“As soon as your plants aren’t great, you’ve lost all credibility.”
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
Rebooking surge sees Glee 2015 already 56% full
First statistics emerge from Glee, but the most telling is the strong rebooking for 2015 with 56% of the floorplan already rebooked. Read more
Looking ahead - It's not all doom and gloom
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
High pressure looks likely to dominate September
Wiseweather predicts that high pressure will predominate during the next two weeks. Following a brief interruption it will return for a further few days. See more... Read more
Branding crosswords could be the way to reach keen gardeners
The HTA says suppliers should look at teleshopping, crosswords and non-gardening media as a way of reaching keen gardeners having researched the interests they share outside gardening. See more… Read more
Will there be a new garden trade show in 2015?
Garden product suppliers are being canvassed about their appetite for new garden trade show next year, either in the spring or in November. Organisers say the prospects look good. See more… Read more
Two new features from Gardenex at Glee this year will be “Meet the international buyer” speed-dating meetings for exhibitors and presentations with UKTI on boosting exports without huge investment and other such topics. See more... Read more
Growers often complain about a disconnect between scientists and the horticulture industry. This is the topic for an international workshop chaired by Tim Briercliffe. He’s asking Gardenforum readers to send your opinions to be included in the debate. See more… Read more
With almost 2 months before the show starts, some of the most popular hotels at the NEC are fully booked as garden retailers look set to return to Glee in numbers. See more… Read more
AMA has published a study on the online garden products market. It forecasts trends to 2018, distinguishing between specialist and non-specialist Internet retailers. See more… Read more
New Legal advice line for HTA members launched
Members of the Horticultural Trades Association (HTA) now have access to a dedicated legal advice line to help with any Business Legal queries they may have. Read more
Garden centres will be gathering around the country in July to hear the results from this year’s GCA inspections. Suppliers, who are associate members, are also welcome to attend. See more… Read more
There’s just over two weeks before the fifth National Plant Show. A look at the record number of plant introductions and hearing about new research on gardeners of the future are two items for your ‘To Do’ list. See more... Read more
The latest updates to our Company Results pages show an encouraging picture, with nearly every company improving performance. Allensmore, David Austin, DJ Squire, Webbs, Bulrush, Harrod, Taylor Bulbs and Kelkay all improved their figures over the previous year. Who said 2012/13 was a difficult time for gardening? See more (open to all)... Read more
April figures released from the Garden Centre Association’s Barometer of Trade underline how gardeners have got back into gardening this spring, buying plants and gardening products. See more... Read more
New month brings a change to wetter weather
A new month brings with it a pattern change with much more unsettled weather likely for most parts as a reinvigorated jet stream runs close to the UK, something we haven’t seen for a while. Read more
2014 Glee will be hailed as a success
2014 Glee will be hailed as a success. The new venue received universal approval. Monday and Tuesday were busy. But should it open on Sunday? See Gardenforum's comments on Glee... Read more
Hombase MD tells industry leaders 'We need to work together'
Paul Loft, MD of Homebase, appealed to industry leaders at Glee to work together to address the challenges of change, both in the digital world and in attracting young people to meet the changing needs of the consumer. Read more
Notes from aisles of SPOGA Gafa
There were around 60 British exhibitors at this week’s SPOGA Gafa, some giving a preview of what can be expected at Glee later in the month. See more... Read more
GIMB goes national in 2015 with ‘Love the Plot…’
The HTA’s Garden Industry Marketing Board has some weighty backers and is gaining momentum. Next years ‘Love the Plot You’ve Got’ campaign will show how effective this group could become. See more… Read more
Modest to flat real sales growth in recent years
GCA and HTA figures agree that July was a flat month with sales increasing 1% on last year. Year to date their figures are quite different. And has there been any real growth in recent years? See more... Read more
A spell of wet weather at the beginning of week two is expected to separate two spells of high pressure. See more... Read more
Adam Pasco tells frustrated plant breeders at the Fleuroselect conference that their message is not getting to the consumer. Or is it even the right message? See more... Read more
The half-year figures from the Garden Centre Association (GCA) even out the peaks and troughs of the season and give the first, fairly reliable snapshot of where the industry is. For analysis, see more... Read more
GCA signs up five more members in June
The Garden Centre Association (GCA) has announced that it signed up some new garden centre members last month (June, 2014). See more... Read more
Wiseweather predicts below average rainfall in July, with correspondingly high amounts of sun. But there will be thundery outbreaks. See more... Read more
Will nurseries increase production next year? Are shrubs sales in long-term decline? Which nurseries are expanding? Is there a solution to Danish trolleys? These were some of the topics debated down the aisles at the HTA National Plant Show. See more… Read more
The RHS Chelsea Flower show will retain its central London venue at the Royal Hospital for at least another 10 years as the RHS signs a new 10 year deal. See more… Read more
Wiseweather suggests June will be characterised by a succession of low pressure areas interspersed with short spells of high pressure bringing above average rain for the month. See more... Read more
The deadline is approaching for suppliers to submit their products for the 2014 GIMA Awards. These are two reasons why these are the most influential awards in the garden sector. See more.... Read more