‘Cheap plants are like cheap food, you get what you pay for’: meet the new generation of independent nursery owners

Local, smaller shops are under threat from garden centres. But these visionary growers are fighting the big chains from the ground upSix years ago, the Royal Horticultural Society drew attention to the escalating challenges faced by independent plant nurseries. Citing pressures such as an ageing customer base, fewer skilled workers and the arrival of new pests and diseases, the gardening charity warned that nurseries – the “lifeblood of gardening in the UK” – were becoming increasingly uncommon.Since then, and as a result of the cost of living crisis, there have been yet further closures – with small nurseries struggling to compete with commercial garden centres that often import cheaper plant stock from continental suppliers. Closures include family rose specialist Cants of Colchester, lavender grower Downderry, and Marchants Hardy Plants in Sussex, a much-loved grower of herbaceous perennials and grasses. Continue reading...

Apr 11, 2025 - 11:43

‘Cheap plants are like cheap food, you get what you pay for’: meet the new generation of independent nursery owners

Local, smaller shops are under threat from garden centres. But these visionary growers are fighting the big chains from the ground up

Six years ago, the Royal Horticultural Society drew attention to the escalating challenges faced by independent plant nurseries. Citing pressures such as an ageing customer base, fewer skilled workers and the arrival of new pests and diseases, the gardening charity warned that nurseries – the “lifeblood of gardening in the UK” – were becoming increasingly uncommon.

Since then, and as a result of the cost of living crisis, there have been yet further closures – with small nurseries struggling to compete with commercial garden centres that often import cheaper plant stock from continental suppliers. Closures include family rose specialist Cants of Colchester, lavender grower Downderry, and Marchants Hardy Plants in Sussex, a much-loved grower of herbaceous perennials and grasses. Continue reading...