Cookie Policy
Effective Date: June 23, 2025
1. What Are Cookies?
Cookies are small text files placed on your computer or mobile device when you visit a website. They are widely used to make websites work efficiently and to provide information to website owners.
- Session Cookies: Temporary cookies that remain on your device only while you are browsing our website. They are deleted once you close your browser.
- Persistent Cookies: Cookies that remain on your device for a longer, set period (defined by the cookie’s lifespan) or until you manually delete them. These help us remember your preferences for future visits.
2. How Blossom Gardens Hub Uses Cookies
We use cookies for various purposes to enhance your experience on https://www.blossomgardenshub.com/ (“the Website”), whether you’re exploring plant species, reading a guide, or purchasing gardening supplies. Our cookie usage falls into the following categories:
2.1. Strictly Necessary Cookies (Always Active)
- Purpose: These cookies are fundamental for the basic operation and security of our Website and e-commerce functionalities. They enable core features like adding items to your shopping cart, logging into your account, navigating securely, and completing purchases. The Website cannot function correctly without these cookies.
- User Control: As these are essential for the Website’s operation, they cannot be switched off in our system and do not require user consent under most privacy regulations.
2.2. Performance and Analytics Cookies
- Purpose: These cookies help us understand how visitors interact with our Website by collecting and reporting information anonymously (e.g., via Google Analytics). They allow us to track website traffic, measure user engagement (e.g., which plant care guides are most popular), identify user navigation patterns, and improve our Website’s performance, content, and user experience.
- User Control: You have control over these cookies and can enable or disable them via our cookie consent banner.
2.3. Functionality Cookies
- Purpose: These cookies allow our Website to remember choices you make (such as your preferred language, region, or items you’ve recently viewed) and provide enhanced, more personalized features. They can remember changes you’ve made to parts of web pages that you can customize.
- User Control: You have control over these cookies and can enable or disable them via our cookie consent banner.
2.4. Advertising and Targeting Cookies
- Purpose: These cookies are used to deliver advertisements more relevant to you and your gardening or home interests on other websites. They also help us limit the number of times you see an advertisement and measure the effectiveness of our advertising campaigns. These cookies may be placed by us or by third-party advertising networks.
- User Control: You have control over these cookies and can enable or disable them via our cookie consent banner.
2.5. Affiliate Tracking Cookies (Specific Purpose for Affiliate Links)
- Purpose: As a botany and gardening website that features affiliate products (e.g., specialized grow lights, unique pots from other vendors), we implement affiliate links. When you click on an affiliate link and are redirected to a third-party merchant’s website, these merchants typically place cookies on your device. These cookies are essential for the third-party affiliate program to track that you originated from Blossom Gardens Hub and to attribute any subsequent purchases to us. This enables us to earn a commission, which helps support our ability to provide valuable content and resources.
- User Control: These are third-party cookies that generally fall under the “Advertising / Targeting Cookies” or “Performance / Analytics Cookies” categories and can be managed through our cookie consent banner. Your consent helps us continue providing free, high-quality content.
3. Third-Party Cookies on Our Website
In addition to our own cookies, various third parties may place cookies on your device when you visit our Website. These typically arise from integrated services and include:
- Analytics Providers: E.g., Google Analytics (Link to Google’s Privacy Policy/Terms)
- Payment Processors: E.g., PayPal, Stripe, etc., if you use their services for transactions.
- Affiliate Networks/Merchants: E.g., Amazon Associates program partners, ShareASale, CJ Affiliate, or direct merchant affiliate programs.
- Social Media Platforms: If you utilize integrated social sharing buttons (e.g., Pinterest save button, Facebook share).
- Advertising Partners: Any third-party advertising networks we work with.
For information on how these third parties use cookies, please refer to their respective privacy and cookie policies.
4. Your Cookie Choices & Consent
Upon your first visit to our Website, you will be presented with a cookie consent banner (often referred to as a “cookie pop-up” or “consent manager”). This banner allows you to:
- Accept All Cookies: Consent to all types of cookies described above.
- Decline All Non-Essential Cookies: Only allow Strictly Necessary Cookies.
- Customize Preferences: Select which categories of cookies you allow (e.g., enable analytics but disable advertising).
You can change or withdraw your cookie consent at any time by clicking on the “Cookie Settings,” “Manage Cookies,” or “Privacy Settings” link, usually located in the footer of our Website.
Managing Cookies via Your Browser:
Most web browsers also allow you to control cookies through their settings. You can typically:
- Delete all cookies.
- Block third-party cookies.
- Block cookies from specific sites.
- Allow only selected cookies.
- Get notifications when a website tries to place a cookie.
Please be aware that blocking or disabling certain cookies, especially Strictly Necessary ones, may impact the functionality and performance of our Website, potentially limiting your ability to use certain features (like the shopping cart or account login).
For more detailed information on managing cookies through your browser, you can visit:
5. Do Not Track (DNT) Signals
Some web browsers offer a “Do Not Track” (DNT) signal. There is no universal standard for responding to DNT signals, and we do not currently honor them. However, we strive to give you granular control over your cookie preferences directly through our consent banner and your browser settings as outlined in Section 4.
6. Changes to This Cookie Policy
We may update our Cookie Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or for other operational, legal, or regulatory reasons. We will notify you of any significant changes by posting the new Cookie Policy on this page and updating the “Effective Date” at the top. We encourage you to review this policy periodically.
