Graham Bodle of Walkers of Doncaster Garden Centre, won both a gold medal and the award for the best Artisan Garden at Chelsea Flower Show 2017 for his stunning 'Walkers Wharf Garden'.

'The Walkers Wharf Garden' turns a derelict industrial space into a usable outdoor area. A disused industrial wharf, reminiscent of those along the waterways of northern England, provided the inspiration for Graham. It includes a drawbridge, crane arm and a decked area in which to relax. Graham explained; "pines and conifers are used to give the garden structure and a feeling of maturity. Ground cover plants, including grasses, are planted in and around the edges of the industrial hard landscaping. The colour palette is predominantly green to give a sense of calm and well being."



Paul Cook of Cooks Garden Centre proudly displayed his Gold Greatest Award for Social Media Marketing alongside their Silver-Gilt Chelsea medal.



Hillier Garden Centres staff; Michael Stainthorp, WInchester Shop Manager and Matt Cocks, Horsham Plant Area Assistant, proudly present the companies 72nd Chelsea Flower Show Gold Medal.

See our second gallery of pictures from Chelsea including pictures from Robert "Papparazi" Ducker of Langlands Garden Centres taken on Press Day.

• Garden Products - down 34%
• Veg-2-Gro - down 3%
• Growing Media - down 13%
• All Plants Index - down 11%
• All Items Index - down 12%

The business at Kelkay continues to go from strength to strength and the sales team have helped to build this success through their single minded commitment to servicing their garden centre customers. Richard Pyrah and the experienced and dedicated team of sales agents service hundreds of garden centres across the country, from the largest and group centres to the smallest independent centres.

They have grown their distribution nationally from their base in east Yorkshire and can now proudly boast stockists in the most northerly and most southerly centres in the UK.

Wellpark Garden Centre in Orkney receives their Kelkay deliveries via Airdrie and the last leg of the journey is by boat.

“We have been trading with Kelkay for about a year now and have found them to be a great company to work with, the deliveries are quick and the product is good,” says Kirsten Glue of Wellpark Garden Centre.  

“It's always packaged well and prices are reasonable too. The relationship with our sales agent is great, nothing is ever too much hassle for Mike, it's as easy as just picking up the phone and asking for a few pallets and it's done.”

She added: “The products that stand out for us are the stepping stones, we do very well with these and they are definitely a top seller.”

Homeleigh Garden Centre at Launceston is one of the South West’s largest and is also Kelkay’s most southerly main stockist for the range of paving and water features.  Additionally, Kelkay have stockists in both the north and south of Ireland at Donnaghadee and Cork.

To find out more about Kelkay  and their successful garden landscaping products, go to www.kelkay.com or e-mail the general enquiries office on salesenquiries@kelkay.co.uk or call to speak to us on 01405 869333

Kelkay, The Old Airfield, Heck & Pollington Lane, Pollington, East Yorkshire, DN14 0BA.

Joshua Stacey from Pershore College has received Wyevale Nurseries’ Peter Williamson Travel Award.

The 21-year-old, who is in his second year of a Level 3 Extended Diploma in Horticulture, impressed the judges with a written submission and an interview.

The award is designed to encourage a student towards a career in nursery stock production by assisting with a practical placement at a nursery in the Netherlands. Steve Ashworth, director at Wyevale Nurseries in Hereford, said: “Joshua won the award from among an excellent standard of student applications due to his determined interviewee skills.”

The award was founded in memory of Wyevale Nurseries former owner and chairman, Peter Williamson, who died in 2011.

 The award is presented annually to a student Pershore College, which was Peter’s own seat of learning in the 1960’s. The award facilitates a period of work in the Netherlands during the college summer vacation, as Peter also did.

Joshua will spend three weeks with Henk Huibers at Batouwe Nurseries and three weeks with Frank van Helvert and Derk van Dorland at Huverba Nurseries, both suppliers to Wyevale Nurseries. Peter Williamson also visited these two nurseries in 2009.

Wyevale Nurseries also presented Joshua with £500 to help pay for his travel costs.

Joshua said: “It will be my first trip abroad and straight to the hub of European horticultural excellence. I will be keen to learn about the nursery world and will be ready for anything.”

Gardman has unveiled the detailed plans of its new purpose-built warehouse at Daventry, announced earlier this year and due for handover this autumn.

The new facility, which represents an investment of more than £30m, will replace the existing warehouse at Kings Lynn.

Gardman says it demonstrates the commitment of the company and its backers, Rutland Partners, to further support growth and the gardening industry.

A key consideration for the project was to reduce the environmental impact of Gardman’s UK operations. Working with project partners Winvic and Prologis, the new facility has been designed to achieve ‘beyond compliance’ in all areas and has significantly exceeded the requirements of building regulations in terms of energy efficiency, using low or zero carbon technologies.

When completed, the facility (architect's visual below) should achieve a BREAAM (Buildings Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) certified ‘Very Good/Excellent’ rating.

Environmental credentials include:

Reduce inter-site transport - the consolidation of stock to a single site will reduce the inter-site transport, whilst the new central location will make exports easier and cut product miles by more than 20% (approx 382,000 miles, the equivalent of 1.5 moon trips).

Energy consumption will be cut by 29% and CO2 emissions by 34%.

Roof lights fitted to about 15% of the warehouse roof area and offices will maximise the availability of natural light.

High reflectivity liner panels (80%, rather than normal 70%) have been installed to reduce the need for lighting.

Brise soleil shading has been fitted to the office elevations to reduce solar gain and improve thermal comfort.

LED lighting will be installed throughout, with movement controls, daylight sensing and dimming to make use of natural light wherever possible.

A 10,000 litre rainwater harvesting system will provide water for non-potable use and a mains water leak detection system

Site plans include a publicly accessible natural walk area directly adjacent to the site.

Low or zero carbon technologies include

Solar panels  – a 265kWp grid connected photovoltaic (PV) array, which is expected to generate in the region of 230,000 kWh of electricity.

Rooftop solar thermal system to provide a renewable source of hot water.

Rain forest protection - by investing in the protection of 328 acres (75,000 trees) of endangered Amazon rainforest through environmental charity Cool Earth, we have also mitigated 110% of the building’s embodied carbon footprint.

The Miracle-Gro's Ecotherapy Garden was awarded a Gold medal and was voted Best Discovery Exhibit at last week’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show.

The Ecotherapy garden was designed to raise awareness of young people's mental health and the benefits of spending time outdoors, away from technology and the pressures of modern society.

The garden was partnered with YoungMinds, the UK's leading charity committed to improving the emotional wellbeing of young people and member charity of Heads Together, the mental health campaign spearheaded by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry. The garden has received particular attention given recent reports highlighting the concerning link between technology and young people's mental health issues.

Chelsea visitors entered the Miracle-Gro exhibit through a specially constructed timber house in which the senses were exposed to sights, smells and noises simulating the stressful indoor environment experienced by many young people from factors such as constant interruptions from social media, phones ringing and noisy video games.

Upon leaving the house, visitors entered the Miracle-Gro garden, a calming haven which explored and stimulated the five senses, demonstrating the positive benefits of green space.



Above: Wicor Primary School pupils Eva Rawlingson (left, 6) and Ruby Ogden (8) from the Miracle-Gro Academy schools gardening scheme on the garden at Chelsea.

Dorset-based Master Hutmaker, Plankbridge, was given with a four-star award for its wildlife friendly tradestand exhibit at RHS Chelsea Flower Show.

The Victorian-inspired shepherd's hut, surrounded by pollinator friendly plants, such as foxgloves, bugloss and Primula beesiana, all supplied by Sherborne-based Castle Gardens, was commended for its inspiring and innovative design, attractive planting, significant scale of endeavour and high quality finish. Looking to engage with the next generation, the tradestand exhibit also features two bug hotels, which were built by a Dorset Wildlife Trust Forest School.

Richard Lee, co-founder with Jane Dennison and owner of Plankbridge Master Hutmakers, said: “Jane and I really enjoyed the wildlife friendly gardening aspect of bringing the exhibit together. The plants were placed in rustic pots, including a galvanised bath from Jane's family farm, showing how you can combine old and new materials to create a tranquil space fit for modern day use. Our beloved bug hotels and bird's nest really helped set the scene for visitors and made sure that wildlife was at the heart of our exhibit. This award is a fantastic result for the whole team and everyone involved in bringing the stand to life, and we hope that this exhibit will inspire more people to think about wildlife when they are planning their gardens.”

Each year at Chelsea, 250 tradestands are judged by long running exhibitors, successful retailers and visual merchandisers, to encourage high standards of presentation and to inspire design ideas at home.

A compact mulberry cultivar, Morus rotunbiloba ‘Charlotte Russe’ won the prestigious Plant of the Year title  at the RHSChelsea Flower Show. It was also featured on the industry's '40 Sunbury Road' exhibit.

‘Charlotte Russe’, which produces a lot of fruit on new wood, makes an excellent fruit shrub for smaller gardens or the patio. The plant, discovered by Japanese breeder Hajime Matsunaga, is available in the UK exclusively from Suttons. It was sourced by Dutch brokers Plantipp.

Clematis 'Taiga' (pictured left), also managed by Plantipp, was fourth in the competition. This beauty has amazing double bi-coloured flowers and was bred by Shigeaki Ochiai.

Three planning applications have been lodged for a £10million retail park and new St John’s Garden Centre at Newport on the outskirts of Barnstaple, the North Devon Gazette has reported.

The new St John’s Garden Centre, provisionally scheduled for opening by Easter 2019, would be joined by an Aldi supermarket, a Costa drive-through outlet and a Marston’s pub, all of which would aim to be ready to open next summer.

They site at Roundswell next to the A39 is felt to provide a convenient linked shopping experience, giving people several things to do at one location, create better transport links and ease congestion.

The new garden centre and Aldi have been lodged as one application, while Costa and Marston’s are separate applications, with St John’s the applicant.

St John’s owner Nick Oliver had previously told the North Devon Gazette that the site would create around 250 jobs.  “We know that there is a huge demand by the public for this particular supermarket company to be represented in Barnstaple as they already have one in Bideford and trade is being haemorrhaged to Bideford where it should be staying in Barnstaple,” he is reported to have said.

Planning permission was given in 2014 to demolish the existing garden centre and build 44 homes on the site.

The new application would involver 198 parking spaces for the garden centre and another 102 for Aldi.

The most successful exhibitor in the history of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show has continued its winning streak. Hillier got another Gold!

Hillier was awarded a Gold medal for its ‘Spring’ by Hillier garden, their 72nd consecutive Chelsea Gold. It also meant lead designer Sarah Eberle, remained Chelsea’s most decorated designer with a total of 14 gold medals at the show. This year she celebrates the ‘treble double’: three years in a row of two golds, having also won for the Viking Cruises’ garden.

A beaming George Hillier enthused: “Chelsea is the lifeblood running through Hillier. It plays such a vital role in the business so we are absolutely delighted to have won gold for the 72nd time in a row. It is absolutely a team effort and I want to extend a huge thanks to every single person involved, from our designers to everyone who works so hard throughout the whole year to make it all possible.

 “Our mission is to inspire the creation of green living spaces for now and the future and, by adding to our legacy, this year’s garden has certainly helped us achieve that.”

Having exhibited plants at Chelsea in some form for over 100 years and having now maintained the record for consecutive gold medals, the Chelsea Flower Show grows more important to Hillier each year. The show is the platform from which the company launches many of its new plant varieties, including two in 2017 that are exclusive to Hillier. Malus x purpurea ‘Crimson Cascade’ is a rather unusual weeping Malus discovered in a garden near York and Corydalis ‘Porcelain Blue’ is a striking true-blue variety with a delightful fragrance and long flowering period.

Another attraction on the stand this year was the ‘Memory Tree’. Visitors were invited to write down a treasured gardening memory and hang a plant tag on the Davidia involucrata tree, commonly known as the ‘Pocket Handkerchief Tree’, with the first tag hung by Alan Titchmarsh (above, writing the tag) on Press Day.

Which? Gardening magazine has named the WOLF-Garten 72v Li-ION Power 37 cordless lawnmower as one of its Best Buys.

The machine, SRP £429.00, achieved a score of 75% and was described as a powerful all-rounder for a small to medium size lawn. The reviewers particularly liked the mulching function, which they said left an attractive finish with little visible trace of the mulch clippings.

The Which? Team was also impressed with the battery life of an average of 30 minutes mowing time (enough for around 360sq.m. or 1.5 tennis courts) from one full charge, which takes takes just one hour. The battery is interchangeable with Wolf’s cordless hedge trimmer, leaf blower and grass trimmer.

Nick Hills, Wolf-Garten’s UK lawn and garden general manager, said: “We believe that our lithium battery ranges are innovative and attractive, so it is great to see them receive such a great badge of honour.”

Wolf-Garten products are distributed in the UK by EP Barrus.

Information: click this link.

While the British have a worldwide reputation for being green-fingered, they appear to be lacking in basic gardening knowledge, a new survey suggests.

Almost half (49%) of more than 2000 adult respondents did not know what secateurs were, according to the Great Outdoors IQ Test carried out on behalf of Grono.co.uk, a leading UK supplier of artificial lawns.

More than a third (37%) could not identify a trowel when quizzed on common items of gardening equipment, while 42% were unable to identify a garden hoe.

A quarter (28%) were not sure what a trellis would be used for…but just before you give up all hope for the future of UK gardening, take comfort in the fact that only 18% of people were unable to identify a rake as a common gardening tool.

The survey reports that 44% were unsure what a propagator would be used for, which on the surface sounds like challenging news for the seed industry.

No wonder, perhaps, that 46% of those surveyed said they now employed a gardener to look after the outdoors!

James Gilmartin, spokesperson at Grono.co.uk, said: “The nation's outdoor IQ is not what it once was, with the research highlighting that some common gardening terms are no longer general knowledge. This also correlates with a move towards easier-to-maintain outdoor spaces and more people turning to professional help with their gardens.”

Unsurprisingly, the older generations, those aged (65+) scored above the UK average for all gardening terms.

Bristol residents (followed by Oxford) were able to identify the highest number of common gardening terms and tools, while the population of Wolverhampton was the poorest at identifying items of gardening equipment.

Gilmartin continued: “Turning our hands to simple DIY and gardening tasks will help boost the nation's outdoor knowledge, while encouraging children to spend time outdoors will mean that there isn't a generation gap between the young and old age groups when it comes to gardening know-how.”

Information about grono: click this link.

The industry exhibit ’40 Sunbury Road’ has achieved a Silver Medal at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show and one of the featured new plants Dwarf Mulberry Charlotte Russe from Suttons has taken the title of RHS Plant of the Year.

The garden, put together by the Horticultural Trades Association (HTA) and The Association of Professional Landscapers (APL), is run in conjunction with Peter Seabrook and The Sun and is a celebration of Peter’s 40 years working at the newspaper.

APL member Bowood Landscapes have helped to build the garden, which features ideas and inspiration from a typical modest suburban back garden, and celebrates and promotes the vibrant and strong garden and landscape industry that we have in the UK with growers and suppliers providing plants and sundries.

The exhibit received a lot of interest at the press day on Monday 22 May including a Royal visit from Sophie, Countess of Wessex. Other visitors to the garden included Joan Collins, Susan George, Jerry Hall, Rupert Murdoch, Alan Titchmarsh, Deborah Meaden and Baroness Floella Benjamin.

See our gallery of photos below.

Peter Seabrook was presented with a bottle of champagne by HTA President Adam Wigglesworth and HTA Director of Operations Martin Simmons, to thank him for the work he and his team had done to help coordinate the garden.

The exhibit also saw the launch of the import substitution for oak report with HTA Head of Horticulture Raoul Curtis -Machin, HTA President Adam Wigglesworth and Kevin Hobbs from Hillier Nurseries.

The 16m x 5m plot in the Great Marquee features plants and sundries from growers and suppliers all of which are available nationwide in UK garden centres. This includes hanging baskets from Kerleys, Haskins Garden Centre, Bents Garden and Home and Aylett Nurseries, mint planted teapots grown by school children and dementia sufferers, as seen here with Robert Hillier, his wife and Peter Seabrook.

The garden features over 15 new plants including five that were entered for RHS Chelsea Plant of the Year including the winner - Dwarf Mulberry Charlotte Russe from Suttons), Pelargonium PAC Spanish Wine Rose (Cramden Nursery), Betula pendula ‘Fastigiata Joes’ (Frank P Matthews), Lilly Sunset Joy (Pinetops Nurseries) and Strawberry Just Add Cream (Thompson & Morgan) which was so tasty Deborah Meaden had to return with Susan George to taste some more.

Westland Horticulture’s ‘Rising Stars’ have created specially planted containers, with the three Rising Stars themselves (Emma Blackmore from Bents Garden & Home, Kathryn Hunt from Stewarts Garden Centre and Sarah Stewart from Klondyke, Polmont) will also be at the Show on Thursday, May 25 to tell the story of their unusual planted containers.

The garden also features the Wonderwall vertical planting system with strawberries, thyme, salad and confetti plants – demonstrating how outdoor space can effectively use height to gain impact. Perennial, working with Fiddlehead Products, provided a roof top fairy garden on the featured shed within the garden, providing added interest with plants and conifers from Gedney Bulb Plant Company and Golden Grove Nurseries.

Forest Garden provided the shed and the decibel noise reduction panels with WoodBlocX providing raised beds, Bradstone the paving and a patio cleaning equipment from Hozelock.

Companies and brands from across the industry have joined together to contribute to 40 Sunbury Road including Aylett Nurseries, Armlee Nurseries, Ball Colegrave, Barcham, Benary, Bents Garden & Home, Big,  Cramden Nursery, Dobies, Double H Nurseries,  Eden, Evi loves you!, Fleuroselect, Floranova, Forest Garden, Frank P Matthews, Genesis, Haskins Garden Centres, Hozelock,  KADO, Majestic Trees, Myerscough College,  Neudorff, Pinetops, Plants for Europe, Quantil, Rolawn,  Seiont, Stewarts Garden Centre, Suttons, The David Colegrave Foundation, Thompson & Morgan, Westland, WoodBlocX, WonderWall, Wyevale Nurseries amongst others.  Many thanks to them all.

The British Ornamental Plant Producers (BOPP) Certification Scheme will be inviting members to attend its stand at the HTA National Plant Show at Stoneleigh Park next month to mark 21 years since the first audit took place.

BOPP, a specialist group of the HTA, is a certification scheme for growers, packers and manufacturers of plants, flowers and growing media, aimed at developing and raising standards.

The scheme will be showcasing members’ products and directing enquiries to the their stands. BOPP members exhibiting at the show include Allensmore Nurseries, Earley Ornamentals, Farplants Sales, Kernock Park Plants, Lovania Nurseries, Pentland Plants, Taylors Bulbs and Volmary.

Anna Cook, BOPP scheme manager, will be on hand to promote the scheme to retailers and growers and provide existing members with a scheme update. Details of an anniversary seminar event on 18 July at Horticulture House, Chilton, will be announced.

Information: click this link.

Targeting consumers who seek style and functionality in their gardens, the HiberGrill barbecue cover is designed to keep barbeques snug, dry and clean all-year round.

The cover is made from 100% acrylic fabric, which is waterproof, fade resistant and ultra-tough and features a HiberFibre undercoating that contains two antimicrobial agents. Microbial growth is a major cause of fabric discolouration and degradation. It can withstand multiple cleanings and extended exposure to UK weather.

Made to fit all kettle barbecues, the HiberGrill cover comes in three colours: Leafy Green, Poolsider and Charcoal. More sizes will be introduced in the coming months.

SRP is £74.95.

HiberGrill is a brand owned by Fatsumo Ltd - a small, UK-based business set up to design and market stylish and durable outdoor goods.

Information: click this link.  www.hibergrill.com

• Woodlodge Pot Feet Large was the highest climber.
• Gardman Nickel Solar Marker Light was the highest re-entry.
• Westland Growing Success Slug Killer Advanced Organic was the highest new entry.

• Quantil Runner Bean White Emergo Strips clung on to the top spot.
• Quantil Tomato Beefmaster 8cm was the highest climber, jumping 31 places to No 11.
• Quantil Tomato Totem 8cm was the highest re-entry at No 18.
• Quantil Runner Bean White Emergo 8cm was the highest new entry.

• Delphinium sales increased by over 400% to re-enter the chart at No 22.
• Papaver plants weren’t far behind, re-entering at No 26.
• At the top Pelargoium sales increased 7% on the same week last year.

• Scotts Levington Multipurpose + John Innes (56 litres) stayed on top of the chart.
• Bord na Mona Vital Earth Organic Garden Compost (50 litres) was the highest climber, moving up 28 places to No 10.
• Westland The Gardener’s Multipurpose Compost (50 litres) was the highest re-entry at No 16.
• Another returning product is Scotts Levington Organic Blend Topsoil at No 26.

The earliest Christmas party of the year will be held in Leicestershire this summer as tree growers of the world unite to make plans for the festive season.

The British Christmas Tree Growers Association (BCTGA) is hosting the Christmas Tree Growers Council of Europe (CTGCE) annual summer meeting from 30 May to 2 June at Hinckley.

It’s the first time the event has been held in the UK for more than 15 years.

Harry Brightwell, secretary of BCTGA, said: “The event sees growers from across Europe attending with some delegates coming from as far as the USA.

“We will be taking our guests to visit some exciting Christmas tree farms -  Woods Farm in Solihull, Cadeby Tree Trust in Nuneaton and Friezeland Christmas Tree Farm also in Nuneaton - where we will be sharing advice and updates on growing beautiful trees.”

The British Christmas Tree Growers Association, based in Tuddenham St Martin, Suffolk, was established in 1979 to provide a quality standard for Christmas tree growers in the UK and champion the purchase of real Christmas trees. It has over 300 members.

Mr Brightwell said: “We have various activities planned and we are expecting the event to be an informative and interesting few days for all attending and is a wonderful opportunity to share a bit of British Christmas cheer.”

At Woods Farm, they will see what is believed to be the biggest tree bailer ever made (by Howeys of Michigan).

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 printed newsletter.

As the year goes on we give sales volume comparisons with 2014 as well as 2015 to allow your teams to see variations over a three year period.

Access is by subscription only.  For £195.00 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 Veg-2-Gro Bestsellers chart for this week are here

Highlights of the GTN Growing Media Bestsellers 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.