Frequently asked questions
Common questions about HortiOwl. Can’t find the answer you’re looking for? Get in touch.
- Is HortiOwl only for UK businesses?
- HortiOwl is built specifically for the UK horticultural trade. UK VAT rules (0% on most plants, 20% on standard-rated goods), UK Plant Passport compliance, and GDPR data residency in AWS London (eu-west-2) are all handled by default. We do support multi-currency for businesses that trade internationally, but the platform is optimised for UK garden centres and nurseries.
- Does HortiOwl work on mobile?
- Yes. HortiOwl is an installable progressive web app (PWA) with a dedicated mobile workflow covering stock lookups, sales, goods-in, and batch management. It works on iOS and Android — install it from your browser like a native app, no app store needed. The full desktop interface is also fully responsive on tablet.
- What accounting software does HortiOwl integrate with?
- HortiOwl exports CSV files formatted for Sage 50, Xero, and QuickBooks. Invoices, credit notes, and purchase orders can all be exported in the correct format for each platform. There is no live API sync at this stage — exports are on-demand from the platform.
- Does HortiOwl handle UK VAT automatically?
- Yes. Each product in your catalogue is assigned a VAT rate — typically 0% for live plants and 20% for standard-rated goods such as pots, compost, and hard landscaping. VAT is calculated per line on quotes, sales orders, and invoices, and the invoice totals break out net, VAT, and gross figures exactly as HMRC requires.
- What is a UK Plant Passport and does HortiOwl support it?
- UK Plant Passports are legally required labels for regulated plants traded commercially in Great Britain, showing species, country of origin, supplier registration number, and a lot identifier. HortiOwl captures these details at the purchase order stage and carries them through Goods Received Notes, batch records, and onto customer documents automatically. Plant Passport rows render on every relevant printed document without manual re-entry.
- Can HortiOwl handle multiple sites?
- Yes. Stock, batches, and orders can be assigned to specific sites within a single HortiOwl account. The inventory model tracks saleable, growing, and reserved stock separately per site, and reports can be filtered by location. Role-based access control lets you restrict which staff can see or edit each site.
- How does batch plant tracking work?
- When stock arrives via a Goods Received Note, HortiOwl creates a batch — a named group of plants with quantity, grade, size, and supplier traceability details. Batches have three states: Growing (not yet for sale), Saleable, and Reserved (allocated to an order). When you fulfil a sales order, stock is drawn from specific batches so you always know exactly which supplier lot went to which customer.
- Is there a free trial?
- We don't currently offer a self-serve free trial. Instead we run personalised one-to-one demos so you can see the workflows that matter to your specific operation — batch tracking, order fulfilment, invoicing, or whatever is most relevant. Demos are free and there's no commitment. Email hello@hortiowl.co.uk or visit the Book a Demo page to get started.
- How long does a demo take?
- Demos run for 30–45 minutes over a screen-share. Tell us a little about your business when you email and we'll tailor what we show you. We're happy to focus on specific workflows — there's no fixed script.
- Does HortiOwl work for landscaping companies?
- HortiOwl is primarily designed for wholesale and retail nurseries and garden centres — businesses that quote, sell, and invoice plants and related products in volume. Landscaping companies that maintain a plant catalogue, raise quotes, and invoice customers do use the platform, but if your business is predominantly labour-based project management you may find the workflow less of a fit. The best way to find out is a demo.
Still have questions?
The fastest way to get answers is a one-to-one demo. We’ll walk through exactly the features that matter to your business.