Garden

[gabstoomuch]

The Bud and Bloom booster Cottage Farms sells in the packets used to be 19.95 (many years ago) and was a good deal.

The price has crept up and up and up over the years. $25.00, then $30.00, NOW I just saw it at $46.50???

Really? $46.50? And most likely the same ingredients, same packets, same bottle size.

What gives Cottage Farms? The feels like price gouging to me. I will get flower food elsewhere.

Just venting

[millieshops]

I just went on an exploratory visit to a local nursey yesterday.  I didn't price any food/fertilizers, but lots of the plant prices were up from the past.  Also, all the best-looking planters were startingly expensive.  I will look at the food display when I go back to buy plants.  I'll pay them for those because their plants are excellent, but I'm looking for containers elsewhere.

Would you feel any better if you knew the CF packets hadn't really tripled - yet. 

[gardenman]

Many companies used the higher cost of petroleum in recent years as a reason to raise prices. Greenhouses are expensive to heat and higher fuel costs were being passed on to consumers. With the drop in fuel costs, you'd hope plant prices would fall, but I suspect they're using the old elevated prices as a new floor for pricing.

Many of the more common fertilizers are based on petroleum. National Geographic states that a 40 lb bag of fertilizer contains the equivalent of 2.5 gallons of gasoline. As oil prices go up, so do the price of fertilizers. Now that oil prices have fallen one would hope the prices would fall, but that just isn't happenng on the consumer level as of yet. Once manufacturers clear out their existing stock and replace it with new stock manufactured using lower cost oil, we could see prices fall, but for now they're more focused on recovering the money they spent to develop the old stock.

[fthunt]

Go Natural - The best for your plants is Neptune - it's seaweed and natural fish contents manufactured in New England - after fishing boats come in.  Cheaper too - guart around $12 or go to a gallon.  They have a website and last year I saw it available at my local garden center.  Goes a long way - cap full to a gallon of water.  On website they have interesting video for you - DON'T PANIC - IT'S ORGANIC!  (cute)

[gabstoomuch]

Oh, thank you fthunt! I am very interested in the Neptune product. I do not think CF flower food is 'special', it is a great money-making upsell for CF for sure.

i was just shocked at $46.50!

[fthunt]

You're welcome - Google   NEPTUNE FERTILIZER (haven't been to the website in a year, so wanted to check it out for you)  Farmers use this for huge vegetable contests!    I found CF's acid formula burned my plant leaves - I dumped all of their fertilizer and went to Neptune.

Happy plants to you.