The confident consumerism that is Spring Fair’s abiding hallmark is steadily being tempered by softer message – the environment matters and consumers are demanding we respect it. You didn't have to look too hard at the NEC this week to find suppliers with a green story to tell.

Nine years ago, inventor Dan Dicker set up a company to make eco-products from re-cycled coffee cups. He called it ashortwalk – because the factory (initially a shed) is close to the North Cornwall coast and he always wanted to work and live a short walk from the sea. You may have seen some of their products at Glee a couple of years ago – house numbers and signs, among others, that mimmicked slate but started life as plastic cups.

The range has since balloned and now includes indoor and outdoor products like sundials, plant labels, clocks and themometers – and a brand new range of bird feeders designed to take kitchen scraps that might otherwise end up in the black bin. Also interesting is a clever new plant pot holder designed to fit between the boards of a standard lapped fence for vertical decoration.

Naturally, the company has an insatiable demand for for raw material – no longer just old coffee cups but something very close to the heart of gardeners everywhere…old plant pots.

The company have already persuaded around 20 garden centre stockists to carry their plant pot recycling point in-store. Its header board tells the story: “A redundant plant pot one week, a birdfeeder the next – true ‘closed loop’ re-cycling.”

There isn't a keen gardener alive who doesn't want to do something about the growing mountain of old plant pots in the garden shed, and with more and more garden centres now accepting them back for re-cycling, this must be an idea whose time has come – with the bonus that customers can see for themselves how their discards will be turned into useful garden products.

Simon Dicker (Dan’s brother), the company’s sales director, says that another 20 garden centres happy to take the re-cycling point could give them critical mass to roll the initiative out nationwide. Surely, another opportunity for the garden centre industry to claim a significant eco Brownie point.

Information 01872 57500

www.ashortwalk.com

Elsewhere, a new company called Green Corgi showed an sculpted fruit bowl handmade by gluing 128 different pieces of laser-cut recycled cardboard together. A water-based impregnation makes it water- and dirt resistant.

The company, who used Spring Fair as their launchpad, represents independent international product designers. The products, unique and innovative in functionality and design, include glassware, lacquer trays, glassware, fine bone china, new bone china, coat hangers, hooks and pegs.



Green Corgi's founder David Grey with the recycled cardboard fruit bowl.

There are encouraging signs of activity both indoor and outdoor. Gardeners are readying themselves for the seed sowing season while orchid compost is still figuring highly in the GTN Bestsellers Growing Media chart.

Multipurpose compost and farmyard manure is also in high demand as gardeners head outdoors when the winter weather allows.

Thirty-six of the 50 products in the Growing Media chart experienced 100% increases in sales.

Some notable performances included Scotts Miracle-Gro All Purpose Compost, 60 lites, which was the highest re-entry at No 14.

The highest new entry was Arthur Bowers John Innes Seed Compost, 20 litres, coming into the chart at No 20. Arthur Bowers also had the highest climber in New Horizon Multipurpose Compost, 50 litres, moving up 18 places to No 29.

Westland dominated the top of the chart with nine products in the Top 10, including Multipurpose Compost, 50 litres, and Jack’s Magic All Purpose Compost at Nos 1 and 2 respectively.

trevor.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk

• New Plant Area which hosts the New Plant Award entries and winners
• Seminar Area which will be home to three inspirational seminars with guest speakers
• British Plant Fair Marketplace with shelf after shelf of stock to buy at the show
• ProVaR area which will highlight new varieties for 2014
• International Breeders Area displaying plants which will be available from UK growers in the future

Gardeners are getting ready for the seed sowing season, so it’s hardly a surprise that Botanico Seed & Cutting Tray is the highest re-entry at No 10.

Outdoor activity is also on the increase and Scotts Levington Tomorite makes an early season chart return at No 40.

Gardman Solar Spot Lights are another product to make a significant move, recording sales increases of 100% and rising 12 places to No 2.

See the full GTN Garden Products Bestsellers Chart here.  Subscribers Only

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Pippa Greenwood, BBC Gardeners’ Question Time panellist and BBC Gardeners’ World columnist, will be visiting Ruxley Manor Garden Centre in Kent on Thursday 7 March between 10am and 2pm.

Pippa Greenwood, the popular gardening broadcaster and writer, has teamed up with Stewart Garden, the market leader in quality garden products, to launch a tour around eight garden centres in England, starting at Ruxley Manor Garden Centre on Thursday March 7.

The tour is part of Stewart Garden’s partnership with Pippa, which commenced in 2011, and follows the successful series of visits to centres across the country earlier in 2012, encouraging people to grow their own produce.

Throughout the tour, Pippa Greenwood will explain the principles of grow your own and give practical demonstrations of potting, creating growing beds and propagation. Comprehensive information sheets written by Pippa and complementing the demonstrations will also be available to visitors.

Started as a family business, Ruxley Manor Garden Centre is a member of The Garden Centre Association and The Horticultural Trades Association, and also won the prize for the 'Most Improved Garden Centre' in the UK in 2008: an ideal location Stewart Garden Grow Your Own Tour with Pippa Greenwood.

Lisa Bottomley from Ruxley Manor says: “We’re delighted to have a gardening guru visit our garden centre. Pippa is an inspiration and our customers will benefit immensely from her practical demonstrations.”

While at Ruxley Manor Garden Centre, Pippa will take a tour of the garden centre, and she will be talking with the staff and customers, answering their questions. Visitors are encouraged to email questions in to Ruxley Manor Garden Centre ahead of Pippa’s visit.

• Dressing in silly hats
• Weeding a local hospice's garden
• Baking cakes for other staff to buy
• Helping local schoolchildren create gardens on pallets
• Organising and participating in the celebrity quiz.

This may at first appear to be a relatively positive performance, however it is important to look at the context; October to December 2011 saw a 21% value decline vs. the same months in 2010. So despite the growth in 2012, the market has not recovered to the same level of value it was in 2010.

With this marginal value growth in 2012, volume sales are showing a marginal decline of 1.1% vs. 2011. This is largely driven by a decline from the largest category, bird food.

Bird feeders however, have achieved value and volume growth in 2012, and with the recent snowfall in January it is likely the total bird care category will continue to report positive figures.

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 and on the GTN website www.gardentradenews.co.uk.

New for this year, every week we'll give sales volume comparisons with 2011 as well as 2012 to allow your teams to see variations over a three year period.

Access is by subscription only.  For £120.00 per year you and your team can have access to the most upto date gardening sales analysis that has already helped many UK garden centres increase their sales.  To subscribe call 01733 775700, or subscribe on-line here

 

or e-mail karen.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk

Highlights of the GTN Garden Products 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.

Taylors Bulbs also figured highly in the charts with their seed potatoes with their Pentland Javelin the highest placed at No 23 and their Charlotte Taster Pack at No 27.

Taylors had the bestselling item this week as their Onions Sets Stuttgarter moved up two places to top spot.

Returning to seed potatoes for one moment, Albert Bartlett had the distinction of highest new entry with their Anya variety making it to No 34.

The highest re-entry was Allensmore Rhubarb Timperly Early, jumping into the chart at a creditable No 16.

Beetroot Boltardy (above)  figured strongly this week. Thompson & Morgan’s variety was the highest climber, moving up 22 places to No 18 while Suttons saw 50% increase in sales of their Beetroot Boltardy.

Dog Rocks has decided to cease supplying stock to Amazon Retail in a bid to protect the recommended retail price of its product that helps to prevent pet urine burn patches on lawns.

And the company has recruited a dedicated a resource to support online and independent retailers, protect the brand and provide support where necessary. 

In addition to ceasing supply to Amazon, Dog Rocks is also contacting all retailers on third-party websites to remind them of RRP and minimum advertised price.

Dog Rocks MD Carina Evans said: “By supplying direct to wholesalers, and no longer Amazon, we are able to better support online and bricks-and-mortar retailers who will in turn be better able to respect and uphold our RRP.

"We seem to have spent so many unfruitful hours tied up in admin correcting anomalies generated by Amazon in the cyber world that it is no longer feasible for us to support this third-party retail channel. 

"On top of this we aim to protect our brand, uphold the suggested RRP/MAP, and their proposed increased rebate was unworkable, potentially creating more of an uneven playing field with changing goal posts.
 
"Dog Rocks has bravely put its head above the parapet, showing empathy and affinity with its retailers.

“Loyalty and efficiency are key to our business and we owe it to our retailers to give them the best chance possible to gain from the great margins offered by Dog Rocks.”

The company raised the cash in aid of Demelza Hospice Care for Children through a series of fundraising events during 2012.

Tammy Woodhouse, Managing Director of The Millbrook Garden Company, which has garden centres in Gravesend, Kent and Crowborough, East Sussex, said: “We select one charity  to support every year and are delighted to have raised this money for Demelza Hospice Care for Children, which was our Charity of the Year for 2012.

“The centres held various events during the year, including Charity Festive Evenings. I completed the Three Peaks Challenge in May, 2012 in aid of the charity too and  raised £710. We are thrilled to have raised a total of £5,390.

“Demelza Hospice Care for Children cares for life-limited children and their families, offering respite breaks, end of life care and bereavement support at its hospices  in Kent and South East London. It also offers a hospice at home service for children in East Sussex and parts of South West Kent.

“One of its main aims is to make the most of every moment that the child or young person spends at Demelza. We hope that the money we  have raised will help the charity to continue its important work.”

The Millbrook Garden Company Limited is a family-run, independent company and serves the South East of England.

It provides customers with a wide range of quality plants, shrubs, trees, furniture, barbecues, gifts and food items. Its friendly and knowledgeable staff are on-hand  to give visitors help and advice on all gardening matters.

The business consists of two garden centres: Millbrook at Crowborough, East Sussex, which was founded in 1979, and Millbrook at Gravesend, Kent, which opened in 1994.

Both centres also have cafés serving hot and cold drinks, snacks, breakfasts and lunches using fresh, seasonal produce some of which is grown at the garden centres.  There is ample free parking at both centres.

The celebrations will continue over the weekend of March 2-3 with children’s entertainment and special offers.