My experience with crimson bee balm is a good example. I fell in love with bee balm when I first saw it growing wild near a creek and pulled a few stalks to plant in a sunny border at home. I tried again, this time transplanting it to a shadier spot. Again, no luck. I choose plants close to home because I can observe their favored growing conditions.
Neighbors eagerly share their most successful perennials.
A nearby farmers' market offers plants that have been dug that very same day.