Why would anyone replace a key sustainable component of our living environment with a coal and oil-derived product, one of only limited life span and almost impossible to recycle? When the entire planet is waging war on unnecessary plastics and the climate emergency, what is it that persuades consumers to make this terrible choice? And why cover children’s sports fields in products that can harm their health? Why on earth does anyone choose artificial grass? And why does the Government do nothing about it?

The reason is threefold: 1) skilful marketing, 2) the absence of product and consumer information, and 3) the lack of industry and product regulation. It doesn’t matter where your priorities lie, from saving the planet to saving your pennies; seen from any angle this is clearly a scandal.  So, before it is too late, we must dig deeper and expose the murky truths behind this phenomenon - and help stem a slowly emerging environmental disaster. Let’s address the three areas of blame, in turn, starting with marketing, a brilliant lesson in consumer exploitation – and an opportunity to debunk some untruths.

THE GARDEN Centre Association has announced Phil McCann and Mark Taylor will be joining its team of inspectors.
 
The pair will be responsible for inspecting member garden centres in South Thames with Phil inspecting those in the Garden Centre category and Mark checking members in the Destination Garden Centre category.
 
Iain Wylie, GCA Chief Executive, said: “We’re thrilled to have Phil and Mark joining our established team of inspectors.

The lawncare sector is poised for a buoyant spring. Months of rainfall have left the nation’s green expanses lacklustre in appearance and riddled with unsightly moss. When it comes to lawn renovation, however, the tide is turning against synthetic treatments. In a sector where chemicals once dominated, a transformation is being driven by a new generation of natural lawn treatments that are not only kinder to the planet, but reward consumers with outstanding results and levels of performance that were once only available to turfcare professionals.
 
Natural & organic lawncare solutions from DJ Turfcare and Viano
Viano organic lawn fertilisers, distributed exclusively in the UK by DJ Turfcare, hold the key to unlocking the full potential of the lawncare sector as consumers make the switch to natural and organic gardening. Viano has an impressive heritage: founded in 1948, the premium organic fertiliser range is the oldest privately owned brand in Belgium, supplying innovative eco-friendly lawn solutions to the professional and consumer markets, while the brand has established a loyal customer base at garden centres across the UK.

The doors are set to open on the third annual Glee at Spring Fair concession event in just a few short weeks. Retailers and buyers from across the garden, landscaping, and home and gift sectors are invited to register for the show to secure their free ticket ahead of the annual exhibition.
To register, simply visit www.springfair.com and click on the ‘Get your Free’ ticket button, and follow the instructions on screen. Your ticket will provide access to both the main show, as well as Glee’s second edition within its new-for-2020 location in Hall 7.
 
Retailers visiting the Glee at Spring Fair event will be able to access a whole host of exciting brands. Look out for Charles Taylor Trading, Creative Products, Dizmes, Neat Ideas, Chirpy Bird Foods, Euromedia, Fargro, Riverco Trading, Logs Direct, Juice & Jam, and Laurica Plants.
 
Additionally, the latest product innovation will be celebrated within Glee’s ever popular Glee New Product Showcase, run in partnership with the team from Garden Trade News.

Garden Trade Specialist Victoria Galligan tried out a brand new gardening product and says both garden traders and their customers will love it.

Brand new to the market, Vuba's patented gardening product is nothing short of genius. Designed especially for house plants, Easihold is a spray which sets stones that have been laid on top of soil – and it's completely permeable, allowing users to water and feed plants as usual.

Evergreen Garden Care announces David Domoney Chartered Horticulturalist as brand ambassador
 
Evergreen Garden Care, which encompasses leading garden care brands such as Miracle-Gro®, Levington, Roundup and Tomorite, is delighted to announce it has appointed one of the UK’s most prominent Chartered Horticulturalist and TV broadcasters, David Domoney, as its brand ambassador.
 
The partnership will see David produce a wide range of stimulating content to motivate and support all gardeners to have successful gardening experiences and help unlock the love of the garden for all to enjoy. The content will span insightful blogs, videos and promoting a variety of inspiring horticultural activities such as how to grow your best garden, growing in any space, gardening to support the environment, and gardening for better health and wellbeing.

It has taken me many years to have the confidence to call myself a ‘Printmaker’ - years of pursuing other creative pastimes which seemed easier to fit in around work and family life. But the imminent approach of my 60th birthday in 2019 was the catalyst that changed everything and sent me back 40 years to rediscover my love of colour, pattern and printmaking.

At the end of the 1970s I was at art college in Hull, studying for a degree in Graphic Design. I was struggling as the constraints of the course didn’t quite fit my ‘naive’ artistic style. One of my tutors, Simon Goldberg, recognised this and one day he handed me a piece of lino and a set of cutting tools saying “See what you can do, then ask me what I think.”

The Hawkesmill Nurseries team have to keep an eye on trends when producing perennials, wildflowers, grasses, ferns, herbs and more.  Fashionable colours and varieties are more important than ever when choosing ornamental plants.  And with all of us being much more aware of climate change, it is also important to look at growing your own herbs and vegetables to ensure the food on our plate has a smaller carbon footprint.

The Pantone colour of the year has now been announced as 'Classic Blue', a hue that will instil calm and confidence, not only in your wardrobe and on your living room wall but in your garden too.   

TREADSTONE PLACES UNIQUE ‘SAFETY DNA’ OF CLIPGLOVE RANGE AT RETAILERS’ FINGERTIPS
Treadstone Products has just launched a range of Industrial Safety Gloves, showcasing the expertise and technology behind the company’s ground-breaking ClipGlove gardening gloves. The industrial division will ensure a continued new product development stream, bringing its know-how to the ClipGlove range. At a time when there are so many ‘me too’ gardening glove products on the market, this affords stockists much-needed enhanced sales opportunities. 

Winter can be a beautiful time of the year. If you’re not caught outside in the middle of a frozen gale that is, looking at the wicked outdoors from inside with a cuppa can be relaxing. However, that’s easy enough to say from inside the comfort of your own home.

If reports are correct, the Beast from the East is due to return this winter, which means for our plants, this experience won’t be so pleasant. There are some things we can do to help though. Now is the time to start preparing and protecting your garden from winter elements and the Beast from the East. Allow Prestige Lawns to talk you through a few tips of how your garden can beat the big freeze.