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Every October the Virginia Department of Forestry offers a wide variety of trees and shrubs for purchase through its online seedling store. Bred specifically for Virginia’s soils and climate, seedlings are grown and sold directly from the agency’s self-supporting nurseries in Augusta and Sussex counties.
This year, more species are available than ever before, 57 in total. Seedlings, including best sellers such as eastern redbud, chickasaw plum and American hazelnut, can be ordered in quantities ranging from five to 25,000. Packaged as bare-root seedlings, orders can be delivered right to residents’ doorsteps or picked up directly from the DOF’s Augusta Nursery. Deliveries and order pick-ups occur next spring, between Feb. 18 and April 30, 2025.
DOF accepts orders until April, but supplies are limited, and some species do sell out quickly. To browse the tree seedling catalog, visit BuyVATrees.com.
In addition to many species of trees and shrubs, DOF offers several “seedling packs” with pre-selected species for specific popular qualities such as fall colors, pollinators, riparian buffers and wildlife. For landowners with other goals in mind, DOF nurseries grow a variety of pine and spruce, as well as dozens of hardwood varieties used to establish timber stands, pulpwood crops, Christmas tree plantations, wildlife habitats, stream bank stabilization and urban forests.
“Seedlings are priced reasonably while covering the operating costs of Virginia Department of Forestry nurseries,” said Augusta Nursery manager Josh McLaughlin. “The proceeds from your purchase go right back into helping us plant more trees. We’re adding more inventory every year based on customer demand, especially more native species. In fact, this year’s hardwood crop is 42 percent larger than last year’s.”
