You could call it cheating – buying baby plants from nurseries. Purists may shudder, insisting you grow from seed. But here at City Leaf, we’re big fans.

Buying plug plants can be a real help, especially for beginner gardeners. They let you skip the tricky bit of germinating then raising a healthy plant. What’s more, they can work out very cheap. Which? Gardening magasine estimates that they can costs as little as 9p per plant (December, 2008).

So, how to do it? Here’s our top tips:

• Scout around. Plenty of mail orders companies sell plug plants. They raise them in their thousands in greenhouses or polytunnels, then post them in various forms of packaging – either wrapped carefully in plastic bags or specially designed boxes. Garden centres also buy them in, but they are often larger plants and more expensive.
• When you receive your plants, take them out of their bags straight away. Plants don’t like the journey, and will need a breath of fresh air, a spot of water and light
• Plant them out asap. If they are going outdoors, the first stage is to harden them off – give them a week or so on the windowsill or cold frame to acclimatise them.

 
Try these companies:

Plant Connection
Thompson and Morgan
Delfland

 © City Leaf Ltd