Garden Centre Association

📢 NEWS - Garden centre teams from across the country are celebrating after receiving awards at our 60th anniversary year annual conference today, Mon, Jan 26, 2026. Read all about it and see the FULL LIST of WINNING GARDEN CENTRES on our website here: gca.org.uk/mondays-awards…

Our Barometer of Trade (BoT) February figures released today show a ‘very encouraging month’ despite the ‘poor weather’ – with more than two thirds of the categories recorded by our garden centre members up when compared to the same month in 2025. gca.org.uk/weather-didnt-…

It’s #GardenReLeaf Day tomorrow! Is your #GardenCentre taking part? Good luck to everyone who is fundraising, we can’t wait to see all the pics! Don’t forget to tag the charity on socials if you share what you’re doing. greenfingerscharity.org.uk @GardenReLeaf @Greenfingerscha

📣 GREAT NEWS! Due to popular demand, the Glee Roadshow is moving to a new date – giving more garden centre retailers the chance to join us! 📅 Thursday, April 30, 11am–4pm 📍Gates Garden Centre, Oakham 👉 Save your spot: gleebirmingham.com/roadshow

Calling MEMBER GARDEN CENTRES! IGCA 2026 is heading to Germany from August 16–22 and we’d love to see a strong UK delegation representing our industry on the global stage.🌍 REGISTER NOW: igca26.com Let’s show the world the strength and spirit of UK garden retail

⭐More from DAY 1 of our Rising Stars Hospitality Academy yesterday at @beanworks! Our Rising Stars did coffee roasting & an in‑depth Barista Masterclass ☕ They also packed coffee beans, with a prize for the fastest box packed, and discussed new recipes for summer drinks too.

We’re celebrating a GROW milestone! In the past 6 mths, an incredible 21,778 courses have been completed through our e‑learning initiative! GROW is the modern, flexible way to bring comprehensive training to garden centre teams. gca.org.uk/gca-grow-infor…

🎺 FANFARE PLEASE! 🎺 Our #AssociateOfTheWeek is the wonderful Pleydell Smithyman a leading design and business consultant for garden centres, farm shops and rural enterprises, with 30+ years of sector expertise. pleydellsmithyman.co.uk #GardenCentres #IndustryPartners

🌿✂️ March is the perfect month to tidy things up a bit! We’ve done a brief roundup blog on what you should be pruning right now – from buddleia to roses and more – to help set your garden up for a strong spring. Read the full guide here 👉 gca.org.uk/what-to-prune-… #GardeningTips

A HUGE THANK YOU to David, Fran and Will from Beanworks for hosting such an engaging and professional day and to all our incredible delegates who made the session so enjoyable and inspiring.

Delegates enjoyed a brilliant hands‑on experience, gaining first‑hand insight into premium coffee roasting before taking part in an in‑depth Barista Masterclass – a perfect blend of learning, skill‑building and industry passion. ☕✨

⭐What a fantastic start to our 2026 RISING STARS HOSPITALITY ACADEMY! ⭐ Today, March 17, we kicked off our first training event of the year at @beanworks and what an inspiring day it was for our Rising Stars!

Following our latest webinar, our friends at Meadow View Stone are offering centres running kids’ events a bag of Duck Egg Cobbles! Find out how to get involved and access HTA resources in our latest blog. gca.org.uk/inspiring-the-… @HTAnews @Greenfingerscha @meadowviewstone

CALLING ALL MEMBER GARDEN CENTRES! Looking for fun, family‑friendly ideas for National Children’s Gardening Week in May? gca.org.uk/inspiring-the-… @HTAnews @Greenfingerscha @meadowviewstone

Thank you for this, Yasmin & Laura & team, it was so lovely to read and WELCOME! ✨ swarkestonenursery.co.uk

“This was a brilliant opportunity to meet other members of the GCA family and network with the wider industry experts and specialists. We are excited to be part of this wonderful community. It’s a fabulous space to learn, grow and share.” #GCAConf2026

✨We had this lovely email pop into our inbox recently from Swarkestone Nursery. It said: “As new members to the GCA, we thoroughly enjoyed our first conference. We came away with lots of inspiration and ideas for our garden centre and nursery in South Derbyshire.

In our 2026 Retailers’ Catalogue we’ve a great CHAENOMELES STORM COLLECTION – chosen for their stunning double blooms & thornless stems. Flowering March through to June. The collection includes: Mango Storm Pink Storm Scarlet Storm Orange Storm @HTAnews @GC_Association

💚 Celebrating today Mother’s Day & taking your Mum for a meal at your nearest GCA member garden centre? Have a fabulous day If you’re gardening, fingers crossed for the weather! Need a last-minute gift? Here are a few plants you might see looking good at your nearest centre.

There are many wonderful primroses, primulas and polyanthus at our member #GardenCentres nationwide currently. These harbingers of spring are joyful reminders that tomorrow, March 20, signals the start of the spring equinox too.

🥁 From #GCAConf2026 our #WinnersOfTheWeek are the Dick Allen Award for the Most Improved Garden Centre winners – British Garden Centres – Tring. We’re also celebrating 2nd & 3rd place winners: The Hertfordshire Garden Centre and Thompson’s Garden Centre, Canterbury. 👏