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Pros and cons of buying plants online?
Whether it’s plug plants or larger, my Ps and Cs are:
Pros:
1. Greater range and diversity, as opposed to what’s available locally
2. Not having to grow from seed (which I am crap at)
3. Can be cheaper, but not always especially factoring in delivery costs
Cons:
1. Having to make space to grow them on before planting out plus expense of pots/compost
2. Occasional delays in shipping, meaning plants arrive in less than perfect condition
3.Dead plants due to above, then supplier being out of stock so can’t replace them resulting in gaps in the border
Con 3 recently happened to me, frustratingly, the parcel tracking showed them arriving on a Friday morning in a warehouse 50km from me and sitting there to the following Tuesday (having already been on the road from Northern France for aeons) with no contact details so I couldn’t call them and tell them to get a wriggle on or even collect them from there myself, which I have been forced to do in the past. So not providing local courier contact details or even labelling the box as containing urgent/live contents is a big con!
How do you find the online plant buying process? I assume Con 3 is not exclusive to me!
Pros:
1. Greater range and diversity, as opposed to what’s available locally
2. Not having to grow from seed (which I am crap at)
3. Can be cheaper, but not always especially factoring in delivery costs
Cons:
1. Having to make space to grow them on before planting out plus expense of pots/compost
2. Occasional delays in shipping, meaning plants arrive in less than perfect condition
3.Dead plants due to above, then supplier being out of stock so can’t replace them resulting in gaps in the border
Con 3 recently happened to me, frustratingly, the parcel tracking showed them arriving on a Friday morning in a warehouse 50km from me and sitting there to the following Tuesday (having already been on the road from Northern France for aeons) with no contact details so I couldn’t call them and tell them to get a wriggle on or even collect them from there myself, which I have been forced to do in the past. So not providing local courier contact details or even labelling the box as containing urgent/live contents is a big con!
How do you find the online plant buying process? I assume Con 3 is not exclusive to me!
Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
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I am sure you are not really crap with seeds, but I use Sarah Raven as I have never had anything but 100% with her tiny vials, (I thought I was rubbish too until I bought her seeds). I have had poor germination with other companies in the past.
In your location it might be less than perfect with delivery, but I hope you find a supplier that does not let you down.
Funnily enough purplerain my only successful germination to date was a packet of Sarah Raven tithonia seeds, other allegedly easy to grow stuff from big name suppliers all consistently fail for me.
I have had great success with plants from Brittany Perennials (direct from the French nursery rather than the UK website), customer service is great, no quibble money back if things don’t thrive or arrive alive, their packaging is straw, so much more sustainable than all that plastic, so maybe have a look at them, Fire? An irritant of their website tho is that when things are out of stock, they delete the plant so unless it’s early in the season you don’t get an idea of the full range they grow.
My main problem is not the French or Dutch nurseries/couriers, it’s when the package arrives in mañana Spain and goes awol.
You can find a specific variety or a more unusual plant.
Know their stock levels.
Do save on petrol touring round to find the plant you want also saves money as you dont come back with a load of plants you have spotted on your tour.
Waistline smaller due to avoiding coffee and cake.
Able to research about the plants if you spot something you know nothing about.
Delivered to your door for large trees you can't get in the car and your local centre doesn't stock.
P & P charges reasonable if you go to the right site. Some charge just £4.95 No matter how much you buy.
Great after sales help and no quibble guarantees with most.
Cons:
Non recyclable packaging materials used by some.
Too high postage costs with some.
Plug plants never seem to arrive in good condition
Mail order trees are very good. Large trees really well boxes.
Recently tried Proper Plants.com. 2l pots and strong plants.
Taylors clematis always prompt in replying with help. (Other clematis suppliers are available)
I do buy a lot mail order but also use my local garden centre.
I bought 13 Hostas from Fransen Hostas in Holland and was delighted with them, the packing and the transit, but I hardly had the option of driving to Holland to buy them.
I'd say look at reviews of , not only the plants, but how they arrive.
Getting couriers to deliver plants on time and in decent condition does seem to be the biggest challenge for both seller and buyer.