The first two rules of shopping for landscape plants with garden catalogs are centered around needs, much like shopping for groceries. The next two focus on the landscape itself in terms of cold tolerance and disease susceptibility of certain plants.

Rule Three. USDA Hardiness Zones 4 and 5. In Nebraska, we’re in zones 4 (north and west) and 5 (east and southeast). Before you get too excited about the description, be sure to note the hardiness zone. If it is zone 6 or greater, move on to another potential plant.
Rule Four. Plants with built in disease resistance. Resistance to diseases such as early blight, verticillium wilt, apple scab, fireblight and rust are great features of a particular species or cultivar. Big money savings and reduced pesticide applications are the benefits of disease resistance.