For your interest we have
an archive newsletter section.
Please note that any special offers and prices mentioned may not
now be current.
 Shop
Changes
 The
dust has settled and the noise has subsided in the shop, the new
shelving is up and most of the stock is in its new permanent position.
Even we have difficulty in finding things sometimes, so we guess
you, our customers, must be really lost, but do go and ask the member
of staff on duty at the new Customer Service Desk to direct you
to stock. There are also customer service desks in the Aquatics
area and in the new Log Cabin in the plants area, so do take advantage
of these facilities and bombard us with enquiries!
The expansion of the shop has enabled us to offer some exciting
new lines – the card area has expanded to include gift items
of stationery, a range of Portmeirion China all beautifully decorated
with flowers or plants and a new bookshop is about to be installed.
For the children there are robust toys to play with indoors or
in the garden – these have only been out a few days but we
have seen many a grandparent going off with something from the stand
and a smile of anticipated pleasure on their face.
Furniture
& The Potting Shed
The weather has been so variable this spring and it is difficult
to realise that soon we should have warm sunny days when a meal
in the garden, or a good book and a glass of wine can be enjoyed.
We mentioned garden furniture in the last newsletter but it gets
more urgent now, so to encourage you to get organised in good time
we still have the promotion of a 10% offer on complete sets of many
types of furniture with the added bonus of free delivery for local
customers. Hurry though – one early season offer we mentioned
has now sold out, but there are plenty of other ranges still available.
One item we have been asked for frequently but recently have not
been able to supply is topiary frames. We are delighted to announce
that these will shortly be available together with many more interesting
items in ‘The Potting Shed’ collection.
 Fencing
As hedging specialists you must all be aware that we have always
encouraged people to plant hedges rather than erect fences, but
even we have to admit that fences are necessary in certain situations.
In the past a fence was either picket, overlap or interwoven, but
not now – the choice is endless and so imaginative that a
fence can now be an attractive feature of the garden. As so much
more work goes in to making the decorative panels they are more
expensive than the mundane old designs, but if you are going to
be looking at it every day it is worth investing in a really good
design. If you are thinking of putting up a new fence or replacing
an existing one just ask either at the customer service desk or
at the outdoors sundries service point and they will show you the
brochure illustrating all the designs of fencing and trellis which
are available. With a choice of Dandf, which we have stocked for
some time, and a wonderful new range from Direct Timber, there is
sure to be something ideal for every garden.
 Water
Gardening
The water is now warm enough to start introducing new bog and pond
plants and we have a excellent range of plants available including
the early flowering ranunculus aquatica (water crowfoot), which
bears its pure white flowers from April to July, and hippuris vulgaris
(mares’ tail – not to be confused with the horse-tail
a gardener’s nightmare weed) with its feathery green foliage
and good aerating qualities. Apart from plants it is now time to
increase your stock of cold water fish so we would invite you to
inspect our range of premium quality fish all of which are guaranteed.
If you have a small garden and do not have space for a pond it
is possible to make an eye-catching self-contained water feature.
To give you some ideas come and have a look at the display just
outside the main shop.
Spring
fever
 For
many people, the merry month of May is often considered one of the
best months in the garden with everything (well, it almost feels
like it!) literally burgeoning into growth and bloom, warm sunshine
to tempt you outdoors to start planting those favourite pots and
hanging baskets with colourful bedding, or simply a good excuse
(if you need one of course) to enjoy a good potter in the garden.
It is the plants that take centre stage right now and certainly
the wonderfully colourful Inkarho rhododendrons will be giving us
great value as they burst into colour. As you know (or may be you
didn’t) this new range of rhododendrons are lime-tolerant
so it means you can enjoy these late spring beauties in all soils.
Stock has been selling well; so if you fancy giving one a try, don’t
delay!
If you have the odd gap to fill (and the spring is the time when
gaps tend to appear) then we do have some rather superb herbaceous
perennial stock plants just waiting for a new home. These are plants
we have nurtured on the nursery and we are clearing our beds to
gain more space, so do come and have a browse – you’ll
find a bargain we guarantee!
Despite last year’s lack lustre summer, this spring’s
trees have been magnificent. Cherries, crab apples, magnolias (especially
the variety ‘Susan’) and the unfurling foliage of the
Japanese acers (we’ve sourced some real beauties from Ireland
this season) are just a few which really catch the eye. The popularity
of growing Japanese acers in pots is ever-growing but do remember
to select a location with dappled shade and plant with generous
amounts of ericaceous compost for best results.
New
plants & ideas
 Quite
a few new plants are making their debut this season – more
will be released later this month at the world famous Chelsea Flower
Show and we’ll be telling you more about these next month.
But if you simply cannot wait and want something really new, do
take a look at this year’s Rose of the Year 2005 called, aptly,
‘Summertime’. This is a wonderful new patio climbing
rose with excellent disease resistance. The informal creamy yellow
flowers have a good scent and are produced throughout the summer,
and are set off against dense, rich green foliage. It grows to a
height of 2.5m (8ft).
Another plant you may well be enthralled by, especially if you
like cottage garden plants, is Euphorbia characias ‘Silver
Swan’. This dazzling silver variegated evergreen perennial
produces stunning silver bracts in the spring. Introduced by the
famous Notcutts nurseries a couple of seasons ago, it grows to just
60-90cm high and wide. We always find it a cracking seller and definitely
one for your must-have list!
 Well
before the ‘instant garden makeover’ and before the
Ground Force team became a national treasure; you could always rely
on bedding plants to put the word ‘instant’ in to the
world of gardening. We’ve been using the usual bedding varieties
for decades:- white alyssum, blue lobelia and red salvia were the
regime for bedding displays in the 1960’s, ‘70’s
and even the 1980’s. Our palette in colour and variety has
changed over the years (thank goodness I hear you cry!) and we’ve
become somewhat more selective in our choice of bedding plants,
or half-hardy annuals as we should correctly call them.
We all want petunias that cascade, recover after a shower of rain
and don’t set seed – the Surfinias and Million Bells,
marigolds that continue to bloom and don’t need deadheading
- the triploid forms, and best of all we want diversity and colour-theming
when it comes to filling our hanging baskets. Bedding is one of
the best success stories in the gardening world – why? Well,
basically, like a few well-known pop stars, the range of bedding
plants tends to re-invent itself to fit the fashion and trends of
us gardeners. So, if you’ve been scared off by those pillar-box
red geraniums (sorry, pelargoniums), then give them a second look
– you just might succumb!
Training
successes
In order to provide the best customer service we have been investing
in staff training and twelve members have recently studied for and
gained Garden Care Certificates of Competence, 3 with distinction,
six with credit and three with passes. The subjects covered are
pesticides, insect and ‘pest’ problems, fungal problems,
weed problems, lawncare, fertilisers, soils and growing media and
integrated garden care. On Tuesday 17th, Mrs. Gwladys Tonge, whose
wonderful garden in Winslow is open by appointment in the National
Gardens Scheme, will be opening our new Customer Service Desk and
presenting the certificates to the successful trainees.
And
finally - QUICK TIPS FOR MAY
KEEP on top of preventative spraying. Roses, honeysuckle
and grape vines are the three candidates that benefit most from
a combined insecticide and fungicide spray – for aphis, mildew
and black spot attacks. Spray every 10-14 days for best control
and make sure the plants do not become dry ad stressed at the roots.
CONTINUE planting out tender vegetables – tomatoes, sweet
corn and cucumbers. Offer fleece protection is frost is forecast.
FEEDING is important at this time of the year,
especially those early spring flowering shrubs (forsythia, syringa
and cytisus) that have flowered well. Boost their growth with a
feed of Vitax Q4 or liquid feed with Tomorite. Remember lime-hating
plants, such as hydrangea, camellias, pieris and rhododendron will
benefit from a specific ericaceous fertiliser. Make sure you apply
this feed when the plants are moist at the roots.
GIVE your ornamental grasses a good tidy up to
encourage new, strong growth from the centre of the plant. Congested
clumps can be split now or in the autumn. Top-dress around your
grasses with bark chippings to help conserve moisture and suppress
any weed growth.
WHEN making up hanging baskets, do add some water-retention
gel to the compost to help hold valuable moisture in the compost.
If you are making up a number of baskets, do try to theme your colours
for best visual effect – especially if all the baskets can
be seen from the front of the property. If you can, once planted,
baskets benefit from a spell in a porch, greenhouse or conservatory
so the plants’ roots can get fully established before being
buffeted by the elements
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