The new Homebase launch that could hold the secret to keeping your plants alive for longer

Nothing cheers the interior or exterior of a property quite like a few carefully chosen plants. And while a hit of fancy foliage is always welcome, few but the most green-fingered amongst us have the specialist knowledge needed to keep our succulents, spider plants and more thriving.

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Luckily home improvement retailer and garden centre Homebase has come to the rescue, offering up just the thing to support keen gardeners with plant care, and it won't cost us a penny.

It has announced that it's partnered with specialist plant care app, SmartPlant, to offer a free digital plant caring assistant with every plant purchase. All customers will need to do is download the app following their purchase of either an indoor or outdoor plant, scan the barcode on the plant, and they'll get free, personalised, monthly plant care instructions reminders direct to their smartphone.

The app – which is fully integrated with Amazon Alexa offering the chance to ask plant care questions hands-free – has rolled out to all 180 Homebase stores nationally, following a successful trial.

Users of the app will also be able to draw on the advice of SmartPlant’s network of plant experts, receiving a personal, tailored response to their plant queries within 24 hours. They can also upload a photo to the app for experts to peruse and offer their feedback on.

Another key standout feature of the app – which is available for both iOS and Android – includes new plant recommendations, with users also able to search through over 20,000 plants in-app for inspiration.

Commenting David Gillespie, Plants Buyer at Homebase said: 'Garden tech simplifies horticulture, so everyone can grow the plants they want with ease. It is clear that the industry is on the rise with an increase in demand for the likes of automated lawnmowers and smart watering systems and so we feel that SmartPlant is the perfect fit for our customers. SmartPlant takes this tech a step further as users can also link the app to Alexa, making plant care even simpler.'

George Williams, Founder of SmartPlant, added: 'Our aim is to simplify plants so that anyone can grow them with ease and so we’re really excited about the partnership with Homebase, allowing us to help people become plant care experts nationwide.'

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