UK-wide live plant & substrate delivery
Every live plant and bag of substrate leaves our nursery near York. How quickly it reaches you, how hard your tap water is and what your home does to humidity all depend on where you live.
From our York benches to your postcode
| Region | Postcode areas | Standard | Priority | Tap water hardness |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| London & South East | E EC N NW SE SW W WC … | 1–2 working days | Next working day (order by 1pm Mon–Thu) | 250–320 mg/L CaCO₃ Very hard |
| Manchester & North West | M L WA WN BL OL SK PR … | 1–2 working days, usually next day | Next working day (order by 1pm Mon–Thu) | Under 50 mg/L CaCO₃ Soft to very soft |
| Yorkshire: Leeds, Sheffield & York | YO LS S BD HD HX WF HG … | Usually next working day | Next working day (order by 1pm Mon–Thu) | 50–200 mg/L CaCO₃ (varies by source) Soft to moderately hard |
| Birmingham & Midlands | B CV WV WS DY ST TF WR … | 1–2 working days, usually next day | Next working day (order by 1pm Mon–Thu) | 50–100 mg/L CaCO₃ in Birmingham; harder across the wider Midlands Soft in the city, moderately hard to hard beyond |
| Edinburgh, Glasgow & Scotland | EH G AB DD FK KY PA PH … | 2–3 working days; Highlands and Islands may take longer | Next working day to most Central Belt postcodes (order by 1pm Mon–Thu) | Typically under 50 mg/L CaCO₃ Very soft |
| Bristol, Bath & South West | BS BA GL TA SN SP BH DT … | 1–2 working days; far west Cornwall may take an extra day | Next working day to most Bristol and Bath postcodes (order by 1pm Mon–Thu) | 250–330 mg/L CaCO₃ Very hard |
We dispatch live plants Monday to Thursday only, with a 1pm cutoff, so no plant spends a weekend in a courier depot. From York, most of England and Wales is within one to two working days on Standard Nursery Express, and Priority delivers next working day to most mainland postcodes. Yorkshire, the North West and the Midlands are closest; London, the South West and the Central Belt of Scotland are a comfortable one to two days; the Scottish Highlands and Islands, and the far west of Cornwall, can add a day. When forecasts fall below 5°C, parcels travel with Winter Thermal Guard, and when they rise above 32°C we hold live plants at the nursery until it is safe to send them. Full details are on our shipping and Live Arrival Guarantee page.
Tap water varies more across Great Britain than most growers realise, and it matters for sensitive tropicals. Broadly:
- Very hard (250–330 mg/L CaCO₃): London and the South East, Bristol and Bath, much of East Anglia and parts of the East Midlands, where water comes from chalk and limestone.
- Moderately hard to soft, depending on source: Yorkshire and the wider Midlands.
- Soft (under about 50–100 mg/L CaCO₃): Manchester and the North West, Birmingham city, most of Wales, Devon and Cornwall, and almost all of Scotland, where water comes from upland reservoirs on hard, impermeable rock.
Hard water raises substrate pH and leaves limescale on leaves, which troubles Calathea, Anthurium and ferns; soft water is kinder but carries little calcium or magnesium. Each regional page below explains what that means for your plants, along with local housing and light conditions, trade supply for independent stockists and our commercial interior planting service.
London & South East
London's light is better than its reputation, but its water is among the hardest in Britain and its flats among the drie…
Manchester & North West
The North West has some of the softest tap water in England, a real advantage for fussy tropicals. Its grey winters and …
Yorkshire: Leeds, Sheffield & York
Yorkshire is home. Our glasshouses and blending studio are at Upper Helmsley, just outside York, so plants for Yorkshire…
Birmingham & Midlands
Birmingham's water comes from the mountains of mid-Wales and is soft, while much of the surrounding Midlands is hard. Ad…
Edinburgh, Glasgow & Scotland
Scotland has the softest water and the shortest winter days in Britain. Plants travel further to reach it, so packaging …
Bristol, Bath & South West
Bristol and Bath have some of the hardest tap water in Britain, filtered through the limestone of the Mendips. Further w…
Questions we are asked most
Still unsure? Email care@growtropic.co.uk with a photo of the plant and its roots — the nursery team replies Monday to Thursday.
Which days do you send live plants?
Live plants dispatch Monday to Thursday, with a 1pm cutoff for same-day dispatch. Orders placed after 1pm on Thursday, or over the weekend, go out on Monday. Substrates and hardware with no live plants in the order can dispatch on any working day.
How do I find out how hard my tap water is?
Your water supplier publishes hardness by postcode on its website, usually in mg/L calcium carbonate or degrees Clarke. A simple test strip or a TDS meter gives a quick reading at the tap. As a rule, a kettle that furs up quickly means hard water.
Do you deliver to the Scottish Highlands, Islands and Northern Ireland?
We deliver throughout mainland Great Britain, including the Highlands and Islands, where transit can take an extra working day; we recommend ordering live plants for those postcodes early in the week. Northern Ireland follows separate plant health arrangements, so please contact us before ordering live plants there.
What happens if a plant arrives damaged?
Our 7-Day Live Arrival Guarantee covers it. Do not repot for seven days, and send photos to care@growtropic.co.uk within seven days of delivery. We will arrange a replacement or refund.