This week the Horticultural Trades Association revealed that a third of UK growers will be out of business before the end of the year. If you are a keen gardener you can do your bit by aiming to buy plants locally.
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Since lockdown, buying local has become a bigger struggle. Many of us, unaware of local growers that are now offering home deliveries, have turned to large online retailers to fill our plant pots. To help solve this the HTA has created a page to help connect local growers to the public.
In addition to our noble goals of supporting local business, it is a great way of tracking down plants online to fill your garden quickly.
How to buy plants locally
The 'Plants Near Me' webpage features almost 450 local growers and garden centres that are offering home delivery. Simply pop in your postcode and how far away your willing to buy your plants from and you'll be provided with a list of stockists in your area.
Plants have seen a huge rise in demand. We've never know a spring when getting hold off a few pots of perennials was a bigger challenge than just keeping them alive. Many major retailers have either sold out or are warning of delayed deliveries, all the more reason to shop local.
'Following on from the media coverage of the plight of growers and garden retailers it has been encouraging to hear the messages of support from the general public,' says HTA president, Boyd Douglas-Davies.
'There is pent up demand for plants, and the launch of 'Plants Near Me' provides some way of enabling the gardening public to access plants available to them from local suppliers.
'Whilst this initiative helps in the short them with getting plants to people, it is vitally important that garden centres reopen as soon as lockdown restrictions ease,' he adds. 'To support the British horticulture sector and to get people gardening at this unprecedented time.'
Unfortunately, the lockdown has hit at a critical time for many growers. March to June is usually when growers take in the majority of their income.
Even with the online sale, many growers, that lack the infrastructure to keep up with home deliveries, will continue to suffer losses until garden centres are reopened.
If you can't find a local grower to buy from, you can also help support UK growers by purchasing a plant bundle from SmartPlant's website.
Related: No garden? No problem, here's how to grow your own veg on a windowsill or balcony
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