Bargain shrubs.

Blimey Derek! Bargains bargains bargains! :) Much cheapness :)

Hi Karen, yes I like to find a bargain, prices are getting ridiculous at garden centres these days, I looked in at the notcutts g c that backs on to my favourite, they were selling what are usually referred to as bedding plants at £2.95 each, in a pot, some were £4.50, I walked out in disgust, Derek.

Oh yes, plants have become extremely expensive. I've been gardening for about 32 years now, and I've seen a huge increase. But then I suppose that's no surprise over such a long time!!

Hi Karen, I always think back to the days my father used to take my brother and I, to Ashton moss, there were at least 20 nurseries on there, and bedding plants were 2/6d for a wooden seed tray, with at least 40 bedding plants in it, mind you, that's going back at least 60 years, probably more, I started gardening when I was about 5 years old, and I'll be 71 next month, so everything seems expensive now, but bedding plants were never sold as individual plants, as they are now, Derek.

That's true Derek. That is a very recent thing. Nemesias in 2 litre pots etc. Today was our Village plant sale. It was going like a fair up there. I took my extra tomato plants for them to sell, but most of what they sell is bedding at good prices. So it is still possible to get a tray of bedding at reasonable prices...but not in the big GCs.

Good job Derek! I was in my local GC last week, bought a Sempervivum with loads of chicks for £2.50 but don't mind paying a little extra as it's a community non-profit with a mainly volunteer workforce.
In front of me at the till a chap paid £10 for a dozen or so sweetcorn seedlings! I might need to set up a stall for next Spring...

Hi Karen, I think the problem is that people want instant colour, and impact, and the garden centres have jumped on the band waggon, and told their suppliers to do this, they were even selling plants, fully grown and in flower, that if planted out now, in my area, wouldn't survive, we need at least another fortnight, before we could put bedding plants out, they even had Hydrangea's in flower, at £20 each, they obviously won't flower at this time next year, they just mislead people, very annoying, Derek.

Hi Darren, as I was looking around, I was thinking to myself, I must start doing more propagation and selling, at the moment I just propagate for friends and family, and give them away, Derek.

This time next year we'll be millionaires!
I guess selling online locally might work? I could certainly fund my next year's plants by just germinating stuff in penny pots & charging a quid for a tom or something. I'm the same with giving the spares away though, if it goes to a good home I'm happy enough

Sadly no you wont Darren by the time you've taken in to account costs of compost, water etc. People look at home grown plants and assume they are less good that ones brought on in gc even if yours are bigger and healthier. there is an assumption they are sub-standard.
I propagate a lot and sell at plant meetings and the profits are for my local hospice on average £350 a year. believe me people want everything in flower and uniform size. I do propagate more unusual perennials as well but unless they have been seen at Chelsea or on gardening programmes they don't know what they are.
Bedding used to come in strips of 6 plants didn't they?

excellent purchases Derek. and when you think good bunches of flowers from the supermarkets cost £10 and last less than a week.

That’s great value, just spent £102 on one Acer ouch.

My son has recently started working at Dobbies and even with staff discount the plants are still expensive! He told me quite a few plants get returned as they are not good quality or have not been hardened off properly. I rather go to smaller nurseries which are harder to find but more enjoyable as the staff seem to know a lot more about the plants they grow.

It's all changed in the gardens these days. My parents used to grow bedding plants to sell and I have spent hours pricking out seedlings! When it was time to sell they were up-rooted, wrapped in wet newspaper and taken to the customer. Just pennies a dozen, but now as you say Derek plants that we knew as mass bedding plants are sold singly in pots. Amazing!

Thank you all for your comments, I see I'm not alone in thinking that we gardeners are being ripped off, basically because of non gardeners, wanting colourful gardens instantly, I consider myself fortunate, that I know where the bargains are, Derek.

The Hydrangeas flowering in May is one thing I. CAn’t stand! I want to see them flowering in August!! Same with a lot of the late flowering plants. It really depresses me! Let spring be spring!

Fab Derek! I’d be well chuffed with your nursery purchases too! I’m off tomorrow to one a few miles from me, can’t beat quality and pricing at the one I go to! Bet you couldn’t wait to get out there planting them all out!

Hi Karen, it's just a matter of supply and demand, non-gardeners demand, garden centres supply, unfortunately the non-gardeners, outnumber gardeners, Derek.

Hi Kate, yes I must admit, I was rather pleased with them, unfortunately, due to circumstances, not planted out yet, but looking forward to the job, hope you have a similar experience tomorrow, Derek.

Derek you certainly went to the right place and at the right time, I am with all of you, plants in a GC these days are a rip off, don't care which one it is, I only go to them when I've received a voucher as a gift, I was in one last week, the acers half the size of mine were selling between £70 - £109, now what is that all about, unless I win the lottery I won't be paying that price, how would I feel if it popped its clogs after only a few months, don't get me started on bedding plants this year, luckily we have a family run nursery only a couple of miles out of town, we go to that one, definitely good value up there, when they've potted up the amount they want they sell off pots of the seedlings for us to prick out and grow on at home, come end of June they drop the prices as well, they have bargain basement polytunnels also, now we love them, had a lot of shrubs and plants from there over the years, they just need repotting and a bit of TLC and you have yourself a good shrub/perennial often for only £1- £1.50, can't go wrong Derek..

Hi Sue, good to know that you also know where yo go for the bargains, I keep hoping that some day, gardening will again lose some popularity, then we can get back to reality, Derek.

Great choice and a bargain you could pay that just for an Acer here.

Hi 3d, it's very annoying that the big garden centres charge so much, when the actual growers get very little, and it's them that have all the work, all the g c's do is sell, everything except the kitchen sink, and all at inflated prices, Derek.

Very true Derek I ve thought the same my self it's always best to go direct to the nurseries. Its. Not just the garden centres a local paper shop was selling an Acer for £20.00 about 8" high another at £50 the same height as in Aldi for £10.00 about 2ft high. Scandalous.

Hi 3d, yes I too have bought plants from Aldi, at very reasonable prices, I bought a Viburnum 'Bodnantense Dawn, it was about 1ft tall, but I pruned it back a few weeks ago, to about 7ft, I only paid £1.50 if I remember rightly, Derek.

Yes they have some good bargains there I to bought 2 Bodnantense Dawn neither have ever flowered last year I gave one my son and it flowered I could of screamed lol.

Hi 3d, sod's law, isn't it, Derek.

Defiently sod's Law Derek it must of preferred his soil better I planted it as a seedling and its now about 7ft all those years for nothing.