Many I've seen come in polystyrene. Not only is it not recyclable it breaks up and blows across your garden. Homebase were one of the worst offenders, they may have improved their practice since.
I have no GH/cold frame at present & will soon be running out of window sill space definitely not cheating, it gets you to the end goal of them being established & flowering quicker, whilst saving on the expense of a 2L+ purchase. My homebase doesn't have plug plants at the mo but lots of 9cm or 11cm pots of perennials like foxgloves, dicentra, smaller delphiniums, oriental poppies, echinops & dwarf lupins
I buy lots of my plants fully grown for baskets because I have no greenhouse or whatever to grow anything on.Also have never had much luck with seeds or plug plants.
It depends on your needs really,for instance I only need about a dozen Pelargoniums in a year and it is not worth the effort for me to grow from plugs or cuttings with the repotting etc,ending up with mediocre plants when I can buy perfectly good plants all ready to go at the right time from the supermarket without the hassle.
If you have the time and space (and inclination!) you can do what feels best for you,it is the end result that counts for me!
“Every day is ordinary, until it isn't.” - Bernard Cornwell-Death of Kings
It is far too early to be putting plugs into the ground as the soil will be cold and we can expect more frosts, games and heavy rain that will do them in. Most will be frost tender and shouldn't go outside till mid May and after being hardened off.
Buy them by all means but pot them on into small pots to grow on Keep them watered and give an occasional light liquid feed and then pot on again when they need it. To harden them off, keep them in a frost free, sheltered place for now and gradually start putting them outsode on fine days but bring them in at night. As we get to April you can leave them outside all day and in mi May you can plant them outside.
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)."
Many I've seen come in polystyrene. Not only is it not recyclable it breaks up and blows across your garden. Homebase were one of the worst offenders, they may have improved their practice since.
I usually grow everything for my baskets and tubs from seeds, as well as watching them grow, I just couldn't afford to buy that much, but this year I want surfinia and tumbelina petunias, they don't grow from seeds, well, I think surfinia do but very expensive, so I have given in and ordered the small plugs, I can bring them on, plenty of time as I won't be planting out until end of May.
So no, it's not really cheating to buy plugs, you still have to treat them right to get them to grow for you.
dont expect an instant garden from them though, if you follow Obe's advice, they will be good for the summer.
I don't buy bigger plants as I know I can grow what I need from seed and cuttings, may have to wait for a year in the case of perennials, but I can wait.
Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor.
I used to buy plugs of annual lobelia as my seeds always failed, and fuschias plugs, cuttings failed.
Thanks to help and advice here on the forum I've had success with both this year, so they're off my shopping list
Bought some of these instead....
They've been potted on and pinched out. I'll be keeping them indoors in the conservatory for a while though to grow on, they're too small and it's too cold for them to survive outside yet.
I grow seeds if I want a very specific variety (perhaps of tomatoes) as some can be more difficult (if not impossible) to buy either as full grown or plug plants.
I also do very easy stuff from seed & which I want in bulk (coriander, lettuce, marigolds, cornflowers, nicotiana etc) but which can often be sown in situ.
But I buy a lot of perennials in plug form and grow them on. I'm making a new garden and it's the only way I can afford to do it as 'big spends' are reserved for landscaping, trees and shrubs.
Winter 2014/15 I bought 30 hellebore plug plants. Most of them flowered a bit last year but this year they are nearly the full size I would buy from my local specialist grower. All named varieties - cost me £20 or £30 for the lot. Each full size plant would cost about £15 from the nursery - ie £450. That's a big saving!
I've had to be patient - but worth the wait. I'm aiming for a small carpet of hellebores in the woodland border - so hope they start seeding this year.
As a general rule Pokhim plug plants should be potted up and grown on - they are likely to fail if they go straight in the ground. They will soon grow away in a pot and can be planted out in a few weeks. Anything which is tender will still require cold frame / windowsill protection for another couple of months
Heaven is ... sitting in the garden with a G&T and a cat while watching the sun go down
As T'bird says, it's not really about what you buy - it's what you do with them after that, that counts. Plug plants need a bit of care before putting in the ground - especially at this time of year. They're too small and vulnerable and can struggle to thrive - often getting eaten by slugs and snails etc. before they grow at all.
The biggest factors are your location/climate and timing. If I bought anything small just now, be it plugs or plants in small pots, they wouldn't grow much in the next month or so. If I bought the same sized items in late April or May - that would be different. Soil warmth is one of the main issues and it takes a long time here to warm up.
If in doubt, err on the cautious side. Let plants grow on a little longer before planting out - whether it's seedlings, plugs or anything else. You'll gradually get a feel for what suits all the conditions in your garden
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I grow seeds purely because I love doing it and I now had the time to indulge but I still have a mooch around my local GC for 'structure' plants or something I like the look of in the plugs on offer - either way you still have to give them the right tlc for them to survive and that's still gardening. As others have said it's all down to what suits you, your lifestyle and how you want your garden to look and lets face it flowers are so much prettier to look at than bear earth. Enjoy.
Posts
Many I've seen come in polystyrene. Not only is it not recyclable it breaks up and blows across your garden. Homebase were one of the worst offenders, they may have improved their practice since.
I have no GH/cold frame at present & will soon be running out of window sill space
definitely not cheating, it gets you to the end goal of them being established & flowering quicker, whilst saving on the expense of a 2L+ purchase. My homebase doesn't have plug plants at the mo but lots of 9cm or 11cm pots of perennials like foxgloves, dicentra, smaller delphiniums, oriental poppies, echinops & dwarf lupins
Last edited: 07 March 2017 14:33:47
Definitely not cheating!
I buy lots of my plants fully grown for baskets because I have no greenhouse or whatever to grow anything on.Also have never had much luck with seeds or plug plants.
It depends on your needs really,for instance I only need about a dozen Pelargoniums in a year and it is not worth the effort for me to grow from plugs or cuttings with the repotting etc,ending up with mediocre plants when I can buy perfectly good plants all ready to go at the right time from the supermarket without the hassle.
If you have the time and space (and inclination!) you can do what feels best for you,it is the end result that counts for me!
It is far too early to be putting plugs into the ground as the soil will be cold and we can expect more frosts, games and heavy rain that will do them in. Most will be frost tender and shouldn't go outside till mid May and after being hardened off.
Buy them by all means but pot them on into small pots to grow on Keep them watered and give an occasional light liquid feed and then pot on again when they need it. To harden them off, keep them in a frost free, sheltered place for now and gradually start putting them outsode on fine days but bring them in at night. As we get to April you can leave them outside all day and in mi May you can plant them outside.
The polystyrene comes in very handy to bulk out large pots so you don't need to use so much compost!
If you have lots of small pieces I tie them all up in a plastic carrier bag first and put the whole bag in!
Last edited: 07 March 2017 15:14:38
I usually grow everything for my baskets and tubs from seeds, as well as watching them grow, I just couldn't afford to buy that much, but this year I want surfinia and tumbelina petunias, they don't grow from seeds, well, I think surfinia do but very expensive, so I have given in and ordered the small plugs, I can bring them on, plenty of time as I won't be planting out until end of May.
So no, it's not really cheating to buy plugs, you still have to treat them right to get them to grow for you.
dont expect an instant garden from them though, if you follow Obe's advice, they will be good for the summer.
I don't buy bigger plants as I know I can grow what I need from seed and cuttings, may have to wait for a year in the case of perennials, but I can wait.
I sow seeds AND buy plugs
I used to buy plugs of annual lobelia as my seeds always failed, and fuschias plugs, cuttings failed.
Thanks to help and advice here on the forum I've had success with both this year, so they're off my shopping list
Bought some of these instead....
They've been potted on and pinched out. I'll be keeping them indoors in the conservatory for a while though to grow on, they're too small and it's too cold for them to survive outside yet.
I grow seeds if I want a very specific variety (perhaps of tomatoes) as some can be more difficult (if not impossible) to buy either as full grown or plug plants.
I also do very easy stuff from seed & which I want in bulk (coriander, lettuce, marigolds, cornflowers, nicotiana etc) but which can often be sown in situ.
But I buy a lot of perennials in plug form and grow them on. I'm making a new garden and it's the only way I can afford to do it as 'big spends' are reserved for landscaping, trees and shrubs.
Winter 2014/15 I bought 30 hellebore plug plants. Most of them flowered a bit last year but this year they are nearly the full size I would buy from my local specialist grower. All named varieties - cost me £20 or £30 for the lot. Each full size plant would cost about £15 from the nursery - ie £450. That's a big saving!
I've had to be patient - but worth the wait. I'm aiming for a small carpet of hellebores in the woodland border - so hope they start seeding this year.
As a general rule Pokhim plug plants should be potted up and grown on - they are likely to fail if they go straight in the ground. They will soon grow away in a pot and can be planted out in a few weeks. Anything which is tender will still require cold frame / windowsill protection for another couple of months
As T'bird says, it's not really about what you buy - it's what you do with them after that, that counts. Plug plants need a bit of care before putting in the ground - especially at this time of year. They're too small and vulnerable and can struggle to thrive - often getting eaten by slugs and snails etc. before they grow at all.
The biggest factors are your location/climate and timing. If I bought anything small just now, be it plugs or plants in small pots, they wouldn't grow much in the next month or so. If I bought the same sized items in late April or May - that would be different. Soil warmth is one of the main issues and it takes a long time here to warm up.
If in doubt, err on the cautious side. Let plants grow on a little longer before planting out - whether it's seedlings, plugs or anything else. You'll gradually get a feel for what suits all the conditions in your garden
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I grow seeds purely because I love doing it and I now had the time to indulge but I still have a mooch around my local GC for 'structure' plants or something I like the look of in the plugs on offer - either way you still have to give them the right tlc for them to survive and that's still gardening. As others have said it's all down to what suits you, your lifestyle and how you want your garden to look and lets face it flowers are so much prettier to look at than bear earth. Enjoy.