The Nitty Gritty

Hi guys!

We just want to highlight a couple of things below relating to our plants, what our guarantee is and what to do if you experience issues, have plants that fail or struggle to grow, or just have any questions at all that we can help you out with. Please take a few minutes to read below.

Unless described as evergreen or semi-evergreen, it can be assumed that the plant will naturally die back with the frost and go dormant for the winter/spring months. This is very normal in the plants seasonal growing process, so please do not worry that your plant has died. If no growth resumes by late spring the following year, please get in touch and we will see what we can do.

We offer a guarantee on all our plants for one growing season – so if a plant is bought in early spring, mid-summer, or late autumn, it is guaranteed until November/December of that same year, when it will likely then die back into its winter dormancy. If a plant successfully completes one growing season, it can be assumed that the plant is healthy and in good condition when received by the customer.

Should the plant fail to successfully grow back the following year, this may be due to a number of factors, including but not limited to:

-         it may have been a particularly wet winter, where soils become waterlogged and so caused the plant to die due to root rot (majority of plants require well-draining soil year-round).

-         it may have been a particularly cold winter/spring, with temperatures dropping to significant minus temperatures, for a number of consecutive days, and the plant was not hardy enough to survive these temperatures.

-        It may have been a particularly dry winter, and plants, even though they are dormant, may have not been given sufficient water (however, this is a more unlikely scenario).

In any case of the above, we cannot be held responsible as these are down to natural weather-related factors that are out of our control. We aim to give as much detail in our plant descriptions as possible, so our customers understand the necessary conditions for each plant to grow and survive well from year to year. If an area of your garden is particularly wet, for example, we advise you choose suitable plants from our ‘Stuck in the Trenches’ or ‘Puddle or Nothin’’ plant categories, which include plants suitable for wet, boggy soils. Similarly, if your area is particularly shaded, or particularly hot and dry in full sun, you should select plants relative to these growing conditions (e.g. ‘Why so Shady?’ and ‘Sunny Side Up’ categories, respectively). If you select the wrong plant choice for your particular garden area, we cannot be held responsible for the plant not thriving or not surviving.

If you notice a deterioration in any of the plants you receive that are healthy on arrival, please take photos and send them to us as soon as possible, so we can assess what the problem may be and advise on a remedy. Usually, the signs of drought and desiccation are quite obvious in a plant, so if we suspect it is the case that the plant was not watered sufficiently, we will advise on that but may not be responsible for sending replacement plant/s, as it is the customers responsibility to monitor these factors carefully.

However, as we like to maintain the best customer service that we can, and maintain a good relationship with our customers, we will assess everything on a case-by-case basis, and will see what we can do regarding replacements in each situation. Should you have any questions about selecting the right plants, caring for your plants, or any concerns about the condition of your plants as they are growing in your garden, we are always here to help on the phone or by email or social media messaging. If you notice your plants are affected by pests or diseases, please send us photos and we will assess the damage and advise on a suitable remedy. We are of course always happy to chat and advise, and welcome any questions you may have.

Perennial plants are extremely versatile, and the vast majority of them are tough as nails. If you happen to go away for a week, or just simply forget to water, and you come back to find your poor plant/s withered and shrivelled, usually they tend to perk up again after a good watering or three. If this doesn’t work, you can usually cut them back (but please do check with us beforehand) and new, fresh growth should come on within a few weeks, just like a haircut! Sometimes all that’s needed is a little TLC, time and patience.

If you've made it this far, we want to thank you all for reading and for your understanding on the above. We hope you know that all of your help and support is greatly appreciated by the Smarty Plants family, and we will do whatever we can to make sure you guys have nothing short of a great experience with all of your plant queries and purchases. 

 

Holly x