180 people attended the HTA Catering Conference to hear about eating-out trends such as Kidult and Haute Casual. Read more

Garden centre sales in March were lower than the same month in 2014, 2012 and 2011. However, for a rolling 12 months sales look to be up by 4%. Read more

QVC raises £40,000 for garden relief, the Thames walk a further £7000. Tweets with “#Glovies” were seen 241,000 times in a day. See some of the images from the Greenfingers Garden ReLeaf day. Read more

Never call a buyer on a Monday.  Never give surprises.  B&Q’s Tim Clapp explains how to become a successful supplier to the multiple retailers like B&Q or Wyevale.  Read more

The latest figures from the GCA show 2014 was the best year for 4 years with December beating May as the biggest sales month of the year. Read more

2014 has been dominated by the repositioning of the major gardening goods distributors following the demise of Solus.  The weather for once provided a good news story and towards the end of the year there was a flurry of activity from Wyevale as it picked up eight long established independent garden centres.  See the full review – which is open to all… Read more

Garden centre catering operations face new food labelling regulations which come into force on December 13. Read more

GCA figures for September show that the gardener is back. Outdoor plants, garden sundries and landscape products showed double digit growth for the month. Read more

Gardenforum believes the RHS, the HTA and other organisations behind Horticulture Matters need to re-think their strategy to solve the skills crisis in horticulture. Read more

In 1994 garden centres were outmanoeuvred when it was generally accepted they should be exempt from new Sunday Trading restrictions. Now the HTA is calling for the government to think again. See more… Read more

B&Q’s Sir Ian Cheshire stepped into the debate about Scottish independence, with several publications reporting his warning that investment would be put on pause if Scotland voted in favour of independence. See more... Read more

Garden furniture, sundries and plants drive strong garden centre sales in April; and stock keeps flowing despite upheavals in the supply chain. There is a feeling that the gardening feel-good factor is back. See more... Read more

There are many happy bunnies across the garden industry after a bumper Easter weekend. Many garden centres are reporting record trading days with plants and garden sundries sales particularly strong, along with catering. Read more

The first episode of The Big Allotment Challenge airs tonight (Tuesday) at 8pm promises tension and tantrums in every episode. It should be a boost for Grow Your Own. See more… Read more

An unprecedented succession of autumn and winter storms have caused a national shortage of fence panels which is likely to last into the summer and beyond. See more... Read more

Any grower can nominate themselves for the International Grower of the Year Awards as they get a new look along with rebranding for the AIPH. Read more

After a slow grey start to Easter, garden centres were buzzing by Monday.  But nursery stock is 3 weeks late and this could lead to shortages if sales continue to blossom in the warmer weather. Read more

Cultivation Street is a campaign that rewards people who use plants to improve their neighbourhoods and bring pride back to their streets with £20,000 of National Garden Gift Vouchers donated by the HTA. Read more

“The Sunday Trading Act is an anachronism in this day and age,”says the HTA when visitors finding their garden centre closed on Easter Sunday can return home and buy the same products online. Read more

Sunshine Garden Centre and Van Hage are the best GCA outdoor living retailers.  Cowell’s and Bents are the best for plants. Read more

The Government is proposing legislation that would force Britain’s biggest companies to reveal their payment terms and performance, quarterly.  GIMA welcomes greater transparency saying the garden industry is particularly bad when it comes to paying bills. Read more

Manchester Evening News reports how a horrified mother found a razor blade in a present given to her daughter by a garden centre’s Santa.  Read more

The Garden Media Guild Awards were held at The Savoy, London yesterday. Hosted by James Alexander Sinclair, the awards lunch drew many influential players in the gardening world. Read more

Quotes from HTA Garden Futures: “I want to create an emotional connection between the consumer and a bag of compost.”   And “Gardening is about partying, entertainment and living outside. It is not about ‘Jobs for the month’.” Read more

2013 turned out to be another disappointing year in all three key sectors of the garden retail market – garden plants, garden care and garden leisure – with all three sectors showing a steady decline in the five years to 2013 covered by the Analysis. Read more

The garden retail industry was in a confident mood at the GIMA Awards where Burgon & Ball won the Sword of Honour for the best new product and Taylors were named supplier of the year. See more... Read more

As PwC confirms that discussions with interested parties about buying Solus are still ongoing, Edward Conroy suggests this is an opportunity to reflect on our progress as an industry and to consider what still needs to be done. See more... Read more

Garden centres are being invited to sign up this month (May, 2014) to help with an attempt to have the most teddies picnicking on the same day nationwide. See more... Read more

Measures to stop invasive alien species of plants, animals or insects getting into the EU or to limit the ecological and economic damage caused by those that do, came a step closer last week. See more… Read more

The benefits of green landscaping were widely recognised by experts at the AIPH conference, but who makes sure it happens? "Not us,'" says the Mayor of London's representative. See more... Read more