in your yard.

And serviceberry doesn’t quit when summer is over. Its foliage provides beautiful seasonal interest in fall, often turning vibrant shades before dropping. In winter, the attractive, multicolored bark adds welcome color and texture to an otherwise dreary landscape.

4. Ornamental Grass

Ornamental grasses are some of the most overlooked plants in the garden, yet they can offer some of the best bang for your buck. A single small potted grass can grow into a dramatic specimen in just a few years, filling a large area of the landscape for a fraction of what you might spend on a similarly sized shrub. Some varieties can reach 6 feet tall or more, creating an impressive focal point while adding movement and texture to the garden. Of course, not every landscape needs a 6-foot-tall grass, and there are plenty of dwarf and compact varieties that can fit into almost any garden.

Beyond their size and versatility, ornamental grasses provide structure throughout the seasons. Depending on the variety, they can also add beautiful winter interest, with seedheads that stand well into the colder months. And when it comes to maintenance, many require little more than a simple cutback in early spring before new growth begins.

They can also become an investment that keeps giving. Once a grass has had a few years to establish into a substantial clump, you can divide it in early spring or fall using a shovel or sharp blade to separate a portion of the root ball from the main plant. Replant those divisions elsewhere in your landscape, and one plant can eventually become several.

Just be selective about the grasses you bring home. Look for native species or well-behaved cultivars suited to your area, and always check whether a particular variety has a history of becoming invasive.

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5. Catmint

Catmint (Nepeta x faassenii) is hard to beat when it comes to stretching your garden budget. Depending on the variety, these plants typically grow anywhere from 12 to 36 inches tall and wide, making them incredibly versatile. You can tuck them into just about any corner or section of the garden that needs a splash of color in zones 3–8.

Some older catmint varieties can be prone to sprawl or flop open, but the recently introduced Cat’s Meow variety, available from Proven Winners via Amazon, maintains a more attractive, rounded mound that is often mistaken for lavender.

One of the best things about catmint is how easy it is to grow. It thrives in dry soil and easily handles drought conditions, so it doesn’t ask much from you once it’s established. After that first flush of blooms in spring, give the plant a good cutback to encourage a more compact, tidy shape while also promoting another round of blooms for an even longer display.

Catmint is also a fantastic choice for low-maintenance landscapes. It’s deer- and rabbit-resistant, has a long blooming period, and naturally forms a dense, rounded shape that works beautifully along borders, in front-of-house plantings, or throughout a perennial garden. Its aromatic foliage is another bonus, and its flowers are highly attractive to pollinators.

And the value doesn’t stop with the original plant. Like many perennials, catmint can be divided in early spring or fall, allowing you to turn one established plant into several new plants for other areas of the landscape.

6. Black-Eyed Susans

Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia) is one of those perennials you can almost forget about until summer arrives and suddenly they burst into bloom. And what a welcome sight they are, especially when some of the earlier-blooming perennials are starting to fade, and the landscape needs a fresh splash of color.

These tough, long-blooming perennials produce masses of golden, daisy-like flowers with unmistakable dark brown central cones that return year after year. Once established, they can gradually spread to create even more color in the landscape. They look especially impressive planted in masses, but they also make excellent cut flowers.

Another reason black-eyed Susan offers so much value is how easily it can be divided. In spring, established plants can be divided to create even more color throughout your landscape or to share with family and friends. And when fall arrives, resist the temptation to cut those flowerheads back. The dark seed cones provide wonderful winter interest and remain attractive well into the colder months. Even better, those seeds provide an important food source for small birds.

They’re also remarkably adaptable. Black-eyed Susans perform well in full sun or part shade in zones 3–9, grow happily in average garden soil, and can tolerate dry conditions once established. Many varieties are native to North America, making them an excellent choice for creating a beautiful, resilient, and wildlife-friendly landscape.

Be sure to look for Black-eyed Susans in the clearance section in fall after the blooms have faded. You might even find an established plant at an even better price!

Plant Addicts has a great selection of black-eyed Susan plants, including the newly launched Treasure Trove variety, which offers superior disease resistance and is less prone to flopping.

How to Get Even More Bang For Your Buck

If you really want to stretch your garden budget, there are a few more tricks that can save you a surprising amount of money. Sometimes the best value isn't finding the cheapest plant; it's finding a way to turn one small investment into an entire garden.

• Grow from Seed
  One of the easiest ways to save money is to grow perennial flowers from seed rather than buying established gallon-size plants. A packet of seeds may cost just a few dollars, compared with $15, $20, or more for a single large perennial at the garden center. You'll have to wait a little longer for those tiny seedlings to become substantial plants, but the savings can be enormous. Some great perennials to try from seed include purple coneflower, Shasta daisy, columbine, yarrow, foxglove, lupine, and bee balm.
• Divide and Multiply
  Another smart investment is choosing perennials that naturally form larger clumps and can be divided into multiple plants over time. Hostas, sedum, daylilies, iris, phlox, garden peonies, and astilbe are all excellent examples. Start with one healthy plant, let it establish for a few years, and eventually you can divide it to create new plants for other parts of your landscape.
• Buy in Bulk
  Finally, don’t overlook those smaller plants tucked away in six-packs or flats. They may look tiny compared to the gallon-size perennials sitting beside them, but buying several smaller plants at once can offer significant savings. They’ll take a little longer to fill in, but with a bit of patience, those small plants will grow into the same beautiful garden for considerably less money.