When we design a California native plant garden, we plan for a fully grown garden in which plants are at their mature size. An established garden is the end goal, but it takes patience because it won't be achieved in the first year, much less on day one.
While client expectations for what a five-year-old garden will look like are usually realistic, clients typically overestimate what a one-day-old garden looks like.
3 years of growth ⤴
Renowned native plant expert Greg Rubin has often said that clients typically express discontentment with their garden immediately after it's installed. "It looks like stems planted in a sea of mulch." Our most common complaint is that our newly installed gardens are underwhelming due to minuscule plant sizes, too. Clients frequently underestimate the eventual size & rapid growth of the plants, which leaves them feeling disappointed initially.
Honestly, we can understand why our clients feel this way when they see the initial stage of their new garden. Unless one has a vivid imagination & knows what each plant looks like fully matured, it's difficult to envision. Even if one does have an idea of what it'll blossom into, patience is required to endure the first years.
There are two ways to solve this problem:
Manage initial client expectations (4" or 1-gallon plants)
Plant larger potted plants (5-gallon or 15-gallon plants)
Each solution has its pros & cons.
Pros of planting smaller plants
Healthier & bigger plants as they mature.
4" & 1-gallon potted plants don't spend as much of their developmental time getting their roots accustomed to the pot conditions.
4" & 1-gallon potted plants are almost always younger than a year or two.
Cons of planting smaller plants
More patience is required to endure seeing more ground than plants in first days & months.
Pros of planting larger plants
Instant gratification of landscape looking more mature in first days & months.
Cons of planting larger plants
Stagnated growth as plants mature.
5-gallon & 15-gallon potted plants spend so much of their developmental time getting their roots too accustomed to the pot conditions that they struggle with their new soil environment. Often times, plant roots establish in the pot & become bound or overcrowded.
5-gallon & 15-gallon potted plants are almost always older than two years-old.