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£7 for a chilli?

amancalledgeorgeamancalledgeorge Posts: 2,736
in Plants
I spotted on Instagram a chi chi garden centre selling chilli plants for £7 per 5cm pot... apparently being "pesticide free" and peat free somehow magically they were not very expensive. 
I do worry that gardening and growing vegetables can seem so alienating and elitist when this kind of markup becomes acceptable and not commented upon. 
But being a business I suppose they can charge what they want if they think their clientele is deep pocketed enough. But the snobby attitude that goes with it is such a turn off for me.

How much would you pay for a small chilli plant?

To Plant a Garden is to Believe in Tomorrow
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  • debs64debs64 Posts: 5,184
    edited May 2021
    It’s a difficult question I actually have dozens of plants grown from a free packet of seeds. I will put the excess on the “ help yourself” table at the allotment so yes £7 seems expensive Mine are grown in peat free compost and are obviously pesticide free. 
  • B3B3 Posts: 27,505
    It seems strange that they charge extra for leaving things out. Use a bit less salt or leave out the food dyes and charge more.
    In London. Keen but lazy.
  • amancalledgeorgeamancalledgeorge Posts: 2,736
    I love sharing excess plants with neighbours.. can't think I've even paid more than £4 for anything edible. 
    To Plant a Garden is to Believe in Tomorrow
  • Allotment BoyAllotment Boy Posts: 6,774
    Maybe it's a grafted plant,  they seem all the rage now.  Still expensive tho.
    AB Still learning

  • amancalledgeorgeamancalledgeorge Posts: 2,736
    Nope not grafted, fairly small too. Which is why it caught my eye. Have been noticing the increase of prices for vegetables this spring from the larger chains near us...presumably capitalising on the lockdown take-up of growing veg. 
    To Plant a Garden is to Believe in Tomorrow
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    Maybe the nurseries' costs are higher this year as they're having to heat greenhouses well past the usual date,  and they can't move stuff on unprotected  ... but basically  if you have a business, the price of something is whatever the customer will pay for it.  :/

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • BijdezeeBijdezee Posts: 1,484
    I've grown them from seeds on chillies out of the fridge, same with red peppers.

    I suppose we can't really compare this as the growers have overheads to pay etc but £7 seems a lot for a small plant I must admit. 
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    I bought a little tray of four chilli seedlings (Apache) from Aldi for something like £1.25 or £1.50. I now have 5 young plants, all doing well (one of the cells had two plants in it) so that's 30p each.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    edited May 2021
    I don't need 5 chiili plants - does anyone want to take one off my hands for £7? No? Thought not :D.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • philippasmith2philippasmith2 Posts: 3,742
    Agree with both @amancalledgeorge and @Dovefromabove - there certainly have been increased costs for nurseries and Garden Centres but there are more than a few outlets which appear to be taking the p**s too.
    You only have to look on this Forum to see how many people have taken to growing their own ( and gardening in general ) over the past 18 months.  If you haven't been used to purchasing plants until recently, you perhaps don't really have much idea of a "reasonable" price and businesses will take advantage of this lack of knowledge.
    I wouldn't pay £7 for a chilli plant but if enough buyers think it's worth it, the price won't drop. 

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