I'd be grateful for any advice regarding sources for this kind of stuff:
organic fertilisers
fleece/capilliary matting
fruit cages/ fruit cage netting
growlights/soil-warming cables/electric heaters.
walk-in growhouses.
irrigation equipment.
As it stands, I'm proposing to get nearly all of it from Kay's(www.kaysdiscountgarden.co.uk).
Iain.
Where best to buy.
Moderators: KG Steve, Chantal, Tigger, peter
Hi Iain,
I have had quite a lot of good stuff from Harrod Horticultural, and they seem quite efficient and reasonable in price. Their website is www.harrodhorticultural.com
Regards, Lyn
I have had quite a lot of good stuff from Harrod Horticultural, and they seem quite efficient and reasonable in price. Their website is www.harrodhorticultural.com
Regards, Lyn
I have yet to see anything in the Harrod Horticultural that cannot be bought cheaper elsewhere, and with one exception the same goes for Ferndale Lodge.
I don't think it makes sense to buy everything from one source. You have a really good way of getting bargains by shopping on the internet. For bulky, heavy objects have a look locally at first as carriage costs can sometimes be horrendous.
Some bargain shops carry snaplock-type hose accessories far cheaper than Hozelock/Gardena stuff and at a fraction of the price.
Online, for quite a lot of lines CMS gardening are quite reasonable, lots of different lines. I have bought quite a lot through them lately. In particular I have bought many Wolf system tools, not cheap but far more durable than most and the interchangeable handle system is good.
I don't think it makes sense to buy everything from one source. You have a really good way of getting bargains by shopping on the internet. For bulky, heavy objects have a look locally at first as carriage costs can sometimes be horrendous.
Some bargain shops carry snaplock-type hose accessories far cheaper than Hozelock/Gardena stuff and at a fraction of the price.
Online, for quite a lot of lines CMS gardening are quite reasonable, lots of different lines. I have bought quite a lot through them lately. In particular I have bought many Wolf system tools, not cheap but far more durable than most and the interchangeable handle system is good.
http://www.ahsdirect.co.uk aren't bad. I have used them before and been happy with my purchases.
Reine de la cocina
LBS at Cottontree near Colne, Lancashire, is a brill warehouse shop, very reasonable and they do have a comprehensive catalogue so that you can plan your purchases beforehand. I know most of you are too far away to visit them, but they do have a good website, too:
lbsgardendirect.co.uk
lbsgardendirect.co.uk
LBS have two profiles apart from the shop.
One is aimed at the home gardener, the other at the "grower". The prices for the gardener are about twice as much as the commercial grower pays but the carriage charge for less than £100 order is much less. The range of products is very similar for both. I have a trade identity so I use whatever gives the best price and service. My latest bill was over £300 including 2 polytunnel covers so free carriage. Many goods they sell can be bought much cheaper elsewhere but if you want a bulk supply it could be cheaper from them. Check elsewhere before you buy.Compost and chemicals definitely elsewhere.
One is aimed at the home gardener, the other at the "grower". The prices for the gardener are about twice as much as the commercial grower pays but the carriage charge for less than £100 order is much less. The range of products is very similar for both. I have a trade identity so I use whatever gives the best price and service. My latest bill was over £300 including 2 polytunnel covers so free carriage. Many goods they sell can be bought much cheaper elsewhere but if you want a bulk supply it could be cheaper from them. Check elsewhere before you buy.Compost and chemicals definitely elsewhere.
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Geoff
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I agree LBS are good for callers. I haven't checked their minimum order for free carriage but it used to be reasonable so I've used it for heavy rolls of tough windbreak and 8' bamboos.
I'd buy compost or fertiliser locally. I tried CPL distribution once but the stuff came in faded packs that I reckoned was old stock. I think compost would be a more appropriate use of clear sell by date labelling than some foods are. I'm sure old compost is a source of the variable results people report. Look out for offers particularly early and late season. The garden centre I use (Gordon Rigg at Todmorden, bet Monika goes there too, you must be my nearest forum neighbour) has a January sale with extra discount if you spend over £100 so I stock up then, often using tokens given for Christmas.
I haven't bought garden electricals for a while, would be interested to know of a good supplier as I think most like Two Wests look over priced.
I'd buy compost or fertiliser locally. I tried CPL distribution once but the stuff came in faded packs that I reckoned was old stock. I think compost would be a more appropriate use of clear sell by date labelling than some foods are. I'm sure old compost is a source of the variable results people report. Look out for offers particularly early and late season. The garden centre I use (Gordon Rigg at Todmorden, bet Monika goes there too, you must be my nearest forum neighbour) has a January sale with extra discount if you spend over £100 so I stock up then, often using tokens given for Christmas.
I haven't bought garden electricals for a while, would be interested to know of a good supplier as I think most like Two Wests look over priced.
I agree that Two Wests are over-priced in that it's all RRP, no bargains as such. Nevertheless I have been to them for their commercial staging which is very good and you can buy individual parts with no trouble e.g. where else can you buy aluminium sheet. I have also bought the Tropf Blumat irrigation system and Bayliss autovents, same price as anywhere else. They are another stockist of Molechaser, I have never found anyone who got positive results from those so my advice is don't buy. I presume you know that the business was sold on several years ago.
If anyone needs a sprayproof electrical box e.g for a distribution point in a greenhouse have a look at Maplin,Product L51 BR @ £19.95 +pp. new product just the job, I will be ordering today.Don't forget an RCD at the source.
Allan
If anyone needs a sprayproof electrical box e.g for a distribution point in a greenhouse have a look at Maplin,Product L51 BR @ £19.95 +pp. new product just the job, I will be ordering today.Don't forget an RCD at the source.
Allan
Thank you, folks, for your valuable help. In connection with fertilisers, I doubt if I could buy organics- e.g. rock potash, seaweed meal, seaweed liquid for foliar feeding, etc.- locally for anything like the prices from Kay's. Or am I mistaken about what I perceive to be the excellent prices in Kay's? I've looked at Twowests' commercial staging, Allan, and I agree that it looks the biz. Will buy that. Thanks. Their walk-in fruit cages are cheaper than say,Harrods, Knowle Nets, Henry Cowls, etc.,but I think they're probably of less sturdy build. Unless I'm mistaken, Kays' fleece (17g) is by far the best buy... on paper at any rate.
Is it the Scot in me that thinks that a list of KG Forum Members' Recommended Suppliers of this and that product would be a valuable resource? Or maybe that would not be in KG mag.'s best interests?
Iain.
Is it the Scot in me that thinks that a list of KG Forum Members' Recommended Suppliers of this and that product would be a valuable resource? Or maybe that would not be in KG mag.'s best interests?
Iain.
Hello Iain
I've got a TW fruit cage and have been very pleased with it. The alloy tube is good quality, light but strong and the whole thing was easy to put up. The joints are nylon and are simply knocked into the tubes with a wooden mallet for a very tight fit. Its a very versatile system as well. I got some extra bits and made a low cage to go over the strawberries. The tubes can be easily cut with a plumber's pipe cutter tool (don't try using a hacksaw as TW suggest) to any length.
Agree with Alan about TW commercial greenhouse benches - excellent.
John
I've got a TW fruit cage and have been very pleased with it. The alloy tube is good quality, light but strong and the whole thing was easy to put up. The joints are nylon and are simply knocked into the tubes with a wooden mallet for a very tight fit. Its a very versatile system as well. I got some extra bits and made a low cage to go over the strawberries. The tubes can be easily cut with a plumber's pipe cutter tool (don't try using a hacksaw as TW suggest) to any length.
Agree with Alan about TW commercial greenhouse benches - excellent.
John
The Gods do not subtract from the allotted span of men’s lives, the hours spent fishing Assyrian tablet
What we observe is not nature itself, but nature exposed to our method of questioning Werner Heisenberg
I am a man and the world is my urinal
What we observe is not nature itself, but nature exposed to our method of questioning Werner Heisenberg
I am a man and the world is my urinal
Thanks, John. What size is your cage, may I ask? Am I right in thinking that they supply internal uprights as well as the ones on the periphery? Did you get your netting from them too? When you pull your netting to stretch it taught (-ish) is there no problem with the uprights bending?
Iain.
Iain.
Hello again Iain
The cage is 18' x 24'. With TW, the whole cage is built as a 6' x 6' grid from 7' uprights (1' pushed into ground) and 6' cross tubes. They supply a door as well. I did use their netting at first which comes on a roll 6'6" wide. This is fine round the sides but is fiddly to fit on the roof. I now use a single net to go over the whole roof in one go - got it from local garden centre - DW and I can fit this in a few minutes.
Never any problems with the uprights bending - they're pretty strong.
Remember that you must take the netting off at the end of the season - a heavy fall of snow with the netting still in place will bring everything crashing down but this is the same with any cage.
Hope this helps.
John
The cage is 18' x 24'. With TW, the whole cage is built as a 6' x 6' grid from 7' uprights (1' pushed into ground) and 6' cross tubes. They supply a door as well. I did use their netting at first which comes on a roll 6'6" wide. This is fine round the sides but is fiddly to fit on the roof. I now use a single net to go over the whole roof in one go - got it from local garden centre - DW and I can fit this in a few minutes.
Never any problems with the uprights bending - they're pretty strong.
Remember that you must take the netting off at the end of the season - a heavy fall of snow with the netting still in place will bring everything crashing down but this is the same with any cage.
Hope this helps.
John
The Gods do not subtract from the allotted span of men’s lives, the hours spent fishing Assyrian tablet
What we observe is not nature itself, but nature exposed to our method of questioning Werner Heisenberg
I am a man and the world is my urinal
What we observe is not nature itself, but nature exposed to our method of questioning Werner Heisenberg
I am a man and the world is my urinal
I spent a lot of money extending a fruit cage system. It got left up in the winter while defending brassicas from pigeons, result was a tangled mess. My thinking now is to convert one of my movable polytunnel structures by covering it with anti-bird netting. It can serve for brassicas in winter, strawberries in summer. maybe also move my jostaberries and other bush fruit into it. A hoop structure is far more stable than just horizontals and verticals.
Allan
Allan
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Geoff
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I built mine out of "tanalised" wood. Did half the height with tough windbreak netting - the sort that is like a sheet of plastic with oval holes - the top half with small mesh chicken wire. The roof is a criss-cross of wires supporting very large mesh chicken wire with standard fruit cage netting over that. Supported any snow fall we've had in the last 3 years.