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2021
Misleading plant advertisements
After a winter indoors, many Coloradans yearn for spring and the gardening season. Magazine and newspaper ads seem to target those with spring fever. Some ads are obviously misleading, but with others it may be difficult to determine truthfulness.
Various trees, lawn grass mixtures, vegetable seed or plants, or plants that "repel pests" are often hyped in these advertisements. It is not at all surprising that such plants and seed mixes can be major disappointments for well-intentioned homeowners. For example, the often-advertised tree tomato will not produce fruit under normal home conditions. Also, the fruit is not juicy nor does it taste like tomatoes.
In general, avoid responding to plant advertisements which over-hype, or when the advertiser is a marketing or sales group rather than a mail-order nursery. gardeners should exercise common sense. "Let the buyer beware" and "it sounds too good to be true..." are phrases worth remembering when reading these advertisements.
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Updated Friday, April 19, 2013
