Paid Members Lion_of_the_Midlands Posted October 23, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted October 23, 2023 Obviously we have a gardening thread, and there seems to be a lot of love in the Minor Annoyances thread for the garden centre. So I thought what better way for us all to slip quietly into our middle age and beyond than a thread about garden centres and what makes a good one. For me Clive it's obviously not just about plants and gardens. Surely we can all agree that you can't have a good garden centre without a good cafe. My mum once had a full scale argument with a garden centre manager in Horncastle because the specials board in cafe said "Lamb chops and choice of 3 veg" and there was only one chop on the plate. She felt very strongly that the s on the chop indicated that it was a 2 chops as a minimum scenario. Needles to say we didn't pay for our lunch because of the commotion but we had to wait for a change of manger before we could take her aunt and uncle for lunch again. Needless to say it's not just a good cafe that is needed. What are your garden centre "Must Haves" and where are the good ones you go to? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperBacon Posted October 23, 2023 Share Posted October 23, 2023 A lovely farm shop. You know the sort of place. Homemade jam for £50 a jar, bag of pasta £100. I lose all sense of value in these places and spend far too much. Always a good random crisp selection as well. While not a garden centre, there is a farm shop in my village and among all the fruit and veg and meat they sell those cream cheese filled peppers in a little tub. You probably get about 5 for around a fiver and are absolutely too dear, but will I buy some every time I go in? Yes Garth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members air_raid Posted October 23, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted October 23, 2023 I love Bents Garden Centre for all the Christmas tat, the Lakeland and the food bit. Ironically every time I've needed something functional for the actual garden, I've found it a bit lacking. They always send me a free cake voucher on my birthday which thus far, I've never used. But its still my favourite birthday bit of targeted marketing, now that I let my One Hotspur membership lapse and (not just for this reason, obviously) I no longer get a birthday card with Harry Kane on the front. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cobra_gordo Posted October 23, 2023 Share Posted October 23, 2023 I love a Dobbies garden centre breakfast from their cafe. Honestly don't think I've ever bought anything from the garden centre itself but I'll happily drive 20 minutes down the motorway for a decent cooked breakfast. They also have an aquatics centre and there's a farm shop next door that we've spent a few quid in. Bacon, egg, sausage, fried bread, black pudding and then a wander round looking at tropical fish and house plants that I'll never buy? Perfect Sunday morning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Hannibal Scorch Posted October 23, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted October 23, 2023 What I love about garden centres is the garden focus seems to be the smallest element. Want a massive gazebo, or garden shed? What about a garden room? In stock, ready to go. Fancy a BBQ in January but your old one has gone to the tip? They have you covered. Fish, you like fish right? aquarium center with all the accessories and tanks you need. You want to buy Christmas tat do you? Well from Bank Holiday August our Christmas grotto is open until the end of the year. Pets? Yep we sell them and their accessories too. Hungry? We have a cafe, burger van and coffee van on site by the front door. Do you want plants? well, there are some outside if you want. Who needs Alton Towers when you can walk around a massive garden centre for hours? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Chest Rockwell Posted October 23, 2023 Moderators Share Posted October 23, 2023 The best local garden centre we had got taken over by Dobbie's. They used to have a really nice farm shop that is now just a waitrose. Gutted. Kept the independent butcher's though which gets really nice meats in. There's a good soft play that's cheap. It gets booked out weeks and weeks in advance which sucks, but they hold a number of tickets on the door for each session for walk ins which I think is a great policy. It's nice to rock up early, get a walk in ticket, and then go look at some tropical fish to kill time. Kids get a free meal for every adult meal so perfect for a weekend morning of soft play followed by a fry up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Lion_of_the_Midlands Posted October 23, 2023 Author Paid Members Share Posted October 23, 2023 I think I've spent more time looking at fish in garden centres than I have at plants. We had to replace our pond fish a couple of years ago because the ones we had were eaten by a heron. We don't keep many, just a few koi to brighten the pond up a bit. We have two pretty big garden centres near us. Pennells is dearer, but the quality of their sausages in the breakfast is better than Whisby. Whisby is better if you have kids, which I don't. They have all sorts of animals you can feed and a big lake with ducks and geese to feed as well. As has already been said, the garden element seems to be the least important. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Some Guy Posted October 23, 2023 Share Posted October 23, 2023 It's the smell. That delicious, rich, loamy aroma of potting compost. It's so redolent of autumnal visit to my grandparents. And the fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members johnnyboy Posted October 23, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted October 23, 2023 (edited) 5 hours ago, Lion_of_the_Midlands said: What are your garden centre "Must Haves" and where are the good ones you go to? I'm a man of standards so it must have a miniature train and railway track to get me through the door. Van Hage at Ware meets these standards.  Edited October 23, 2023 by johnnyboy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loki Posted October 23, 2023 Share Posted October 23, 2023 It’s the enormous arbours, potting sheds and summer houses that do it for me.  One day I’m going to have a garden big enough for a summer house at the bottom with an old tv, a Playstation and a fridge in.  There’s some things that are ONLY sold at garden centres.  Those round tins of boiled sweets your parents had in their car’s glove compartment for example.  Bee hotels.  Those weird sealed bottles with plants in them.   Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Thunderplex Posted October 23, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted October 23, 2023 Greatest Garden Centre ever was the Overstrand Cottage Garden Centre in Cromer, until that rotten, stinking bastard Mark Edwards bought it. The fucker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Gus Mears Posted October 23, 2023 Paid Members Share Posted October 23, 2023 (edited) I worked in one over the Christmas period which had all sorts of shit - Santa's grotto, ice rink, a manger scene out of Colditz with donkeys who looked suicidal. I was in the section with all the lights and naff Christmas scenes etc (the one's exclusively bought by pensioners), a sterling place to be based with undiagnosed epilepsy. Had a migraine nonstop and ended up down the doctors because I thought it must be a tumour. Then the Boxing Day sales came and I lost faith in humanity entirely. People ready to murder one another over light up reindeer at 30% off and one of them dancing Christmas trees that wiggles its arse about. Haven't been back since. Edited October 23, 2023 by Gus Mears Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonworden Posted October 24, 2023 Share Posted October 24, 2023 Stewarts is the local one to where I'm from in the Christchurch and Dorset area. Cafe did a lovely fry up if memory serves me right. Had a good balance between actual plants and garden related items to the other random stuff thrown about. At Christmas they go absolutely insane with huge sections full of animatronic Santa's and lights that should really be on a runway. Their Santa's grotto has got a bit out of control now with you needing to buy tickets by September if you want to take your kids anytime close to Christmas. The one in Broomhill Dorset where they have their nursery used to have a lovely woodland walk but I think the lands being redeveloped now. Another big one nearby is Haskins which dedicates about 10% of its inside area to gardens. Sadly the cafe is now awful with some of the worst food and service I've ever experienced. My home village has a little one called McPennys which is pure plants (still has a cafe) and a great sunken garden which we used to sneak into and play around in as kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loki Posted October 24, 2023 Share Posted October 24, 2023 I end up at Haskins every time I go down to Ferndown to visit my parents @simonworden. Â Never been to McPennys though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Lion_of_the_Midlands Posted October 24, 2023 Author Paid Members Share Posted October 24, 2023 I'm making an assumption here but the garden centre in the guise that we all know them is strictly a British thing? Is there a Vietnamese equivalent @simonworden Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.