Disappearing Nurseries

[David Nicholson]

I thought we had a similar thread somewhere on the Forum but can't find it, so Maggi if there is a thread already please do merge this.

Nurseries come and go (mainly "go" these days) and it's hard to keep up so I thought a thread might be helpul.

White Cottage Alpines in East Yorkshire: Web Site says is no longer trading.

[Graham Catlow]

Hi David,
Is this the Mendle Nursery you were looking for?
http://mendlenursery.co.uk/index.html

Graham

[David Nicholson]

Yes Graham that's the one. The Link I had in my Favourites must have broken for some reason. I'll delete my reference in my original post. So it is a useful thread then

[Graham Catlow]

I have had good service and good plants from Mendle. I'm quite pleased they are still around.

[Maggi Young]

I don't think there was a whole thread David, so this one may be useful.

 I have amended the URL in the links pages for Mendle and removed that for White Cottage.
Thanks.

[Lesley Cox]

Maybe we need a thread about disappearing threads too?

[Maggi Young]

Maybe we need a thread about disappearing threads too?

I think we had one of those..... but we lost it...........

[annew]

 

[mark smyth]

Maybe some would like to relocate here where we have only a herbaceous nursery and an alpine/small plant nursery. One or two going missing from England is nothing. If we lose two we have nothing. This is why when nurseries come to our shows they go home loaded and little to carry and why we love going to England/Scotland/Wales. WE dont want Aberconwy twice a year - sorry Tim and Keith - we want Edrom and or Kevock for a change!

Do I sound angry?

[Maggi Young]

But could  those nurseries cope with the time and effort needed to make the trip across to the Ulster show?

There are not exactly a stream of them wanting to travel up to Aberdeen, that's for sure.

[mark smyth]

You're probably correct

[Neil]

Mark the future is the internet, you can then get plants from whom ever you want.  And I am sorry to say that if the nurseries to not have a web presence, then the way things are going, eventually you will see them go out of business

[Tim Ingram]

I've wondered about this for some time having run a small nursery and garden for many years. It is certainly hard work and a lot depends on stimulating the (local) interest in unusual and special plants. For a small scale enterprise mail order can be immensely time consuming and frustrating - for a real specialist it is probably easier. When we started our nursery in the 1980's there did seem to be a burgeoning interest in more unusual plants, and a lot of enthusiasm around. I hope a new group of growers may be stimulated now there has been such a decline in small specialist nurseries, partly because it is an intensely satisfying occupation and also because it is often those individuals who run nurseries who inspire the local horticultural community. I am not so convinced by the domination of the internet which doesn't necessarily encourage close links between growers and gardeners though it is a wonderful way to acquire information.

Ireland is very interesting because from the few times I visited it has a tremendous gardening tradition and really close links amongst gardeners both south and north. For us in the UK it is a great place to find new plants, or plants no longer in cultivation in the UK. The same must be even more true vice versa! A nurseryman I met near Cork, Neil Williams, used to travel widely through the UK finding new plants to take home and propagate, and there must be similar opportunities now.

Small nurseries are often by far the most interesting and the way to encourage them is to encourage more interesting and thoughtful gardening in general.

[SusanS]

Small nurseries are often by far the most interesting and the way to encourage them is to encourage more interesting and thoughtful gardening in general.

This is true. Whilst large nurseries and chain store garden centers have there place and can provide an excellent service, (and a slice of cake with a cuppa    ), there is often little variation within the  type / variety of plants they sell.  We are lucky that there are still a good selection of independent nurseries close to where Darren and I live.  We are able to pick up the old favourites which have gone out of fashion as well as a good selection of unusual varieties.

Unfortunately smaller nurseries / garden centers often lose general trade to the larger garden centers for the sake of a tea room .......

[Will Itsell]

Unfortunately smaller nurseries / garden centers often lose general trade to the larger garden centers for the sake of a tea room .......

This is so true. A trade acquaintance of mine moved from a small, local garden centre to a large, new build centre with a cafe/restaurant.  Now, most of his time is spent dealing with the cafe (it has most of the staff).   He has now hired a buyer to source plants and as a consequence, we no longer supply him.

I don't know the current figure, but a few years ago most large centres only made about a quarter of their turnover from plant sales.  I wouldn't be surprised if it is lower now.    Anyone for pet food? Scented candles?  The bare truth is that hardly any garden centre could survive on plant sales alone.  Horticulture, like ever other industry in the UK, is increasingly dominated by the big players and plants to them are just another commodity.  Some of my customers don't care a jot about what they sell as long as they can make a pound from it.  Perhaps as a consequence of this their margins on plants are, in my cynical view, ever-increasing because they expect the same margin from everything they sell.  I can wholesale a plant for £1.40 and it retails in some centres for £4.95.  That is outrageous.  Who'd be a grower?

Will