There have already been a lot of threads about online suppliers and recommendations. One person recommends a supplier and another says they have had bad plants from the same company.
I do think it's a matter personal experience, taste and experiment. For some people accuracy of the order and easy replacement is very important. For me, good packing is the thing and fast availability of the variety I'm looking for. I like friendly, chatty staff and a well designed website. I've never tried to replace a plant. Also one bad dodgy experience is enough to put some people off a company. I like to find a small company I like and stick with them.... So, no, I don't think there will be a consensus here, other than moving away from Crocus and T&M etc.
I tend to find a particular plant and will hunt for it online. The same companies come up again and again on a brief Google search.
Do people not ask their garden centres to order in?
Mine don't do that. It would be too expensive to order in something just for me. Tey would need to order many trays to make it worth it.
Same situation here! I since learned to look for some things on Etsy actually. Got some amazing seeds from different parts of the world, but they also sell plants there. If you're interested, @Fire, I can privately share some links on etsy to my favorite florist poppy stores! Don't mean to peddle here anything, but you mentioned you were really into poppies these days. I snatched some "Hen and Chick" and "Giganteum" recently from a place that sells internationally. Would love to geek out about poppies !
Also found a guy who was selling exclusively Pink Yunnan Thalictrum plants this year )) Never was able to find any in nursery. Pot was small and plant was cut back for easier shipping, but I was at least prepared for it mentally because I could talk to grower online and ask questions before getting order in.
I think Etsy probably has more reputable sellers than Ebay etc. where scammers lurk. It's good to check provenance, though. UK private buyers are strictly not allow to buy seeds or plants from overseas, because of bio-security, which is terribly important. That kind of thing is hard to check if you are not buying from known nurseries. On Ebay and Amazon etc it's hopeless.
Oh yeah, absolutely! Thankfully it's all easy to check these days online and just be responsible. Here there's just a tendency of plant disappearing from general public once it becomes fashionable as a wedding bouquet element. Last few years it's poppy and white peonies (you can get any shade of pink and yellows though, even tree peony is easily available now as a trade off). It used to be easy to find 'Queen Alexandra' poppy, now you can only find it sold as a cut flower. But an odd florist grower will share some seed wealth online!
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One person recommends a supplier and another says they have had bad plants from the same company.
Also found a guy who was selling exclusively Pink Yunnan Thalictrum plants this year )) Never was able to find any in nursery. Pot was small and plant was cut back for easier shipping, but I was at least prepared for it mentally because I could talk to grower online and ask questions before getting order in.
Here there's just a tendency of plant disappearing from general public once it becomes fashionable as a wedding bouquet element. Last few years it's poppy and white peonies (you can get any shade of pink and yellows though, even tree peony is easily available now as a trade off). It used to be easy to find 'Queen Alexandra' poppy, now you can only find it sold as a cut flower. But an odd florist grower will share some seed wealth online!