Garden centre plants - pre-treated?

Novaman

Hi all, I wonder if any of you have any thoughts on this. I was looking through a very good and well stocked garden centre today, with lots of beautiful, small and recently cultivated summer flowering plants on offer.

They looked in perfect order, no blemishes, spots damage, signs of disease, they couldn't have looked any better for this time of year. My question is are all of these plants pre treated with pesticides, fungicides etc. before being put on sale from the nurseries they came from? Some were sourced from the UK, but certainly not all.

They just looked too good especially for this time of year.

looksee

Well, yes, they would have been reared under shelter and treated with insecticides and pesticides. My feeling would be that anything that is supposed to be summer flowering and looks lush and green at this time of year is likely to be too tender to plant out at the moment, even if it is supposed to be hardy. Are you talking about plug plants? If you are, and you have a greenhouse you would probably be ok to buy them and grow them on, otherwise I would wait till after the winter. I would not expect plug plants to be anything less than perfect, that is why you are buying them rather than growing from seed.

Novaman

Hi Looksee, yes. you could call them plug plants as they are all in small 8cm pots. They were all labelled 'great for bees' but I suspect that they are not as the pesticides (neonicotinoids) used to treat them have now been banned by the EU for 2 years.

They just look too perfect and it's not even January. I think i'll do the bees a favour and not buy them

NM.

Sonnenblumen

They could be imported plants sourced through a local Nursery.

What plants were they as many Bee friendly plants (Herbaceous Perennials) would be showing little if anything at this time of year, which might also indicate the plants origin?

looksee

Novaman wrote: »

Hi Looksee, yes. you could call them plug plants as they are all in small 8cm pots. They were all labelled 'great for bees' but I suspect that they are not as the pesticides (neonicotinoids) used to treat them have now been banned by the EU for 2 years.

They just look too perfect and it's not even January. I think i'll do the bees a favour and not buy them

NM.

I would not be buying anything other than hardy shrubs and trees at this time of year, so I agree about not buying summer flowering plants with new growth.

However I wonder how you are so certain that they have been treated with neonicotinoids? And they have not been banned by the EU for two years, the ban has only just come into force. I totally agree these insecticides should be banned, but I do not see the connection between out of season plants and insecticides.

Novaman

Hi folks, I purchased an apricot foxglove, sidalacea ( already starting to flower!) some lupins at 4-6 inches high and all very healthy looking. I might email the supplier who is irish based to find out more info regarding pre treatment.

I had thought it standard practice to pre treat new plants before sale ? maybe I'm wrong as any retailer would not like to lose any of their purchases. At least the temporary ban for 2 years should help our bees - but yet to be proven, we shall see.