e news and lack of plants.

[Ernie]

I read with much interest the latest e news and in particular the reference to short supply of C&S at garden centres. I have noticed this during the last three months. Very little for sale in any of them locally and today I noticed a market trader had non. For quite a number of years he has brought in C&S (along with many other plants from Holland) a regular stockist of a very good range of C&S. I asked him why he had non and he replied 'costs'. He has even cut back a lot on imported garden plants and has been sourcing UK growers for them. Probably 75 % of what he had for sale today was UK grown and he had a lot. Sign of the times?
(A couple of weeks ago he for sale some very nice UK raised Aeoniums but that's all.)

[iann]

In contrast, I noticed a good selection of correctly-labelled cacti at one garden centre a couple of weeks ago. Lithops too, not named.

[MatDz]

In contrast, I noticed a good selection of correctly-labelled cacti at one garden centre a couple of weeks ago. Lithops too, not named.

Pugh's Cacti? One GC in London had a nice selection from them last year.

[ralphrmartin]

... short supply of C&S at garden centres...I noticed a market trader had none. For quite a number of years he has brought in C&S (along with many other plants from Holland) I asked him why ... and he replied 'costs'.

The flip side of this is the plant health regulations in the form of plant passports. I used to take a tray of spare C&S to my local garden centre for them to sell once in a while, but such plants now need passports for the garden centre to be able to take them, and the high costs of regular inspections are impractical for amateurs supplying small quantities. So that's another source of plants also no longer available to garden centres and traders.

[SimonT]

I bought my first cactus from a shop selling plants from a local grower- not plants readily available elsewhere.
It is a real shame if this sort of thing can no longer happen.

I hope we are seeing the end of plants just labelled 'cactus'.
I avoid buying these plants even if I know what they might possibly be [even then assuming they are not some sort of hybrid].
Bring back labelling at least to species level so that new cactus purchases can be easily looked up online.

[tonyironscacti]

Unfortunately since the end of February 2023, to import plants from the EU is harder & costlier to arrange.

They now require psyto. certificates & CITES certification [ as well as Plant Passport details ].

Even agents that used to facilitate the importing of C & S plants have ceased doing so, because of the documentation & costs.

Tony.