The mixture of heat and rain this summer is making my garden behave like Day of the Triffids, and new plants are growing faster than I can look after them. This means I’m particularly interested in gardening paraphernalia at the moment, so I was pleased to be asked to try out the essential planter from Stewart Garden.
About the product
Stewart Garden says: “Add a touch of style to your garden with one of our beautiful Essentials Planters. Perfect for floral displays, bedding plants and growing herbs, they bring character to patios, decking or even the kitchen windowsill. Made from top quality plastic, Stewart products are designed to protect your plants whatever the weather.”
Features include: available in three different sizes: 27cm / 33cm / 39cm and nine colours: cornflower blue / mocha /terracotta / lavender / cherry red / dark green / pistachio / light blue / black. Recyclable.
Long-lasting: lightweight, frost-proof, shockproof and UV resistant.
Prices range from £2.99 for the 5l (27cm) size, to £3.99 for the 9l (33cm) size and £4.99 for the 14l (39cm) size. Made in the UK.
What I thought of the Stewart Garden Essentials Planter
To start with, I have to confess I’m not a big fan of plastic planters – I prefer good old terracotta.
However, plastic definitely has its advantages and weight and durability are two of them – I have to replace some of my terracotta pots every couple of years due to frost damage.
I thought this planter was great value for money, in fact cheap as chips at just £2.99 for my 27cm version in cornflower blue. This size was large enough to hold a large dahlia easily, and the plant remained comfortable in July’s very hot weather while one or two of my plants in terracotta pots started to suffer a bit.
The good bits
Value, obviously. I liked the colour range, as well – you could create an instant rainbow, even in the winter.
These pots would be great if you had young children who were interested in starting to garden, as they’re shatterproof and very light.. Avoid arguments by assigning each child their own colour of pot!
You could also have some fun decorating these with permanent markers. They’d also be useful for serious gardeners for colour-coding plants – for example to keep different seeds separate, or for plants at different stages of potting out.
The size range was another bonus, as you can create a display by mixing and matching. The light weight means they’d be easy to store – my terracotta pots have to sit on the floor, but these would live happily on a shelf or in a cupboard.
I also liked the fact that these were made in the UK – in Oxfordshire, in fact – and were recyclable.
The not-so-good bits
The pot came without drainage holes, which may or may not be a problem!
Holes can be added by drilling if necessary. For me, this would be a problem as I’d use my pots for planting out, and I think I’d find drilling each one a bit of a pain. I can see why the holes haven’t been added automatically, though – it means you can use them inside as plant holders, and also use them for other things such as holding tools.
Overall
I’m afraid I’m still not a convert to plastic pots – but if that’s what you’re looking for, which many people are for reasons of practicality and budget, I think these can’t be beaten for choice and value.
Reviewed by Sara Walker
(Disclosure: A planter was provided for the purpose of this review, but all views and opinions are genuine and honest).
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