Where is everyone getting their bedding plants from this year?

Cottage_Economy

For the first time in living history I am ahead of the weeding and pruning and my flower beds have areas that would look good with some bedding plants. I don't believe this has ever happened to me before - normally I have a couple of pots of colour in strategic places to take the eye of the horrendous weedy mess beyond - so am feeling a bit out of my depth with the thought of buying enough plants for a large colourful display. I already have plenty of bulbs coming up but once they fade the beds will look a bit dull. 

I'm trying to decide whether to take a chance and go to mail order companies to get them delivered 'sometime' (I've been caught out in the past with teeny tiny plants that turn up months later and just never get going) or go for a look round the local supermarkets and see if I can bag a few colourful bargains. Or try something from seed? 

Does anyone here do larger colourful bedding displays and if so what do you do? Any recommendations on where to shop?

Farway

I'd try the seed route first, for easy & affordable impact, but it will depend on your flower preferences, are you a neat bedding type, all in rows or the broad swathes of mixed flowers?

For the latter, then seed is ideal, annuals of your choice

For smaller plants I would go for supermarkets / garden centres, mail order unless of some specialised subjects has been hit & miss for me, like you and many others

In the past, my local Asda has been good, just have to find the right day to get the freshly delivered ones.

Lidl for me, likewise, can be good but needs the right day

Morrisons was good but has gone badly downhill since take over, no idea what this year will bring

Always B & Q if you can spare a week in the queue

Cottage_Economy

Probably neat flowers, as they'll be right at the front of the border.

I had noticed Morry's decline. Thanks for tip about picking my days with certain shops. I'll pop into town in the next few days and find out what days the new stuff comes in. 

So my favourites are forget-me-nots, primulas, primroses, pansies, bellis, and dwarf cosmos (although even dwarf I think they grow a bit too big for front of bed/border. I like them tall and near the back). 

I like marigolds but so do the slugs so I don't bother growing. I used to put down growing success advanced slug pellets but a family of blackbirds developed a taste for them and ate them all every time I put them down so I don't bother now.  I also like petunias but only the really lovely trailing ones, and for some reason I just can't get them to grow on to anything approximating a trail. They just sit and sulk.

I'm doing a big geranium pot display on the patio this year so I won't put them in the flower beds. 

I dislike bedding begonias. I don't like the colour of the foliage or the way the flowers go brown and slimy.

twopenny

I think you have to look around and judge the weather or somewhere to keep them.
True the best is the supermarkets if you can find out their first days of arrival. Usually only to happy to tell you.

I don't do displays but my neighbour does. She maybe housebound but she gets the info on who has what where to get the best plants and her tubs are stunning spring and summer.
It's annoying for my garden to be outdone every year.

Cottage_Economy

twopenny said:

I think you have to look around and judge the weather or somewhere to keep them.
True the best is the supermarkets if you can find out their first days of arrival. Usually only to happy to tell you.

I don't do displays but my neighbour does. She maybe housebound but she gets the info on who has what where to get the best plants and her tubs are stunning spring and summer.
It's annoying for my garden to be outdone every year.

  

Has she ever shared her source of intel? 

My neighbour has a gardener but on the rare occasions I ask about plants they immediately jump in and offer to buy them for me from a local nursery and I reimburse them. I sense that will not be moneysaving.

Farway

twopenny said:

I think you have to look around and judge the weather or somewhere to keep them.
True the best is the supermarkets if you can find out their first days of arrival. Usually only to happy to tell you.

I don't do displays but my neighbour does. She maybe housebound but she gets the info on who has what where to get the best plants and her tubs are stunning spring and summer.
It's annoying for my garden to be outdone every year.

One year I bought, mail order, ready selected plants & a planting plan for tubs and I have to say it worked out a treat but came at a cost of course

Not advocating this, but I was working then & it saved time if not money. For a small display, it could be worth considering, especially if some unusual plants are in the mix.

I have seen pre sown circles for similar use but not tried those because I've never had any luck with pre sown stuff like tape or pads

KxMx

I've had good and bad experiences with ordering online, I really do prefer now to buy in person which is usually the SM or somewhere like The Range/Home Bargains.
That way I can judge that the quality is good, and the plants are robust enough for my purpose, I like to get plants that are very very ready to go out into the garden.

I got some jumbo primroses from Tesco recently that were almost in flower so they've gone into the pots by my front door. Hoping they'll last a few months until I am looking to get summer bedding in.

KajiKita

I appreciate that I am very lucky, but I have a small, family run plant nursery near me. If you find a good one these are absolute godsends! They close in the winter months so i am hanging on by my finger tips for the 1st March to see what stock they have in ....  Next Wednesday is highly likely NOT to be an NSD day!!  

KK  

Cottage_Economy

KajiKita said:

I appreciate that I am very lucky, but I have a small, family run plant nursery near me. If you find a good one these are absolute godsends! They close in the winter months so i am hanging on by my finger tips for the 1st March to see what stock they have in ....  Next Wednesday is highly likely NOT to be an NSD day!!  

KK  

 

I'm going out tomorrow to see what plants our local supermarkets have. We also have a plant factory shop which often has bargains but it's very hit and miss as to what they will have at any given time. I think they buy their stuff from auctions. I've picked up some bargains which judging from the trolley labels were rejections from supermarkets due to being, for example, the wrong colour or late delivery.

Cottage_Economy

Farway said:

One year I bought, mail order, ready selected plants & a planting plan for tubs and I have to say it worked out a treat but came at a cost of course

Not advocating this, but I was working then & it saved time if not money. For a small display, it could be worth considering, especially if some unusual plants are in the mix.

I have seen pre sown circles for similar use but not tried those because I've never had any luck with pre sown stuff like tape or pads

That's an interesting idea. I always see the tubs of spring plants in the shops but they always seem expensive, and when I have bought them they seem to fade quickly. 

Like you I've never had any success with pre-sown tapes of anything. 

KxMx said:

I've had good and bad experiences with ordering online, I really do prefer now to buy in person which is usually the SM or somewhere like The Range/Home Bargains.
That way I can judge that the quality is good, and the plants are robust enough for my purpose, I like to get plants that are very very ready to go out into the garden.

I got some jumbo primroses from Tesco recently that were almost in flower so they've gone into the pots by my front door. Hoping they'll last a few months until I am looking to get summer bedding in.

I'm obviously doing something wrong because the plants I've bought in the past last a couple of weeks, not months, which has often put me off buying them. 

Farway

Cottage_Economy said:

Farway said:

One year I bought, mail order, ready selected plants & a planting plan for tubs and I have to say it worked out a treat but came at a cost of course

Not advocating this, but I was working then & it saved time if not money. For a small display, it could be worth considering, especially if some unusual plants are in the mix.

I have seen pre sown circles for similar use but not tried those because I've never had any luck with pre sown stuff like tape or pads

That's an interesting idea. I always see the tubs of spring plants in the shops but they always seem expensive, and when I have bought them they seem to fade quickly. 

Like you I've never had any success with pre-sown tapes of anything. 

KxMx said:

I've had good and bad experiences with ordering online, I really do prefer now to buy in person which is usually the SM or somewhere like The Range/Home Bargains.
That way I can judge that the quality is good, and the plants are robust enough for my purpose, I like to get plants that are very very ready to go out into the garden.

I got some jumbo primroses from Tesco recently that were almost in flower so they've gone into the pots by my front door. Hoping they'll last a few months until I am looking to get summer bedding in.

I'm obviously doing something wrong because the plants I've bought in the past last a couple of weeks, not months, which has often put me off buying them. 

Maybe your problem is buying at the "wrong time"? That is buying late. The stuff in flower in the shops is just for impulse buy, die & then come back & buy some more, rinse & repeat, not to mention the unsuitability of season at time of sale

That is one advantage of buying plants you can see, avoiding the ones in flower, get the ones with a promise and small closed buds