Comments on: Endulging at Trade Secrets https://gardern.co.za/2013/05/endulging-at-trade-secrets/ Horticulturist Matt Mattus shares gardening expertise, research and science from his home garden and greenhouse. Thu, 13 Aug 2020 22:01:55 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.7.1 By: Snug Harbor Farm https://gardern.co.za/2013/05/endulging-at-trade-secrets/#comment-2473 Wed, 22 May 2013 19:25:23 +0000 #comment-2473 Thank Matt for the super kind words about Snug Harbor Farm! We have all been preparing for that show for months and it was great to see it all come together on one day!
It was great to meet you in person and we are looking forward to having you come up this summer and meet the whole team!
Send us a picture of your "Snug" birdhouse on your chicken coup once it is hung!
We will see you soon!

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By: Cassidy https://gardern.co.za/2013/05/endulging-at-trade-secrets/#comment-2472 Wed, 22 May 2013 07:28:17 +0000 #comment-2472 Looks like an amazing event! I think I would also find more things that I wanted than I would be able to buy 🙂

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By: LauraH https://gardern.co.za/2013/05/endulging-at-trade-secrets/#comment-2471 Mon, 20 May 2013 23:05:09 +0000 #comment-2471 Thank so much for clarifying the G Wolf production. It must be difficult to build a quality business and brand while dealing with cost pressures from other companies who have no qualms about out sourcing to the cheapest countries. So many manufacturer's are doing this sometimes it's very difficult to make a sound ethical choice when buying. I have nothing against goods made off shore as long as the quality is there and the people are being paid in line with the cost of the product.

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By: Matt Mattus https://gardern.co.za/2013/05/endulging-at-trade-secrets/#comment-2470 Mon, 20 May 2013 18:44:02 +0000 #comment-2470 Laura
I know what you mean. Look for Guy Wolff pots that just say Guy Wolff, for original ones. Look carefully at the name and visit his website for an explanation of where a pot was made (and why). Sadly, he himself can only throw one pot at a time, so pots that have touched his hands will always remain rare. When it comes to production numbers, it takes many hands ( or molds, in some cases). Guy has been very upfront with his moral position regarding using outside sources.

Look for G, WOLFF with a date and the poundage number on a pot. If a pot says G.Wolff and Co, it's from his guild ( potters in other countries who he works with personally). For other names, see his site.You can order online from him directly and not get a pot made in China . Some pot designs by potter Peter Wakefield, have now been sourced out to a trained groip of hand trowers in China to take on a line of white pots that do say G. Wolff & Co. Then, there is a relationship with potters in Honduras, in either case, these are still hand thrown pots, but marketed under & Co, Some pots are cast, so they are a bit more fragile, but remember, these are all less costly than actual hand-thrown pots by Mr. Wolff himself. Guy needs to keep a business going, and I believe in his model of controlling who throws his pots under his name,and I respect him for keeping his quality high. Imagining that there is a huge factory with little kids running machines stamping out pots that cost hundreds of dollars each, is not true. Rather, a few craftsman overseas are trained to produce similar pots, but in volumes that help others afford some of these quality pots, in a world where there are far too many crappy pots from Viet Nam and India being produced by corporations who don't care about anything other than the profit margin.

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By: LauraH https://gardern.co.za/2013/05/endulging-at-trade-secrets/#comment-2469 Mon, 20 May 2013 17:25:25 +0000 #comment-2469 Wow, almost glad I'm in Toronto and can't get to this event, I'm saving myself a fortune! As an aside, I recently saw some Guy Wolf pots for sale in my local Loblaws (Loblaws is a big big food retailer that has temporary garden centres every year). They were white, similar to the pots shown in your photo…but…to my surprise (and dismay)…Made in China. I don't like being charged premium prices when I know the people making the stuff are being paid a pittance. Needless to say, I passed.

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By: Matt Mattus https://gardern.co.za/2013/05/endulging-at-trade-secrets/#comment-2468 Mon, 20 May 2013 05:27:01 +0000 #comment-2468 Hi Anon ; Yes, it was better than the hype, for me, anyway. OK. I bought two Quercus, first the Quercus robur with the golden leaves, and then a rare Quercus pinnatifida – very tropical looking, from Japan, and small growing with giant, palm-like leaves. I also bought a large pot of Spiranthes covalarioides, fragrant, and a new ground cover for shade, and finally, a Viburnum plicatum v. tomentosum 'Molly Schroder", a new pink Viburnum bred in New Zealand, which has been difficult to find here in America.

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By: Anonymous https://gardern.co.za/2013/05/endulging-at-trade-secrets/#comment-2467 Mon, 20 May 2013 05:11:09 +0000 #comment-2467 What a beautiful oak. I've wanted one of those for the past couple of years. I do hope there is another blog post about other plants that you purchased and plants that caught your eye at the sale but you did not purchase. Would you say the event is worth a trip/lives up to the hype?

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By: Diane C https://gardern.co.za/2013/05/endulging-at-trade-secrets/#comment-2466 Sun, 19 May 2013 09:16:06 +0000 #comment-2466 What a great exhibition. I wish I could have been there.
One thing I found interesting was that the pottery booth was actually about pots! In the Chicago area you expect to find bowls and vases but never pots.

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