Plant condition upon delivery: what should be taken into account?
Heijnen Plants is compared regularly to garden centres. However, there are some major differences between us and regular garden centres. For example, our plants are collected directly from the nursery after ordering from the web shop, the plants are offered all year round (if in stock and depending on the grower's quality standards) and we focus much less on seasonal products.
Walk into a garden centre and the plants that are currently in bloom or otherwise in demand will be presented directly to you. At Heijnen Plants, the focus is on high-quality, healthy plants, regardless of their appearance or the time of year. So we also offer plants that have just finished flowering or have been cut back in the nursery.
Because plants can vary greatly in appearance from one season to another, we make a distinction between two types of plant in the web shop:
- Plants whose height upon delivery takes is leading (such as hedge plants and shrubs)
- Plants whose pot size upon delivery is leading (such as perennials and ornamental grasses)
Height is leading in case of products that have the specified plant height regardless of the season. Pot size is leading in case of products that can vary tremendously in height throughout the seasons. Some plants die each year above ground, only to sprout again in spring. Other plants are subject to pruning in the nursery or grow tremendously fast in certain months of the year. As a result, indicating the exact plant height upon delivery is very difficult. However, we do give an indication of the plant height. On each product page, we list the height upon delivery and the corresponding plant condition.
Most common delivery misunderstandings
The most common misunderstandings regarding plant condition upon delivery are listed below. Please read this information carefully so you know what to expect.
1. My plant has been pruned
The goal of our growers is to raise the best, healthiest and strongest plants possible, that have pretty branches and will thrive in your garden. For the grower, a well-developed root system (inside the pot) is more important than a 'big plant with lots of flowers' (above the pot). In particular, deciduous plants (mostly perennials and ornamental grasses) are pruned in the nursery several times a year.
What happens if the grower does not prune? Then the plant will only form one branch or a few branches, and it will not develop nicely. In fact, by pruning the plant several times in the nursery, it forms (from the core) several offshoots, which will ultimately make the plant look much better in your garden. For that reason, most perennials that are in a 9 x 9 cm pot, for example, are often about 5 to 10 cm in height upon delivery (partly also depending on the season in which the plant is ordered). As a result, pot size is always leading, as a plant may be pruned or vary in height due to seasonal influences.
Because some plants may be pruned several times a year and we deliver our products directly from the nurseries, there is a chance that the plants delivered to you may have been pruned (back) recently. After pruning, some plants may y not look their best temporarily. Don't worry! The plants that have been pruned back will start sprouting again very soon, and remember: this only benefits the quality (growth and branches) of the plant. That's why our growers prune. Because as an old saying goes: pruning is good for growing!
2. My plant has finished flowering
One plant blooms in April, another in August. The flowering period of a plant varies by plant species and can also depend on weather conditions, the age of the plant and the method of propagation and care (pruning) in the nursery. If a plant has finished flowering, it says nothing about the quality of the plant itself, only about the characteristics of the plant. A plant sprouts in the spring, gets flowers, finishes flowering, in some cases forms fruit and sometimes dies back above ground (or loses its leaves) only to sprout again the following year. This is the normal life cycle of that plant. So it could very well be that the product you ordered has just finished flowering upon delivery.
In some cases, the grower will even prune the flowers from the plant, so that all the plant's energy goes into the development of the root/branch system. Benefit: the plant will then grow much more beautifully and quickly in your garden.
With some (mostly perennial) plants, you see that flowering has sometimes taken so much energy that some leaves become a bit discoloured (yellow). Often these are older leaves or the leaves at the bottom of the plant. All the energy went into the flowers (for reproduction purposes), so the plant did not have enough energy to send to the leaves. This is a natural phenomenon, so there is nothing to worry about.
Once the plant has finished flowering, it will form new shoots (leaves) again. To speed up this process, you can remove the spent flowers and/or yellow-brown leaves with pruning scissors (or trim lightly with a hedge trimmer). The plant will immediately look fresher and will start sprouting again faster. In some cases, you may even prune back the plant entirely. This information can be found on the product page of the plant variety itself.
3. Spring - my plant has only a few leaves (in spring)
Perhaps the most frequently asked question by customers in (early) spring is: why do the plants I ordered have no leaves, or only a few? Once we have explained, customers often have to laugh because the answer actually makes perfect sense. All deciduous plants (and semi-deciduous plants) lose their leaves annually or die (partially) above ground in the autumn and winter, and then survive underground during the winter months. In spring, the plants begin to sprout again. The number of leaves that die above ground and how much the plant discolours depends on how cold the winter has been and whether the plant has been in the greenhouse or outdoors while at the nursery.
There are plants that literally die in their entirety above ground in the winter and lose all of their foliage (the Hosta, for example). If you order these plant varieties in winter or early spring, you will literally receive, as our customers would say, "a pot of sand". Does this say anything about the quality of the plant? No, it is about the characteristics of the plant. So there is nothing to worry about!
Once temperatures rise again in spring, the plant will awaken from hibernation. The plant is triggered to sprout again, resulting in new shoots and leaves. So the appearance of a plant that begins to sprout in early March will differ greatly from those that do so in the month of May or June. So keep in mind that deciduous plants ordered in (early) spring should only just have started or have yet to start sprouting. In this case, the appearance of the plant says nothing about its quality. Also, the plant may still carry old, discoloured leaves from the previous year. This is quite normal and does not need to be pruned. The old leaves will fall off the plant naturally, and also provide frost protection.
4. Autumn/winter - my plant's leaves are no longer fresh and green
Although most people use spring to (re)plant the garden or border, autumn is actually the best time to do this. With a relatively warm soil temperature, the plants will still be able to root well and, as a result, will be able to sprout immediately in spring. Drought and heat no longer occur during this period, creating ideal conditions for the plant to take root before winter.
During this period, however, the plants are already preparing for the coming winter. This shows in the plant's appearance. In autumn, deciduous plants lose their leaves and/or the leaves will discolour into a mostly brown or yellow colour and then die off entirely above ground (and the plant overwinters underground). The weather conditions often have an influence on when this happens exactly. If there is a strong frost early in winter, this process will be faster than during a warm and mild winter.
Hence, plants ordered from our web shop in autumn and/or winter will in most cases no longer have fresh green leaves or will have already (partially) died back above ground. Does this say anything about the quality of the plant? No, but it is saying something about the plant's characteristics! Leave these brown or yellow leaves on the plant at all times, even if they're withered! They protect the plant in winter against frost and serve as a coat, so to speak, for the plant. You can prune away these dead leaves in spring, if necessary, but never in winter.
5. Packaging and transportation methods
Depending on size and order composition, our plants are either delivered to your home by parcel service or via pallet transport with a (small) delivery van. In the past, the method of packaging has led to questions on occasion. Can a plant be shipped in a box? Doesn't stacking plants result in a loss of quality? Most of these questions were specifically related to concerns or limited knowledge about plants. At Heijnen Plants, we have stood by our quality and knowledge since 1976. The method of packaging does not cause any problems for the plants.
In order to inform our customers in advance about the method of packaging and shipment of our plants, we have created a separate page. Here you will find all information regarding the packaging and transportation of our plants and see pictures of how it works in practice. That way, you will know exactly what to expect and there will be no surprises. We package our plants in the most efficient way possible to minimise transportation costs and packaging materials, but always keeping in mind the preservation of plant quality. What many people don't know is that plants are much sturdier than you might think.
Please keep the following in mind when the plants you ordered are delivered to you:
- The plants are shipped lying down: some orders are shipped lying down. As a result, some sand, potting soil or top dressing (cocoa shells or wood chips) may vibrate out of the pot/root ball during transport. This causes no (growth) problems for the plant. There may be some sand on the leaves resulting from packaging/transportation. You can easily wash this off while watering the plants, and it does not result in any loss of quality.
- The plants are shipped stacked: some plants are shipped upright, yet stacked. In this case, we put the pots or root balls on top of the other root ball between the plants so that as many plants as possible will fit on a pallet. This does not result in any loss of quality for the plants! However, it does save transportation costs and packaging materials, allowing us to keep our prices as competitive as possible.
- Tying/sealing: some plants are tied together (with string) or (partially) sealed for transport. This prevents plants from falling off the pallet(box) during transport. Bundling the plants together does not result in any loss of quality for the plants! In addition, the root balls can also be sealed directly, which delays evaporation and keeps the root balls sufficiently moist during transport.
- The plants have a bruised/broken/crushed branch or leaf: despite the care with which we package our plants, it is possible that a branch or leaf may occasionally be damaged during transport. If it is a single twig or leaf, this is no problem for the plant whatsoever. If a plant is severely damaged, please contact our customer service department as soon as possible so that we can reach a suitable solution with you.
- The roots of the plants are protected: for customers who order bare-root plants, the roots will be covered with foil. This prevents the roots from drying out during transport and preserves the quality of the plants.
With the above information, you now know what to expect and what is normal with plant delivery. To ensure that the plants will grow and flourish in your garden following delivery, we recommend first and foremost that you prepare the soil properly and then follow the planting instructions.
