Gardening centres rant.

I think something the casual plant buyer doesn't do is research, it's a case of, that looks nice, I'll buy it.

Maybe plants should have more information on them but other than that I don't think you can stop selling certain plants because they might not survive should we get a colder winter.
It's not an exact science and plants often survive in a sheltered position which they won't do if exposed.

Tender bedding type plants are a different thing as those are often sold too early.
But again it's mostly down to the buyer to have some knowledge and maybe learn from experience.

 

One thing's for sure. I'm quickly learning, lol.

My main hobby is tropical fish keeping, and one of the main aspects of buying tropical fish is whether they can live in the water type you have (hard/soft, or somewhere in between). It's the main consideration, or should be, for any fish buyer. So you obviously need to research your water type, and then your fish, to establish which can live in said water. And of course, as with plants, there is ongoing aftercare too.

And of course it is up to YOU, the buyer, to do their research, because the fish stores, as with the GC's, will sell you anything if it means money in the till.

I've pretty much nailed my fish keeping hobby, not so much the gardening.....yet, lol.

But whatever, I still have a major gripe with GC's selling warm climate plants which are meant to thrive in our bleak uk climate. I suppose the vastly experienced gardeners know how to get the best from such "soft" plants. Whereas gardeners such as myself....not so much, lol.

 

I think you have hit the nail on the head there @Esoxlucius, if I went into a store selling tropical fish I'd buy totally unsuitable fish, because I don't know enough about them.

We live and learn.

 

No,you will generally not find such folk within said emporia; the plants they have are for selling not growing. It is ironic that one would find their customers often have a conservatory but not the nouse to use it for plants!

 

I find this extremely interesting. A conservatory would probably be ideal for these "soft in between" plants. The very ones which the GC's protect in poly tunnels. How ironic is that.

They know very well what they're doing. They know the plants are hardly likely to survive outside long term, which brings the customers back to the store to spend more money on a replacement victim, er plant. The plant which they must have killed themselves through sheer neglect, nothing to do with the fact that the GC shouldn't have been selling it as a garden plant in the first instance.

The more I think about it the more perplexed I become. We're almost into false advertising territory here.

 

I have learned to look at the environment where GCs have the plants. It was a big learning curve for me moving from the UK to Algarve. What are common Summer garden plants in the UK, ie, Pelargoniums. petunias, pansies, are anything but Summer plants here as they fry. They can be found under cover at the GCs never out in the open. Some of you will have discovered this last Summer. Also, they react differently in the ground rather than in pots as my Hibiscus rosa-sinensis have proved to me. I also agree with Pete that research should be done before purchasing an unknown plant/shrub/tree.

 

Apart from cordylines which took a hammering this year I'd be interested to know which plants you are referring to @Esoxlucius that they are selling that are hardly likely to survive.
A lot is down to our climate, we are on the edge, if we were in a colder winter climate I agree, some of what they sell wouldn't stand a chance but often we get away with things thriving for years before the one killer winter comes along.
That fact opens up a lot more possibilities and why our gardens are like they are in this country.
Its been a bad one this winter, don't let it put you off trying things you will get some nice surprises.

 

That was the other thing that occurred to me. How much responsibility should gardening programme presenters bear? They are often the ones pushing certain styles of gardening and certain plants. My local family-run GC in UK freely admitted that whatever had been mentioned on Gardener's World on the Friday would be flying off the shelves all weekend. They based their promotional displays on that fact.
Given that some of the 'experts' are London-based garden designers with barely a window box to their credit, it's easy to see how inexperienced enthusiasts get caught out.
As far as keeping the plants under cover, well let's face it, the GCs aren't going to invest £00000s in their stock and then risk losing it. There's also an element of customer comfort involved. They'll get more people through the doors even during grotty weather if the plants are under cover.

 

One which springs to mind, which I found astonishing when I saw it was the bottlebrush. I first saw these years ago in Greece growing in the wild. They were simply stunning, those flowers which give the plant it's common name were breathtaking.

You've got to have some serious good weather and hell of a lot of luck if you're going to get these to thrive in the UK. But they certainly thrive at my GC. Mind you, I haven't seen any there for a couple of years now, maybe they eventually had problems, even in there warmer poly tunnels!

Ceanothus, though admittedly hardier than the bottlebrush, are another one. I adore the blue flowers. I've had some luck with these but only for a couple of years before winter temps finish them off. If I ever get another I will put it in a pot and bring it in during the winter.

How far do you take it though. Grow everything in pots and then turn your house into a jungle for 3 or 4 months of the year? I think that's the only way to go with these softer plants.

 

I think that the issue is, as OP states,that plants are offered while in a "lush" state, having been grown/forced in temperate or tropical conditions and that the GC knows that their clientele will not venture out to view/buy while weather conditions are 'outdoor'. The plants need to be presented 'in bloom' to sell to an ill-informed public but the plants need acclimatisation to survive.
The example given of early bedding emphasises this; public will fight to get the tray that's full of bloom whereas an experienced gardener will remove blooms prior to transplanting so that the plant establishes before the demands of flowering .Also the bedding is often dosed with growth regulator to hold its condition, to extend shelf life. This may be recognised by a certain shade of green in foliage.

 

Don't get me going on them, lol. That Alan Titmarsh (not a keyboard slip!), produces these stunning gardens on his programme, and I mean stunning, I take my hat off to the guy, but they never seem to revisit these gardens years later.

I wager that those gardens, once all the television gear has been packed away and the work crew and presenters long gone, just fall into a complete state of disrepair.

It's all for television, all for show, not reality at all imo. I bet the GC's are doing a roaring trade on the back of that show.

 

As was mentioned before, a lot comes down to positioning. I grew Nerium oleander, Daphne bholua, Ceanothus and Trachelospermum in a sheltered corner of my Northants garden, formed by the house wall and a south-facing fence. The amount of sun (and it's strength) play a big part in ripening wood so it withstands frost.
Even here, though, I've lost quite a few Ceanothus that I blithely planted in unprotected borders. They don't seem to like cold winds and extremes of wet and dry.

 

Well I could show you some nurseries around here where they have plants outside and you see them there year in year out, weeds growing in the pots and half dead twigs.

That's the other end of the scale, they never sell much because its poorly presented.

I've never been a fan of shows like the Chelsea flower show, that has to be the biggest false kind of gardening ever invented.
But you have to present things properly if you want to sell something.

Regarding Callistemon (bottle brush), it can grow quite well on a wall and again its about finding the correct position and getting the right species.

Most types of Ceanothus is are pretty hardy, admittedly some are less so.
But again its down to the buyer to know what they are buying and if you think it doesn't stand a cat in hells chance of surviving in your garden, then dont buy it.