Zest 4 Leisure, a leading trade supplier of quality timber garden products including furniture, arches, arbours and fencing, is celebrating another successful year at Glee 2018.

Ideal growing conditions and an adaptable retail sector mean the public can look forward to easy access to real British Christmas trees in prime condition this coming festive season.

With exhibitions off the agenda this year, garden trade suppliers are looking for alternative ways to showcase their latest product introductions ahead of the new gardening season.

Not wanting its retail customers to miss out, Woodlodge, the UK’s leading brand for plant pots, containers and garden décor, has confirmed that it will be launching new showroom tours in what is being dubbed as ‘Glee @ Woodlodge’.

The RHS has created a new careers resource - rhs.org.uk/careersinhorticulture - with over 60 individual films showcasing some 45 different horticultural careers, as a survey shows that almost three in 10 (28%) people say not knowing enough about careers in the industry puts them off working in horticulture.

Set up as part of the ongoing fight against Covid-19 the temporary NHS Nightingale Hospital at ExCel London has become ‘home’ to over 1,600 support staff bravely facing the virus head-on. Thanks to LifestyleGarden® and a wealth of generous donors, these workers now have a stunning garden space in which to relax and find a moment of calm away from the frontline.

Plant Your Future, the Registered Charity that works with subsistence farmers to restore the Peruvian Amazon Rainforest, has launched a competition to help keep children entertained and inspired during the COVID-19-enforced lockdown. The ‘Rainforest in a Box’ competition will encourage children aged 6-14 to get crafty, all while learning more about the rainforest.

Plant Finder team says garden centres are selling more online in COVID-19 crisis
 
GARDEN centres are using upgraded website software that recommends not only plants to gardeners but also care products as sales of gardening goods soar in the wake of COVID-19 (March 2020).
 
Joy of Plants’ Plant Finder plug-in has been added to 46 garden centre websites since it launched in 2018 including the Blue Diamond Group, Longacres, Barton Grange, Scotsdales and Perrywood.
 
Terri Jones, Managing Director of Joy of Plants in Twyford, says: “We’re hearing from our clients that they are experiencing an uplift in trade, as gardeners, who are self-isolating or social distancing, are ordering from them and asking for their items to be delivered, so they can spend the Easter break in their gardens.”

ONE OF the UK’s leading commercial nurseries has added a brand-new introduction to its promotional range – Agapanthus ‘Poppin Purple’ (March, 2020).
 
The new Agapanthus will be available from April (2020) onwards.
 
Colin Stanley, Retail Sales Manager at Wyevale Nurseries in Hereford, which celebrates its 90th Anniversary this year, said: “We’re delighted to add Agapanthus ‘Poppin Purple’ to our range. It’s a truly stunning plant and was recently crowned Best New Perennial at the 2020 IPM Essen, the world’s leading horticultural trade fair.
 
“Unlike any other purple varieties, this Agapanthus will rebloom throughout the season. It has intense, metallic, ‘true’ purple flowers. The flower heads form in full spheres giving a fabulous display for a prolonged flowering period. 

Haskins Garden Centre in Snowhill, Crawley, has opened its doors to customers upon completion of a 12-month project to create a new, enhanced centre.

Following a £15million investment, the new centre now boasts a retail space of 11,813 sqm, including an outdoor plant area and 440-seat restaurant complete with a newly installed pizza oven. Additional space has also been created to accommodate 170 restaurant guests on an outdoor patio.

Up to 70 new jobs have been created to accommodate the centre’s expansion. Car parking has also been improved with 346 spaces now available for visitors to use.

The annual GIMA Day Conference is fast approaching (19th March 2020), and with the latest names joining the agenda it is set to be a valuable day of learning and networking for both members and non-members.
 
The latest name confirmed for 19th March is Phil Pond, from Scarlet Opus, the leading trends intelligence agency. During his session, Phil will be giving delegates an insight into how consumer and design trends are forecast, and how they can provide huge return on investment for companies who work with this type of information.  There will also be a very brief snapshot to whet the appetite ahead of the Scarlet Opus led Consumer and Design Trends Seminar on 26th March, which is exclusively open to GIMA members.