• Skip to main content

610.892.2833

We are open Tuesday to Friday 10 to 5, Saturdays 9 to 4

Contact us via phone or email.

Redbud logo
  • Plants
  • Services
  • Gift Cards
  • Learn
  • About
  • Events
  • FAQs

Home

Native plants

Grown with love

Redbud nursery photo-sept 2020 (2)

Redbud Native Plant Nursery offers excellent quality container-grown native plants for the mid-Atlantic region.

The nursery is open from mid-March through November, Tuesday to Friday 10 to 5, Saturdays 9 to 4.

For more information on events and special programs, follow us on social media or join our mailing list.

Why Native Plants?

Native plants offer immeasurable benefits over non-natives. By selecting plants that are native to our mid-Atlantic region, you are choosing plants that are well adapted to our climate, soil conditions and support our native pollinators.

Read more... Expand

The mid-Atlantic region has a wide range of topography, soils, and micro-climates, supporting incredible ecological diversity. The wide range of native plants supports an equally wide range of beneficial insects and pollinators. Perpetuating the flora and fauna of our region makes our landscapes functional and healthy, preserving the food web we need, keeping us healthy.
Native plants are usually the best sources of nectar and pollen for native pollinators. Incorporating native wildflowers, shrubs, and trees into any landscape promotes local biological diversity by providing shelter and food for wildlife.

Sustain the natural world where you live, work, and play. Most of the land in the U.S. is privately owned. Private property is the biggest opportunity to foster long-term ecological health if we design and maintain private land to sustain life. It is the plants and animals that surround us that support our lives.

Introducing a variety of natives into your landscape will create wildlife habitat and provide high-quality food in the form of fruits, berries, nuts, leaves, and nectar to animals, birds, insects, reptiles, and amphibians as well as millions of organisms too small to see! The more natives you plant, the more biodiversity you support, the healthier our environment becomes. Providing a rich habitat is one of the most significant actions you can take.

Redbud Native Plant Nursery Coral honeysuckle

Our Plants

Redbud Native Plant Nursery - Aristolochia durior-Dutchmans pipe

We strive to offer the most diverse selection of native plants in the region with an extensive selection for woodlands, wetlands, riparian buffers, meadows, hedgerows, shrub borders, rain gardens, restoration and home landscapes. We gladly advise customers on plant selection. We are a retail nursery, not wholesale, but we can work with you on custom orders.

Buy Gift Card

Our plants are nursery propagated, and container-grown - never wild-collected - and are available in a variety of sizes. Perennials, grasses, and ferns are available in containers ranging from plugs, quarts to 2 gallons. Trees and shrubs are available in containers from 1 to 15 gallons.

Our practices always have our shared environment in mind. We follow non-toxic management practices and care for our plants without the use of pesticides, such as neonicotinoids, or herbicides.

Find Us on Instagram

More fan favorites back in stock! Open tomorrow 9- More fan favorites back in stock! Open tomorrow 9-4. Summer hours start on Tuesday July 5, 10-2 Tues thru Sat. #majorwheelerhoneysuckle #butterflyweed #spigeliamarilandica #newjerseytea #zagrebcoreopsis #petitedelightbeebalm
Thank you @katydid_ht and all our yard talk speake Thank you @katydid_ht and all our yard talk speakers. We’ll be scheduling more talks for this summer and fall. What would you like to see? Let us know. In the meantime time, get out there to get your nature fix! #yardtalks #nativeplants #horticuluraltherapy #naturefix
It’s your lucky day! Couple spots just opened up It’s your lucky day! Couple spots just opened up for today’s (5:00pm)horticultural therapy yard talk! Call us to register- 610-892-2833🦋
Looking forward to tomorrow’s Horticulal Thepary Looking forward to tomorrow’s Horticulal Thepary yard talk by Kate Irvine-The Power of Plants!
Kate will talk about a collection of plants prized as cut or dried flowers but also for their medicinal, culinary, and cosmetic uses.
Registration required- this talk is full but check back for more talks by Kate and others next month.
#Aquilegia_canadensis  #Heuchera_americana #Pycnanthemum_muticum #Rubus_idaeus #Spirea_latifolia #Salvia_lyrata #Verbena_hastata #Veronicastrum_virginicum #nativeplants #yardtalk #horticulturaltherapy
Follow

Our Services

Redbud at the nursery

At the Nursery

Are you a homeowner, not sure where to begin? An avid gardener looking for that hard to find native plant?

Our kind, courteous, and knowledgeable staff will help you with plant selection based on your site conditions and planting goals. We can assist with the selection of the most appropriate native plants for your planting projects in a variety of ways. Check in by email about our availability and let us know what you are looking for. If you are preparing for your visit, knowing your sun patterns, soil conditions including typical moisture levels and dimensions of the space is helpful.

Specialty Orders

Is your organization hosting a native plant sale or a fundraiser? Or do you need specific native plants in quantity for a project installation?

Advance orders can be arranged. It may be best to do this in advance of the planting season, for instance be in touch in January for a spring planting.

In Your Garden

Gardening is part art, part science, requiring a creative partnership with nature. But that creative partnership can be equivalent to a chess game because there are so many variables and choices. Sometimes all that is needed is an experienced opinion to help you work through your next moves. Redbud's team of landscape architects, designers, and horticulture professionals can provide the expertise to help you achieve success with your garden.

In collaboration with our sister business, TEND landscape architects, we offer evaluation, coaching, and recommendations for your home landscape.

Garden Coaching

Garden Coaching is designed to support you with your gardening questions and challenges. The service includes a visit to your home landscape. During the visit, one of Redbud's landscape designers will spend a portion of the time with you observing your landscape conditions. We will spend the rest of the time answering your specific questions and providing support for your desired garden area or topic. You are encouraged to take notes or record the visit for your reference.

Learn More

Garden Consultation

A well designed garden can make an ordinary home outstanding. Our Garden Design Consultations with experienced landscape designers help you assess what you already have and provide direction for creating a garden that benefits your lifestyle and brings joy to you and your family.

Learn More

Landscape Design

Are you looking to hire a Landscape Designer? We can provide landscape designs specific to your site and your goals. We can also assist with choosing the right landscape contractor, provide oversight during installation, and develop management plans for on-going maintenance. Fees vary depending on project needs.

Get in Touch

Julie and Lisa are both professional, extremely knowledgeable and very helpful. I came to Redbud with just some simple ideas for our front garden and they listened to my needs, brainstormed, and provided some creative ideas. I am excited to continue to work with Redbud this Spring!

— Betsy, Bryn Mawr, PA

Articles and Videos

Summer Yard Talks

June 8, 2022

Join us for the June series of talks. We’ve invited experts to share their knowledge in the informal setting of our nursery yard. Programs are free, but registration is required. […]

Pop-up Holiday Shop

December 13, 2021

Missed our Winter Market? Still have gifts to get on your to-do list? No need to worry about supply chain issues or delayed shipping times, Redbud is here for you […]

2nd Weekend of Winter Market

December 2, 2021

Join us this weekend for Winter Market Shop small and buy local here at Redbud. We’ve invited local artists and makers to bring their wares to a pop-up event in our yard. […]

Inside at Redbud, you will find books on native plants, birds, butterflies, medicinal plants, environmental issues, and field guides. A few great web resources here:

Pollinator Plants - Xerces
Homegrown National Park
Native Plant Finder - NWF
Bringing Home Nature

Events

Yard Talks at Redbud

Join us for our 2022 Yard Talk Series - occasional Saturdays throughout the season- Check back here for details.

The Shop at Redbud
Our shop is stocked with a curated selection of books and garden tools. If you're looking for a field guide, children's books about plants or the environment, fascinating nature writing or a reliable reference book, check out our offerings.

No upcoming events at the moment, but check back soon!

Get Updates

Subscribe to Our Mailing List

About

The mission of Redbud Native Plant Nursery is to be the primary source of sustainably raised native plants for retail buyers in Southeastern Pennsylvania. Building on the base established over the past seventeen years, the nursery will continue to provide unique stock at a location where customers can see, touch and smell native plants in person and interact with knowledgeable staff.

Redbud Native Plant Nursery - Lisa and Julie talking with Catherine
Lisa and Julie talking with Catherine, at the original Redbud location in 2014.
Read more...

The new owners, Julie Snell and Lisa McDonald Hanes bring many years of experience in the horticulture field and exceptional plant knowledge. Their educational and professional background includes horticulture, environmental studies, art and landscape architecture. Julie and Lisa are also founding principals of TEND landscape inc, a landscape architectural firm located in Philadelphia. Design services are offered to Redbud customers through this professional affiliation. Julie and Lisa bring a deep range of personal and professional experience to their new role as owners/operators of Redbud. Julie A. Snell holds a Masters in Landscape Architecture and maintains professional credentials as an ISA Certified Arborist. Lisa McDonald Hanes is a licensed Landscape Architect in PA and NJ and holds SITES accreditation.

As a company, Redbud values the range of ecological and aesthetic benefits landscapes provide and will strive to extend the knowledge base around native plants suitable to our mid-Atlantic location and landscape maintenance. Redbud values sustainability at all levels of production and sale of nursery plants. This value guides our business decisions, operating procedures, plant production, material sourcing, energy choices, and waste disposal.

“I opened Redbud Native Plant Nursery in 2002 to establish a nursery focused solely on native plants and to always positively impact our regional environment. Native plants support biodiversity by providing food and habitat for our local fauna. Goal achieved!

After seventeen years, it's time to pass the trowel. Please visit the nursery and welcome Julie and Lisa as the new owners of Redbud!”

–Catherine Smith, founder of Redbud Native Plant Nursery

FAQs

Do you guarantee plants? Expand

Plants, like puppies, are living beings that require care, and just like puppies, all have their life destiny. After a plant leaves the nursery, there are many variables - proper transport, planting, watering, and maintenance - that conflict with offering a guarantee. We guarantee that we only sell plants that we consider healthy, vigorous, and likely to succeed in the appropriate location. A guarantee would be like insurance, and we do not fold this into our pricing as other garden centers may.

Proper site selection is critical to the survival of native plants. Our staff can help you choose plants that match your site conditions and advise on planting. If you have a problem after planting, we can help troubleshoot. Email us with a photo and description of the issue, and we’ll do our best to assist.

What is your return policy? Expand

Hard goods (books, tools, containers) can be returned with the receipt within 30 days of purchase. We do not accept the return of plants. Why? See above regarding all the variables after plants leave our care.

When is the best time to plant? Expand

Technically you can plant anytime the soil is not frozen or too wet, AND you can provide supplemental watering as needed. It is best to avoid times when the weather is too hot – if you’re wilting, your plants will be too!

The absolute BEST time to plant is in the Fall. Planting in September, October, and November (and some years, even into December) allows the plant’s roots to settle in and grow during the cooler season. The plant will be less vulnerable to high temperatures and water stress by the time next summer rolls around. Planting in the Spring is the second-best time to plant, but you’ll need to be more vigilant with monitoring watering needs during the summer.

It may take 2-3 years for your new plant to establish after planting (woody plants longer than herbaceous). It is critical to monitor and provide supplemental water during these first few years. Make sure to weed around your new plants and mulch - only apply to the soil over the rootball – no mulch on crowns, stems, or trunks! See below for more about mulch.

Should I mulch when I plant? Expand

Mulch helps prevent weeds seeds from germinating, increases water-holding capacity in the root zone, and is a visual cue to keep mowers and string trimmers away from the base of the plant.
Covering the surface of the soil beneath new plants is good practice. Be sure to use mulch on soil that is already weeded. There are several types of mulch – formerly living material such as chopped leaves, straw, salt hay, wood chips, shredded bark, pine needles, or ‘green mulch,’ a living groundcover plant.

When mulch is an organic material, it will improve the soil as it decomposes. When using formerly living materials, use only a 2-3” thick layer over the entire root zone of the plant. Keep mulch about 1-4 inches away from crowns, stems and trunks as mulch piled against the crown or stems of perennials or grasses or against the trunks of trees can cause rot.

Due to the low-growing and quick spreading tendencies of groundcovers, these plants are a logical choice for ‘green mulch’. Instead of traditional mulch that must be applied year after year, a base layer of low-growing and fast-spreading plants can be used to create a green backdrop. Plant these groundcovers in large masses along the base of trees and shrubs. Utilizing their natural tendencies, these plants will cover the ground, denying weeds access to light and space to get established. In addition, they will provide garden interest and biodiversity to the ground layer.

Should I fertilize when I plant? Expand

There are different kinds of fertilizer. Synthetic chemical fertilizers are formulated to make nutrients immediately available to plants. However, depending on many factors (soil pH, plant species, existing soil physical and chemical conditions, etc.), the plant may not take up all available nutrients from this source. The rest will run off into groundwater and end up in the nearest water body and eventually the ocean.

Organic materials used for fertilizer (such as compost, bone meal or chicken manure) are not immediately available to plants. It works by being processed by soil micro-organisms that break down the fertilizer feedstocks into nutrients available for plants to take up. Healthy soil has billions of micro-organisms, mycorrhizae, and pore space to allow air and water flow. The plants and the soil work together to exchange and use nutrients.

We don’t recommend synthetic fertilizer anytime. Depending on existing soil conditions, adding organic materials as fertilizer at planting may be beneficial. You don’t want to overly enrich the planting hole and discourage the roots from growing out of the rootball into the surrounding soil.

What is compost, and should I add it to my garden? Expand

Compost is formally living material (organic) rich in carbon and other nutrients that can be used as a soil amendment. Compost should not be smelly; if it is, there was too much nitrogen-rich (green) material and not enough carbon-rich material (brown) in the mix. Properly managed compost heats up to 140 and kills any weed seeds or pathogens.

Compost can be a great benefit to soil. It can improve water-holding capacity, aerate soil, lessen compaction and increase the activity of soil organisms that will help provide nutrients to your plants over time. Compost contributes to healthy soil. Apply the correct amount of compost to your planting area as adding too much compost may be harmful. Applying a layer of compost, a quarter-inch to 1-inch deep, to the planting surface each year may be enough.

Do you use pesticides or neonicotinoids? Expand

At the nursery, we maintain our plants without synthetic pesticides, fungicides, or neonicotinoids. We use a peat-free planting medium and use certified organic fertilizer when needed. We source our plants from responsible growers who use sustainable practices, with minimal input, without neonicotinoids, and in many cases, propagate from local eco-type seed sources.

Are your plants organic? Expand

Our plants are not certified organic as that is a paid program through the USDA.

Deer are eating my plants; what can I do? Expand

According to PennState Extension, the number of deer in Pennsylvania has significantly changed our forests over the last 50 years. We see far fewer young trees and very limited biodiversity. In many areas, deer have overeaten the forest, and the diversity in the vegetation layers is gone. As gardeners, we know that gardening in Pennsylvania and New Jersey means managing impacts from deer. Deer are “browsers.” They primarily eat the leaves, twigs, and shoots of young trees, shrubs, and wildflowers, but they may rub on trees too. No plants are deer-proof, but many are less palatable to deer and will be more resilient in the event of deer browse. Our staff can help you choose the best plants for your site conditions and advise on deterrents and physical barriers for plants that need protection during establishment.

Do you offer discounts or have sales? Expand

We set prices as competitively as a small, independent retail business can. We do not hold sales or otherwise discount merchandise. Organizations providing a Pennsylvania Certificate of Tax Exemption will not be charged sales tax. A 10% discount is offered to those in the trade with proof of business operation.

Julie and Lisa love what they do! They love the plants they offer and they love seeing pictures and stories of the plants that leave their custodianship and are adopted by their customers.

Since patronizing Redbud, my world has never been filled with so many butterflies! Thank you from the bottom of my heart for being the best!

— Beverly, Ardentown, DE

redbud_logo

Hours

Tuesday: 10am – 5pm
Wednesday: 10am – 5pm
Thursday: 10am – 5pm
Friday: 10am – 5pm
Saturday: 9am – 4pm

Location

Google Maps

904 N. Providence Road
Media, PA 19063 

Say Hello

610.892.2833
info@redbudnative.com

Join Email List

© 2022 Redbud Native Plant Nursery. All Rights Reserved.
Design by Spacious