Business
Sixty retail CEOs, including Aldi, Asda, Boots, Tesco, B&Q, Co-op, Kingfisher, Dobbies, Wickes, and trade associations such as the British Retail Consortium and the Horticultural Trades Association, urge the Chancellor to take action.
Charity
Scotland’s Gardens Scheme is calling on individuals, community groups and villages to open their garden in 2026 to raise funds for charity.
Economy
Despite a slight improvement in the state of the economy to -32 in August (up from -33 in July), consumer confidence remains lower than a year ago.
Tourism
VisitEngland’s August bank holiday trip tracker survey, shows that 11.2 million Brits are definitely planning an overnight holiday trip in the UK this bank holiday weekend.
Awards
Dobbies Garden Centre in Dunfermline opens its doors to the National Vegetable Society to host the Scottish Branch Championships for 2025.
Regulation
The government announced the suspension of extra border checks on plant goods from Ireland ahead of the new Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) deal with the EU.
Collaboration
Arit Anderson, Anna Potter, Shane Connolly, Arthur Parkinson, and Kim Murray have collaborated with Sarah Raven to create tulip collections for autumn planting.
Business
Retail expert, Mary Portas is seeking innovative small businesses to take part in an initiative championing the vitality and diversity of Britain’s independent retail sector.
Business
With the warm July temperatures, averaging 16.8°C, garden centres experienced steady growth with overall revenues up +4% compared to July 2024 and July 2023.
Business
The prolonged hot and dry weather has severely affected the horticultural industry, underscoring the urgent need for long-term water resilience measures, beyond short-term crisis interventions like flood and drought relief.
Tourism
Inspired by Jane Austen’s life and letters, Bath has filled its streets with literary-themed flower displays and installations.
Media
Never, has ‘read the small print’ been more appropriate in today’s exponential whirlwind of algorithms and implementation of artificial intelligence functionalities used by Big Tech.
Business
The historic, 50 acre Somerset based, Grade I listed Hestercombe House & Garden has fallen into administration.
Economy
The Bank of England has cut interest rates to 4%, the lowest level in more than two years.
Awards
The HTA has received the highest number of entries for this year’s Grower of the Year Awards, which recognise excellence in UK nursery production.
Economy
Data from the British Retail consortium showed disappointing shopping footfall across the UK, decreasing by 0.4% in July (YoY), up from -1.8% in June.
Education
The application process for the 2025 programme, which offers a unique opportunity for aspiring horticulturists to work with John Massey and Fergus Garrett for a year, is now open.
Gardens
Last weekend’s news reported a concerning story that the Deputy Prime Minister granted councils the authority to sell allotments to finance spending.
Charity
Amidst an unprecedented crisis for bumblebees, the Bumblebee Conservation Trust faces substantial financial constraints, impeding the provision of essential support for the pollinators.
Media
Google’s search engine overhaul and AI overviews will fundamentally change how users interact on searches, posing a major threat to (content rich) websites reliant on organic search traffic.
