Hairy livery

Hi. 

There is something strange going on, we are very busy selling plants. I know that is supposed to be our job, but it has been so quiet this year we had forgotten what it was like to be riding a wave of some serious economic activity. It couldn’t be timed better after a very long season of less than steady trading. Rather than fading away into a rising overdraft we are now going out on a flurry of enthusiasm, into a growing overdraft! There is a difference, honest. It wasn’t quite as busy as last week, but still up on last year, and we still had time to clear some more production space and get the potting machine going. Here’s hoping this keeps up for another few weeks, the weather looks to be playing ball for once this year, so fingers crossed.

September is that month in the year when lots of our hard-working staff take a break. Holidays are that bit cheaper as the kids return to school and the temperatures here in the UK are generally still very pleasant. Consequently, we never get quite as much done as I would like, but we all need a break at some point. I’m certainly looking forward to my two weeks in St Ives this November. Surfs Up. Ok, perhaps Grubs Up would be more accurate. 

Lots of van activity this week. H8 our newest Fiat that died 2 months ago, has been moving around the yard at the garage as we keep an eye on its tracker, but we have now been told they are still awaiting delivery of the replacement engine, so don’t get our hopes up for a quick return! We are hoping the electric Renault will be a lot more reliable, it has certainly pleased us so far, despite having to do quite a lot of research to locate the charging stations that can accommodate a van of our size. The newer larger installations are usually fine, but some older ones are hopeless. Both the new Renault van and our 7.5 tonner both received a dramatic facelift this week with the application of a new livery. 

The design has taken weeks of tweaking to get it how we wanted and overall, we are pleased with the results. Advertising wise, isn’t going to change the world, but it adds another level of professionalism and identity into the presentation of our stock as it arrives. Not only that but you can now see it coming and get the kettle on! We may well apply this look to a couple of the others, if we think they will stay roadworthy long enough. 

All three wind turbines are going again after a full service and a couple of oil seal replacements. The team from Natural Energy are brilliant, so knowledgeable about the model of turbine we have and very proactive with hands-on practical advice whenever something goes wrong, which to be fair isn’t very often. They come and service all three in a day, once a year, with very detailed reports on the condition and likely replacement timing of all the wearing parts. We are on a fairly placid site compared with some, we are windy but not too wild, so quite often they will delay replacing parts if the wear looks minimal. I appreciate professionals who do things when they need doing and not just because the computer says YES.  

The young folk here have put together a short feedback form which I am going to attach to the next couple of weeks emails, feel free to let them know your thoughts, they are very keen to hear from you all.  

Social media updates To find our Instagram content try our username @thehairypotplantcompany  or use the link below; https://www.instagram.com/thehairypotplantcompany?igsh=MXhhMGxhcjgzNGYydA%3D%3D&utm_source=qr 

Availability list. 

It’s time for the autumn flowering Cyclamen hederifolium to fly the flag. They are raring to go with verdant growth and already flashing plenty of colour, with lots more bud to come. We had a huge run on these over the last couple of weeks, so there is already a big hole in stock levels. Rose colour is getting low but there are plenty of eye-popping whites. Don’t hold back! Our long flowering Cyclamen coum are also ready, although it is a bit early for them to go into full flowering mode, they are more bountiful in winter and spring, but there are already buds on show for some. We secured earlier batches of seedlings this year, so we have grown these more diminutive beauties to a bigger size, which should help promote more sales.  There are loads of Asters in bud doing there late summer show.  We have a charming compact batch of Verbena Lollipop now in bud and colour. Flowering all summer and autumn long, Whirling Butterflies (White) are looking great. There are other Gaura are also in bud. Another later summer range are the mini garden Chrysanthemums which are already showing bud and a spot of colour. Fresh batches of Echinacea are throwing up healthy growth and flower buds, just in time for a late splash. We have a very compact batch of Achillea Milly Rock Terracotta in bud. There are some fantastic short bushy Coreopsis in bud again, ready to make a lovely late summer splash. We still have plenty of summer flowering stock looking very well. A range of different types of Salvia’s, many in bud,  We have plenty of Scabiosa in bud, in a range of colours, another long flowering summer star. Still plenty of fabulous looking herbs in a wide range to inspire some autumnal cooking adventures. It’s a bit late now for the annual Basils, Coriander and alike, but there are still plenty of perennial varieties raring to go. Take care out there. 

From all at Kirton Farm Nurseries.