Buying online?

[DoNotDisturb]

I'm looking to start growing fruit and veg this year. I really want to grow things we eat/are expensive in the shops and therefore would love raspberries, blueberries,plums, etc.. Courgettes, broccoli ..

Anyway do people buy plants and seeds online or do you need to find a good nursery? Any suggestions for websites would be gratefully received as I just googled raspberry canes and a gazillion websites came up...

Mainly buy from suttons online but I only buy rarer/more unusual plants/seeds online.
Most of our plants come from the local market

raspberry canes cheapest when bought bare root in the winter months. I would suggest you get them quickly before bare root season is over and get them from a good supplier. Prepare your site before you place your order as they should be planted as soon as they arrive (roots must not dry out). You need to decide when you want to harvest your raspberries as there are summer and autumn fruiting varieties. Both need support systems although some books say the autumn fruiting ones don't.

blueberries can be gown in a pot on a patio.

plum trees will take some research as to the varieties you prefer and the size of plot you have available.

I get most of my fruit trees and a fair amount of seeds from Marshalls in Cambs, Ken Muir are also very good.

Most veg can be grown from seed, you can get seed packets from Wilkinsons or any supermarket. You can also buy young plants from nurseries and even B&Q.

It all depends on the space you have available, I tend to recommend peas and French beans as the flavour of homegrown is markedly different and French beans are often airfreighted.

Good luck.

Wow thanks for the responses guys

I order seeds from Chiltern Seeds, and bought my bareroot roses and blackcurrant and gooseberry bushes from Ashridge Trees. Can't yet vouch for the latter as it's still early, but the delivery was very efficient.

For a really good fruit tree service (picky about root stocks/varieties) then I would use:

www.chrisbowers.co.uk/
www.deaconsnurseryfruits.co.uk/

I have used both and been pleased with the service and quality of the trees.

For quantity rather than quality I use:

www.jparkers.co.uk/

For quality rather quantity I use:

www.thompson-morgan.com/

For good quality garden tools, cheap seeds, cheap sundries like seed trays, labels etc then I go to Wilkinsons.

Happy gardening!

Hi,

I have just bought raspberry canes online from Pomona fruits, bought 3 different summer fruiting varieties to provide fruits in succession, ave planted canes but so far quite happy with their service, good sturdy canes with lots of roots!

Ken muir online v good

Can also highly recommend Peter Nyssen online for flowers/bulbs, great quality, fantastic results, I think they're quite well priced too.

Last growing season I was a bit peeved with Thompson and Morgan, as Gnome said, buy for quality rather that quantity, but, I found them a bit stingy with the amount of seeds in the packets, eg I think the sweetcorn packet said have 36 seeds, or something like that, and it contained 22, etc. This year I'm growing seeds from everyone. Often the allotment magazines (Grow your Own, Kitchen Gardener) come with free seeds and I really learn loads from the mags. Had fantastic success last year with runner bean 'white lady' (white flowers). Thompson Morgan will drown you in junk mail though!

Plants from local market, eg leeks and cabbage-family, seriously, how many brussels does one need to grow? You just need 2 plants, more than enough for the Christmas table ;-)

Poundshop or aldi/lidl with their weekly deals for labels, twine, fleece, netting, etc.

Wow thanks. I'm still procrastinating over what to buy. But thanks for all the advice

I prefer going down to nursery and select the plant or seed I need?But had used thompson-morgan few times.