The guessing games over who will buy 145 Wyevale Garden Centres continued this week with Edinburgh Woollen Mills being the latest company linked to the UK’s largest garden centre retailer. Sky News reported on Wednesday that EWM had made a bid before news leaked out shortly after that it had since been withdrawn.

A spokesman for EWM is reported as saying: “We put in a bid for the business but our interest has always been limited.

“We do not want to involve ourselves in a bidding war and, as a result, thought it best to withdraw from the process now.”

On an almost daily basis GTN Xtra gets asked the question “have they or haven’t they?”, as speculation continues to mount over which companies have made bids for part or whole of the Wyevale business.

We can continue the speculation as to what’s going to happen, and who will become the new owners of the 145 stores on offer. But we feel it better to say “let’s wait and see.” We may change our minds in the coming weeks, however.

GTN Xtra’s Trevor Pfeiffer says: “If the Wyevale group is split up now, as many expect, then suppliers will have an interesting time dealing with the different buyers involved.

“Our hope, above all, is that whoever takes on the ownership of these centres does so with a sense of nurture and love for plants, food, coffee and all the good things garden centres can be famous for. 

“Great independent garden centre operators have proved that when their staff and their retail ambience truly reflect ‘nurture’ that even when the weather goes against us, as this spring, good will always shine through and our businesses will grow.”

Auctioneers handling the sale of Garsides Garden Centre in Failsworth, Greater Manchester, say there has been lots of interest in the property, which has a guide price of £345,000 plus.

The garden centre is in a prominent location on Oldham Road in Failsworth and is being sold due to retirement. It is expected to attract interest as a potential development site.

Andy Thompson, senior valuer of SDL Auctions North West, said: “Currently this is a well-established, family-owned and run garden centre with adjacent living accommodation. It is on a central location on the main arterial route into Manchester city centre, only two miles away.

“The options are to purchase it with a view to continuing with the current use as a garden centre where a successful business has been running for over 50 years.

“But the site is being sold with vacant possession and we are seeing a lot of interest from developments who recognise, subject to planning permission, the potential the site has.

“This is a quirky lot where viewing is essential to appreciate the full picture and envisage the possibilities.”

SDL Auctions North West’s next auction is on Monday, July 23, at the AJ Bell Stadium, Salford.

The auctioneers' property description says:

A well-established family owned and run garden centre with adjacent living accommodation, to be sold due to retirement, situated in a central location on the main arterial route into Manchester city centre, approximately 2 miles away. The site is being sold vacant possession and offers various potential development opportunities, subject to gaining the necessary planning consents, or to continue with the current use as a garden centre where the successful business has ran for the past 50 years. Viewing is essential to appreciate the full potential this freehold site has to offer.

Details can be found at https://www.sdlauctions.co.uk/property/18985/mixed-use-for-auction-manchester/

Staff and visitors at Fletcher's Garden Centre in Eccleshall, Staffordshire, had to be evacuated when an outbuilding with a thatched roof caught alight on Thursday.

Nearby homes had no power as firefighters tackled the blaze because the overhead power cables had been earthed to make the area safe for crews.

The garden centre was closed for over four hours but was re-opened by 4pm once the fire was extinguished. No injuries were reported.

A full report can be found on the Express and Star website, click here

Springwell Nursery in Devon has submitted plans for the erection of a new garden sales area building, including cafe/restaurant, storage/warehouse, new public car parking area and turning area.

The nursery, based in Old Ide Lane in Ide, has submitted plans to Teignbridge District Council to extend the existing garden centre.

Here are some images of how the new centre would look.

Multi GIMA Award winner, Zest 4 Leisure, is hoping for another win this year. Having GIMA award-winning products has allowed Zest 4 Leisure to raise its profile and acquire new customers.

Zest 4 Leisure showcased its timber garden furniture products for judging for the 2018 season at the GIMA awards judging day.

Zest 4 Leisure products showcased at GIMA awards judging day were the popular Meridian Pergola Seat, a comfortable and stylish seat combined with trellis side panels to allow climbing plants and flowers to grow creating an idyllic garden feature.

The Eaton Planter, the perfect product to transform any outdoor area with minimal effort.

The Emily Corner Seat, which is part of the bestselling Emily Range.

The Stepped Herb Planter, which is a versatile, three-tiered ladder planter, and the Starlight Arch, which is suitable for any garden and ideal for wider paths.

Zest 4 Leisure Sales Manager, Alwyn Williams says:

"We are very happy to have won the GIMA Awards before, and we are definitely hoping for another win! We are immensely proud of the positive customer response to our 2018 timber product range.

“We are a family run business and so we are delighted to have won GIMA awards multiple times, and for our products to be presented to the judges at GIMA once more. Another win for Zest 4 Leisure would be an amazing achievement.”

The GIMA Awards are an important part of the annual garden centre trade calendar. It focuses the attention on the best of the best and raises the profile of the companies that are doing a good job.

Zest hoped it impressed the judges at the GIMA awards judging day again this year.

The GIMA award winners will be announced at the GIMA Awards Gala Dinner on Thursday (July 12), which will be hosted by actor Stephen Mangan.

June was a super month for garden centre plant sales, up by 43% on June 2017, and the key driver to overall sales being 14% up for the month.

And all that means we reach the half year with the GTN Bestsellers All Products Sales index sitting at -1.4%.  Not quite back to parity year on year as many would have hoped but an incredible recovery from the situation as it was in the middle of April.

With high sales levels from outdoor leisure products, driven by the heatwave, there will be centres going to Solex next week with turnover up year on year.  How many other retailers will be in that situation?

GTN Bestsellers Top 50 sales volumes compared to the same week last year (week 26)

• Garden Products Top 50 – down 23%
• Growing Media Top 50 – down 17%
• Veg 2 Gro Top 50 – up 40%
• Wild Bird Care Products Top 50 – down 22%
• All Plants index – up 84%
• All Items index – up 3%

To subscribe to GTN Bestsellers email karen.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk

Summer bedding had a bonanza in June, with the last week seeing an 84% year on year increase in overall volume plant sales. 

Our GTN Bestsellers All Plants index has now reached 8.5% up on last year. Phew!

• Petunia sales grew by 135% last week to move up 3 places to No 5.
• Lobelia were the highest chart re-entry, back in at No 14.
• Alyssum, that great bedding partner for Lobelia, climbed 15 places to No 16.

To subscribe to GTN Bestsellers email karen.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk

The GCA is hosting the International Garden Centre Association congress in the UK next year.

The GCA is expecting 250 delegates from garden centres from all over the world to join it in Windsor for the event on Sunday, September 1 until Saturday, September 7, 2019.

Chairman of the GCA, Mike Lind (pictured) said: "The last time we hosted the event was 10 years ago, back in 2009, so we're delighted to be hosts once again and to be able to showcase some of the wonderful garden centres we have here in the UK.

"This time around we'll be based at The Castle Hotel and The Macdonald Windsor Hotel both centrally-located on the High Street in the historic town and will be hosting visits to some of the best garden centres in the South East.

"We will also be offering our guests trips to a combination of amazing historical and tourist venues including: the Bombay Sapphire Gin distillery and a boat trip on the Thames through London with a stop off at the London Eye. To add to this, we will host a medieval banquet and private tour of Hatfield House.

"This is a fantastic opportunity to see some of the best garden centres and venues in the world, which we have in this country, as well as network and learn from colleagues from many different nations.

"We're now actively planning the event and looking for sponsors from the industry to get involved. It would be a great opportunity for companies looking at exporting their services, products and plants to get in front of decision-makers from some of the world's top garden centres."

If you're a garden centre or industry supplier that would like to find out more about the IGCA event next year, please call the GCA on 01244 952170, visit www.gca.org.uk

A journey of discovery is coming to Glee this September as the key industry event introduces new guided tours to ensure retailers make the most out of the revitalised show.

As the leading garden retail event in the industry calendar with unrivalled new product sourcing opportunities, it is vital that businesses get the most out of visiting Glee. Plus, with Glee’s ever-expanding portfolio of show features it is more important than ever that visitors are armed with the right information to maximise their time at the show – introducing the new Discovery Tour.

Visitors will now be able to take full advantage of all Glee has to offer with brand new tours led by experienced industry experts from the event’s organisational team, Hornby Whitefoot (Glee’s PR team), and show partner, the HTA.  Offering a unique and bespoke visitor experience, the walking tours will take in the unmissable feature areas of the show including the New Product Showcase, Green Heart and the newly enhanced and dedicated pet sector - Pets at Glee. Each ‘stop’ on the tour will outline what is on offer, how retailers can benefit from spending time in each area and how they can maximise the inspiration and educational takeaway available.

There will be three study tours in total, starting daily at 10:30am, and will operate on all days of the show. Open to both new and regular visitors, including buyers, merchandisers and garden centre owners, anyone participating in the Discovery Tour will benefit by discovering the latest products and trends in the market, access advice on how to display and merchandise within their own stores, as well as view exciting sales concepts and tips for cross selling, whilst also meeting inspirational and innovative suppliers. Each tour will last just 45-minute and will help to plan the rest of their time at the show efficiently and take in the hottest new products from over 550 companies across eight sectors.

The complimentary tours can accommodate up to 30 participants per session, available on a first come, first served basis. You will need to be pre-registered to attend Glee before requesting a spot on the Discovery Tour.  There will also be a chance to sign up to the exclusive Retail Lab tour at the end – back by popular demand and one of the highlights of the show last year.

Glee Event Director, Matthew Mein said: “Glee is investing in features and content that truly helps retailers to maximise their time at the show, as well as arming them with tangible business advice that they can implement within their own stores to build profitability and longevity. These new Discovery Tours will ensure visitors take in the ‘must visit’ areas of Glee.  As the show’s offering grows and expands, we want to make it even easier for visitors to make the most of what is available throughout the exhibition. By dedicating just 45 minutes of their time, they can learn everything Glee – and its exhibitors – have on offer to benefit individual businesses.  New visitors will gain first-hand experience of the inner workings of the garden industry, whilst those regular to Glee will get the chance to see their favourite brands, as well as discover new ones.  Those who sign up to the tours will be treated to an exciting and educational experience, gaining lots of take home tips, ideas and concepts to try in their own stores.”

To sign up for your free visitor pass, please register at www.gleebirmingham.com.  To register for the Discovery Tours, please visit https://www.gleebirmingham.com/visit/whats-on/glee-discovery-tour

Launched at Glee 2017, the Retail Lab was a key focal point for the annual garden retail exhibition. Unlike anything before seen at Glee, it was a place to experience the beating heart of the industry, with a view to what the future holds. Combining interactive content, with inspirational product displays and tangible business advice, The Retail Lab cemented itself as a thriving hub of inspiration and knowledge at Glee.

Here we catch up with Carol Wright, UK Marketing Manager at Hozelock, one of the 2017 Retail Lab sponsors, to find out more about Hozelock’s experience and why the company has confirmed its place within the 2018 Retail Lab feature.

What made you decide to become a sponsor of the Retail Lab at Glee in 2017?
We felt the Retail Lab was an unmissable opportunity in that it was important to participate in such a central activity at Glee to be able to connect with the retailers who attend.  The principle of the lab was to demonstrate and signpost activities that could help to drive relevance and excitement to consumers in-store, and to demonstrate how consumers needs are changing, in what is proving to be a very challenging retail environment.  As brand leaders in garden watering, we have a key role to play in helping retailers to participate and engage with the nation’s gardeners.

What products/ranges were included?
We showcased our automatic watering range – Easy Drip, as well as our Cloud and Sensor Controllers.  We also promoted our Plant a Pot for Bees campaign to encourage consumers to plant more bee-friendly pots which have been a huge success and has since been implemented in many garden centres.  Visitors to the Retail Lab also saw our Pure range of natural gardening products, which are an alternative to using chemicals.

How did being part of the Retail Lab benefit your business?
We felt taking part and sponsoring the inaugural Retail Lab at Glee helped us to engage with customers and explain our Plant a Pot campaign, and how well it fitted with forward trends in retailing.  The Retail Lab also provided the perfect launch pad to drive traffic to our stand, so we could have direct conversations with customers.

What advice would you give any other brands thinking of getting involved in 2018?
Make sure you have products or campaigns that work with and complement the trends identified by the Retail Lab.  If you’re not connected in this way, you’ll soon be found lacking!  Go with it and be enthusiastic, it’s a great team effort that helps all the participants.

Have you implemented any of the Retail Lab ideas within your own business? Has it inspired you to think differently about your ranges or how you work with retail customers?
We already had the connections made and the Retail Lab was the perfect way of demonstrating this.  Our Plant a Pot campaign was a perfect fit for the 2017 Re-wilding theme and that grew naturally from our appearance in the Retail Lab.  The concepts also opened up a lot of conversations about the correct format of POS to help retailers and Hozelock communicate these messages in store and allowed us to become more directly involved in our customers’ own marketing activities so we were able to support each other more throughout the season.

What can people expect to see from you at Glee 2018?
We are looking forward to the show in September and will be promoting and supporting messages such as environment, water saving, recycling, connecting with consumers and natural gardening – all a great fit with the Happy Gardening trend identified in this year’s Retail Lab, which will explore the ways that gardening can enhance our lives.

Twenty-four members of staff from Wyevale Nurseries in Hereford are this month calling for sponsorship as they physically challenge themselves in aid of a children’s charity.

On Saturday, July 21 members of the team will either be hiking 21-miles from Brecon to Crickhowell, taking part in a 10-mile walk or a 34-mile bike ride in the same area, all in aid of Greenfingers.

Adam Dunnett, Sales & Marketing Director at Wyevale Nurseries, explained: “It’s taken us three years to recover from our last charity hike, the Mortimer Trail, but we’re back and hoping for better weather this time.

“So far, we have 14 members of staff signed up for the 21-mile walk, which we expect to take seven hours and nine people are opting for the 10-mile walk, which could take between three and a half to four hours.

“Adrian Hoare, our Garden Design and Domestic Landscape Sales Manager, is the only person so far to have signed up to the 34-mile cycle, which he expects will take him three hours. We are hoping a few more people will join him for the ride.

“Our aim is to raise £500 for Greenfingers, a brilliant charity dedicated to creating magical gardens at children’s hospices across the UK. To date Greenfingers have so far created 55 inspirational gardens.

“We hope people in the industry will be able to sponsor us to help us raise some much-needed funds for Greenfingers so it can continue to create gardens at children’s hospice all over the UK.”

Greenfingers is currently working on creating gardens at Claire House Children’s Hospice in Wirral, Little Harbour Children’s Hospice in St Austell, Rainbows Hospice in Loughborough and Richard House Hospice in Beckton, London.

Linda Petrons, Director of Fundraising and Communications at Greenfingers, said: “We’re delighted that Adam and the team at Wyevale Nurseries are supporting Greenfingers in such a great way. The money raised will go a long way to help us ensure the gardens can now become a reality.”

To sponsor the Wyevale Nurseries team, please visit its JustGiving page –  www.justgiving.com/fundraising/adam-dunnett1.

When it comes to choosing a compost supplier, do the same as you would with your football and support the home team - ENGLAND.

As temperature’s continues to soar and garden centres increase their orders for compost, Somerset based Durston Garden Products is working flat out to keep up with demand.

 With minimum orders of just five pallets, and full (22 Pallet) orders delivered within five days, Durstons not only offers superb service and quality composts, but at highly competitive prices too, so if you find yourself running short, or have been let down by your usual supplier of compost, fear-not, as Durstons will be delighted to help out.

Durstons supplies a wide selection of quality growing media composts ranging from its best selling Multi Purpose Compost to Seed and Cutting Compost, John Innes ranges, Ericaceous Compost, Bark, Farmyard Manure and much more.

For further information, or to place an order, call Durstons direct on: 01458 442688 or visit the website: www.durstongardenproducts.co.uk.

The RHS Tatton Flower Show is just around the corner and Bents Garden & Home is proud to be supporting a local primary school in its ambition to deliver a show garden at what is the North’s biggest celebration of gardens, flowers, horticulture and outdoor living.

Croft Primary School’s Tatton Club has been meeting twice a week for the past six months making plans, crafting, painting and cultivating their own plants for a Monet inspired garden to be featured at the show.  Bents has provided sponsorship and support to help the school realise their vision of a purple, pink and cream scene straight from a Monet masterpiece.

Plants include delphiniums, begonias, hollyhocks, clematis and lavender with 50% of all plants used in the garden grown from seed or plugs by the children at their weekly gardening club.  Additional features in the garden include a pond, bridge and a 1.5m model made by the children, painted and collaged.  The lady will be situated to the back of the garden surrounded by cottage garden plants and in the foreground a rustic easel and Monet’s chair made from twigs and ivy.

The garden will feature in the School’s Gardens Department at the Flower Show, which this year is celebrating its 20^th anniversary. 

In addition to supporting Croft Primary School’s own garden, Bents will also be at the Show, once again joining Marketing Cheshire and their Gardens of Distinction, helping to represent the consortium which comprises 24 of the county’s most beautiful gardens, and dressing their stand.  And as part of Tatton’s family day on Saturday 21^st July, Bents will be offering ‘Little Explorers’ planting activities for a donation to their Charity of the Year, St Rocco’s Hospice in Warrington.

As usual the Flower Show will provide a fantastic combination of floral displays and garden designs including a garden designed to honour all those affected by the Manchester Arena attack.  The garden will be a key feature of the Show and bees will play a central role in its design.

There will also be opportunities to shop, indulge in fine food and enjoy lots of live entertainment so if you’re going to Tatton this year don’t forget to pop into stand number TP318 to say hello and grab yourself a Bents goodie bag.

Gardman have been using the Greenfingers "Old into Gold" scheme to raise funds for the charity as part of their business recovery process, with nearly £7,000 raised so far.

After the fire which completely destroyed the Gardman warehouse and distribution centre at Daventry in March, a key part of their business recovery process was the re-commissioning of the old warehouses in Kings Lynn.  With less space available and no racking in some of the buildings, Operations Director Paul Young needed to free up as much space for new stocks as possible.  That's where Greenfingers "Old into Gold" became part of the solution.

W&H Peacock, the auctioneers, have notified us that the excess old Gardman products have already raised over £6,800 and they still have around 50 pallets left to auction in the next month. 

Paul Young told GTN Xtra: "We have been working tremendously hard to recover our business from the devastating fire we had in March but are delighted that we've raised this amount for Greenfingers at the same time, and hope that the remaining stock increases the overall total significantly."

The Greenfingers "Old into Gold" scheme its a great GREEN way for garden industry suppliers to get rid of unwanted stock and raise much needed funds for  more Greenfingers gardens to be built at childrens hospices across the UK.

Linda Petrons, Fundraising Manager at Greenfingers said: "Huge thanks to all at Gardman for allowing their old stocks to be turned into Gold for Greenfingers.  If anyone else would like to help us in this way and at the same time clear valuable warehouse space please contact me or one of the team at the office."

info@greenfingerscharity.org.uk

There were big changes in the GTN Bestsellers Garden Products chart last week with 21 re-entries or new lines. 

Thirty eight out of the Top 50 lines increased their sales week on week but the overall total was down by 0.9%. Solar lights, Pest Control and Plant feeds were where the main increases came from.

• SBM Solabiol Slug Killer 700g was the highest re-entry at No 18.
• Smart Solar’s Eureka! Lightbulb Lantern climbed 31 places to No 8.
• Vitax Nippon Wasp Nest Foam 300ml re-entered at No 50 as wasps start to become a nuisance this year.

To subscribe to GTN Bestsellers email karen.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk

Following on from all the planting going on, growing media sales caught up during June.  GTN Bestsellers Top 50 volumes were up 19% on June 2017 and our Growing Media index is now only 2.9% down for the year.

• Westland Gro-Sure Easy Container Compost 50 litres was the highest chart climber, up 17 places to No 31.
• Scotts Levington Multipurpose + John Innes 56 litres stays at No 1.
• Westland The Gardener's Multipurpose Compost 50 litres moves up 2 places to No 3.

To subscribe to GTN Bestsellers email karen.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk

Wild Bird Care sales suffered last week as the heatwave deterred people from thinking about looking after the wildlife in their gardens. 

Maybe we should ask the BBC to extend springwatch into summerwatch so that there are programmes to drive sales throughout the year!

• Westland Peckish Complete 12.75kg was the highest climber, up to No 24.
• Gardman Sunflower Hearts 12.75kg saw a 200% increase to re-enter at No 33.
• Tom Chambers Giant Insect Suet Log was the only new entry, in at No 47.

To subscribe to GTN Bestsellers email karen.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk

The Flopro range is designed to deal with sustained periods of hot dry weather and helps gardeners to conserve more water at this time.

Consumers are currently being asked to use water sparingly and there is a hose pipe ban in Northern Ireland.

It is possible to keep gardens flourishing through more efficient use of Eco Smart rain water and solar energy using the reservoir system. The use of specially designed irrigation equipment such as the Flopro Soaker Hose simplifies watering ensuring economical and precise watering along its 15 metre length which saves up to 70% of water.

Eco Smart Systems utilise solar efficiency, the more sun, the more it waters. Designed for use with water butts and other non-pressured water sources. The system is easy to set up and use, delivering water every 3 hours. A night mode system detects darkness and switches the controller off to prevent watering unnecessarily. A 200 litre water butt typically lasts for 3 weeks.

Flopro Plug & Go Watering kits covering pots & containers, greenhouses and raised beds & borders really makes efficient use of water in the current environment using as little as 1.2 to 1.3 litres per hour. The universal fit with any water timer allows for fully automatic and economic watering. The kits are convenient, quick and easy to set up and simple to use.

Flopro+ Digital Timer and Flopro Mechanical Timer enable accurate and precise watering. The LCD digital model is easily programmable allowing for automatic and manual modes with regular or short irrigation intervals. The timers offer the ideal watering solutions around the garden ensuring the right amount of water is delivered at the right time of day to equipment such as sprinklers.

Flopro takes water conservation seriously.

Further information is available from the Crest Garden sales team or www.flopro-uk.com

PlantGrow, a new type of plant food and fertiliser made from 100% plants, has been shortlisted for a national award.

The first of its kind in the UK market, PlantGrow is a finalist in the Anaerobic Digestion Bioresouces Association Awards 2018.

"Produced from a renewable energy source and creating electric during processing, our environmental credentials are like no other in the plant food sector," said operations manager Daniel Suggitt.

"PlantGrow is now available nationwide, with Homebase, Dobbies and Blue Diamond plus many independents and growing.

"Royal Parks in London will be securing our business next month as they have pressure to chose more wisely environmentally - bulk supply which is fantastic."

The award ceremony is next Wednesday (July 11).

Farplants, the West Sussex nursery co-operative, have for the first time added house plants to their product portfolio.

The plant wholesaler is well-known for their ornamental garden plants and seasonal planted containers.

With the addition of the new house plant range, retailers have access to an even wider selection available together in a single delivery.

The range perfectly combines the popular trend for strong foliage with stylish containers, to create a must-have addition to any home. Retailers can choose from succulents, orchids, palms and shrubs in an array of contemporary ceramic pots.

The popularity of house plants on Instagram and other social platforms, has increased consumer demand for green additions to their homes. The plants in the range have been carefully selected to be low maintenance and they all come with consumer friendly care instructions to help boost confidence.

The house plants are from fellow Sussex based business, The Little Botanical. Lines from the range can be purchased from Farplants by the case, enabling any size of centre to offer the premium house plants to their customers.

Brett Avery, Farplants Managing Director, says the response to the new range has been fantastic.

“Our customers are delighted with the combo of beautiful house plants and stylish designer containers.

"House plants are the hot trend, especially on social media, where the photogenic foliage flies the flag for green additions in the home.

"We are thrilled to add these to our extensive range, as well as to all our desks at Farplants HQ.”

Further new innovations from Farplants for 2018 includes their mobile friendly web shop and the launch of their new retail concept, Small Plants for Small Spaces.

The new range won Best Sales or Marketing Campaign at the recent inaugural Horticulture Week Business Awards.

www.farplants.co.uk

Bedfordshire's Woburn Safari Park has created a new home for conservation charity Tusk's striking 'NOT FOR SALE' garden. This unique exhibit was designed to educate the public about the devastating slaughter of endangered African elephant populations, caused by the brutal ivory trade.

With nearly 100 elephants killed every day for their tusks for the illegal ivory trade, it's crucial that organisations like Tusk and Woburn Safari Park help educate the public about the plight of elephants in the wild.

The conceptual garden has been installed at 'Elephant Junction' in the park's Foot Safari, after it first appeared as an entry at the 2017 RHS Hampton Court Flower Show, where the creation by Ferguson & Whyte Garden Design won a silver in the conceptual garden category. The installation of the garden comes as the government announces plans for tough new legislation banning the trade of a wide range of ivory products regardless of their age.

Attending a special launch event on Tuesday 10th July will be Tusk CEO & Co-founder, Charlie Mayhew MBE, as well as Woburn's female Asian elephants Tarli, Chandrika, Damini and Yu Zin.

Framed by a ringed arch made of 100 pairs of synthetic tusks, NOT FOR SALE symbolises the alarming rate at which African elephants are being killed by poachers, nearly one every 15 minutes.

With the ambiance of the African savannah - planted with grasses and plants - visitors can go on an emotive journey through the installation, where elephant 'bones' (made of fibreglass resin) lie in dust as a grave reminder of the ivory trade's devastating impact. Interpretive signs enhance the learning experience; educating the public on the elephants' plight, the ivory trade and what they can do to help.

Charlie Mayhew, Tusk CEO & Co-founder, said: "We are delighted that Woburn Safari Park has generously agreed to recreate this dramatic Tusk garden to highlight the crisis facing Africa's elephants.  Our aim is to capture the public's imagination whilst also delivering a powerful message about the devastating impact of the global ivory trade.

Since the garden was first featured at the RHS Hampton Court Flower Show in July 2017, we are pleased that the Government has responded to public demand and committed to introducing new legislation to ban ivory sales in the UK. We are extremely grateful to Woburn for all their continued and invaluable support of Tusk's conservation work and we hope visitors to the Safari Park will be inspired to help Tusk protect Africa's wildlife for future generations."

Drew Mullin, Woburn Safari Park's General Manager said: "We are incredibly proud to have been selected as the new home for TUSK's NOT FOR SALE garden, which will be displayed at Woburn as an important reminder of the elephant ivory crisis.  African elephant populations have declined by 70% since 1979 so education and public support is vital. Working closely with TUSK, we have raised over £9,000 for the charity since 2016, through our fundraising events. This striking garden is a visually arresting reminder for visitors, encouraging them to understand and support globally important conservation issues."

Woburn Safari Park is proud to work with Tusk and has raised almost £10,000 in the past two years; contributing to their important conservation work with some of the most endangered animals across the African continent.

With the hot weather predicted to continue for another two weeks Sarah Squire, deputy chairman of Squire’s Garden Centres, gives some top tips to help a garden survive the heatwave.

1. Water early or late – Water plants early in the morning or late in the evening and give them a good soaking at their base. Avoid watering in the heat of the day, as it will scorch the leaves.
2. Water wisely – Use water wisely. Did you know that you can re-use washing-up or bath water once it has cooled? Just make sure you don’t water anything you would eat without cooking it first, such as lettuce or cucumber. Have a water butt ready in case we have a downpour and then you’ll have free water on tap.
3. Choose low maintenance plants – Buy hardy plants that need minimal watering such as Sedum, Hebe, Lavender, Eurphorbia, Cordyline or Ceanothus.
4. Mulch, mulch, mulch – Water plants well, top dress with compost, then cover with mulch such as tree bark, which will keep the soil cooler and prevent it from drying out. Mulch is also great as it improves soil texture and suppresses weeds.
5. Don’t cut the lawn - Don’t cut your lawn if you can avoid it, or don’t cut it too short, as long grass will tolerate the heat better.
6. Move pots into the shade – If you can move your pots put them in the shade or under a sun umbrella, especially if you are going away.
7. Instant colour – For instant colour in your garden buy some jumbo bedding plants such as geraniums, or a ready-planted container, then sit back and enjoy the sunshine!

A Milton Keynes businessman has rescued a second garden centre facing closure, saving a total of 40 jobs and vowing to invest in the new ventures to make them “a supplier of quality products to gardening enthusiasts.”

Just two months after taking over the Leighton Buzzard Garden Centre, businessman Ken Chen is the new owner of the Willington Garden Centre, the flagship operation of the Home & Garden Group which called in administrators in March when their operations got into financial difficulties.

Mr Chen has signed a 15-year lease with the local owner of the Willington site, strategically located in Sandy Road and convenient for Bedford, Sandy and Biggleswade communities.

Multi-lingual Mr Chen launched his Newbridge Premium Pots company based at Bradwell Abbey, Milton Keynes, in 2009.

Mr Chen told the Milton Keynes Citizen: “Having acquired both the former Home & Garden sites in Leighton Buzzard and Willington within the space of less than three months, we will be working with the experienced management teams we have retained at both locations to ensure these garden centres become the location of choice for horticulturists and gardening enthusiasts.”

To read more click here

Following its sale to Exponent in 2017, The Scotts Company (UK) Ltd today launches its new company name - Evergreen Garden Care UK Ltd.

Evergreen Garden Care has been announced as the new Company name for the business created through the acquisition of the former international business of the Scott’s Miracle-Gro Company. Acquired by Exponent Private Equity in September 2017, the intention is to signal the new ownership and resultant change of strategy by changing the identity of the Company.

Evergreen Garden Care is the leading garden care company outside North America, producing high quality garden care products, with a mission to help people easily to create and maintain their own green oasis amid the rush of modern life. With market-leading brands in every market in which we operate, we deliver a full range of garden care products to gardeners in the UK, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Poland, the Nordics, Australia and New Zealand.

The change has no impact on the branding of the Company’s market-leading brands – such as Miracle-Gro, Roundup, and Weedol. The only thing changing is the Company name.

Karl Kahofer, CEO of Evergreen Garden Care UK Ltd, comments:

“We’re extremely excited to relaunch our Company as Evergreen Garden Care.  This is not intended to be just a cosmetic name change, but rather a signal of a new strategy and direction for our business. 

"The focus of the new Evergreen Garden Care will be entirely on developing the best-known brands and launching the most exciting and consumer-relevant innovations as we deliver growth – literally – for our consumers and retailers.”

Following this announcement, there will be no change to the registered company number, registered address, or VAT number.

Wyevale's Marlow Garden Centre is closed today after a fire in nearby fields yesterday evening engulfed the centre and surrounding roads in smoke.

A spokesperson for Wyevale Garden Centres has told GTN Xtra: "Our Marlow Garden Centre is closed today after the fire in Pump Lane South last night. We are hoping to reopen tomorrow.

"Fortunately none of our staff have been affected by the fire, which broke out in fields near the centre.

"We would like to thank Thames Valley Police and Buckinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service for their prompt response."

The fire spread rapidly through parched fields and some buildings in an industrial complex were effected.  Over 100 firefighters tackled the blaze.  Nearby residents were advised to keep windows shut because of the smoke.

At one point Highways England tweeted: "The fire at a nearby garden centre has been dealt with by @Bucksfire and the #A404 is now fully open in both directions..." however that proved to be incorrect.

Pictures from Bucks and MK Fire twitter @Bucksfire and South Central Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust Twitter feed @SCAS999

Read the BBC News report on the fire at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-44687197

Homebase is to cut 303 jobs at its Milton Keynes head office, the company has confirmed.

The DIY chain was bought by Australian conglomerate Wesfarmers for £340m in 2016, but was recently sold again – to restructuring firm Hilco, for £1.

A total of 24 stores trading as Wesfarmers’ brand Bunnings will revert to Homebase outlets.

The job cuts are related to the withdrawal of the Bunnings brand from the UK, and in an effort to return the current Bunnings stores back into the Homebase brand, the support centre has been dramatically reduced in size. Homebase has 250 UK stores and employs about 12,000 people.

Chief executive Damian McGloughlin said: “We have not taken this decision lightly, but decisive action is required to start rebuilding Homebase’s position in the UK market.

“We will be providing as much support as we can to help those affected through this difficult time."

Meanwhile, in the Mail Online on Friday a Press Assocaition report has been published that states Homebase is exploring a second wave of store closures that could see up to 40 DIY outlets shut, putting hundreds more retail jobs at risk.

Read the full story here

Every week GTN receives and analyses epos data from a number of UK garden centres to produce the GTN Bestsellers charts and weekly bestsellers sales tips.

The full charts which provide useful insight into product sales peaks, new trends and new link sales opportunities are published in the weekly GTN Xtra newsletter.

As the year goes on we give sales volume comparisons with 2016 as well as 2017 to allow your teams to see variations over a three year period.

Access is by subscription only.  For £145.00 per year you and your team can have access to the most up-to-date gardening sales analysis that has already helped many UK garden centres increase their sales.  To subscribe call 01733 775700, e-mail karen.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk or buy on-line using this link.

Highlights of the GTN Garden Products Bestsellers chart for this week are here

Highlights of the GTN Garden Plants Bestsellers chart for this week are here

Highlights of the GTN Growing Media Bestsellers chart for this week are here

Highlights of the GTN Veg-2-Gro chart for this week are here

Highlights of the GTN Wild Bird Care chart for this week are here

WARNING the GTN Bestsellers Charts seriously improve the business of our subscribers.  Invest 15 minutes each week in improving your sales using the GTN Bestsellers charts and your turnover and customer satisfaction will improve too.

Get the GTN Bestsellers charts in full every week in the GTN Bestsellers newsletters for only £145.00.

GTN Bestsellers is the only industry source of weekly garden centre sales information, collating Epos data from centres with an aggregate turnover in excess of £120m.

Use the weekly Garden Products and Growing Media Top 50 sales volumes charts to plan your hotspot and other promotions and ensure you have the right products in stock to satisfy the needs of your customers.

For further information contact karen.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk or call 01733 775700.

Buy your subscription today and start receiveing the GTN Bestsellers charts this week.

A record 370 exhibitors – from the biggest to the newest names in food-to-go, are preparing to showcase 1000s of innovations at lunch! 2018 when it returns. Everything that catering managers need to run their garden centre’s café or restaurant will be all under one roof on on 20-21 September at to ExCeL, London.

The premier event for the sector, lunch! has been serving the nation’s food-to-go operators and retailers for over a decade.  Having sold out of all available space three months in advance, its 6,300+ attendees will be able to see and sample more new food and drink products, packaging, equipment and catering technology than ever before.

James Dempsey, Procurement Manager at Wyevale Garden Centres says “lunch! Is a great opportunity to meet new and existing manufacturers and suppliers, a showcase of innovation and trends all under one roof.”

The full exhibitor list for this year – featuring the 370 companies that will be helping to shape the future of the food-to-go sector over the next twelve months – is now available online, and features 144 brand new show names for 2018. While over in the Start-up Zone, 28 emerging brands will be introducing their launch innovations to the market, and the exciting Innovation Challenge returns with the most creative new product launches from the last twelve months.

“The support from the industry as always has been phenomenal,” says group event director Chris Brazier.  “Not only have we sold 10% more stand space this year – providing even more quality, innovation and differentiation to our visitors – but demand has been such that there’s already a waiting list for companies interested in exhibiting in 2019.

“It really does demonstrate just how important lunch! has become to suppliers looking to do business with coffee shops, cafés, food-to-go multiples, contract caterers, wholesalers and distributors.  While for food-to-go buyers, lunch! has proved itself year after year to be an essential visit to see what’s new and compare the latest products from leading and emerging brands.

“lunch! 2018 is not just our biggest event.  It also boasts our most eclectic line-up yet.  Every new product innovation that food-to-go buyers need to know about – from ingredients to kitchen equipment and counter displays, from food and drink to packaging, payment solutions and business services – will be on show this September,” he says.

Free visitor registration

“lunch! is the only show dedicated to the best sector in food and moving to ExCeL makes it even better.  Don’t miss it!,” says Guy Meakin, head of buying at Pret A Manger.

“ExCeL it is the perfect space for this on trend, innovative and brilliant event.  lunch! is definitely not one to miss,” says Sandy Anderson, senior buyer at Elior.

For further information and to register for a free trade ticket, please visit www.lunchshow.co.uk and quote priority code LU61.

Essential Info:

• Opening times: 10am to 5pm both days (last entry 4pm)
• Dates: Thursday 20 September & Friday 21 September
• Venue: ExCeL, London
• Website: www.lunchshow.co.uk

Adande Refrigeration has developed additional retailer focused features for use with its multi-award winning open front, integral refrigerated Grab & Go cabinet with Aircell®. The optional components have been designed to provide merchandising flexibility and enhanced aesthetics for the display of chilled food to go.

The Grab & Go cabinet with Aircell® may now be supplied with an adjustable foam back panel, mounted on plastic feet, for each shelf. The back panels are designed to be moved forward manually on the shelf as stock is depleted and not replenished or when shelves are loaded with a reduced amount of stock during quiet periods of trading, as shown on the drinks’ shelf of the photograph. The result is that the cabinet does not look understocked, ensuring that neat and tidy product merchandising may be maintained. When the stock on any shelf is completely exhausted, the back panels may be moved to the front of the shelf to avoid the cabinet appearing empty, illustrated on the middle visible shelf of the photograph. The back panels may be decorated with promotional graphics or in retailers’ house styles with logos, providing an attractive alternative to the stark metal finish of the cabinet interior.

The fact that the Grab & Go cabinet with Aircell® does not require back panel flow means that the inserts do not interfere with air flow patterns. Conventional open front multi deck display cabinets rely on back panel flow for chilled air circulation so the use of movable back panels would not be possible on such models.

Adande has also developed a night blind for use with the Grab & Go cabinet with Aircell®. The fact that Aircell® divides the air curtain into short and separate cells means that the night blind may be partially deployed to cover only some of the shelves, which would be inappropriate on a conventional open front cabinet with a canopy-to-base air curtain. The partial deployment of the energy saving night blind, as shown on the photograph, may be used to close off shelves, which have been exhausted of stock. It may also facilitate closing off shelves for the storage and chilling of products, such as soft drinks, prior to display and sale. This feature is particularly useful for smaller outlets which have little or no storage capacity for chilled goods. During non-trading hours, the night blind may be fully deployed for additional energy savings and reduced costs. The night blind may be decorated with promotional graphics, or in retailers’ house styles with logos, to match the back panels.

Adande’s Engineering Manager, Roland Rees, stated:

“The Grab & Go cabinet with Aircell® has been proven to significantly reduce cabinet cold air spillage, promoting energy efficiency, stable holding temperatures and a more comfortable shopping environment. The addition of these merchandising features provides food to go operators with opportunities for more flexible presentation of product, enhanced aesthetics and additional energy savings.”