Project Piggy-Goes-To-Market was launched at early o’clock on Saturday morning. The plants were pristine, the wind was blowy and I was one breakfast away from being a fully functional human being. Plantedd is an online marketplace, but we decided recently to branch out into doing plant boxes as well so that’s why I found myself setting up stall at a real-life market.
The farmers’ market takes place from 10am-2pm at Mansfield Park in Glasgow’s West End, every 2nd and 4th Saturday of the month. We’ll also be at the farmers’ market at Queen’s Park on the 1st and 3rd Saturday of the month – so that’s this coming Saturday. (On a sidenote, somebody please rewrite Jane Austen’s Mansfield Park and set it in the one in Glasgow. Please.)
It’s always interesting when you unleash an idea into the wild when it’s been brewing in your head. I came up with plant boxes after the Chelsea Flower Show because a lot of people I spoke to weren’t sure what plants would grow well in their garden. I’m hoping that the plant boxes take the guess work out of choosing plants. As the blackboard says, it’s your own garden designer in a box. I was looking forward to seeing the reaction to them.
Happily, the plant boxes got a good reception at the farmers’ market. Some people had new borders that they wanted a little bit of help with to give the planting a boost and get them started, others didn’t know what to plant underneath their tree and there was one lovely woman who didn’t have a garden, but she liked the idea so much she was going to tell all her garden-ful friends about it! (Hello there, if any of you are reading this…)
There was a little raincloud moving in on all this sunshine though. A sour-faced woman shuffled over to inspect the display and seemed to begrudgingly approve of what she saw. Then she got to the crocosmias. “Oh. I have these. Mine are much bigger.” And with that, she smirked and let out a small half-laugh. Now, what I had brought along was Crocosmia pottsii ‘Culzean Pink’ and it turns out that she was growing C. ‘Lucifer’. I wonder if she goes up to people walking their Labradors and tell them that her Great Dane is much bigger. Of course it’s bigger. I just smiled and nodded at her as she moved on to her next hapless victim.
The Soor Ploom aside, everybody was lovely and after being fed some cake and coffee (thanks Lewis!) I was on my way again. Slowly but surely, the message is getting through that there’s a difference between a nursery and a garden centre, and that it’s becoming more important to buy plants from independent nurseries because garden centres are becoming more and more like supermarkets.
We’re starting off with local deliveries in Glasgow. Then we’ll move on to Edinburgh. If you’re interested, you can get in touch on 0141 280 7222 or email. We’re also working away behind the scenes to make plant boxes available by post, UK-wide. Watch this space!
