B&Q and independent gardening and DIY stores outscored Dobbies and The Garden Centre Group in the top 100 shops rated by Which? But in a confusing report, Dobbies was placed equal first for gardening and DIY with Argos. See more... Read more - members only

Monty Don, presenter of BBC Gardeners’ World, reaffirms, “I will not be promoting non-organic products of any kind whatsoever.” His irritation is a reaction to BBC’s promise of a more balanced programme in the future. See more… Read more - members only

The RHS has responded to the report of a man contracting Legionnaires’ Disease from compost with advice not to store potting media in hot greenhouses as these will heat up and may encourage Legionella. See more… Read more - members only

Figures from the GCA and HTA confirm that April sales were sharply down. Early trading in May shows signs of improvement but the season has still not really started at the time when it came to an abrupt end last year. Some retailers have warned of an unholy scramble if or when warmer weather comes. See more... Read more - members only

Westland is backing Diarmuid Gavin at this year's Chelsea Flower Show as he seeks to build the largest ever garden. You can watch the progress by clicking regularly on the website link below. See more... Read more - members only

A dire April should be kept in perspective after 3 years of strong growth. But there is a worry about bedding supplies for later in May. See more... Read more - members only

Alan Titchmarsh urged the different branches of horticulture to break out of their comfortable little boxes and to work together to show the rewards that a career in horticulture has to offer everyone from the academic to manually dextrous craftsmen and women. See more.... Read more - members only

From tomorrow over 20m people face a £1000 fine if they water a garden using a hosepipe. They will be able to continue to use drip irrigation but there are conditions. The terms of the water restrictions vary between the seven water companies. So where should garden centres go for advice? See more... Read more - members only

La Hacienda used its membership of ACID to enforce its IP rights against White Stores after discovering the company selling inferior quality chimeneas under the La Hacienda brand name. See more... Read more - members only

“Gardening: surely few things could be more eco-friendly? Not so,” says the Independent. It reports research by scientists saying, “Far from doing their bit to save the planet, Britain's green-fingered army may be damaging it.” See more... Read more - members only

Despite a massive fire at Booths Garden & Pet Centre on Friday – click website to see the You Tube videos – scores of pets initially thought to have perished, were saved. See more... Read more - members only

The RHS says that the devastating fuchsia gall mite is a new entry in the top ten list of pests most enquired about and it is likely to spread to the whole of Britain. See more... Read more - members only

An Evesham nursery has been fined £12,000 after a worker was injured when he fell through the roof of a glasshouse while cleaning gutters. HSE said companies must take suitable measures to prevent workers falling. See more... Read more - members only

The Press Association reports that a woman was killed and a man seriously injured in a garden centre car park in Kilmarnock. See more… Read more - members only

Three reports from the BRC show the pressure on retailers. Sales were the worst for 6 months in November, down 1.6%. Business rates will increase by 5.6% next year. Yet, price inflation is the lowest for 2 years. See more... Read more - members only

May finished with a frenetic 10 days, but the buoyant sales did not continue through the Jubilee weekend. Overall, garden centre figures look to be down on 2011 and this could affect industry cashflow in coming months. See more... Read more - members only

The UK garden industry will take centre stage as the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee barge leads a pageant of 1000 boats down the Thames on Sunday. Watch Countrywise at 8pm on ITV1 tonight, for a preview. See more... Read more - members only

It’s a 67th Chelsea Gold for Hillier and Silver Gilt for Dairmuid Gavin’s crowd pleasing Westland Magical Garden. There was Gold also for Taylors Bulbs and Thompson & Morgan wins Plant of the Year. See more... Read more - members only

Malcolm Scott suggests HTA should react to supermarkets move into gardening. He is offering to help by encouraging Local Planning Authorities to respond to breaches of planning where they exist. See more... Read more - members only

Superscrimpers, the Channel 4 series about how to live life for half the money, returns in June with a programme on Gardening. They are asking garden centres to identify a family of big spending gardeners who want an amazing garden but can no longer afford it. See more... Read more - members only

7 million viewers of Countryfile last night, saw the UK’s major peat harvester call for a ban on peat. The programme reminded gardeners that they have a choice whether to use peat on their gardens. See more... Read more - members only

It’s a month since Garden Re-Leaf and the charity Greenfingers has already received donations of over £25,000 and the money is still rolling in. See more... Read more - members only

Has GYO peaked asks GIMA? “I have no intention of letting it peak,” says Pippa Greenwood. She told garden suppliers they need to do more to help the novice gardener succeed and warned that some products were not fit even for landfill. See more… Read more - members only

Many gardeners are likely to face a hosepipe ban by Easter says the HTA’s Tim Briercliffe. He attended Defra's drought summit where the Environment Secretary announced a drought order for the South East. See more... Read more - members only

There is a real possibility of hosepipe bans this spring, especially in the East and South East. HTA talks with government seek to soften their impact on gardeners. See more… Read more - members only

The Observer reports an EA technical advisor for invasive species saying that he holds his head in his hands when he walks around garden centres. The paper calls for citizen science to record the advance of non-native invasive species. See more… Read more - members only

Figures for the December sales were the best since last January. There was a like-for-like increase of 2.2%. But don’t get too encouraged says BRC, 2012 is expected to be an equally challenging year. See more... Read more - members only

Gardenforum's Review of 2011 tracks the year's trading and events. It also shows the high number of garden centres and nurseries that are investing despite the difficult economy. This review is open for all to read, see more... Read more - open to all

Mary Portas has suggested 28 ways to put the heart back into UK High Streets. Some could affect garden centres. The HTA has welcomed parts but warns that garden centres also have an important role as community hubs. See more... Read more - members only

Defra has announced a new £20 million fund to help farmers, foresters and horticulturists to invest in green projects and new machinery so that their businesses can continue to grow in an environmentally friendly way. Read more - members only