If you are shopping for houseplants or looking for some nice planters, Hortology is one of the best places to buy them online.
You can certainly go to a local garden centre, but Hortology offers you the convenience of shopping from your couch. You can also access a much wider variety of plants and pots from an online store.
Read on for my full review of the Hortology website, including details of what products they sell, their shipping and return policies, and what their customer service is like.
Who is Hortology?
Hortology is an online retailer in the UK specialising in houseplants, indoor plant pots as well as outdoor planters.
They also sell plants and planters for businesses and commercial spaces, plus plant care essentials like plant food, watering cans and other accessories.
Hortology’s mission is to help green up living spaces. Their mission statement states, “We believe in the power of plants to lift the spirit, calm the mind and clean the air.”
Hortology was launched in 2016 and today it is one of the biggest online garden centres alongside other well known names like Crocus, Primrose and Dobies.
Which Products Does Hortology Sell?
Hortology sells three main types of products: plants, pots and plant care accessories. Here’s a more detailed breakdown of their product categories.
Houseplants
Hortology has a dizzying variety of houseplants, a much wider selection than you’d find at a local garden centre.
Whether you want a hanging plant or a desktop succulent, a low-maintenance plant or one that’s safe for your pet, they have them all.
The website makes it easy to narrow down your search to exactly the kind of houseplants you want. You can choose based on the type of houseplant (palm, foliage, succulent etc.), houseplant style (tall, small, trailing, trendy etc.), features (air cleaning, low maintenance, shade tolerant, pet-safe etc.) and room (living room, bedroom and so on).
You can also click on the A-Z list and browse through their entire selection.
Indoor Plant Pots
You can shop for plants and the pots to go with them on the same website. Similar to plants, there’s a wide variety of options to choose from when it comes to the material, size and style of indoor pots and planters.
This is where the intuitive layout of the Hortology website comes in handy. Instead of wasting your time browsing endless pots, you can select pots by colour, size, shape, material and style. Each category has plenty of options.
For colour, you can choose modern white and neutral pots, go with brighter, red & pink or yellow & orange pots, or create a cosier feel with brown and terracotta pots.
Pot sizes include options for mini plants like succulents, small, mid and large pots, as well as XL and tall plant pots. There’s also a category of pot sets if you want to get multiple matching pots.
As for materials, you can choose from metallic, ceramic, cement and natural plant baskets.
Outdoor Planters
Outdoor planters are also available by size, shape, colour and material. Options include plant baskets, matching planter sets, planters for tall plants, and outdoor plant bowls.
Plants & Planters for Businesses
Most businesses require extra-large plants and pots that can be difficult to find at local garden centres. The advantage of shopping at Hortology is that you can get a wide variety of business plants and planters, and you don’t have to worry about transportation.
Hortology does pallet deliveries for large and bulky orders.
Plant options include hydrocare plants, office plants, desk plants and tall plants. Planters include decorative pots for maximum aesthetics, XL and tall planters and smaller office planters.
Plant Care Essentials
Hortology also sells products and accessories to help you take care of your plants. The plant care essentials are divided in four categories.
- Plant food and treatments to ensure your plants thrive.
- Plant waterers, misters and atomisers.
- Potting and planting materials & tools include potting mixes, pruners and liners.
- Essentials for hydrocare plants.
Hortology Shipping & Delivery
This is how the plants that I ordered have been delivered…
Currently Hortology ships to England, Wales, Scotland and Isle of Wight. Deliveries to Northern Ireland and Ireland have been suspended because of Brexit.
Once you place an order, Hortology ships your products within 1-2 working days unless an item is not in stock. Some items such as artisanal pots and some large planters are also made to order and can take 1-2 weeks to ship.
They may also delay shipping certain plants depending on the weather or day (they avoid having plants in transit over the weekend to ensure they arrive fresh).
Once your product ships, Hortology will send you tracking details so you can know when it will arrive.
Unfortunately Hortology doesn’t have free shipping. Shipping charges start at £3.99 for small parcels and £39.99 for pallet deliveries.
As we mentioned earlier, Hortology does pallet deliveries for bulky orders. However, these are delivered kerbside, so you have to find a way to get them inside your home.
Hortology Returns
Hortology’s return and refund policies depend on what you’ve ordered.
Plants are perishable and can easily get damaged in transit. If you get a damaged plant or the wrong plant, let Hortology know immediately and they will make arrangements for a return and refund you in full, including shipping cost.
If you have changed your mind and no longer want the plant, you have 7 days to return it in the same condition and packaging as the one it came in. But in this case, you will get a refund minus delivery costs. You’ll also have to pay for return shipping.
By the way, you can also request a replacement.
Pots and planters have a longer return period of 14 days.
Make sure you read the entire policy regarding returns and refunds as there are many more terms and conditions in there. But generally, Hortology makes it easy to return plants and pots whether they are damaged or if you’ve changed your mind.
How Good Is Hortology’s Customer Service?
Hortology is generally highly rated by customers including on TrustPilot (4.7/5). Most customers note that Hortology’s packaging is really good. Plants and pots usually arrive in pristine condition.
Customers also love Hortology’s customer service, with many reporting a great experience with returns, replacements and refunds.
Overall, Hortology is a trustworthy company.
Conclusion
Buying things online can often be a difficult and frustrating experience. But Hortology makes it easy and pleasant.
From the variety of products available, to their shipping and delivery, plus their excellent customer service, Hortology is one of the best online garden centres in the UK.
