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Plant Nurseries & Garden Centers in Ames, IA

Where to buy plants here

Where to buy plants in Ames, IA: big-box vs. independent

Ames, IA has 10 independent nurseries, 8 big-box garden centers, and 5 wholesale growers in this directory's own classification. Independent, big-box, and grower are separate business-structure categories on file for each listing, not a ranking of one over another.

Licence record on file with this directory: 6 of 10 independent nurseries, 4 of 8 big-box locations. IA is one of the 11 states this directory holds a nursery-dealer licence registry for; a listing with no badge may still be licensed elsewhere, this directory simply has no matching registry record for it as of that registry's own sync date.

Independent, named

Plus 7 more in the listings below.

Big-box, named

Plus 5 more in the listings below.

Wholesale growers, named

Plus 2 more in the listings below.

Growing conditions

USDA hardiness zone
5b
Avg. minimum winter temp
-15°F
Median frost dates
First ~Oct 8 · Last ~Apr 26

Frost dates: NOAA 1991–2020 Climate Normals, nearest station (AMES MUNI AP, IA US, 4.3 km away) .

What's plantable right now

Nothing in our crop table has an open planting window for this ZIP right now, check back soon.

Planting windows and crop timing here are computed from USDA/NOAA climate data and the university extension sources cited below, not a site visit or soil test. Treat this as a starting point: local conditions vary, and a local nursery or extension office can advise on your exact site. See our full Disclaimer.

Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. 16 listings in Ames have no mapped coordinates yet.

Big Box Dealer

Hy-Vee

3800 W Lincoln Way, Ames, IA

State-licensed as of 2026-08-04

Directions
Big Box Dealer

Lowe's

120 Airport Rd, Ames, IA

State-licensed as of 2026-08-04

Directions
Independent

Reiman Gardens

4.8 ★ (1,405 Google reviews) as of 2026-08-06

1407 University Blvd, Ames, IA 50011

Licence: checked, not matched in IA's registry

Call Directions Website

Planting calendar

The full year, at a glance

Number of crops in our table with an open planting window each month, computed from this ZIP's median frost dates.

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Start indoors 1 1 14 – – – – – – – – –
Direct-sow – – 8 9 9 2 1 1 1 – – –
Transplant – – 5 10 10 – – – – – – –
Fall planting – – – – – – – 11 – – – –

Keep looking nearby

Nurseries near Ames

Ames, IA has a population of 67,669, a median household income of $60,991, and a 42.1% owner-occupied housing rate. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey (2020-2024).

Related guides

Learn to garden in IA →