Golden Acres News

Gifts For Mothers Day

2012-03-06T08:00:00.001Z

With only a couple of weeks to go until the Mothering Sunday we’re thinking about our Mums at Golden Acres. Being ‘planty people’, we have some really lovely houseplants and planted arrangements that will last far longer than a bunch of flowers and to suit every budget. Our houseplant chaps have really gone the extra mile this year. I’m going to find it hard to choose. If you really want to spoil your Mum the giftware girls have been busy hand picking some beautiful ranges that will make a truly special gift and we even have some yummy chocolates – Flowers, chocolate and something frivolous, what more could a lady want?

I have made a start on clearing my garden, two trips to the tip and a few broken nails later I was ready to apply some herbicide to my lawn to kill it off ready for the rotavator in a couple of weeks time. I used a product with the active ingredient glyphosate in it as this won’t harm the soil but is systemic which means it will kill the grass and all the weeds down to the roots. Then when the rotavator chops it all up and mixes it in with the soil it shouldn’t grow back where I don’t want it to. I let my neighbours know that I was using a weedkiller so they could keep any pets such as cats that may walk across that area inside for a few hours until it was dry. Once its levelled I’ll be able to put down fresh turf and it should grow where I want it to!

Daffodils & Primroses

2012-02-28T11:03:00.001Z

Spring is in the air and we’re all just itching to get out in the garden – We nearly sold out of little tete a tete daffodils and primroses in the centres this week, they are really looking their best now so we’re busy re-stocking to ensure we don’t disappoint any one.

We’re also in the midst of redeveloping the out-door area of our Centre at Landford – We all love this centre – its in a beautiful setting in the New Forest and the guys there have a real feel for creating inspirational displays – its so exciting for us to have brand new paving and fixtures and fittings to make the plants look their best. The works nearly finished now so over the next few weeks the team will be filling back up with lovely fresh stock, I am being sent to see one of the best suppliers for specimen stock next week to get some real special pieces to set the new Plant area off with, I can’t wait...

Talking of re-developments I am busy getting quotes for my garden – The first stage is to have the whole lot rotavated and levelled, I also need a new fence and we’re going to put decking down over the existing and rather tatty patio. Once this has all been done I will have a good base to work on for the rest – Lawn, raised veggy beds and some small borders that should be low maintenance – I am having to be very disciplined and stop myself from buying any of the yummy stock coming into the centres at the moment as I have nowhere to put it yet! I hope those quotes come through soon.

Spring Time Is Approaching!

2012-02-21T12:01:00.003Z

Spring is doing its best to push through; daffodils are starting to bloom and filling our plant areas with various shades of yellow. Very soon we will be absolutely spoilt for choice for plants of all types as they start to put on growth again. Some of my favourite shrubs on the Garden centres now are –

Camellias – Coming into full flower now, you just cannot beat a Camellia for the ‘wow’ factor in your garden. With the added benefit of being evergreen they’ll give you year-round structure in your borders too.

Chaenomeles – Commonly known as Japanese Quince, these shrubs can be trained against a wall and produce pretty little flowers in February and March going on to develop edible fruit in the Autumn. Good doers these shrubs will grow pretty much anywhere.

Skimmias – Neat evergreen shrubs with panicles of green/white or red flowers on the female plants that hold well through late winter until the weather warms up. The buds then pop open into full flower releasing a wonderful musky scent. If yours are looking a bit yellow, give them an Iron tonic and watch them green-up within weeks.

We also have the starter range Herbaceous perennials coming through now. These are great for adding colour to your borders and ‘in filling’ around shrubs. Many people make the mistake of buying lots of different types and ending up with the ‘fruit salad’ effect. If you want real impact in the garden choose fewer varieties but lots of each, odd numbers (in the trade ‘landscape’ numbers) in 5s, 7s and up look more natural and when planted in swathes can really do you proud. If you’re canny, do some research on varieties before making a decision. This will enable you to co-ordinate colour and timing so your borders look their best all season. We will be offering these plants at 5 for £10 through March and April which makes the above technique very affordable.

2012-02-14T09:42:00.002Z

Despite the cold I have been out and about visiting nurseries to find the best plant stock for our centres. We try and source stock locally or from British growers whenever we can and if possible grown ‘cold’. This means the stock is kept outside or in unheated polytunnels to keep it hardy and ready to face the real world outside in the garden. Despite the weather some of these little toughies are doing their best to nose through and enjoy what sunshine they can get, on one nursery the foxgloves were even doing their best to flower! I know things are starting to move when the first Paeonies start to make an appearance, the first shoots are always the most amazing deep red colour and sure enough they’re just starting to tip through the soil so we’ll be getting some of those in soon.

Box Topiary, looking verrry cold. A pot and a trim and they're ready to go

Occasionally though we have to turn to our European friends for stock such as houseplants and topiary that we don’t grow as well over here. I was in

Belgium

last week looking at what they have to offer. The Belgians offer a good range of cold grown hardy stock and topiary. We visited several nurseries growing box topiary – It was incredible to see them en masse in fields surrounded by snow – I know if they can cope with that and temperatures lower then -13c they’ll do fine over here. We also saw many Azaleas and Rhododendrons and the best Bay trees I have seen by far. Interestingly

China

has picked up on the Belgian quality and is starting to buy there in quantity so I got my orders in quick! We have picked some of the Azaleas and Box plants for some of our offers coming up in a few weeks time.

Our Supplier looking warm in the Bay Tree Nursery. Those are the biggest Bays I've ever seen!

Vegetable Seeds

2012-02-07T08:28:00.001Z

We’re getting all romantic this week – Wine, chocolate and bunches of flowers are pretty common fare for Valentines but I always think it’s a shame when they only last five minutes. A rose plant is less expensive than a bunch and will last a lot longer many have been named appropriately too, ‘Romance’, ‘Perpetually Yours’, ‘Temptress’ and even ‘Hanky Panky’ to name just a few. I often wonder who thinks up these names! The thought is the most important thing and the Garden centre is a great place to find something that bit more special for the Garden lover in your life.

I’ve been looking at veggie seeds over the past week and I think I’m going to start with some essentials that I like to eat. Cut and come again Salad leaves, they’re quick to grow, you can harvest what you want when you want them and they look great – I want my vegetable garden to look ornamental too.

French and Runner Beans are easy, reliable and good for the freezer. They’ll also make a good centrepiece grown up cane wigwams in the centre of each bed.

Swiss chard (or Leaf Beet), the bright lights type look good as well being tasty; I steam the leaves and flavour with butter and a twist of salt and pepper.

Carrots should be easy as we’re going to build raised beds which should deter carrot fly I also inter-crop carrots with spring onions which look and taste good and again may deter the carrot fly by disguising the smell (which is said to attract the flies) when I thin out the seedlings.

I’ll buy courgettes as ready started plants as I only want to grow a couple – I have a great recipe for courgette and dolcelatte cheese soup. Yum!

I’ll leave plenty of space for other bits that I can choose as I fancy, after all the garden should be fun and I want enough space left to play and experiment with.

2012-01-31T14:55:00.000Z

Well what a difference a week makes. The cold snap has finally arrived making the garden look amazing when the sun is out with the frost outlining each and every leaf and twig. Even in the depths of Winter the garden is still a thing of beauty.

Although it looks pretty, the cold can make things very tough for wildlife. Food is scarce and water sources can be frozen over. We can help by ensuring that we leave some fresh water out & food for birds that are often still fairly active at this time of year. Carries got some really good offers on at the moment to help you keep down the costs of keeping those feathered tummies full.

As I’m certainly not going to get out gardening at the moment I’m doing a bit of forward planning for the fruit and veggie garden. As with many of you my life is generally pretty hectic so I want reliable crops that will give me a good yield without taking up too much of my free time and that I’ll actually use.

Currants and Gooseberries are always easy – Many of the modern varieties are bred to be disease resistant so I’ll be doing a bit of research on those as I also want the best flavour – Information is always easy to get on-line or I can always go and rack one of our Plant managers brains - they’re a pretty knowledgeable bunch! I research varieties every year when buying for the centres but as it’s impossible to remember everything I need to gem up a bit again. I’ll be looking at the veggie seeds this week when I’m in the Garden Centres so I’ll let you know what I decide on next week.

Plants and Plans

2012-01-24T09:27:00.001Z

Allthough we should be enjoying the emerging spring plants now, as a gardener you never stop planning ahead to prepare the next seasons plants and plans. Over the next few weeks the little plugs of summer bedding plants will start to become available to plant for growing on ready to go outside in the early summer. They’re much easier to get going than seed as they already have sturdy little root sytems but you still get the satisfaction of growing the plants on yourself.

All you need is some low nutrient potting on compost such as John Innes No2, some cell trays a little larger then the plugs you are buying and a warm, light place to grow them in. As they grow gradually pot them on into larger cells and richer compost, then into individual pots and then into their final spot outdoors where they’ll be the envy of all your neighbours when they burst into flower!

I’m excited to see the summer flowering bulbs coming in. They come in dried out in packs at this time of year and are so easy to plant in a few months time once the soil has warmed up. I just love the bright colours! I’m thinking of buying some really bright Dahlias to put in pots for some impact outside on the area we’re intending on decking for summer Barbeques. I can see them now... Blooming away without needing constant attention, just good compost, regular water, a splash of feed now and again and the odd dead-heading session – A lot of flower for very little effort.

Scent In The Garden

2012-01-17T11:59:00.000Z

The beautiful but chilly weather we had at the week-end got many of you out and about and thinking gardens. It was lovely to see lots of customers in the centres especially as we have some really lovely plants in at the moment. The primroses we grow on the nursery are really starting to flower their socks off. My favourites are the ‘Heritage’ and ‘Woodland Walk’ varieties. ‘Heritage’ is the classic spring yellow primrose that lasts for years if lifted and divided every so often and kept it moist all year round. ’Woodland Walk’ a really pretty pink variety which seems to be nearly as tough. Both look great planted en mass in the garden but if you only have room for pots they’ll do well there too. Deadhead regularly and they will flower for months.

It’s a great time for scent in the garden. Its thought that shrubs flowering this early in the year use scent to attract insects. They certainly attract gardeners as many are very highly perfumed indeed. The best, in my opinion, are...

Sarcococca (or Winter Box) an evergreen with tiny white flowers and a big fragrance. Viburnum x bodnatense. ‘Dawn’ is the most common form with Pink flowers on bare stems. Look out for ‘Charles Lamont’ which has whiter flowers than ‘Dawn’ and is more unusual with good Autumn colour.

Hamamelis (or Witch Hazel) With bright yellow, orange or red sweet smelling flowers on bare stems. Witch Hazels also have spectacular Autumn colour which gives them another season of interest.

Seed Potatoes

2012-01-10T15:50:00.002Z

We’ve put the tinsel away in the Garden Centres & its now time to get back to what we do best... Gardening!

We’ve taken the first deliveries of seed potatoes which always means spring is on its way to me. I have just moved into a new home and have a garden of my own to play with for the first time in a few years. It needs a lot of work but to get me started I’m going to buy a few earlies to plant in potato gro-bags in March so I can move them about easily until we have the garden sorted later in the year. I can then re-use the compost after I’ve harvested them to enrich the soil in my lovely new veggie beds.

Christmas Is Finally Here!

2011-12-20T12:35:00.002Z

For us buyers it’s a hectic time of year getting prepared for our busiest season in the spring but we still have to see how the current season’s stock is performing and of course that involves trying some things out. Carrie came into the office on Monday morning very excited about her new Chestnut roaster, she is responsible for buying the winter fuels and other fiery accessories we sell in the Garden centres and having an open fire at home of course makes her a true expert... I think she really needs to get out more, but then I am a bit jealous, she really had chestnuts roasting on an open fire!

We are now all counting down to the end of the week, but this years office Christmas lunch will be extra special. Two of our longest serving ladies are retiring, they’ve put in 27 years between them and we also have an engagement and a pregnancy to celebrate... Happy times!

Well this will be the last blog from me this year, we’d all like to wish you a great holiday and all the best for 2012...

Forest Products

2011-12-13T09:00:00.002Z

We are getting busier and busier as Christmas gets closer, we are still finding some lovely products for you for those last minute gifts. At John Browns we have just taken delivery of some great children’s books by a local author from Verwood. It has been awarded the silver certificate of excellence from a pre-school magazine and positively encourages children to eat veggies.

My brother is a real pain to buy for but is a bit of a foodie so I’m going to make him up a little selection pack of jams and relishes from the Forest Products range that we keep in all of our centres. They are a Dorset company and top of my list is the most divine sweet garlic pickle with nigella seed, apparently the spicy tomato and caramelised onion chutney is amazing too so I might have to keep that for myself!

We have been offered some beautiful bulb planters which we are offering at less then half the recommended selling price – I love the ceramic ones so guess what the ladies

in my family will be getting on the 25^th? After that little lot I will have finished the present buying, not sure when I’ll have time to wrap it all up though...

Christmas Open Evenings

2011-12-06T08:06:00.000Z

Our Christmas open evenings have gone down a storm with lots of you visiting which makes it so enjoyable for us. If you haven’t been to one yet the last is tonight (Tuesday 6^th December) at John Browns, see you there where I’ll be doing the mulled wine & minced pies duty with the girls – although the mulled wine has been re-christened at Cadnam. One very sweet little boy was a bit confused as to why his mum wanted ‘Mouldy wine’!

Landford Garden Centre has now been invaded by our building team – Toni our Plant area manager is going to have her work cut out keeping them in line whilst they re-build her Plant Area - it’ll be interesting to see the progress over the next few months. We’re so excited to see what the new area will look like when it’s finished and to get it restocked, we’re already preparing our shopping lists!

This week we have had some truly stunning Orchids into our houseplant areas for Christmas. My favourites are the Cymbidiums which have impressive strappy foliage with large spikes of flower in rich colours. Surprisingly easy to keep, they need a little more water than the moth orchids (Phalaenopsis). Flowering for a good few weeks they still look handsome once the flowers go over.

Christmas Trees and Poinsettia

2011-11-29T11:16:00.002Z

Quality Christmas Trees Now In At All Our Garden Centres!!

Well it’s really starting to feel very festive now at Golden Acres. The weathers finally got colder, I heard the first Christmas tunes on the radio over the week-end and we’ve taken the first deliveries of our Christmas trees! We pride ourselves on sourcing the best quality trees with the lushest growth. Each tree is unwrapped on delivery so that we can check every single one for quality, a lovely job that leaves you smelling all Christmassy. We’ve also held the first of our Christmas open evenings which are always a joy, a real family affair with great atmosphere. We have bell ringers and choirs to entertain and complimentary mulled wine and mince pies that won’t fail to warm you.

Our beautiful Poinsettia

The obvious plant for this week is Poinsettias. We source these from family run nursery in Wiltshire and they really are the best we can find, the plants are chosen for their strong healthy growth and really rich vivid colours – The guys at our Cadnam centre were so proud of theirs they sent us some photos to show you!

Poinsettias will last you a good couple of months if you don’t let them catch a chill – so keep them out of draughty areas, away from doors and windows – give them a reasonable amount of light, keep them moist but not wet and don’t forget to feed them regularly.

Get Planning!

2011-11-14T15:18:00.000Z

On the damper, darker days when you can’t get out into the garden theres still much planning to do for next year. Its a great opportunity to stay in the warm researching new plants you may want to try next year deciding which ones didn’t work for you, what to replace them with and to plan what look you’re going for in your planted containers or in an area that needs a make-over. We do the same in the Garden centres. Planning what plants to stock, which ones will be popular next year, which ones didn’t perform well and what displays we can create to help inspire you. The next few months are busy busy as we see suppliers to source the best quality and most exciting new items for you, plan promotions to save you money, train and learn to keep the advice we give you up to date and struggle to control ourselves as we get rather passionate about the products we sell and it is so exciting when you find something special!

Roses

2011-11-08T08:01:00.000Z

The next few months are not always the best for spending time outside but there is still much enjoyment to be had on the sunnier days getting outside to tidy up dead foliage and leaves, preparing the soil and replenishing nutrients for the next season with a light fork over and a good thick mulch of a quality soil impover such as manure or garden compost that will ensure your plants grow strong and healthy next year. It’s also a great time to plant hardier stuff such as shrubs, roses, fruit and trees giving them time to establish themselves for the coming year. The fresh air and some light exercise outdoors also does wonders for the soul.

It’s a great time to plant roses. Availabilty is best now when the new season’s stock is just becoming available. Roses are usually field grown and cannot be lifted until they go dormant when the weather gets cooler. They are then potted for you to take away easily and to keep them tip-top until they get back into the ground or a larger container.

Hellebore Plants

2011-11-04T11:44:00.000Z

We’ve taken delivery of the first new seasons Hellebore plants over the last few weeks at our Landford centre. We especially love the Harvington strains which are bred on a specialist Nursery in Harvington, Worcester. Allthough Hellebores are considered bit of a connoisseurs plant they are real plantsmans favourites for good reason and are really very easy to grow if given a good moisture retentive soil and a bit of dappled shade gradually growing into large clumps of evergreen foliage. Cut the foliage back in the late winter to reveal the new buds pushing through that by February will have developed into the beautiful anemone shaped flowers that are so prized by gardeners and come in many shades and shapes. Doubles, speckled and picotees... Crisp whites, delicate yellows, as many shades of pink as you could imagine through to deepest - almost black - red.... Stunning when little else is in flower and especially good when partnered with snowdrops and miniature daffodils in freshly mulched soil.

Plant Of The Week

2011-11-01T08:01:00.001Z

Now we’ve had a frost we can’t put off doing something with pots and hanging baskets for the autumn and winter any longer. Now is the perfect time to get re-planting with Violas, Pansies and Primroses. To add a bit of structure to your winter containers try adding small shrubs and conifers, an ivy or two and even the odd heather or evergreen perennial such as euphorbia, heuchera or hellebores. I like to underplant mine with small flowering bulbs such as crocus or daffodils for a surprise in spring when I’ve forgotten that I’ve put them in! Don’t forget to water them, containers often don’t collect enough water on their own in the winter and to encourage tough growth and flowers try feeding with tomato food.

My favourite bedding plant at the moment is the Viola. They come in a huge array of colours and their pretty little faces cheer up the most grim winters day. Violas are surprisingly tough even when hit by a severe frost they can look a little sad early in the morning but soon perk up as the daytime temperature rises.

Autumn Is Here

2011-10-19T13:14:00.001+01:00

After the unseasonably warm September its a relief to feel a nip in the air – This is such a lovely time of year when the whole feel of life seems to change over-night from the intense bright colours and warmth of late summer to the cooler nights, crisp mornings and earthy tones of Autumn. The urge to tidy up the garden and prepare for winter before the cold sets in hits us in the garden centres too. We are also busy sweeping up leaves, top dressing and trimming the hardy plants and trying to find a minute to enjoy the plants that look their best at this time of year – It’s all about leaf colour, fruit and berries.

Crab Apples are looking especially lovely at the moment. An under rated small garden tree they offer good year round interest in any garden. Different varieties vary in habit from neat and upright to round or pendulous. In the best years branches are laden with small ornamental apples from yellow to dark red in the Autumn – a bit too sour to eat but some varieties make a good jelly. Then in the spring the blossom can really give a garden that ‘wow’ factor.

Plant Of The Week

2011-10-11T14:57:00.000+01:00

Our plant of the week isn’t strictly a plant but plants - Daffodil bulbs. Bought now in packets they are relatively cheap and very easy to use. Making a really cheery addition to any garden these plants flower in succession (dependent on variety) over late winter and into the spring just when the dark winter months feel like they’ll never end. Plant now in the garden or try the shorter varieties in your tubs and look forward to a splash of colour in a few months time.

The Christmas Team

2011-10-11T14:51:00.000+01:00

We have had an extremely busy couple of weeks getting our Christmas decorations out on sale. A dedicated team of buyers and merchandisers have been planning our hand-picked ranges since February this year and all that thought and hard work has certainly paid off with some beautiful displays full of inspiration. Our Christmas elves will still be washing glitter out of their hair for a few weeks to come!

Plant Of The Week

2011-10-04T14:14:00.000+01:00

My plant of the week this week is the Evergreen Azalea. These plants are perfect for those of you in the forest & around the Ferndown area. The acidic Heathland type soil is just what these plants need to grow well in. Evergreen Azaleas add year round structure to your garden but really come into their own in the spring when they flower their socks off!

WI Group

2011-10-04T14:12:00.000+01:00

We had another busy week at Golden Acres last week. At our John Browns Garden Centre we held an afternoon for the Absolutely WI group from Ferndown on Thursday. The ladies enjoyed a tour around the centre & to find out a bit about what happens behind the scenes to get the products on the shelves & benches, then a delicious cream tea to set us up for a Gardeners question time session afterward. Pete Wood our Plant manager from West Parley & one of our favourite suppliers from a nursery on the Isle of Purbeck, Bob Hollister, joined me on the panel where the ladies really put us through our paces with some tough questions. Pete & Bob both spent a few years in training at the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew so no pressure for me then! I think I held my own reasonably well...

Wildlife In The Garden

2011-10-04T07:57:00.000+01:00

A representative of the Hants and IOW Wildlife Trusts will be visiting Cadnam Garden Centre on Saturday 8th and Sunday 9th October 2011.

The Wildlife Trusts group is the only charity solely concerned with the conservation of all wildlife both on land and sea and they will have details on how to encourage wildlife into your garden. More information can be found on their website http://www.hwt.org.uk/

Plant Of The Week

2011-09-29T10:00:00.006+01:00

Last week I spent most of my time in the Birmingham area. One of the biggest trade shows for Garden centre buyers is held this time every year at the NEC. Over 3 days you can see everything imaginable from seeds to log cabins & anything in-between! Look out for some of the products we found coming into the centres over the next few months.

I spent a fourth day visiting our new Garden Centre in Studley which is in the same neck of the woods. It’s a lovely area which I am looking forward to getting to know better over the next few months.

Our plant of the week this week is ‘Echinacea Tomato Soup’. Flowering in the late summer & early Autumn it is a recently introduced cultivar offering a really strong red colour to any sunny & well drained border. I think the flowers would look especially lovely dancing about with some medium height grasses (Try Pennisetum or Stipa varieties) as an airy backdrop. Yum!

Plant Of The Week

2011-09-13T12:57:00.005+01:00

In the centres this week we’ve been refreshing our compost knowledge – There’s more to muck then you’d think! A lot goes on under the soil that we don’t see & using the right type for the plants you’ve chosen in pots or improving what you’ve got in the garden can make the difference between lush healthy plants or sad looking specimens that just refuse to grow. The next time you’re in one of our centres try quizzing one of our plant teams to see how your choice of compost could improve your plants performance.

My plant of the week this week is Belamcanda. Beautiful orchid like orange flowers speckled with crimson spots are a real talking point. Surprisingly easy to grow just give this member of the Iris family a well drained soil in a sunny spot to bake its rhizomatous roots in & enjoy. Available from our John Browns centre.