A court case in 2015 opened up a potential loophole in the law which would bring nurseries into line with paying business rates. The Government has decided this week that this will not happen. Read more - members only

As sales take off at garden centres pressure falls on a supply chain already impacted by the fire at Gardman. Gardenforum checks stock availability. Read more - members only

Former head of Scotts Miracle-Gro, Martin Breddy, tells how different it is to be a retailer now that he is MD of Squire’s Garden Centres. Read more - members only

Perennial is reviving its traditional Festival Dinner, a fantastic evening of fundraising, with the help of partners and supporters from across the UK horticulture industry. Read more - members only

Sales may be down +/- 15% on last year, but garden centres are confident they can catch up. 2013 was worse. But as one garden centre owner explained, “A season normally consists of 7 strong weeks, so we can still recover but we need those strong weeks to start!” Read more - members only

Economist Roger Martin-Fagg forecast 2 interest rate rises and volatile exchange rates for 2018 as we head for a soft Brexit. The Government will have to consider a property tax. Read more - members only

Veteran Sun columnist and broadcaster, Peter Seabrook has called on garden centres to back a National Rose Festival Week in the 3rd or 4th week of June. Read more - members only

2017 started with a flourish but lost momentum and settled to be an OK year. Suppliers worried about Brexit, the living wage, higher costs and Wyevale. Retailers and growers worried about Xylella. Takeover activity reached new peaks among suppliers, but no major garden centres changed hands. The industry said goodbye to some old friends. Read our review – (open to non-subscribers). Read more - open to all

Lower plant and gardening sales means that October income was level with last year according to the latest figures from the GCA. Plus, we look at gardening totals for 2017. Read more - members only

Last week’s 3 day conference and trade show, held by Choice Marketing, eclipsed the HTA Futures conference that it clashed with, by drawing 160 delegates. 90 suppliers exhibited at the trade show. Read more - members only

Declining gifts sales and slow restaurant growth has knocked the performance of bigger garden centres according to the half year figures from the GCA. Read more - members only

The chat at Solex centered around topics like: Wayfair, empty warehouses and price rises. And has 2017 really been a vintage year? Read more - members only

Why, at the end of May, are small garden centres up +11% for the year while large garden centres are up +5%? And where's the houseplant boom? Read more - members only

Due to illness one of the new GCA inspectors has been forced to step down this year. So two, who had intended to retire, are back as judges and will address the newly announced regional awards meetings.  Read more - members only

GCA garden centre sales were 13% up on last year after a strong April, with massive growth in plants and garden furniture in the warm, dry weather. What will they be after May? Read more - members only

By the end of May, many garden centres look set to make up what looked like an unbridgeable -10.5% shortfall in sales at the end of April. Read more - members only

The GCA figures for March are dismal, but after a week of better weather the mood has changed as a message from Stewarts Garden Centres shows.  Figures from Dobbies and Wyevale have been added. Read more - members only

Inflation is to fall, interest rates and wages are to rise. GIMA hears now is a good time for exporters, and how to reduce the currency risk with foreign exchange specialists.  Read more - members only

Recently published figures show that the gender pay gap in garden retailers is generally smaller than the UK average. However, there are some interesting differences between the garden centre groups. Read more - members only

Wyevale, the country’s largest specialist garden centre group with 147 stores, has published a report on the latest gardening trends revealed by a survey of 15,000 garden lovers. Read more - members only

Bents has pipped Barton Grange and Webbs of Wychbold to be the GCA Destination Garden Centre of the Year. Smart Garden has regained the prestigious Supplier of the Year cup. Read more - members only

Christmas buying is getting earlier and overall sales have dropped in many centres, not helped by snow on the peak live tree weekend, closing some centres. Despite this, overall garden centre sales are up for 2017. Read more - members only

Bents have wrestled the GCA Christmas Display award back from Barton Grange, while Castle Gardens in Sherborne prove invincible yet again in the category for smaller garden centres. Read more - members only

BHETA has created a new National Home Improvement Week for the home and garden industry on dates in the middle of March that clash with Garden Re-Leaf Day. Read more - members only

Syngenta and their Calliope brand are to sponsor David Domoney’s community gardening campaign, Cultivation Street, which adds a mentor scheme in 2018. Read more - members only

Glee has opened the vote to find the UK's best garden buyers. They have revealed a shortlist of 25 buyers across 5 categories: independent garden centres, multiples, DIY / Builder Merchants, online and other. Read more - members only

The top GIMA awards went to Westland for Product of the Year and Smart Garden for Supplier of the Year. Briers took the export achievement award. Read more - members only

Do we face opening the UK market to imports from the US? LOFA members fear exchange rate volatility. The HTA is concerned about retaining the relationship it has built with Government on ways to promote plant health and cut plant imports.  Read more - members only

Despite an only ‘average’ May, which fell well behind May 2016, most garden centres report they are still well up for the year. Cautious optimism defines their view for the rest of the year. Read more - members only

GCA figures for March confirm that it has been a gardener’s spring. However, despite rising prices and sales, the average customer spend has fallen. What does this indicate? Read more - members only