Buying plug plants

[rary]

A friend came up to me today and noted that I had packets of seeds in my hand, she first asked me when I would be sowing them, the went on to say as she hasn't got a greenhouse, or the time she never sows seeds, she just buys packs of plants as she is not that good a gardener, it was a surprise to her when I told her I buy plug plants also, her reaction to being told that made me wonder if people are discouraged from gardening because the feel they are not that good as they have to buy plants or if they consider it cheating gardening that way. Now I buy plug plants as some times it is more economical to do so, or to give me an earlier start than I would have waiting for ambient temperatures to reach the appropriate requirements, or simply to save space, do you think it would encourage people to do more gardening if they knew that "gardeners" buy plug plats as well?

[veggiechicken]

There's nothing wrong with buying plugs. I've bought a few myself - especially begonias.

There's a book called "The Half hour Allotment" - that's half hour a day (not a week).

One of the main timesavers is buying plug plants:-

One of the easiest ways to reduce your workload is to buy vegetable plants. Most allotmenters don't have the facilities to produce really good seedlings and spend hours shifting hundreds of pots from windowsill to garden, which risks forgetting them just once and losing all to a late frost or letting them get drawn and leggy from being inside too long. Some nurseries supply beautifully grown plants for planting out: there's no shame in leaving it to the experts

[burnie]

I didn't know plugs grew on plants, I get mine from the electrical store...……………………………….exits stage right...……………..

[Chestnut]

I also don’t have the time or patience to mollycoddle seedlings so I tend not to bother with shifting trays of seedlings in and out every day. Just wait til forecast is mild for a few days then move everything at once. GH to sheltered spot on top of bins, or windowsill to GH.
Most seem to survive

Although I prefer growing from seed - little seedlings popping their heads up never fails to make me smile - I do still buy some stuff as plug plants. Stuff like hot chillies where I may only want one plant every third year, that I have failed to grow from seeds or cuttings, or forgotten/not had time to sow because other aspects of life had to take priority.

[SarrissUK]

I do buy plug plants, but usually that's of herbs that I find difficult to grow from seed. No shame in that what so ever. I don't know why, but I do feel a little guilt in doing that, but I figure plug plants need a home too!

[Bren In Pots]

I do buy plug plants, but usually that's of herbs that I find difficult to grow from seed.

I'm the same, I don't grow on a large scale so to me sowing from seed is part of my little hobby.

[Small pumpkin]

There's nothing wrong with buying in plug plants. It makes you no less of a gardener. You still have to nurture them into a crop producing plant. In fact in a lot of cases it probably makes you a better gardener. I've had to give the kiss of life to many a carp plug plant that has been abused during the packing and delivery ( when I got paid to do other people's gardening). Personally I don't buy veg plug plants. I find growing from seed no more time consuming that reviving half dead plugs, and it's cheaper. I can hear several of you saying you've brought flower plugs. Yes for 2 reasons. 1 they were for a customer, 2 I don't really care about flowers .
No one should feel guilty about buying plug plants. It's all part of the many different styles and techniques of gardening. And we all know we all garden very differently

[4Shoes]

Part of the problem is that in some plants are available weeks in advance of when they should be planted, (grown for a more southerly environment) and not knowing any better, they are planted 1st weekend and they don't do well.

So in these cases If you are going to have to keep your plugs for 2 or 3 weeks, you might as well grow them from seed and enjoy the experience.

[Snoop Puss]

Where I am, it's extremely cold very late in the spring and then suddenly very hot in the daytime just a few weeks later. I've tried growing everything from seed, but the window of opportunity is so short that I've given up and now concentrate on just a few varieties. That means I buy a lot of plug plants for cabbages, onions, peppers and aubergines, even lettuce at certain times of year.

I used to feel like it was cheating, but now I've done it for a few years, I just regard it as practical. Almost everyone here buys plug plants, so I've never been made to feel guilty or inadequate in any way by the locals. If anything, some of them think I'm a bit daft growing things like courgette and melons from seed. They'd be shocked to think that anyone might consider them not proper gardeners because they buy plug plants. After all, many of them provide for their huge extended families, the old people's home and anyone they happen to meet on the street when they've got a bag or box full of more green beans and lettuce than they know what to do with.

[Penellype]

I buy quite a few plug plants - certainly all of the half hardy bedding plants, which I simply don't have space to raise indoors. I also buy things I find difficult to grow, for example cauliflowers and sweet potatoes. Absolutely no shame in buying things, especially if you don't have the space or the time to deal with loads of seedlings.

Which reminds me - I mustn't forget to pot up the lettuce seedlings...

[Greenleaves]

I buy plugs too, especially Aalsmeer cauliflower in August

[Greenleaves]

Opps closed by mistake....fat finger syndrome

[SarrissUK]

I do think there's some snobbery in gardening though, but not at all on this forum may I add. Often it's those that have heard how things 'are supposed to be done' and know little else that are stubborn and look down on people that don't do it that way.

I've had a few funny looks up at the allotment when I say I'm doing no dig gardening, and I can see that they assume I'm lazy, and that it will never work. And it might not, but it's my way of gardening. Others have been incredibly supportive and want to know more or do it that way themselves.

Either way, however others do it, I appreciate when respect is shown to each others' way of gardening and growing veg, and I absolutely do the same. I think the more knowledge you have, the better

[rary]

There's nothing wrong with buying in plug plants. It makes you no less of a gardener. You still have to nurture them into a crop producing plant.
No one should feel guilty about buying plug plants. It's all part of the many different styles and techniques of gardening. And we all know we all garden very differently

That's the point I am trying to make young or inexperienced gardeners may feel guilty that they don't always grow from seed

[veggiechicken]

That's the point I am trying to make young gardeners may feel guilty that they don't always grow from seed

and that's why you don't feel guilty, rary