When you are a new gardener with space to fill, your friends and neighbours are gold. You will be able to get cuttings if not whole plants from them so cultivate them (the friends!) well! I'm always giving away cuttings or bits of plants to folk who come to my garden. And my garden has loads of plants that came from that source.
'Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement' - Helen Keller
I'm sorry, but I'm going to disagree here. The amount of work involved at a nursery in seed sowing, taking cuttings, potting on etc [often for several years ] in order to produce a plant fit for sale doesn't come cheap. Not including all the overheads [rent, rates, machinery, upkeep & improvement of property, labour....] which are enormous. Paying £5, £6, £7 or £8 for a well grown, mature perennial is cheap. Not everyone has the time or skill to produce their own plants either.
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
B & M stores. They have perennials 3 for £5 and trays of bedding plants at good prices. but doubt they have stores in Ireland. The quality isnt bad either and at least they water them which us more than Lidl and Aldi do. Bought 3 Hosta Patriot last month and they are bulking up nicely.
Quite agree philippa. You can spend on a bunch of flowers that lasts a few weeks or the same amount on a plant that can last for years. I know which I prefer.
I love growing from seed and taking cuttings but I end up with too many and have no one to exchange things with being here in Belgium. None of my relatives are gardeners or the neighbours. Plants are a bit less expensive here at least. What about markets? they often have plants a bit cheaper.
Bijdezee - There is a Flemish Alpine Club - http://www.vrvforum.be/?page_id=1391 which, even if those plants aren't your thing, may lead you to other gardeners with whom you can swap plants and they may know of other clubs.
Blue Onion - you could join the RHS for about the price of an annual magazine subscription and you'd get a monthly magazine covering RHS news, garden visits in the UK and abroad, articles on specialist nurseries and plants, latest developments in plants/techniques/tools plus seasonal advice. You'd also get free access to RHS experts if you have a problem pest or disease to identify or just need advice about a particular plant. I suggest you try it for a year - https://www.rhs.org.uk/
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
@Fairygirl my surprise was at the cost of the cosmos..........it being an annual, and the primula...........as both are very easily germinated. I was thinking to myself that if I had to buy the amount of flowers, both annual and perennial, that I have in my garden, it would be well beyond my personal means. I have no problem spending money on perennials/shrubs/roses etc. for which I would expect to get several years out of, but as I said.......5 euro per cosmos plant, and I have approx. 40 to plant out next week.....
Market forces - not everyone knows how easy cosmos is to sow or that you need to start seeds early enough to get decent sized plants so they find themselves with bare bits and wanting instant colour and happily pay what we think is silly money. If you're time poor and need a quick fix it must seem reasonable.
I like to sow because I then get plants I can't find locally. I've yet to find plants on sale at markets here in the range and quantity I could find in Belgium and the garden centres here seem to sell the obvious bedding suspects which I don't particularly like or charge outrageous prices for something I do want eg 25€ for an unexceptional hellebore.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
Posts
Not everyone has the time or skill to produce their own plants either.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Bought 3 Hosta Patriot last month and they are bulking up nicely.
Blue Onion - you could join the RHS for about the price of an annual magazine subscription and you'd get a monthly magazine covering RHS news, garden visits in the UK and abroad, articles on specialist nurseries and plants, latest developments in plants/techniques/tools plus seasonal advice. You'd also get free access to RHS experts if you have a problem pest or disease to identify or just need advice about a particular plant. I suggest you try it for a year - https://www.rhs.org.uk/
I like to sow because I then get plants I can't find locally. I've yet to find plants on sale at markets here in the range and quantity I could find in Belgium and the garden centres here seem to sell the obvious bedding suspects which I don't particularly like or charge outrageous prices for something I do want eg 25€ for an unexceptional hellebore.