It was a great bank holiday weekend for most English garden centres, with plants sales being the stand out performer. There were conflicting reports about garden furniture. See more... Read more - members only

Suppliers report good orders in anticipation of a strong the bank holiday weekend as GCA figures show April sales increased by a disappointing 8%. See more... Read more - members only

Last weekend showed that gardeners are ready to shop when the weather allows. But is there time to recover lost sales? What will be the impact of another poor spring? Gardenforum samples opinion. See more... Read more - open to all

Wiseweather predicts periods of high pressure at the beginning and end of May with cooler, more showery weather in the middle weeks especially in the south and West. See more... Read more - members only

The Daily Telegraph says that garden centres are blaming Monty Don for the mass dumping of spring flowers. It's estimated that 30m plants will have to be cleared to make room for summer bedding. See more... Read more - members only

GIMA has warned suppliers about scam orders, in particular one purporting to come from Tesco. See more… Read more - members only

8 men have been jailed for a sophisticated series of break-ins at garden centres across the Midlands during 2011 and 2012. See more... Read more - members only

Long range weather predictions prepared for Delamore Young Plants suggest a better than average April and May. With production down by 15 - 25%, the nursery predicts plant shortages. See more... Read more - members only

There were many inspirational moments at the GCA's conference earlier this week. Here are some thought provoking one-liners. Pick two or three for your next brainstorming session. See more... Read more - members only

There is a general air of relief that Christmas trading was better than feared, but without being wonderful. Garden centres that invested in the gift ranges were rewarded with significantly higher sales. See more... Read more - members only

Christmas sales at the end of November were up 10%, making it the fourth year of growth for the category. Overall revenue is up 3.4% but many garden centres missed out with sales below last year. See more... Read more - members only

There has been a flurry of high street retailers taking concessions on garden centres as owners look to stabilise their cash-flow. One conspicuous success has been the introduction of Virgin Experience Days, which is now seeking to roll out to all garden centres. See more... Read more - members only

Flowers, Love and Money, an exhibition at The Garden Museum, London that starts next Valentine’s Day and is sponsored by The Telegraph Gardening Supplement, would make an interesting trip for garden centre’s club members. See more… Read more - members only

There is still no clarity about the spread of Chalara fraxinae, the ash dieback disease. There are still no plans, other than a ban on all tree movements, to prevent it destroying 90% of ash trees in the UK. Now the politicians are playing the blame game, while UK nurseries face huge losses. See more... Read more - members only

PwC reports that the retail and consumer industry is facing increasing pressure. 952 shops closed in the first half of 2012 compared to 174 in the whole of 2011. See more... Read more - members only

National Garden Gift Vouchers are sponsoring a brand new UK wide garden competition that will be launched by TV gardener David Domoney and the Sunday People to get the nation gardening this summer. See more...
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Ten show gardens collected Gold Medals including two each for constructors Crocus, Willerby Landscapes and Landform Consultants. Hillier earned its 68th consecutive Gold in the Great Pavilion and there was Gold for the Rich brothers backed by Vital Earth. Hozelock collected the award for the best new product. See more... Read more - members only

GfK says garden sales across all channels fell 34% in the first 3 months, but garden centres suffered less than DIY chains and supermarkets. See more… Read more - members only

How do leading retailers address competition from the Internet? One of the biggest, Wilkinsons Stores explained its strategy to last week’s business meeting organised by GIMA. See more... Read more - members only

The number of 45’s that own a home with a garden has dropped by 2 million, says the HTA. This and immigration provide an ‘opportunity’ for the industry to re-invent itself. See more… Read more - members only

The GCA reports that February sales were 5.5% up on the same month last year. But 29 of the 63 garden centres in the monthly survey actually reported a fall in sales. See more... Read more - members only

Peter Burks, Chairman of the Garden Centre Association (GCA) and its members are this month calling for the Easter trading laws to be relaxed so gardeners can enjoy four days of uninterrupted sowing and planting. See more... Read more - members only

Listen up gardening experts, the David Colegrave Foundation (DCF) is offering multiple scholarships to those who are set on a career in horticulture. But there are less than two months left to apply. See more... Read more - members only

Homebase, B&Q and Wickes have responded to pressure and removed 2 bug killers that contain a form of nicotinoid that has been linked with damage to the bee population. A Gardenforum investigation shows that few retail products now contain the suspect active ingredients. See more... Read more - members only

Here’s a summary of the news that has filled the Gardenforum pages in 2012. It is dominated by the impact of the weather and perhaps the economy. The story is open to all our readers. See more... Read more - open to all

Farming minister, David Heath has announced that the Agricultural Wages Board (AWB) will be scrapped, probably taking effect from 1st October 2013. See more... Read more - members only

Scotts’ Martin Breddy uses Commons meeting to call for more help from Government and expresses fears about the economy. Defra Minister promises action to build confidence in new forms of growing media. See more… Read more - members only

Marshalls’ sales to the domestic market fall 13%. But this is largely weather related as order books for domestic landscapers remain strong and customer confidence is stable. See more... Read more - members only

The government has banned the import of ash trees and movement restrictions have been imposed on all ash products. See more… Read more - members only

After a 2 year delay Defra has launched its consultation over its proposals to abolish the AWB, which imposed a 2.6% wage increase on growers in June. See more... Read more - members only