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There's nothing to put you in the mood for Christmas quite like going to the garden centre on a snowy day to pick out a living Christmas tree, then bringing it home to fill the house with the scent of pinewoods in December. 
 
There are lots of trees to choose from in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre, so make sure you get the one that's right for you. Here are some of the varieties to look out for: 
 
Norway spruce: the traditional Christmas tree: lovely perfume and good conical shape 
 
Nordmann Fir: one of the best for holding onto its soft, rounded needles 
 
Noble Fir: bluey-green, slightly silvery needles with a beautiful scent and short stiff branches 
 
Fraser Fir: really neat pyramid shape; holds onto its dark green, flattened needles well 
 
Blue spruce: very stiff, long needles in shades from green to powdery blue 
 
Lodgepole Pine: slow to drop its needles, and makes a large, dense, bushy tree 
 
White Pine: one of the bushiest of Christmas trees, with soft bluey-green needles. 
 
White spruce: short, stiff needles held well on the tree, a pretty blue-green colour, and a lovely shape 
 
Please ask the staff in our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;for more information and advice about choosing your Christmas tree.

Christmas trees

Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without the magic of sparkling lights. Hang them on the tree, festoon the living room with them, or fling them in great ropes over the house or trees in the garden to twinkle merrily at passers-by. 
 
As a rule of thumb, buy 100 lights for every 45cm of tree – so a string of 400 lights is perfect for an average 1.8m tree. Here are some of your options: 
 
Mini-lights: for use indoors on Christmas trees and threaded through the bannisters, these are the traditional choice and come in multiple colours or clear, silvery white. 
 
LED lights: coloured or brilliant white, they're very energy-efficient so even though they cost a little more to start with, you'll save it in the electricity bills. 
 
Novelty lights: special covers come in all sorts of shapes from lanterns to snowflakes. You can also get flashing lights which you can programme to do a variety of sequences – try a different one every day! 
 
Outdoor lights: choose from battery-powered, solar-powered and mains powered lights, though for mains-powered make sure you have an outdoor electric socket fitted by a registered electrician. 
 
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about choosing your Christmas lights.

Christmas Lights

Your choice of decorations is the finishing touch that makes Christmas absolutely perfect. 
 
We've got the decorations for you in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre, from baubles and tinsel to candles and ornaments. Think carefully about the look you're trying to create, though: are you a pared-down, minimalist type? Or a throw-it-on, anything goes kind of person? 
 
Here are some different styles you could try this Christmas: 
 
White Christmas: Pure white decorations look magical. Limit yourself to silver and white tinsel, pure white baubles and perhaps white poinsettias too. 
 
Red and green: Stick to red and green for instant festive atmosphere. Hang green wreaths from red ribbons and use red and green candles to light corners. 
 
Green and natural: pick greenery from the garden for wreaths studded with pinecones and berries, or fill vases with seed heads sprayed silver and gold. 
 
Classic abundance: It's Christmas, so overdoing it is absolutely compulsory! Look out for glass baubles, beaded silver or gold strings, and twinkly lights to create a sparkling wonderland. 
 
Themed: Pick a theme, like stars, and repeat throughout your decorations with star-printed baubles and tinsel with stars set among the strands. 
 
Please ask the staff in our in %locations% garden centre for more information and advice about choosing the Christmas decorations right for you.
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Christmas Decorations

Imagine a Christmas without agonising over which tree to buy. A Christmas when you don't have to hoover up a single needle, and at the end, you just pack up your tree in the cupboard till next year. 
 
These days artificial Christmas trees are so good it's hard to tell the difference between an artificial tree and the real thing. Here are some of the great features to look out for: 
 
Pre-lit trees: It's no longer necessary to wrestle with Christmas lights every year: many of our trees come pre-lit, with up to 400 lightbulbs already installed. 
 
Pre decorated trees: Great value as the decorations are included with the tree. Takes seconds to put up so it's a great timesaver too! 
 
Snow tips: the ultimate tree to finish off your snowy festive scene, the ends of each needle dipped in powdery snow. 
 
Tinsel trees: &nbsp;Get an instant Christmassy look with these glittery trees in purple, silver and gold: perfect for small spaces and anyone who loves a bit of sparkle. 
 
Collapsible trees: makes putting away the tree quick and easy, and it doesn't take up much room in storage, either. 
 
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about choosing your artificial Christmas tree.

Artificial Christmas trees

Christmas in the garden centre 
 
We&#39;ve got a magical Christmas planned for you this year, so drop by to enjoy the fantastic festive displays and events we&#39;re planning in the run-up to the big day. 
 
We&#39;re a one-stop shop in %locations%&nbsp;&nbsp;for all you need, whether you&#39;re decorating your home or buying gifts for friends and family. You&#39;ll find tasty delicacies for the festive table, living Christmas trees, crackers, Christmas ornaments &ndash; in fact everything to make your Christmas magical. 
 
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about our range of Christmas goodies.

&nbsp;

<h2 style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/christmas-2019">CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE</a></h2>

Going home-grown for Christmas makes the holiday a real celebration of your garden's abundance. And one of the nicest things you can do with all those delicious and beautiful things you can pick from your garden is to hang them in your home as very special decorations.
In our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;you'll find plants for pickable Christmas decorations, as well as&nbsp; pinecones, seasonal ornaments, silver and gold spray paint, tinsel and baubles – in short, everything you need to put the finishing touches on your fresh-from-the-garden Christmas. You're only limited by your imagination - so here are a few suggestions to get you started.
<ul>
<li>Home-grown baubles: The spherical flowerheads on the ornamental onion Allium christophii dry to starburst seedheads that look fantastic sprayed silver and hung from ribbons.</li>
<li>
Christmas tree chains: a packet of red popcorn seed, available from our garden centre, grows just like sweetcorn: string the pretty pink kernels into long tinsel-like decorations.
</li>
<li>Tussie-mussies: pick spicily fragrant sprigs of witch hazel, viburnum or Christmas box and tie together with herbs into a little Victorian-style bouquet to hang from the ceiling.</li>
<li>
Wreaths: for this you'll need berrying holly, ivy and a wreath frame, all available from our garden centre. Weave the greenery onto the frame along with pinecones, brilliant red chillies and perhaps some dried orange Chinese lanterns (Physalis alkekengi) and hang on your door to welcome Christmas visitors.
</li>
<li>Banister garlands: just like wreaths, but this time wound around your banisters and bound in place with florists' wire. Add pine branches, berries, dried flowers and rosehips to complete the picture.</li>
<li>
Golden bells: take three pinecones and spray them gold, then wire the stems together in threes to make a little bundle that looks just like bells to hang in corners or from the ceiling.
</li>
<li>Floating flowers: choose a shallow glass bowl from the range in our garden centre, fill it with water and float Christmas hellebore flowers and candles on it for a uniquely beautiful centrepiece for your Christmas table.</li>
</ul>
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about using plants from the garden to decorate your home at Christmas.

Grow your own Christmas decorations

Christmas

Before you reach for the spray bottle, try flower power for tackling pests and diseases. Many common ailments from aphids to carrot fly can be kept at bay by planting annual flowers and herbs, readily available in our garden centre, alongside your veg in your %locations% garden. Here are a few to try:
Carrots and spring onions: carrot fly find their prey by smell, detecting carrot foliage a mile off. Plant pungent spring onions alongside, though, and their smell confuses the flies completely.
Roses and garlic: a forest of garlic planted with roses produces essential oils the rose draws up into its system, making it taste revolting to aphids.
Broad beans and nasturtiums: blackflies enjoy nasturtiums even more than broad bean shoots – so plant these annual flowers with beans and the flies abandon your veg for them.
Tomatoes and French marigolds (Tagetes): Another strongly-scented plant, whitefly hate the smell of French marigolds, so plant with tomatoes to keep them whitefly-free.
Lettuce and chervil: you'll have lettuce minus the aphids if you grow them alongside a generous row of leafy chervil: some say slugs dislike it, too. Both make great salad ingredients.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about using herbs and annuals as companion plants.

Good companions

Just imagine a meadow full of flowers outside your back door. It's a dream many gardeners share: and it can&nbsp;come true if you plant one of the popular annual meadow mixes, available in our garden centre. Here's how:
Preparing the ground: annual meadows need good garden soil, unlike traditional hay meadows (wild&nbsp;meadows grow best on poor land, which is why they're so hard to establish in gardens). So weed the site,&nbsp;add organic matter and rake it into a fine tilth just like you would for sowing any seed.
Choosing your mix: Cornfield annual mixes include poppies, corn marigolds and corncockle; or choose a&nbsp;blend for short stems (around 40cm tall) or perhaps combining particular colours: red flax, black-eyed Susan&nbsp;and Californian poppies, for example, for a hot-coloured meadow.
Sowing and aftercare: mix seed with silver sand so it's easier to distribute evenly, then broadcast at about&nbsp;3g – a small-ish handful – per square metre. Rake in afterwards and water, then watch it grow. After you've&nbsp;enjoyed the display, clear the ground in autumn: some will re-seed but to get your special mix back again re-sow next spring.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about planting annual meadows.

Annual meadows

Annual flowers are among the easiest plants you can grow. They're ideal for filling gaps, or simply producing&nbsp;a dazzling display of colour from summer to the first frosts. There's a great choice of annuals in our garden&nbsp;centre in %locations%: here's how to get perfect results every time.
Under cover: half-hardy annuals can't cope with frost: sow into pots in spring to plant out later 
1: Fill trays with seed compost: you'll find the equipment you need in our garden centre 
2: Place in a shallow bowl of water to soak up moisture from the bottom 
3: Sow seeds sparingly, and cover lightly with vermiculite or more compost 
4: Pot on seedlings as they grow, then plant out after the last frost.
Direct outside: hardy annuals can be sown straight into the garden from March 
1: Weed the bed and rake the whole site level. Water if necessary. 
2: Mark areas for each type of seed, dividing the bed into irregular sections 
3: Make drills 1/2cm deep within each section to identify your seedlings as they come up in lines 
4: Sow sparingly into each drill, cover lightly with soil and water
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about growing annuals from seed.

Sowing annuals

One of the great luxuries of gardening is collecting armfuls of cheerful flowers for filling vases to overflowing&nbsp;with colour and scent for the house. Some of the best flowers for picking are easy-going annuals, and we've&nbsp;picked our top ten from the wide range available in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre.
Bupleurum: lime-green flowers and foliage, contrasting perfectly with brighter colours
Cosmos: graceful daisy-like flowers on 90cm tall stems: 'Purity' is exquisite white, and 'Dazzler' is vivid pink
Ammi majus: frothing umbels of pure white flowers, like an elegant cowparsley
Tobacco plant (Nicotiana): tall, airy flowers in colours from white to pink to lime green
Snapdragons (Antirrhinum): pretty cottage-garden flowers with generous blooms
Cornflowers (Centaurea cyanus): blue is the classic colour, but they come in white, pink or darkest purple
Sweetpeas (Lathyrus odoratus): choose Spencer types for scent, and Grandifloras for big, blowsy flowers
Love-in-a-mist (Nigella): exquisite starry blue or white flowers are followed by architectural seedheads
Larkspur (Consolida): a rich royal blue flower with tall spikes produced till the first frosts
Bells of Ireland (Molucella laevis): curious curving spikes of vivid green bell-like flowers veined with cream
Please ask the staff in our garden centre for more information and advice about annual flowers you can pick&nbsp;for the house.

Annuals for picking

One of the best things about having a garden packed with annual flowers is that it's also full of wildlife.&nbsp;Butterflies, bees and other pollinating insects like hoverflies adore open annual flowers: birds will be hot on&nbsp;their heels after the big, generous seedheads.
Here's our pick of the five best varieties from the range in our garden centre to attract insects into your %locations% garden.
For butterflies:
Marigolds (Calendula officinalis): cheery orange flowers which are adored by butterflies 
Honesty (Lunaria annua): lots of simple, open pink or white flowers butterflies can reach easily 
Stocks (Matthiola): the scent of these cottage-garden favourites attracts butterflies in from miles around
For bees:
Phacelia tanacetifolia: fuzzy smoke-blue flowers on dense foliage which bees find irresistible 
Cornflowers (Centaurea cyanus): choose native blue types and they'll be smothered in bees 
Forget-me-not (Myosotis): these late-spring arrivals provide much-needed early nectar for emerging bees
For birds:
Sunflowers (Helianthus annuus): leave old sunflower heads in place for upside-down bluetits to feast on 
Love-in-a-mist (Nigella damascena): architectural seedheads provide valuable food for birds 
Teasels (Dipsacus fullonum): biennial, flowering in its second year, goldfinches adore spiky teasel heads
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about choosing annuals to attract&nbsp;wildlife.

Annuals for wildlife

Annual plants are here-today, gone-tomorrow party girls. They may have just one season in the sun, but what a season: they flower for an incredibly long time and are invariably so spectacularly beautiful you'll lose your heart to them.
We stock two kinds of annual in our garden centre in %locations%: hardy annuals to sow direct from March onwards, and half-hardies to sow under cover as they don't like frost. Here are just some you'll find in our garden centre.
Hardy annuals: 
Ammi majus: lacy white flowers over feathery foliage 
Poached egg plant (Limnanthes douglasii): cheery yellow-and-white flowers 
Love-in-a-mist (Nigella damascena): starry blue or white flowers followed by architectural seedpods 
Ladybird poppies (Papaver communtatum 'Ladybird'): scarlet papery petals each with a black blotch 
Nasturtiums: abundant red, orange or creamy flowers over rounded leaves
Half-hardy annuals: 
Cosmos 'Purity': clear white daisies with yellow centres on long stems 
Zinnias: pompom flowers in brilliant scarlets, yellows and purples 
Swan river daisy: profuse mauve daisies tumbling over pots and baskets 
Nemesia: another perfect container plant with pretty, delicate blooms 
Tobacco plant (Nicotiana): charming open flowers in pink, cream and green over big leafy rosettes
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about choosing and growing annuals.

Annuals

Bulbs are so versatile you can grow them anywhere – even if you're gardening on a balcony. In our garden&nbsp;centre in %locations%&nbsp;we've got everything you need to pack containers with spring colour: follow our top tips for a dazzling&nbsp;display.
Layering: choose a deep container from the range in our garden centre and pack bulbs in by planting in&nbsp;layers. Put tall daffodils at the bottom, cover with compost, then tulips followed by crocuses at the top.
Keeping it simple: cram the biggest container you can find with a really special tulip like 'Abu Hassan' for a&nbsp;single blitz of brilliant colour with maximum impact.
Get the timing right: combine two bulbs with the same flowering time for twice the wow factor: try partnering&nbsp;dark blue hyacinths with pillarbox red early tulip Tulipa praestans.
Perfect partners: plant pretty violas at the feet of tulips for a partnership made in heaven: lilac-coloured&nbsp;violas with smokey purple tulips are stunning.
Dropping in: have pots of lilies or tulips ready to drop in to your borders just as they're about to flower for&nbsp;instant garden colour. Just lift them out again once they're finished.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about growing bulbs in containers.

Pots of pleasure

Daffodils aren't just for March. You can enjoy their cheerful yellow trumpets in your garden from January until&nbsp;May if you plan cleverly: we've got a fantastic choice in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre to help you do just that.
Early to rise:
'Rijnveld's Early Sensation': in flower by Christmas some years. Brilliant yellow&nbsp;and 35cm tall 
'February Gold': does what it says on the tin: this pure yellow gem reaches just&nbsp;15cm in late February 
'Tete a Tete': one of the best miniatures, flowering prolifically with golden swept-back petals. About 15cm
Mid-season marvels: 
 
Tenby daffodil (Narcissus obvallaris): Wordsworth's golden daffodil: small and&nbsp;dainty at 25cm 
'Rip Van Winkle': miniature double with a spiky mane of green-tinged, spiky petals.&nbsp;To 15cm 
'Jenny' is a mid-sized daffodil at 25cm, with a pale butterscotch trumpet and swept-back, creamy petals
Late and lovely:
'Dutch Master': brilliant golden trumpets and a delicate scent, growing to 45cm tall 
'Cheerfulness' is a double with three or four scented blooms on each stem: 45cm 
Pheasant's eye daffodil (Narcissus poeticus var. recurvus): among the last to&nbsp;flower, these delicate white daffs are also scented: 40cm tall
Please ask the staff in our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;for more information and advice about choosing daffodils for a long&nbsp;display.

Small but perfectly formed

Tulips left in the ground will sometimes re-flower, but more often they'll dwindle and disappear. You can&nbsp;replant with new combinations – but if you've got a really good display going, it's also possible to persuade&nbsp;the same tulips to come back next season. Here's how:
<ul>
<li>remove dead flowers and wait till foliage turns yellow, about six weeks after flowering</li>
<li>dig up your bulbs, brush off excess soil and discard any which are diseased or damaged</li>
<li>dry under cover for a couple of weeks – the greenhouse or a conservatory is perfect</li>
<li>store your bulbs in net bags for winter in a well-ventilated place at room temperature (about 20ºC).</li>
</ul>
In our garden centre you'll also find species tulips – smaller, wilder-looking tulips which come back year after&nbsp;year so you won't need to lift them.
Good ones to try are Tulipa turkestanica, appearing in early spring with up to nine flowers per spike; Tulipa&nbsp;greigii 'Red Riding Hood', 20cm high and scarlet in April; and Tulipa sprengeri, the last of the tulips to flower&nbsp;in late May, again bright scarlet.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about how to make your tulips last&nbsp;for years.

Tulips that last

Those first optimistic green shoots peeking through are a sure sign that winter is on the wane: with a&nbsp;selection of spring bulbs from our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;you can cheer yourself up from January to early summer.
Just after New Year the first snowdrops appear: tall 'Atkinsii', or 'John Gray' carrying large flowers on arching&nbsp;stems. Scatter other January jewels at their feet for contrast: bright yellow winter aconites, or pretty pink&nbsp;Cyclamen coum.
February is the time for crocuses – 'Snow Bunting' is pure white, while purple Crocus tommasinianus&nbsp;spreads happily through rough grass. Grow them with exquisite dwarf irises, just 10cm tall: 'Katharine&nbsp;Hodgkin' has curious greyish-purple petals, 'Harmony' is a slatey blue, while 'J.S. Dijt' is vibrant purple.
In March the show really gets going. Brilliant yellow daffodils, blue perfumed hyacinths, a sprinkling of bright&nbsp;pink Anemone coronaria and perhaps some white Chionodoxa (Glory of the Snow) make a riot of vibrant&nbsp;colour.
Plant spring bulbs in September or October in well-drained soil in sun or dappled shade, about three times&nbsp;as deep as the bulb itself. Adding a handful of grit helps drainage in heavy soil.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about bulbs for a springtime&nbsp;display.

Spring fever

The spectacular bulb display you've been enjoying all spring need not stop with the last tulip. Hundreds of&nbsp;beautiful summer-flowering bulbs, available in our garden centre in %locations%, keep flowers coming till autumn.
Alliums: the firework-like spheres of showy purple alliums light up the border from May to July. Choose from&nbsp;tall drumsticks of 'Purple Sensation', the huge 20cm-across spheres of 'Globemaster', or low-growing Allium&nbsp;karataviense with pale pink heads and broad purple leaves. Nectaroscordum siculum is closely related, with&nbsp;umbrellas of dangling bell-shaped creamy flowers flushed lilac.
Dahlias: in flower from June to autumn, the choice is as dazzling as the flowers. Single-flowered dahlias mix&nbsp;most easily into borders: try scarlet 'Bishop of Llandaff' or white 'Twyning's After Eight'.
Lilies: heady mid- to late-summer fragrance is the hallmark of stately Oriental lilies like white Lilium regale.&nbsp;Brightly-coloured Asiatics like the yellow 'Grand Cru' are non scented but don't need staking: and elegant&nbsp;Martagon lilies have over 20 blooms to a stem.
Crocosmia: super-easy to grow with handsome strappy foliage, flame-coloured crocosmia lights up borders&nbsp;from July to September. Choose from vivid scarlet 'Lucifer', crimson-splashed orange 'Emily McKenzie' or&nbsp;buttery 'Warburton's Yellow'.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about choosing bulbs for summer&nbsp;displays.

Summer stars

Bulbs aren&#39;t just for spring: you can have flowering bulbs in your garden all year round with a little planning.&nbsp;In our garden centre we stock bulbs seasonally, so you&#39;ll find spring and summer bulbs on sale in autumn,&nbsp;and late-season bulbs on our shelves in %locations%&nbsp;from spring. Choose bulbs for every season to enjoy colour from&nbsp;January till December:

Spring: bulbs are first on the scene with a splash of colour so don&#39;t stint on quantity: fill your garden with&nbsp;crocuses, daffodils, hyacinths and tulips from the fantastic range in our garden centre, and double your&nbsp;display by packing them into pots, too.

Summer: it&#39;s the turn of the real showstoppers in summer, and in our garden centre you&#39;ll find brilliantly-coloured dahlias, flamboyant lilies, sophisticated bearded irises and easy-going pompom allium bulbs.

Autumn: plant lipstick-pink nerines for a brilliant splash of colour in September: other autumn bulbs we stock&nbsp;include autumn-flowering crocus, exotic-looking Gladiolus murielae and brilliant yellow Sternbergia. B

Winter: tiny pink Cyclamen coum nod among the earliest snowdrops, while winter aconites and tiny, delicate&nbsp;winter-flowering irises like Iris danfordiae provide a cheery December splash of yellow.

Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about using bulbs in your garden.

*please be advised a variety of our products are seasonal. And can only be found at certain points of the year.

Bulbs

Wicker baskets from the range available in our garden centre make a wonderfully natural setting for bulbs, pansies and primulas. But for a display as productive as it is beautiful, plant your basket with a selection of herbs. It makes a charming gift – and it's perfect for spoiling yourself, too.
Pick out a style and colour that catches your eye, in the largest size you can afford: larger baskets hold more&nbsp;compost, so don't need watering as often, and you can include a wider range of herbs.
If the basket doesn't already have a liner, cut polythene to fit and punch holes in it for drainage. This holds in&nbsp;moisture, and also protects the wicker. Then add a layer of gravel for drainage.
Fill your basket with multipurpose compost mixed with a handful or two of horticultural grit - both are&nbsp;available in our garden centre. Then get planting!
Shrubby herbs like rosemary and thyme are fragrant and last years. But leave space for some annuals, too,&nbsp;like spicy basil or French tarragon. You'll find all these herbs and more to choose from in our garden centre.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about choosing baskets and herbs&nbsp;for your display.
&nbsp;

Herb baskets

There's a huge choice of containers available in our garden centre in %locations%, but two types remain most popular: clay&nbsp;terracotta, or versatile plastic. So which is best for you?
Terracotta has the look of a richly organic traditional material, yet you'll find angular modern designs among&nbsp;the traditional clay in our garden centre.
Terracotta pots are heavier, and also have porous sides, allowing air and water to pass through and letting&nbsp;plants' roots 'breathe'. This means you'll need to water more often: lining the inside with plastic (punched with&nbsp;drainage holes) helps. You'll find pots in our garden centre are labelled 'frost resistant' so they won't flake or&nbsp;crack in the cold: putting them up on pot 'feet' also helps prevent frost damage.
Plastic is light and lasts ages, and there's a dazzling range in our garden centre. Modern plastic finishes can&nbsp;look almost identical to terracotta, so you can still get the traditional look.
They hold on to water more easily, needing less watering and a perfect environment for plants like&nbsp;blueberries which like to sit in damper compost. Drought-lovers like Mediterranean herbs, though, prefer&nbsp;terracotta.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about choosing between plastic or&nbsp;terracotta containers for your garden.

Plastic vs terracotta

Containers are brilliantly versatile, and you can use them to create whatever mood you want in your garden in %locations%&nbsp;– whether it's lushly tropical, or funky and stylish. Here's how:
Container colour: Paint raised garden boxes or wooden containers – both available in our garden centre –&nbsp;to create quirky colour-themed container gardens. Oil-based stains are low-key and tasteful; or try waterproof&nbsp;marine paints in vibrant colours. Echo stem or flower colours for a really striking effect.
Plant style: For the jungly look, pick big plants with lush-looking leaves: phormiums, hardy gingers and&nbsp;bamboos all thrive in large containers. For container cottage gardens, plant small-flowered geraniums at the&nbsp;feet of container-grown apple trees. Architectural palms, bamboos and echeverias create a minimalist, clean&nbsp;look. All are available, plus many more, in our garden centre.
Mood management: Clashing colours on opposite sides of the colour wheel such as purple and yellow&nbsp;create vibrant, exciting moods, as do hot colours: red salvias, yellow chrysanthemums and orange daylilies,&nbsp;for example. Harmonious colours – blues, purples, reds – are soothing and calming: pastel shades and white&nbsp;also turn the pressure right down.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about creating containers for&nbsp;special effects in your garden.

Container moods

Whatever size your garden, containers are likely to feature. Tulips packed into big oak barrels look fabulous&nbsp;even among rolling acres: and if all you have is a handkerchief-sized yard, pots are your garden in %locations%.
Choose with care from the extensive range in our garden centre so the right pot is in the right place. Here&nbsp;are a few tips:
A few larger pots are better than lots of little ones: large pots make a great statement and have a greater&nbsp;volume of compost so need less watering.
Choose the pot to suit your situation: lightweight plastic is more sensible than weighty terracotta on roof&nbsp;gardens; and match pots to their environment. Modernist planters sit uncomfortably in a rural idyll.
Theme your containers: decide your style from the start: modernist metal, or traditional terracotta? Painted&nbsp;ceramic or warm wood? If all your containers follow a single theme it pulls your display together.
Choose the container to fit your plants: Shallow-rooted salads, herbs and flowers thrive in as little as&nbsp;15cm of soil, so are happy in trays, windowboxes and troughs. Save big, roomy pots for hefty bananas or&nbsp;container-grown fruit trees.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about choosing containers for your&nbsp;garden.

Right pot, right place

Most plants will grow quite happily in containers and you can make just as fabulous a display using plants in&nbsp;containers as you can in the garden - great news if you&#39;re short on outdoor space. In our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;you&#39;ll&nbsp;find a container for every plant: just match your plants to the pot that suits it best for instant success.

Pots come in a huge range of styles and materials from ceramic to terracotta, stainless steel and stone. Let&nbsp;your imagination run riot creating mixed displays of perennials and shrubs in larger pots for instant impact.

Troughs and grow spaces work brilliantly for growing vegetables on the patio. Place troughs against a wall&nbsp;to grow climbing beans, or divide a grow space as small as 1m x 1m into squares for planting a surprisingly&nbsp;wide variety of fruit and veg.

Hanging baskets brighten up the dingiest of entrance ways with brilliant scarlet pelargoniums or, for&nbsp;something different, tumbling tomatoes or chillies. In our garden centre you&#39;ll find not only the baskets but&nbsp;also liners and water-retaining gel to mix into the compost to hold on to moisture for longer.

Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about choosing containers.

*please be advised a variety of our products are seasonal. And can only be found at certain points of the year.

Containers

You too can grow fruit – even if you don't have a garden. Almost all fruit trees and bushes can be grown in&nbsp;containers, and more exotic fruits, like peaches and nectarines, do better in a pot as they can be protected&nbsp;more easily. Here are our top tips for growing fruit in pots:
Which container? Choose terracotta or plastic planters about 7cm larger than the plant's rootball from the&nbsp;range available in our garden centre. Re-pot into larger containers each year.
Which compost? Soil-based composts such as John Innes no 3 are available in our garden centre and are&nbsp;ideal for fruit as they hold on to nutrients for longer. Don't use garden soil as it doesn't drain well enough.
Which stake? Most container-grown trees need staking. Sturdy tree stakes and bamboo canes 8cm in&nbsp;diameter are available in our garden centre: sink to the bottom of the pot and tie in loosely.
Which feed? We have specialist feeds for potted fruit, such as citrus feed for lemon trees, in our garden&nbsp;centre, and also slow-release fertilisers such as Osmocote and pelleted chicken manure for other fruit trees.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about growing fruit in containers.

Container fruit

Fruit trees are usually grafted – that is, the top, fruiting part of the tree is attached to roots which control the&nbsp;size and other factors like disease resistance. These are known as rootstocks, and it's important to choose&nbsp;a tree with the right rootstock for what you want to do. Here's a quick guide to those you'll find at our %locations%&nbsp;garden&nbsp;centre:
Apples: 
M27: very dwarfing, growing to 1.8m: the best choice for decorative 'stepover' apples.
M9: dwarfing, to about 2m: the best choice for cordons.
M26: general-purpose dwarf rootstock, to about 3m: great for minarettes, cordons and espaliers.
MM106: grows up to 5m and ideal for full-sized trees.
Pears: 
Quince C is usually the only rootstock for pears as it's suitable for almost anything. Grows to about 5m.
Plums and damsons: 
Pixy: dwarf roostock suitable for fans and cordons, with a height of 3m
St Julien 'A': the most useful for garden trees, and more vigorous than Pixy at about 5m
Cherries: 
Gisela 5 and Tabel: Dwarfing, growing to about 2m, and ideal for fans
Colt: produces a full-sized bush tree to about 5m tall
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about choosing the right rootstock&nbsp;for your fruit trees.

Rootstocks made simple

Squeezing fruit trees into a small garden isn't as impossible as it seems. Train fruit against fences and you'll&nbsp;not only fit in one tree – you can choose several from the mouthwatering range in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre. Here&nbsp;are some great ideas for fitting fruit into the smallest of gardens:
Minarettes: Vertical upright stems laden with fruit on short spurs. Great for growing in containers or for pretty&nbsp;vertical accents in your garden. Use for: apples, pears, plums and cherries.
Cordons: Also single-stemmed, but trained at 45º to encourage more fruit. Spaced 75cm apart you'll fit four&nbsp;varieties into just 3m. Use for: apples, pears, redcurrants, gooseberries
Espaliers: vertical stems with tiers of horizontal branches trained out at 30cm intervals along wires. A&nbsp;beautiful way to cover walls and fences. Use for: apples, pears, plums, apricots, peaches
Fans: branches are splayed out from two arms at the base in an even fan across the wall. Use for: plums,&nbsp;cherries, peaches, nectarines, apricots
Stepovers: like cordons but bent at right angles and trained horizontally to a wire at 45cm above the ground.&nbsp;They make wonderful edging. Use for: apples
Please ask the staff in our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;for more information and advice about growing fruit trees in small&nbsp;spaces.

Fruit trees for small spaces

Healthy and supremely tasty, fresh-picked fruit from the garden is one of the real luxuries of growing your&nbsp;own. A British climate is perfect for growing so many different types from tart rhubarb in early spring to sweet&nbsp;summer strawberries and crunchy autumn apples.

We stock a huge fruit range in our garden centre in %locations%: look out for container-grown bushes and trees to buy all&nbsp;year round, or in winter bare-root plants which establish in double-quick time.

Fruit trees to enjoy in your garden include traditional apples, pears and plums &ndash; we stock many traditional&nbsp;heritage varieties with outstanding flavour and fascinating histories. Look out for unusual fruits, too in our garden centre.

Berries and currants are superb value, producing years of plentiful harvests from just a few plants.&nbsp;Gooseberries are first, fruiting from May, while currants (black, white and red) take over in summer.

Bare-root stock gives you a great choice of varieties. In our garden centre from November onwards, you&#39;ll&nbsp;find bundles of raspberry canes, fruit trees and strawberry crowns sold this way to plant as soon as you get&nbsp;them home.

Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about growing fruit.

*please be advised a variety of our products are seasonal. And can only be found at certain points of the year.

<img alt="" height="338" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/A66D1B4B-907B-47AF-BEE4-334925DE7AFF.png" style="width: 700px; height: 338px;" width="700" />

Fruit

Cacti are gorgeous, low-maintenance plants for the indoor gardener, so show them off to the max grouped in&nbsp;attractive displays to enhance your home in %locations%.
A cactus garden makes the most of smaller specimens. Choose a selection of different shapes,sizes and&nbsp;colours from the wide range available in our garden centre, looking for contrasts: purple-tinged Euphorbia&nbsp;trigona 'Rubra' sets off green columns of Haageocereus beautifully, while tall cacti have more impact when&nbsp;set against squat, sculptural barrel cacti. Broad leaved succulents like Aeoniums also look fabulous paired&nbsp;with spidery stems like those of the pencil cactus (Euphorbia tirucalli).
Wide, shallow bowls or boxes give most scope for letting loose your creativity. Paint trays in bright colours,&nbsp;Mexican style, and create natural-looking scenes by setting your groups of cacti among rocks, grit and sand&nbsp;to mimic a natural landscape.
Place your cactus garden where you can see it, on a windowsill or shelf at least a metre off the ground.&nbsp;You could even place it against a fabulous backdrop of a spectacular Arizona desert, or colourful abstract&nbsp;materials or textiles.
Please ask the staff in our %locations% garden centre for more information and advice about how to collect and display&nbsp;cacti so they look at their best.

Colourful cacti

Growing your houseplants in something as beautiful as they are is the perfect finishing touch to your display&nbsp;and shows them off at their very best.
Containers are often an afterthought but they can make or break a good display, and you'll find pots to set off&nbsp;colourful foliage or emphasise an architectural shape in our garden centre in %locations%.
Themed or matching containers right through the house give a sense of continuity. Warm textured terracotta&nbsp;gives a rustic look, while coloured ceramic tones in easily with your home decor. Metallic finishes lend&nbsp;modernist style while bamboo or wooden containers are suitably jungly for ferns, palms and bananas. If it's&nbsp;shabby-chic you like, paint wooden containers or salvage items from bric-a-brac stores.
The shape of your container should also complement the plant growing in it. Low growing, trailing plants like&nbsp;ivy look lovely cascading over a tall container; fountain-shaped plants are complemented by vase-shaped&nbsp;pots. For real wow factor pick out the colours of a plant's leaves or flowers in the colours of the container or&nbsp;choose complementary colours: white, for example, sets off darker greens and purples beautifully.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about choosing the right containers&nbsp;for your plants.

Cracking good containers

There's nothing that gladdens the heart in the chilly depths of January quite as much as cheery spring bulbs,&nbsp;forced to flower ahead of time. Super-early hyacinths on a kitchen windowsill fill the house with winter scent,&nbsp;while paperwhite daffodils bring a delicate beauty to a Christmas scene.
Pots of forced bulbs make wonderful Christmas presents - you can buy prepared pre-chilled bulbs in our&nbsp;garden centre from autumn. Don't forget to treat yourself too!
Start in September, planting into bowls of bulb fibre or multipurpose compost, available in our garden centre in %locations%.&nbsp;Place the bulbs on compost in the bottom of the bowl so they're close, but not touching. Fill with more&nbsp;compost so that the tops of the bulbs are just showing.
Place your pot of bulbs in a dark, cool place - ideally, about 9°C. Keep watered, and when shoots reach&nbsp;5cm long bring them out into a cool room to let the leaves green up. Finally, move to a warm windowsill&nbsp;to continue growing. Then all you have to do is clear a space among your Christmas decorations for their&nbsp;moment in the festive spotlight.
Please ask the staff in our %locations% garden centre for more information about forcing bulbs for early spring colour.

Forcing the issue

Green, leafy houseplants bring the outdoors indoors - and that means healthy living, too. The palms,&nbsp;dracaenas and ferns you'll find in our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;are proven to reduce stress, remove pollutants from the&nbsp;air and increase oxygen levels.
Help them carry on the good work by creating the conditions they need to thrive. Most green houseplants&nbsp;prefer somewhere bright but out of direct sunlight, with steady temperatures and humid air.
Avoid putting houseplants by radiators or on windowsills where temperatures fall sharply on frosty nights. Try&nbsp;standing them on tables or stands, available in our garden centre, in a bright spot near a window.
Water sparingly, letting compost dry out between times, and mist leaves with a hand spray or stand plants in&nbsp;trays of damp gravel to raise humidity.
Add liquid feed every couple of weeks and wipe leaves with cotton wool soaked in tepid water to keep dust&nbsp;from blocking their pores. While you're at it, check for pests: fuzzy white tufts are a sign of mealybug, while&nbsp;red spider mite cause yellow mottling and fine webs. Spray with insecticidal soap to put things right again.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about looking after your green&nbsp;houseplants.

Indoor greenery

Despite their exotic appearance, orchids are easy-going houseplants. They are quite happy in indoor&nbsp;conditions and require little care for their spectacular displays.
You'll find popular moth orchids (Phalaenopsis) as well as Cymbidium and showy Odontoglossum in our&nbsp;garden centre in %locations%. All have beautiful, long-lasting flowers in colours from white to butterscotch to magenta.
That first flush of flowers isn't the end of the story: given good conditions a second flowering should follow&nbsp;hot on the heels of the first.
In the wild, orchids grow halfway up rainforest trees, so reproduce their ideal warm, humid conditions in&nbsp;bright but not direct light. Too dry, or too hot, and they'll refuse to flower.
Water weekly, letting it drain completely and adding specialist orchid fertiliser, also available in our garden&nbsp;centre, once a fortnight.
Phalaenopsis reflower from nodes on the flowering stem, so once the first flowers fade cut back to the&nbsp;topmost node, and keep doing this until you reach the bottom node when you can remove it altogether. Cut&nbsp;out Cymbidium and Odontoglossum flower spikes completely as soon as the flower dies back to encourage&nbsp;more flower spikes.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information about how to grow orchids and keep them at&nbsp;their best.

Year-round orchids

Create a garden inside your house with the lush greenery and flowers of houseplants, and you&#39;ll not only&nbsp;make your house look beautiful, you&#39;ll improve your quality of life. Research has shown that in an average&nbsp;room, just two or three houseplants picked from the range in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre improve air quality, pump&nbsp;feel-good oxygen back into the air and reduce stress.

<div>In our garden centre you&#39;ll find handsome architectural palms and ferns for a modern, minimalist look; or&nbsp;pretty African violets, delicate paperwhite daffodils and fragrant stephanotis if shabby chic is more your&nbsp;style.</div>

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<div>Pick out a good-looking container for your houseplants from the range in our garden centre to really show&nbsp;off their beauty: in the right setting, the impossibly exotic flowers of orchids or the strange, waxy bloom of an&nbsp;anthurium can stop you in your tracks.</div>

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<div>Houseplants like a bright spot out of direct sunlight and away from radiators. Mist regularly with water to keep&nbsp;humidity high - you&#39;ll find hand misters in our garden centre, along with liquid feed to keep them at their best&nbsp;all season long.</div>

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<div>Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about our range of houseplants.</div>

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<h1><a href="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/product-range/163/indoor-plants-bonsai">Care Tips&nbsp;<img alt="" height="69" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/arroww.jpg" style="width: 75px; height: 69px;" width="75" /></a></h1>

<div>*please be advised a variety of our products are seasonal. And can only be found at certain points of the year.&nbsp;</div>

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<div>
<a href="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/garden-tips/8/growing-fruit-and-veg-on-balconies"><img alt="" height="152" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/balconies.jpg" style="width: 268px; height: 152px;" width="268" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/garden-tips/21/displaying-your-houseplants"><img alt="" height="149" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/displaying%20h%20pla.jpg" style="width: 268px; height: 149px;" width="268" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/garden-tips/22/displaying-orchids"><img alt="" height="152" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/displaying%20orch.jpg" style="width: 268px; height: 152px;" width="268" /></a>&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;

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Houseplants & Bonsai

Look at the back of any seed packet from the range in our garden centre and you'll find a lot of very useful&nbsp;information - not only what the plant looks like, but also how to sow and grow it.
But some of the terms used can be baffling if you're just starting out in gardening. So here's our jargon buster&nbsp;to help you translate:
F1 Hybrid: a variety produced by crossing two pure strains to produce a completely reliable new plant
Under glass: the seed is sown with some protection, usually in a greenhouse or coldframe
Drill: shallow V-shaped groove in the ground to sow the seed into. Use the corner of a rake or the tip of a&nbsp;trowel to make the drill.
Flat-bottomed drill: flat-bottomed trench, U-shaped and often used for peas and broad beans
Prick out: lift young plants out of the seed tray and replant them into pots of compost
Transplant: transfer the plant from pot to its final growing position, usually outdoors in the garden
Harden off: acclimatise young plants gradually to outdoor conditions, usually over a couple of weeks
Please ask the staff in our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;for more information and advice about the terminology used on&nbsp;seed packets.

Seedy sayings

It's all too easy to get carried away when you see rack upon rack of tempting packets like those in our&nbsp;garden centre: you just want them all. Here's how to make those tough decisions:
Make a desert-island list of flowers, veg and herbs you wouldn't want to be without. This is your initial&nbsp;shopping list: at this stage, it'll probably be too long.
Draw up a plan of your garden to scale, sketching in the areas where you want to sow flowers or&nbsp;vegetables. This gives you a realistic idea of how much space you've got.
Prune your shopping list to fit your plan. This involves some agonising choices – but think how you'd feel if&nbsp;those extra seeds went to waste. And there's always next year...
Decide how much you need: a few annual cosmos scattered through your border won't require many&nbsp;seeds, but if you're planning a big bed of mixed varieties you'll need more.
Strengthen your willpower and armed with your list, come to the garden centre and fill your basket. Add&nbsp;plant labels, seed trays and seed compost, and you're ready to sow. 
Please ask the staff in our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;for more information and advice about how to choose which seeds&nbsp;to sow.

Seedy strategies

You'll find hundreds of different types of seed in our garden centre, from annual and biennial flowers to herbs&nbsp;and vegetables. It's like being let loose in a gardener's sweetshop. But once you've got your seeds home,&nbsp;how do you store them? Here are our top tips:
Use seed as fresh as possible: seeds like parsnips and carrots don't live long in storage so buy fresh each&nbsp;year. Other seed can be kept up to two years before it starts deteriorating.
Keep seeds in their original packets: that way you'll know what you've got, and you'll also have sowing&nbsp;instructions ready to hand next time you need them.
Keep them all together: look out for handsome seed boxes in our garden centre, ideal for holding your&nbsp;seed packets and keeping them neat and tidy till you need them
Close the packet properly: squeeze out as much air as you can, fold down the top and seal with a&nbsp;paperclip or elastic band.
Choose somewhere dark and cool: seeds store best somewhere unheated, reasonably dry, free of mice&nbsp;and at a more-or-less constant temperature. The fridge is ideal.
Please ask the staff in our garden centre for more information and advice about storing your seeds.

Storing seeds

Watching a seed germinate and grow is a hugely exciting part of your gardening year: you hardly dare&nbsp;believe it&#39;s going to work, yet invariably that tiny kernel sends up a sturdy green sprout. The plants you raise&nbsp;from seed are always a bit special, so this year try raising something new from the hundreds of varieties from&nbsp;our garden centre.

Annuals: hardy annuals like love-in-a-mist, marigolds and nasturtiums are easiest of all and provide&nbsp;incredibly long seasons of colour from a few seeds scattered direct into the ground in spring.

Half-hardy annuals include all the bedding plants: in our garden centre you&#39;ll find seed to sow under cover&nbsp;in spring for colourful containers all summer long including pelargoniums, petunias, surfinias and nemesia.

Perennials: several perennials are very easy from seed, flowering in their first year and coming back again&nbsp;and again. Try echinacea, rudbeckia, grasses like deschampsia and hardy geraniums from our range.

Vegetable seeds: our largest selection of seeds is reserved for the grow-your-own enthusiast, with every&nbsp;veg from cucumbers to swede. Our heritage ranges boast superb flavour, or for something completely&nbsp;different try exotic veg like tamarilloes.

<h3>Franchi&nbsp;Seeds</h3>

are the&nbsp;oldest family run seed company in the world, we specialise in &quot;Italy from the Seed to the plate&quot;. We are passionate about the provenance and regionality&nbsp;of everything we sell.&nbsp;

We were found to be the most ethical major packet seed brand by Ethical Consumer Magazine 26/2/16, we&#39;re Vegetarian Society Vegan approved,&nbsp; 
Slow Food UK approved and multiple&nbsp;RHS&nbsp;medal winners. We stock Vegan, Gluten Free, Organic, Regional, Natural and Italian Wholefood&nbsp;products.&nbsp;

Please ask the staff in our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;for more information and advice about the seeds in our range.

<img align="left" alt="" height="75" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/logo-Franchi-Seeds.jpg" style="width: 180px; height: 75px; float: left;" width="180" />

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*please be advised a variety of our products are seasonal. And can only be found at certain points of the year.

Seeds

Shrubs with brilliantly-coloured berries are a real asset to the winter garden. They'll shine from the border&nbsp;when there's little else around, and their generous loads of fruit bring in birds from miles around.
Here are our top five berrying shrubs from the range in our garden centre:
Beauty bush (Callicarpa bodinieri): clusters of downy lilac flowers in mid-summer are followed by dense&nbsp;clusters of jewel-like violet blue berries. Grows to about 2m.
Skimmia japonica: sprays of frothy white flowers in late spring are only followed by 8mm bright red berries if you've got both female and male plants. 50cm x 50cm
Firethorn (Pyracantha): comes with red, orange or yellow berries and much-loved by birds, pyracantha can&nbsp;be trained in tiers against a wall for a colourful and architectural winter feature. To 1.5m tall.
Pheasant berry (Leycesteria formosa): bamboo-like green canes and tassels of claret-coloured blooms&nbsp;give way to glossy purple berries ripening in late autumn. Height is 1.8m.
Spindle (Euonymus alatus): one of our most spectacular native shrubs, the curious corky winged bark&nbsp;carries reddish-purple four-lobed fruits, opening to reveal brilliant orange seeds. Grows to about 2m.
Please ask the staff in our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;for more information and advice about choosing shrubs which have&nbsp;berries.

Berrying shrubs

Evergreen and reliable, conifers are elegant trees with sculptural foliage, beautiful cones and sometimes&nbsp;autumn colour, too. Several are compact enough to fit into a smaller garden: here are five of our favourites&nbsp;from the range available in our garden centre.
Korean fir (Abies koreana): Startling steel-blue needles make this fir stand out: it's a low, wide-spreading&nbsp;tree, and the cones are purplish blue too. Grows, slowly, to about 3m.
Cryptomeria japonica: Very handsome upright tree with sweeping blue-green branches ('Elegans Aurea' is&nbsp;yellow-green) which flush bronze in late autumn. Grows between five and 10m tall depending on variety.
Picea pungens 'Globosa': Low-growing spruce which gradually forms a spreading dome of sharp, stiff grey-&nbsp;green needles. The height and spread are just one metre.
Columnar yew (Taxus baccata 'Standishii'): Evergreen yews are great in small gardens as they're easily&nbsp;clipped into shape. 'Standishii' does it all by itself, forming a golden column 1m tall and just 18cm wide.
Maidenhair tree (Ginkgo biloba): The conifer that doesn't look like a conifer: ginkgos are airy trees with&nbsp;delicate-looking fan-shaped leaves which turn butter-yellow before falling in autumn. Reaches 5-10m tall.
Please ask the staff in our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;for more information and advice about choosing conifers suitable&nbsp;for small gardens.

Conifers for small gardens

Any colour in the depths of winter is doubly valuable. But with scented flowers and jewel-like berries to enjoy&nbsp;too, you'll want to spend as much time outside during the colder months of the year as you do in summer.
We've picked five of the best shrubs to plant in your winter garden from the range in our garden centre.
Viburnum x bodnantense 'Dawn': Clusters of sweetly-scented pink-tinged flowers open from early winter to&nbsp;early spring. Grows to about 2m.
Daphne mezereum: Incredibly sweet-scented reddish-pink flowers are borne in small clusters along bare&nbsp;stems in late winter, followed by sumptuous shiny red berries. Height 1.2m.
Winter-flowering honeysuckle (Lonicera fragrantissima): The powerfully fragrant creamy-yellow blooms&nbsp;of this loose-growing shrub fill the air with perfume through winter. Reaches about 2m tall.
Christmas box (Sarcococca confusa): The creamy flowers of shiny evergreen Christmas box are tiny, but&nbsp;they pack a huge punch in the perfume department in midwinter. Grows to 1m tall.
Mahonia x media 'Charity': Sculptural evergreen leaves like giant holly are topped with sweetly-fragrant&nbsp;yellow flower spikes, at their best in late autumn to winter. Grows to around 3m.
Please ask the staff in our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;for more information and advice about choosing shrubs which look&nbsp;good in winter.

Best winter shrubs

In smaller gardens, every plant has to earn its keep, and that's particularly true for trees. Luckily plenty of&nbsp;trees look good in every season: here's our pick of the best from the range in our garden centre.
Snowy mespilus (Amelanchier lamarckii): pearly white blossom in spring with coppery young foliage,&nbsp;followed by little black berries and brilliant autumn colour. Reaches about 10m tall.
Willows (Salix spp): look for varieties with brilliantly coloured red, green or purple bark: also has furry&nbsp;pussywillow buds in winter and deep green foliage. Grows to 10m.
Hawthorn (Crataegus spp): cascades of scented spring blossom are followed by brilliant red berries and a&nbsp;firework display of autumn colour. Anything from 5m to 8m tall, depending on species.
Autumn-flowering cherry (Prunus x subhirtella): the pale pink flowers appear in little bursts from&nbsp;November throughout the winter, with leaves turning fiery orange in autumn. Grows to 9m tall.
Rowan (Sorbus spp): clusters of white flowers in spring are followed by heavy crops of berries in red, white&nbsp;or yellow. Leaves turn brilliant shades in autumn. Grows to 7m.
Please ask the staff in our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;for more information and advice about choosing trees for year-&nbsp;round colour.

Trees for year-round colour

Every garden should have a tree: they&#39;re not only beautiful plants in their own right, they also cast soothing&nbsp;shade, provide valuable privacy and often give you flowers, fruit and spectacular autumn leaf colour too.

Choose trees and shrubs from the range in our garden centre to build the architectural backbone of your&nbsp;garden. In summer when other plants are showing off, trees and shrubs melt into the background, but they&nbsp;all have a moment when it&#39;s their turn to shine &ndash; often in the depths of winter when there&#39;s little else around.

Start your garden&#39;s design off on the right foot with specimen trees from the range in our garden&nbsp;centre. In small gardens, trees with year-round interest like the autumn-flowering cherry (Prunus x&nbsp;subhirtella &#39;Autumnalis&#39;) really earn their keep, and evergreen conifers are a sturdy, reliable presence&nbsp;throughout the seasons.

Shrubs provide a framework for your garden: evergreen shrubs in particular are a constant backdrop to&nbsp;other plants, giving weight and depth to your design. Extend the season with winter-flowering witch hazels or&nbsp;Christmas box, and add explosions of summer flowers with roses, hydrangeas or flowering quince.

Please ask the staff in our garden centre in %locations% for more information and advice about choosing and growing trees&nbsp;and shrubs.

*please be advised a variety of our products are seasonal. And can only be found at certain points of the year.

<img alt="" height="338" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/frankp.png" style="width: 700px; height: 338px;" width="700" />

Trees and shrubs

The ultimate in warp-speed gardening, annual climbers shoot up fences and walls like rockets, smothering&nbsp;them in brilliantly-coloured flowers. They're easy to grow from seed – choose from the wide selection in our&nbsp;garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;– and let you create a new display every year, each one more colourful than the last. Here are&nbsp;our favourites:
<div>Spanish flag (Ipomoea lobata): brilliantly tropical-looking relative of morning glory, but with pennants of&nbsp;tubular flowers in flaming shades from red through orange to yellow.</div>
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<div>Sweet pea (Lathyrus odoratus): the easiest of all the annual climbers, sow pretty, fragrant sweet peas&nbsp;direct at the foot of a wigwam or in pots in October to overwinter for earlier flowers next season.</div>
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<div>Purple bell vine (Rhodochiton atrosanguineus): heart shaped green leaves covered with large deep red-purple flowers all summer.</div>
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<div>Black-eyed Susan (Thunbergia alata): masses of simple, open flowers in all sorts of colours from brick red&nbsp;to bright orange, all with a perky black eye.</div>
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<div>Cup and saucer vine (Cobaea scandens): large inky purple flowers like bells with a frill of green behind are&nbsp;held on stems long enough to cut for flower arranging</div>
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<div>Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about growing annual climbers in&nbsp;your garden.</div>

Annual climbers

One of our best-loved climbers is the deliciously frothy clematis, at its best scrambling through roses or&nbsp;smothering a fence with an ocean of flowers. You'll find a clematis for every month of the year in our garden&nbsp;centre in %locations%, but there's often confusion over when to prune them.
Don't worry: it's actually quite simple. All you need to know is roughly when your clematis flowers, and then&nbsp;you can follow our straightforward guide.
Don't prune:early-flowering clematis like C. alpina, C. armandii, C. cirrhosa, C. montana
If they're getting too big and need trimming back, do it just after they finish flowering in late spring:&nbsp;otherwise, don't touch
Prune in February: 
large-flowered clematis flowering in May and June, like 'Barbara Jackman' and 'Nelly Moser'&nbsp;light pruning to remove dead or weak stems down to a strong pair of healthy buds. If your plants are&nbsp;getting too big, cut them back harder late summer, after they've finished flowering&nbsp;and clematis that flower late, such as 'Etoile Violette', 'Gravetye Beauty' and C. viticella&nbsp;cut hard back to about 15cm above ground level, always cutting to just above a healthy bud.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about how to prune clematis.

Clematis pruning made simple

When space is tight, you'll want to use every inch you can to grow crops. And when you've run out of room&nbsp;on the ground, sometimes the only way is up.
Edible climbers do everything ornamental plants do - lush foliage, spectacular flowers, and often good&nbsp;autumn colour – but with the added bonus of a generous harvest. Here's a selection of the best from the&nbsp;range in our garden centre in %locations%.
Runner beans are straightforward to grow and incredibly generous, producing several pounds of long beans&nbsp;from every plant. 'Painted Lady' has bicoloured red-and-white flowers.
Loganberries are loose-stemmed shrubs, easily trained against a fence. The sweet, juicy berries look like&nbsp;oversized raspberries.
Grapevines drip with fruit when trained over arches: 'Boskoop Glory' has sweet, smoky purple dessert&nbsp;grapes, and its leaves turn brilliant scarlet in autumn.
Lablab beans are a recent arrival but are fast catching on for their handsome purple leaves and plum-&nbsp;coloured beans: sow from seed in May in a sunny spot.
Kiwi fruit are very hardy, despite their exotic-looking fruit with brown fuzzy skins and succulent bright green&nbsp;flesh. Choose a self-fertile variety like 'Jenny' or 'Solo'.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about growing edible climbers.

Edible climbers

Grapevines make wonderful climbers to scramble over a wall or clothe a shed in green. In our garden centre&nbsp;you'll find varieties for sweet dessert grapes straight off the vine, and others for making deliciously fruity&nbsp;wine. Growing a grapevine outside in the garden isn't difficult: here's how.
Planting: dig plenty of organic matter into the soil, as grapevines are vigorous plants. Plant 15cm from the&nbsp;wall, to avoid the dry area at the base, and tie in loosely to a stake. Backfill, adding a handful of slow-release&nbsp;fertiliser, and water in well.
Pruning: grapes are pruned in December, when they're dormant, as they 'bleed' sap if pruned in summer.&nbsp;Leave your vine to grow for a year or two, then choose one shoot to train as the leader and snip back&nbsp;sideshoots to five or six leaves to encourage plenty of fruit.
Problems: powdery mildew covers leaves and fruit with a white, dusty coating and is most common when&nbsp;grapes go short of water. Prevent it by keeping your grape well watered and mulching the ground thickly to&nbsp;lock water into the soil, and look out for resistant varieties like 'Phoenix'.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about growing grapevines.

Growing grapevines

When you&#39;ve crammed every inch of space on the ground with plants, the only way is up. Clothe your walls&nbsp;in greenery and smother your sheds in flowers to double your planting space and turn your garden into a&nbsp;green sanctuary from the outside world in sunny %locations%.

<div>Climbers are one of the most versatile groups of plants in our garden centre and we&#39;ve got a great selection&nbsp;for you to choose from. Here are our favourites:</div>

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<div>Clematis come in all shapes and sizes, from the tiny starry flowers of &#39;Pixie&#39; to big, blowsy &#39;Rouge Cardinal&#39;.&nbsp;Winter-flowering clematis have pretty seedheads while Clematis montana is a froth of flowers in April.</div>

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<div>Wisteria is the ultimate in show-off climbers with its head-turning racemes of headily scented flowers in early&nbsp;summer.</div>

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<div>Star jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides) covers the uprights of pergolas and arches with glossy&nbsp;evergreen leaves and scented white flowers and never outstays its welcome.</div>

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<div>Honeysuckles are the perfect backdrop to a cottage garden, smothered in tubular flowers all summer and&nbsp;filling the garden with scent and punch-drunk bumblebees.</div>

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<div>Passionflowers are far hardier than they look, especially the stop-you-in-your-tracks purple fringed&nbsp;whirligigs of Passiflora caerulea.</div>

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<div>Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about growing climbers.</div>

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*please be advised a variety of our products are seasonal. And can only be found at certain points of the year.
</div>

Climbers

In many ways, gardening in containers is no different to any other kind: to keep that spectacular display&nbsp;going you need a few tricks up your sleeve. Follow our top tips to keep your containers fresh and inspiring all&nbsp;year round:
Plant for every season: pots of spring bulbs are over by May, so have fresh containers in the wings ready&nbsp;to take over. Dazzling summer bedding plants, on offer in our garden centre, take you into autumn, when&nbsp;brilliantly-coloured acers followed by winter pansies and red dogwood stems see the season out.
Plant successionally: veg in containers are best sown in threes. One container ready to pick, one growing&nbsp;up ready to take over, and the third just sown keep you picking without pause: this technique works for baby&nbsp;salad leaves, carrots, peas and beetroot.
Look after your plants: plants grown in pots need watering every day in summer – automatic dripper&nbsp;systems, available in our garden centre, do the job for you. Add slow-release fertiliser such as Osmocote&nbsp;granules to the compost or liquid feed weekly, and remove dead blooms to keep the flowers coming.
Please ask the staff in our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;for more information and advice about keeping your container&nbsp;displays lasting for longer.

Container displays to last

Growing your plants in containers opens up a whole new world in which you can experiment with different&nbsp;combinations, ring the changes or totally overhaul your planting at the drop of a hat. A huge variety of plants&nbsp;from our garden centre grow happily in containers, giving you potted colour from January to December.

Spring: Tulips arrive in our garden centre from autumn: pack shoulder-to-shoulder into large containers for a&nbsp;cracking display. Other spring bulbs to try in pots include crocuses, daffodils and snowdrops.

Summer: Fill your containers to overflowing with dazzling bedding plants - in our garden centre from spring&nbsp;onwards. Container-grown veg are a great option when space is limited: we stock plug plants to make&nbsp;planting even more straightforward.

Autumn: Many shrubs look beautiful framed in a large container and many have spectacular autumn&nbsp;displays. In our garden centre look out for graceful deep purple acers, brilliantly berried skimmia and pretty&nbsp;variegated hollies.

Winter: Combine heathers chosen from the range in our garden centre with white-berried gaultherias or red-twigged dogwood and the large, leathery evergreen leaves of bergenia for winter cheer just outside your&nbsp;door.

Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about plants for containers.

*please be advised a variety of our products are seasonal. And can only be found at certain points of the year.

Container plants

All the beauty products in your bathroom cabinet, from soaps to moisturiser, have their origins in plants, and&nbsp;many are easy to reproduce at home using herbs you can find in our garden centre in %locations%. Here are just some of&nbsp;the ways you can garden yourself beautiful:
Lavender bath water: put one part lavender flowers with two parts bay leaves, four parts fine oatmeal and four parts bran in a saucepan with water and simmer for an hour. Strain and add a cupful to your bath to&nbsp;guarantee a good night's sleep.
Marigold moisturiser: you'll find easy-to-grow pot marigold seed in our garden centre. Melt 150g&nbsp;emulsifying cream over a pan of boiling water, then add 70g glycerol and 80ml water and stir. Stir in 30g&nbsp;dried marigold petals, and simmer for three hours: strain and store in the fridge.
Herbal foot bath: pick a large handful of mixed fresh herbs: sage, thyme, sweet marjoram and bay work&nbsp;wonders. Put in a large bowl of boiling water with a tablespoon of salt and when it's cooled a little, sink your&nbsp;feet in. The ultimate reviver after a tiring day.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about growing herbs to use as&nbsp;cosmetics.

Herbs for beauty

Bouquet garni is a traditional French method for using herbs in bunches to infuse a dish with flavour. The&nbsp;combinations help solve the problem of which herbs to grow for flavouring your cooking: simply divide your&nbsp;herb garden into separate areas for meat, fish and poultry, choose the right herbs from the selection in our&nbsp;garden centre, and you'll have a perfect selection for every dish.
Poultry dishes: lemony flavours contrast well with chicken, turkey or duck, so grow lemon thyme or lemon&nbsp;grass mixed with hyssop, thyme, tarragon and parsley.
Fish dishes: Aniseed-flavoured herbs produce classic fish dishes. Fennel and tarragon taste gorgeous with&nbsp;plaice; try lovage, dill, and bay with other fish such as bass, perch and salmon.
Meat dishes: rich meat casseroles come alive infused with flavoursome Mediterranean herbs. Oregano,&nbsp;thyme, sage, rosemary and bay can cope with slow cooking and taste wonderful together.
Make the bouquet garni by picking a sprig of each herb, with stalk attached, and tie together securely with&nbsp;string. Tie the whole bunch to the casserole handle and allow to drop into the dish during cooking. Remove&nbsp;just before serving.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about herbs you can grow for&nbsp;cooking.

Grow your own bouquet garni

Herbs are really successful in containers, as most come from shallow, stony Mediterranean soils and relish&nbsp;drier conditions in pots. Group several together for a fragrant herb patch outside your door. Here's how to&nbsp;grow five of our favourite herbs in containers:
Rosemary: give this hefty shrub plenty of room and a soil-based compost such as John Innes no. 3&nbsp;(available in our garden centre) to provide it with nutrients for longer.
Mint: mint is best in containers as it can be invasive outdoors. There are dozens of varieties in our garden&nbsp;centre: apple mint has fuzzy leaves while purple-stemmed chocolate peppermint looks sumptuous.
Coriander: sow fresh into generous troughs every month for a constant supply of fragrant flavour: as you&nbsp;use up one trough, the next is ready to pick.
Chives: generous potfuls of chives are perfect for snipping with scissors to add an oniony tang to salads.&nbsp;Their pretty pink pompom flowers are edible, too.
Basil: purple or green varieties look gorgeous in containers and they're happier there, too, as their tender&nbsp;leaves are out of reach of slugs. Keep well watered and pick regularly to keep it productive.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about growing herbs in containers.

Herbs for containers

Set aside a corner of your garden for a traditional herb patch and you'll be hooked on these gorgeous little&nbsp;plants forever. Whether it's leafy parsley or fragrant thyme for cooking, or pot marigolds and echinacea for&nbsp;cosmetics or home-grown medicine, herb gardens are productive, useful and beautiful.
Herb wheels: in our garden centre you'll find ready-made wooden herb wheels made of six compartments&nbsp;for an instant herb garden. Simply place it on a cleared patch of ground and plant a different herb in each&nbsp;section for a pretty feature.
Formal herb gardens: traditionally, herb gardens were laid out in formal geometrical patterns, easy to&nbsp;recreate at home. Mark out a circle or square, then divide into symmetrical beds: L-shapes or diamonds work&nbsp;well. Add a central focal point, like an elegant container, and paved paths for a neat, satisfying design.
Herb spirals: another great way to grow herbs is to build a rising spiral of stones, bricks or vertical wooden&nbsp;boards to about 80cm high, then back-fill with soil. Herbs love the sunny, well-drained conditions and create&nbsp;a lovely cascade effect as they grow over the edges.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about making a herb garden.

Making a herb garden

Herbs have been grown in gardens for hundreds of years: most have a long history, handed down from&nbsp;generation to generation, with uses from medicine to cosmetics and beauty products to flavouring cooking.

They&#39;re easy-going plants which can be tucked into almost any corner of the garden, but to plunge yourself&nbsp;into their fascinating world dedicate a sunny spot to a herb garden. You&#39;ll find it&#39;s full of fragrance and flowers&nbsp;all summer: and best of all, it&#39;ll quickly become part of your daily routine to pick peppermint for your tea,&nbsp;marigolds to brew up some face cream, or a bay leaf or two for the evening meal.

To start you off, here are some essential herbs for your herb garden from the wide selection in our garden&nbsp;centre in&nbsp;%locations%:

Culinary: Mediterranean herbs to give your cooking flavour and colour, these include rosemary, bay, thyme,&nbsp;marjoram and parsley.

Medicinal: make teas and tisanes to boost your health and well-being with peppermint, chamomile,&nbsp;echinacea and lemon balm.

Cosmetic: moisturising cream, hair dye and face packs are all possible from herbs grown in your garden: try&nbsp;marigolds, soapwort (Saponaria), catmint and witch hazel.

Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about growing herbs.

*please be advised a variety of our products are seasonal. And can only be found at certain points of the year.

Herbs

Keeping a display going from May to September is usually a tricky juggling act involving careful choice of&nbsp;plants to flower one after the other, and luck.
You can make things easier by simply controlling when your perennials flower, using a trick known as&nbsp;the 'Chelsea chop' – because you do it when the Chelsea Flower Show is on, around the end of May.
This works well with lots of perennials, and you'll find most of them in our garden centre. They include&nbsp;daisies: dyer's chamomile (Anthemis tinctoria), echinacea and helenium; and many cottage garden&nbsp;favourites like Phlox paniculata, sedums and goldenrod (Solidago).
At the end of May, use secateurs (found in our garden centre) to cut back every stem by a third to a half. It&nbsp;seems brutal, but all you're doing is delaying flowering for a while. Cut back some clumps and not others,&nbsp;and some flower at the normal time with a second display arriving a few weeks later.
You'll find plants grow sturdier and less leggy – so you don't need to stake them: you get double the flower&nbsp;power, too. So get chopping!
Please ask the staff in our garden centre for more information and advice about using the Chelsea chop to&nbsp;delay flowering.

The Chelsea Chop

If a garden were a picture, trees and shrubs would make the frame, but the paint would be perennials,&nbsp;bringing the whole thing to life with colour and movement.
Here are our top tips for picking combinations from the fantastic choice of perennials in our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;to&nbsp;make your garden a work of art.
Design in triangles to avoid a 'blobby' effect. Combine tall verticals – say, foxgloves - with hummocky&nbsp;shapes like geraniums and low-growing horizontal ground cover.
Contrast shapes to bring out the best in your plants. Look for opposites: strappy-leaved daylilies with broad-&nbsp;leaved heucheras, or upright, airy grasses with daisy flowered rudbeckia.
Use repetition to pull your design together. Several bold clumps of the same variety of helenium at strategic&nbsp;points, for example, make the garden feel whole.
Manage colour to create the mood you want. Zingy reds and oranges with clashing blues and purples are&nbsp;exciting, whereas similar shades together calm things down.
Plant in groups or drifts for real impact. Odd numbers work best: three is a minimum but you can go up to&nbsp;nine, eleven or fifteen plants at a time for real wow factor.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about designing with perennials.
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Designing with perennials

There's a spell in late August when the garden can hit the doldrums. Late summer is a tricky time, when the&nbsp;main razzmatazz is over and plants start to tire.
Get the show going again with some of the many perennials you'll find in our garden centre which are at their&nbsp;best in late summer. Here are our top ten:
Helenium 'Moorheim Beauty' starts in July: its coppery-red daisy like flowers go on for months
Phlox paniculata 'Mount Fuji' froths with fragrant white flowers into autumn
Aconitum 'Sparks Variety' flowers till late September with spires of midnight blue
Plume poppy (Macleaya microcarpa) is a dramatic, towering perennial with handsome foliage
Red hot poker (Kniphofia uvaria) has spires of tubular flowers from red to pale yellow
Aster 'Little Carlow' is one of many Michaelmas daisies, with cheerful lilac flowers
Anemone x hybrida 'Honorine Jobert' carries pure white flowers on dancing stems till autumn
Penstemon 'Garnet' has deep wine red foxglove-like spires till October
Sedum 'Ruby Glow' tops succulent purple leaves with flat ruby-red flowerheads
Crocosmia 'Lucifer' produces fiery red sprays of tubular flowers from August
Please ask the staff in our garden centre for more information and advice about perennials that look good in&nbsp;late summer.

Late summer perennials

Perennials play an exuberant starring role in vibrant summer displays – but you may be surprised to know&nbsp;there are many which perform well into winter.
In our garden centre we've got plenty of perennials to bring colour to the garden through even the coldest&nbsp;months: here are five of our favourites.
Bergenia are also known as elephants' ears: big, broad, leathery leaves turn shades of red and purple in&nbsp;autumn and stay evergreen all winter. Fat flower spires top the display in spring.
Heuchera foliage comes in every colour from lime green to deep purple: they have pretty flower spires in&nbsp;summer but in winter make bright splash of welcome colour.
Hellebores are among our best-loved winter flowers: Christmas rose (Helleborus niger) flowers in December&nbsp;while H. orientalis starts in early spring. The handsome leaves are evergreen, too.
Cuckoo pint (Arum italicum) reverses the seasons, dying down in summer but returning in autumn with&nbsp;handsome marbled leaves and spikes of red berries.
Phlomis russeliana is one of many perennials which holds architectural seedheads into winter, contrasting&nbsp;well with the equally sculptural winter remains of grass flowerheads.
Please ask the staff in our garden centre for more information and advice about perennials that look good in&nbsp;winter.
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Winter perennials

The real heart-stopping, breathtaking beauty of a garden comes from that most easy-going of all the plant&nbsp;groups: the perennials, generous, free-flowering plants which die down each winter only to bubble up again&nbsp;from spring, peaking in midsummer with a fireworks display of flowers.

Pack your garden in %locations%&nbsp;with perennials from the huge selection in our garden centre and you&#39;ll have something in&nbsp;flower for every week of the year. Here are a few tips to help you choose:

Visit the garden centre often as we have different perennials in stock according to the season. Choose whatever takes your fancy each month for really long-lasting display.

Cut perennials back after flowering and they&#39;ll often give you a second flush of flowers. You&#39;ll find&nbsp;secateurs for the job in our garden centre.

Plant the right plant in the right place: there are perennials for every spot in your garden, whether it&#39;s&nbsp;shady, sunny, dry or damp. Ask our garden centre staff for help if you&#39;re not sure which to choose.

Plant in threes or fives for greatest impact: drifts or groups of the same plant really catch your eye and&nbsp;demand to be noticed.

Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about growing perennials.

*please be advised a variety of our products are seasonal. And can only be found at certain points of the year.

Perennials

A froth of roses scrambling over an arbour or smothering a wall, filling the air with a heavenly rich scent, turn&nbsp;a garden into a romantic paradise. Among the many climbing rose varieties in our garden centre, though,&nbsp;you'll find both climbers and ramblers – so what's the difference?
<ul>
<li>rambling roses usually flower just the once, in a huge and spectacular display, with clusters of&nbsp;smaller flowers</li>
<li>climbers are a little more restrained, but they'll flower throughout summer producing larger individual&nbsp;flowers</li>
<li>ramblers tend to produce lots of whippy young growth from the base: they're generally&nbsp;more 'tangled' looking.</li>
<li>climbers are more sculptural, with stiff main branches&nbsp;often forming brown bark, like trunks - and&nbsp;secondary younger green branches</li>
<li>ramblers are pruned by cutting out around a third of the oldest stems each year after flowering right&nbsp;to the base, to encourage plenty of healthy young growth: train horizontally for more flowers</li>
<li>climbers are pruned into an arching horizontal framework of permanent mature branches in winter,cutting back sideshoots to two or three buds to encourage plenty of blossoms next year.</li>
</ul>
Please ask the staff in our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;for more information and advice about climbing and rambling roses.
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Climber or rambler?

Imagine filling every vase in the house to overflowing with blowsy roses dripping with colour and scent. Well,&nbsp;if you grow your own roses for cutting, you can have that luxury every day.
Almost any roses look lovely in a vase, but for truly show-stopping displays look for varieties with long, sturdy&nbsp;stems, scent and long-lasting flowers. Here are five of our favourites from the range in our garden centre.
'William Shakespeare 2000': such a dark crimson it looks almost black, and strongly scented, this modern&nbsp;rose is disease resistant and long lasting in the vase.
'Princess Alexandra': one of the best cutting roses, with single headed magenta flowers on very long&nbsp;stems. It lasts over a week indoors.
'Charles de Mills': vibrant and intensely-coloured in rich purple, this old-fashioned rose lasts ages once cut&nbsp;and has a rich perfume.
'Souvenir du Docteur Jamain': this sumptuous old-fashioned rose is still a favourite today for its crumpled&nbsp;double blooms in rich velvety claret and exquisite scent.
'Iceberg': among the most reliable roses you can grow, with pure white flowers that just keep coming: the&nbsp;more you pick, the more it produces.
Please ask the staff in our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;for more information and advice about growing roses as cut&nbsp;flowers.

Roses for cutting

The irresistibly sweet, sultry scent of the rose has inspired Shakespearean sonnets, films, songs and stories&nbsp;like no other. Growing roses goes hand in hand with filling your garden with perfume, and there are dozens&nbsp;of richly fragrant roses to choose from in our garden centre. We've picked five of our favourites:
'Zéphyrine Drouhin' is a wonderful deep pink climbing rose, smothering walls and fences in a waterfall of&nbsp;sumptuous double flowers with a lovely, heady scent.
'Graham Thomas' is a striking butterscotch-yellow rose with generous flowers and a deliciously fresh&nbsp;perfume. It was voted the world's most popular rose in 2003.
'Mme Isaac Perreire' is one of the most romantic of old-fashioned cottage garden roses, with big, blowsy&nbsp;double pink flowers and a superbly sweet, rich fragrance.
'Roseraie de l'Hay' is nothing if not dramatic: deep wine-red, with masses of flowers with a spicy, clove-like&nbsp;scent followed by big red hips in autumn.
'Gertrude Jekyll' has an intoxicating old-rose perfume but it's a modern rose, bred to combine the old-&nbsp;fashioned scent of traditional roses with the strong, disease-free growth of today's plants.
Please ask the staff in our garden centre in %locations% for more information and advice about scented roses for your&nbsp;garden.

Roses for scent

The freshest, purest roses you can grow are those which are closest to nature. Their delicate, natural flowers&nbsp;disguise a tough constitution: they grow almost anywhere and shrug off pests and diseases. And it doesn't&nbsp;stop there: spectacularly beautiful brilliant red hips carry on the display well into autumn and winter.
Here are some of our favourite wild roses from the range in our garden centre:
Winged thorn rose (Rosa pteracantha): famous for its blood-red sharks' fin thorns glowing like stained&nbsp;glass in sunshine. The flowers are delicate white, appearing in late spring.
Sweetbriar (Rosa eglanteria): possibly the most romantic name in the rose world, sweetbriar is an English&nbsp;native hedgerow rose with cheery pale-pink flowers followed by orange hips.
Rosa moschata: very late to flower, beginning its display of simple white flowers in September and at its&nbsp;best in mid-October when most other plants are going to sleep.
Geraniuim rose (Rosa moyesii): brilliant scarlet single flowers followed by extraordinary hips like elongated&nbsp;goblets in sealing wax red
Burnet rose (Rosa spinosissima): a low-growing rose smothered in simple white flowers all summer,&nbsp;followed by marble-sized gleaming round near-black hips through autumn.
Please ask the staff in our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;for more information and advice about growing wild 'species' roses.

Wild roses

A rose in full bloom stops you in your tracks. It steals your heart with its paper-delicate petals and lures you&nbsp;in with its heady, romantic scent. Once you&#39;re truly captivated it&#39;s hard to resist filling your garden with the&nbsp;sumptuous butter yellows, sugar-spun pink, graceful white and blood red petals of this queen of flowers.

We&#39;re in love with roses too, so we&#39;ve got a variety in our garden centre to grace every spot in your garden.

Climbers and ramblers like &#39;New Dawn&#39; and cream &#39;Alberic Barbier&#39; scramble boisterously up trellises and&nbsp;wire supports to clothe walls in swathes of colour.

Shrub roses make striking centrepieces to a border: free-flowering and highly perfumed, they&#39;ll bloom from&nbsp;June till September. Apricot &#39;Buff Beauty&#39; or deep pink &#39;Comte de Chambord&#39; are good choices.

Patio roses like pale pink &#39;Gentle Touch&#39; or pure white &#39;Diamond&#39; are dainty, smaller shrubs bred for their&nbsp;ability to thrive in containers. Smothered in blooms, they&#39;re long-flowering and brilliantly colourful.

Ground cover roses spread out in low, graceful arches to cover the ground in dense foliage and flowers.&nbsp;The &#39;Flower Carpet&#39; series come in gold, pink, white and scarlet.

Rose breeding is often described as being as much an art as a science.

<h3>All David Austin...</h3>

roses have a collective style and reflect one man&rsquo;s vision. All have beautiful blooms and in most cases wonderful fragrance held on graceful attractive shrubs. A garden of these outstanding roses is hard to beat for sheer exuberance of flower and fragrance.

Please ask the staff in our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;for more information and advice about growing roses.

<img align="left" alt="" height="180" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/rose.jpg" style="width: 270px; height: 180px; float: left;" width="270" />

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*please be advised a variety of our products are seasonal. And can only be found at certain points of the year.

Roses

When space is limited, you need ingenuity to get the most from your plot. Growing veg in containers is a&nbsp;lifeline for patio gardeners, and helps beef up the harvest from handkerchief-sized gardens, too. Follow our&nbsp;five rules for bumper container harvests every year:
Go large: bigger pots are definitely better, as the more your veg can spread their roots out, the happier&nbsp;they'll be. There's a range of roomy pots in our garden centre.
Mix and match: don't be afraid to grow several types of veg in the same pot. Plant quick-growing carrots&nbsp;around tall spinach, for example, to double your harvest.
Water, water, water: never let containers go dry: it's a recipe for bolting lettuces, drooping spinach and poor&nbsp;fruiting. Water daily in summer, adding liquid feed once a week.
Use your walls: troughs alongside fences and walls hold climbing beans and give you twice the space to&nbsp;play with. Nail trellis to the wall for support.
Choose the right varieties: veg with shallower roots, like beetroot, do best; or try varieties bred specially for&nbsp;pots. Look for 'patio', 'dwarf' or 'container' on seed packets in our garden centre.
Please ask the staff in our garden centre in %locations% for more information and advice about growing vegetables in&nbsp;containers.

Veg for containers

Harvesting vegetables from your garden is hugely satisfying, and you&#39;ll revolutionise your tastebuds:&nbsp;food picked just minutes before it&#39;s on your plate has a colour, flavour and crunchiness that have to be&nbsp;experienced to be believed.

We have everything in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre to turn your garden into a haven of productivity: here&#39;s a selection&nbsp;to get you started.

Seeds: most veg are grown from seeds, from tomatoes to carrots and lettuces. Take your pick from the huge&nbsp;range in our garden centre; we&#39;ve also got ready-spaced seed tapes and delicious heritage vegetables for&nbsp;you to try.

Sets and seed potatoes: from early spring we stock seed potatoes, plus onions, shallots and garlic from&nbsp;sets &ndash; easy-to-handle baby bulbs to plant straight into the ground.

Plug plants: for the ultimate in convenience we also stock plug plants -baby veg plants ready to go straight&nbsp;into containers or out into the garden.

Perennial vegetables: great value for money, these include some real delicacies: in our garden centre you&#39;ll&nbsp;find asparagus crowns, able to crop for 20 years, and stately globe artichokes looking as good as they taste.

Please ask the staff in our garden centre in %locations%for more information and advice about growing vegetables.

*please be advised a variety of our products are seasonal. And can only be found at certain points of the year.

Vegetables

Here at the Hertfordshire Garden Centre we stock a wide variety of plants for both the amateur and professional gardener. Our range includes annual and perennials, plants for bedding, borders and tubs, fruit trees and bushes, climbers and creepers just to name a few. We also stock a wide selection of David Austin Roses, House Plants and Bonsai trees.

Plants

We offer a wide range of top-quality garden chemicals and fertilisers to ensure healthy plant growth. This includes insecticides, weed killers, and everything you need to control fungus and disease.

Also find plant food, and a full range of lawn care.

Please visit to see more products in the range, which include ...

Available in Store

<ul>
	<li>Weed killers</li>
	<li>Pest Control</li>
	<li>Plant Food</li>
	<li>Fertilisers</li>
	<li>Animal Repellents</li>
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Chemicals & Fertilisers

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In the battle against all the creepy crawlies which would like to enjoy your plants as much as you do, it&#39;s a&nbsp;good idea to be well-armed. You&#39;ll find everything you need to fight the good fight in our garden centre in St Albans: keep&nbsp;these essentials in the garden shed and you&#39;ll be prepared at all times.

Sprays:&nbsp;insecticidal soap takes care of sap-sucking aphids on everything from roses to cabbages: you&#39;ll find&nbsp;handy spray guns in our garden centre. We also stock tree washes for getting rid of overwintering larvae and&nbsp;eggs on fruit trees and bushes.

Barriers: keep pests at bay without having to kill them: a screen of horticultural fleece around carrots keeps&nbsp;carrot fly away, while garlic granules, grit and copper rings deter slugs. Insect-proof mesh available off the&nbsp;roll or as a ready-to-use cloche keeps caterpillars and other pests off crops.

Organic deterrents:&nbsp;in our garden centre you&#39;ll find a range of organic methods for tackling pests, from&nbsp;super-effective wildlife friendly slug pellets to biological controls. We also stock a range of pheromone traps&nbsp;to hang among your plants for catching codling moth and other flying pests.

Please ask the staff in our&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about dealing with garden pests.

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Garden Pests

A little protection for your plants in extreme weather or when pests and diseases threaten can be the&nbsp;difference between success and abject failure. There&#39;s a comprehensive armoury of defences against the&nbsp;main threats to your plants available in our garden centre.

Frosty weather: in our garden centre you&#39;ll find horticultural fleece both on the roll and in handy packets.&nbsp;Throwing a couple of layers over tender plants like potatoes when frost threatens can be enough to see them&nbsp;through. We also stock hessian sheets to tuck around thick straw for protecting tender palms, gingers and&nbsp;bananas.

Gales and rain:&nbsp;polythene cloches, available off the peg in our garden centre, prevent your plants from&nbsp;getting waterlogged or shredded by wind. Our easy-to-construct cold frames also keep the weather off&nbsp;vulnerable young plants and seedlings.

Pests:&nbsp;stretch fine-gauge netting, also available in our garden centre, over a framework to keep birds from&nbsp;stealing your berries. Netting cloches over cabbages and sprouts also keep pigeons at bay. There are a&nbsp;range of other options for warding off all sorts of pests in our garden centre, from biological controls to slug&nbsp;barriers and insecticidal sprays.

Please ask the staff in our garden centre in St Albans&nbsp; for more information and advice about protecting your crops.

Protection

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<h3>About National Garden Gift Vouchers and Cards</h3>

National Garden Gift Vouchers are the ideal gift for gardeners, giving them choice over what they treat themselves and their garden to. They can be&nbsp;spent at almost all of the UK&#39;s garden centres and retail nurseries&nbsp;and run on a not-for-profit basis. Proceeds are used to&nbsp;support the cause of gardening, garden traders and gardening charities&nbsp;across the UK.

At the moment there are two slightly different products: National Garden Gift Vouchers and National Garden Gift Cards. The only major difference is that a small number of garden centres don&#39;t yet accept the gift cards, though the numbers selling and accepting are pretty similar.

<h5>FAQs</h5>

<h5>Q. Can vouchers and cards be spent online?</h5>

<h5>A. No, not yet, but it&#39;s something we&#39;re working on!</h5>

<h5>Q. Do the vouchers and cards expire?</h5>

<h5>A. Yes. A National Garden Gift Card purchased in a garden centre or online will expire 30 months after it is activated (i.e. after it is purchased). A National Garden Gift Voucher (i.e. the paper tokens) usually has an expiry date printed on the back of the voucher. Typically this will give at least three years in which to spend the voucher. A small number of old vouchers do not have an expiry date on them, and these vouchers do not expire.</h5>

<h5>Q. Is the scheme financially safe?</h5>

<h5>A. It&#39;s more robust than most gift card schemes that rely on a single retailer. If a single retailer stops trading or goes into administration, the chances are that that retailer&#39;s gift vouchers will not be honoured. With National Garden Gift Vouchers you can spend them in most of the UK&#39;s garden centres, so if one garden centre closes you can always spend it in another centre. The Horticultural Trades Association which runs the schemes has been going since 1899 and is funded by 1,500 garden businesses who are our members&nbsp;- we&#39;re pretty reliable!</h5>

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<a href="https://www.facebook.com/thehertfordshiregardencentre/photos/pcb.1173418776182159/1173418262848877/?type=3&amp;theater"><img alt="" height="190" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Screenshot%202019-11-18%20at%2020_01_10(1).png" style="width: 600px; height: 190px;" width="600" /></a>

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<h3>Potters Crouch Candles</h3>

This&nbsp;is us. The Potters Crouch family
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We&rsquo;ve made it our mission to provide scents that cover all corners of everyday life. 
We&rsquo;ve all been there wanting to set the mood for a night in or something with enough power to cover that &lsquo;what is that smell!&rsquo; smell. Don&rsquo;t worry, we&rsquo;ve got you covered!

It all started with a problem, the eureka moment, a spare room and a passion to create something just&hellip;.lovely! That was over 20 years ago now. There is a bit more to it these days, but we make sure that every product to go out the door has had as much care, love and attention that the very first candle had all those years ago.

We&rsquo;re made up of a small team of 11 based in a converted barn within the rolling hills of Hertfordshire&rsquo;s countryside. We have a onsite shop which you can come and purchase from or if you just fancy a chat, the kettle is never long boiled!

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<h3 style="text-align: center;">It&rsquo;s what we don&rsquo;t put in that counts!</h3>
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<h4>No soy allergens</h4>

As a company we took the decision not to use any soy waxes in our products. The worlds over use of soy is causing an increasing percentage of the population to develop allergies to it and soy is on the national register of allergens as a result.

The process to convert a bean to a wax also involves the use of nickel which is another allergen so it&rsquo;s not for us. We stick to using a medical and edible grade of wax which is classed as hypoallergenic and is actually what is used on the back of allergy testing strips for this reason.
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Who new being kind to the environment could smell so lovely!

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<h4>Vegan friendly</h4>

Historically many perfumes used to contain animal secretions and many waxes were made from tallow (animal fats) and some countries still use them today. We feel it is not necessary in this day and age as with the advances in technology it is possible to create a copy of a &lsquo;scent&rsquo; by combining other scent molecules together, so we don&rsquo;t need the help of a Beavers vanilla smelling butt thank you!

There are also plenty of natural waxes readily available. We choose not to use beeswax in our products as this is what bees use to store their honey and house their young so we&rsquo;d rather not disturb them as our bees need all the help they can get. Without bees we couldn&rsquo;t bring you our lovely fragrances, we like to think of bees as being little tiny perfumers.

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<h4>Cruelty free</h4>

Being cruelty free is very important to us and we take great care to make sure all the ingredients we use are not tested on animals. As a company we will not work with any organisation that uses animal testing and we do not ship our products to countries who insist on animal testing.

We have a long history of being animal lovers here from Henry and Tilly our office dogs to Freddo the garden frog, Drew our visiting shrew who steals dog biscuits and Brian our barn snail who comes out to party every night leaving a trail behind him &hellip;we wouldn&rsquo;t hurt a fly!

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<h4>No palm oil</h4>

We don&rsquo;t use palm oil in any of the fragranced products we make simply because there are other waxes which do a far better job so it is not needed. Of course, we also care about the environment and sustainability as well so if there is a better alternative, we will always use it!

Historically we have made soaps which have contained a tiny amount of CSPO or RSPO certified sustainable palm oil grown by independent farmers which does not contribute to deforestation or the loss of wildlife habitats but helps to support the farmers and their families and educate people about the problem with non-sustainable palm.

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<h4>Hell no&hellip;No gmo</h4>
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We believe that not enough is known about gmo products yet and their long-term environmental effects, so for now we will steer clear of them until we are told with absolute certainty, they have no detrimental effects on the environment and we won&rsquo;t grow a third arm because of them&hellip; although that might come in handy! (see what we did there).

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<h3>Boxworth Botanicals</h3>

Here at Boxworth Botanicals we promise&nbsp;you that our products are freshly made&nbsp;with care for the best results.

When you buy&nbsp;from us you can be assured that each product&nbsp;has passed our tests to deliver these promises.&nbsp;

<ul>
	<li>High quality, natural plant based skincare.</li>
	<li>Unique blends designed to be effective.</li>
	<li>Safe, gentle and &lsquo;good for the skin&rsquo; creams, for all skin types.</li>
	<li>No toxic ingredients, NO PARABENS, SULPHATES OR PETROCHEMICALS.</li>
	<li>Light and non-greasy.</li>
	<li>Beautiful uplifting fragrances.</li>
	<li>A healthy and natural way to look after your skin.</li>
	<li>100% pure essential oils.</li>
	<li>Not tested on animals.</li>
	<li>Made in England.</li>
</ul>

<img alt="" height="221" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/slideshow_1.jpg" width="500" />

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Giftware & Vouchers

In these days of unpredictable weather a drought is never far away, so kit yourself out to keep your plants&nbsp;going through even the driest summer from the wide range of watering equipment in our St Albans&nbsp;garden centre.&nbsp;Here&#39;s what you&#39;ll need to make sure your plants need never go thirsty again.

Watering cans&nbsp;are useful all year, but especially if you&#39;re in an area subject to a hosepipe ban. Larger 10-&nbsp;litre and 5-litre cans keep the garden going, while small 1-litre cans are ideal for seedlings and houseplants.

Water butts&nbsp;store rainwater so you don&#39;t have to use up precious tap water. These days they come in a wide&nbsp;range of designs: connect them together to double your storage capacity.

Hoses and attachments&nbsp;make watering easy, with everything from spray guns to sprinklers in our range.&nbsp;Leaky hoses conserve water, too: lay them alongside your plants to deliver water where it&#39;s needed.

Automated watering systems&nbsp;free you from watering chores to enjoy your garden. Connect dripper&nbsp;systems via a hose to a timer, set to water whenever you want without you having to lift a finger.

Please ask the staff in our garden centre in St Albans&nbsp;for more information and advice about your watering needs.

Our Hozelock&nbsp;range provides:

<ul>
	<li>A complete range of micro-drip irrigation.</li>
	<li>Starter kits</li>
	<li>Timers&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Hoses and countless accessories</li>
</ul>

<img alt="" height="140" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/auto%20wat.jpg" width="200" /><img alt="" height="139" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/Fitting.jpg" width="200" /><img alt="" height="140" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/garden%20pump.jpg" width="200" /><img alt="" height="138" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/garden%20sprinklers.jpg" width="200" /><img alt="" height="139" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/hose.jpg" width="200" /><img alt="" height="139" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/indoor.jpg" width="200" /><img alt="" height="139" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/reels.jpg" width="200" /><img alt="" height="141" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/soloutions.jpg" width="200" /><img alt="" height="139" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/saving.jpg" width="200" /><img alt="" height="139" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/spray%20guns.jpg" width="200" />

<h3>Click below for more information and tutorials:</h3>

<a href="https://www.hozelock.com/product-category/watering/" rel="noopener noreferer" target="_blank"><img alt="" height="87" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/ho.jpg" width="280" /></a>

Irrigation & Watering

We stock a small&nbsp;range of garden ornaments and water features to suit any size of garden and every price bracket. All the designs we sell are skilfully manufactured out of hard-wearing and durable materials and are made to last.

Our friendly staff are always on hand to offer advice, so if you need tips on the garden ornaments or water features that might work best in your own garden

<h2><img alt="" height="100" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/56649466_10157141953392673_473634158585839616_n.jpg" width="100" />&nbsp;NEW IN - HADDONSTONE ALL HAND MADE!</h2>

<img alt="" height="333" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/IMG_3094.jpg" width="250" /><img alt="" height="333" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/IMG_3095.jpg" width="250" /><img alt="" height="333" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/IMG_3096.jpg" width="250" /><img alt="" height="333" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/IMG_3097.jpg" width="250" /><img alt="" height="333" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/IMG_3099.jpg" width="250" /><img alt="" height="333" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/IMG_3100.jpg" width="250" /><img alt="" height="333" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/IMG_3101.jpg" width="250" /><img alt="" height="333" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/IMG_3102.jpg" width="250" /><img alt="" height="333" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/IMG_3103.jpg" width="444" /><img alt="" height="333" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Hozelock/IMG_3104.jpg" width="250" />

*please be advised a variety of our products are seasonal. And can only be found at certain points of the year.

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<a href="https://www.kelkay.com/cat/easy-fountain/25/"><img alt="" height="181" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/fount.jpg" style="width: 600px; height: 181px;" width="600" /></a>&nbsp;

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Garden Ornaments & Water Features

Pots...

They nurture young plants, providing a stable and protected environment. They add life and colour to decked or terraced areas of larger gardens. A few well-placed large pots and planters can add points of interest to extended areas of lawn. Window ledges &amp; Indoor spaces

At The Hertfordshire Garden Centre&nbsp;we stock a huge variety, in a wealth of styles, textures, colours and finishes. From traditional terracotta planters to more contemporary lightweight granite containers, as well as a range of plastic pots, we have something to make an impact in any garden, or indeed anywhere else in or around your home.

Our friendly staff are always on hand to offer advice, so if you need tips on the pots and planters that might be best for your own home or garden.

<h2><a href="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/product-range/category_5e3cd21776_n.jpg" title="Plastic vs terracotta"><img alt="" height="166" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/product-range/category_5e3cd21776_n.jpg" style="width: 250px; height: 166px;" width="250" /></a>&nbsp;</h2>

<h2><a href="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/product-range/category_5e3cd21776_n.jpg" title="Plastic vs terracotta">Plastic vs terracotta</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/product-range/25/plastic-vs-terracotta"><img alt="" height="40" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/arroww.jpg" style="width: 44px; height: 40px;" width="44" /></a></h2>

<h2><a href="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/product-range/category_37071fef6a_n.jpg" title="Container moods"><img alt="" height="166" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/product-range/category_37071fef6a_n.jpg" style="width: 250px; height: 166px;" width="250" />&nbsp;</a></h2>

<h2><a href="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/product-range/category_37071fef6a_n.jpg" title="Container moods">Container moods</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/product-range/26/container-moods"><img alt="" height="40" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/arroww.jpg" style="width: 44px; height: 40px;" width="44" /></a></h2>

<h2><a href="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/product-range/27/right-pot-right-place" title="Right pot, right place"><img alt="" height="164" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/product-range/category_78d5111c3b_n.jpg" style="width: 250px; height: 164px;" width="250" />&nbsp;</a></h2>

<h2><a href="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/product-range/27/right-pot-right-place" title="Right pot, right place">Right pot, right place</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/product-range/27/right-pot-right-place"><img alt="" height="40" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/arroww.jpg" style="height: 40px; width: 44px;" width="44" /></a></h2>

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Pots & Containers

At the garden centre we stock everything you need for&nbsp;healthy and flourishing plants from seeds to their best.&nbsp;

We stock...

Thousands of seed varieties from trusted, everyday seeds, exotic, even italian seeds from a compant called Franchi.

Caring for them...

Give your young plants the attention they need, including

greenhouse heaters, paraffin fuel, cloches, propagators, thermometers, fibre pots, plastic pots and saucers, perlite and vermiculite.

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<h1>This table may help...</h1>

<img align="left" alt="" height="720" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/new%20sow.jpg" style="width: 479px; height: 720px; float: left;" width="479" />

Propagation

As well as paints, we also sell Ronseal&rsquo;s range of treatments and preservatives, so things can&nbsp;stay&nbsp;looking its best.&nbsp;

Our Ronseal range comes in various sizes so you can find the one that best suits your requirements. - We also stock trade goods and sizes (please feel free to contact on more information about this)

<img alt="" height="228" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/ronseal.jpg" style="width: 827px; height: 228px;" width="827" />

<img alt="" height="68" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/ronseal1.jpg" style="width: 827px; height: 68px;" width="827" />

Treatments & Preservatives

<h3>Where to grow</h3>

Majority of houseplants will thrive in:

Well-lit, draught-free, even temperature and high humidity. However some plants do prefer different conditions, so make sure you do your research - for instance

- Cacti, succulents and carnivorous plants like it bright

- Orchids like indirect light lots of fresh air and high humidity.

- Some plants prefer darker areas so they don&#39;t get scorched.

<h3>What to do</h3>

<h3>Watering</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Keep the compost moist but wait until it has almost dried out before rewatering.</li>
	<li>Water from above and put saucers under plants.</li>
	<li>Need watering more in spring and summer, than in winter.</li>
	<li>Water less in winter than in summer when actively growing.</li>
</ul>

<h3>Humidity (Mist)</h3>

Some plants enjoy a daily mist with a hand-held spray. You can also group plants on a tray of damp gravel.

<ul>
	<li>Ferns</li>
	<li>Orchids</li>
	<li>Bromeliads</li>
	<li>Calathea</li>
</ul>

<h3>Holiday watering</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Water all pots before you leave.</li>
	<li>Plants in large pots leave in a shady room.</li>
</ul>

Tips: Smaller plants place in the bath, lined with a towel soaked through. Also you can shade the windows if its quite a sunny spot.

<h3>Feeding</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Flowering plants do best with a weekly dose of feed.</li>
	<li>When moving plants into bigger pots, add a few granules of slow-release fertiliser.</li>
</ul>

<h3>Pruning</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Remove any dying flowersa and any damaged or yellowing leaves.</li>
</ul>

<h3>Cleaning</h3>

<ul>
	<li>You can clean soft wipes or even Baby Bio wipes. Nothing with chemiclals!</li>
</ul>

<h3>Houseplant pests</h3>

<ul>
	<li>Mealy bug or woolly aphids, pests that suck the sap of houseplants. Remove with soft soap (wipe/spray).</li>
	<li>Tiny limpet-like bugs on stems or leaves (scale insect). Remove with soft soap (wipe/spray).</li>
	<li>Fine webbing at the tips of plants and yellow speckling on leaves is a symptom of tiny red spider mites. Remove with soft soap (wipe/spray).</li>
</ul>

&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/garden-tips/8/growing-fruit-and-veg-on-balconies"><img alt="" height="152" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/balconies.jpg" style="width: 268px; height: 152px;" width="268" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/garden-tips/21/displaying-your-houseplants"><img alt="" height="149" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/displaying%20h%20pla.jpg" style="width: 268px; height: 149px;" width="268" /></a>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/garden-tips/22/displaying-orchids"><img alt="" height="152" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/displaying%20orch.jpg" style="width: 268px; height: 152px;" width="268" /></a>

<h1>Bonsai Care</h1>

A few basic rules should enable anyone to take care of its tree properly. Most importantly are watering, fertilization and choosing the right position to place it.

<a href="https://www.bonsaiempire.com/basics/bonsai-care/watering" itemprop="url"><img alt="" height="200" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/bonsai-1176336_960_720.jpg" style="width: 300px; height: 200px;" width="300" /> <img alt="" height="200" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/environmental-protection-326923_960_720.jpg" style="width: 300px; height: 200px;" width="300" /> <img alt="" height="200" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/plant-1645812_960_720.jpg" style="width: 356px; height: 200px;" width="356" /></a>

<h2 itemprop="name">Watering Bonsai trees</h2>

How often a tree needs to be watered: Depends

<ul>
	<li>Species of tree</li>
	<li>Size of tree</li>
	<li>Size of pot</li>
	<li>Time of year</li>
	<li>Soil-mixture</li>
	<li>Climate</li>
</ul>

<h2 itemprop="name">Fertilizing Bonsai</h2>

Fertilizing&nbsp;regularly during the growing season is crucial for your Bonsai to survive.

<h2 itemprop="name">Repotting Bonsai</h2>

To prevent a tree from being:

<ul>
	<li>Pot-bound (starving to death)</li>
	<li>Supply the tree with new nutrients that it needs to grow and flourish (will not keep it small)</li>
</ul>

<h2 itemprop="name">Location</h2>

Best location:

<ul>
	<li>Local climate</li>
	<li>Time of year</li>
	<li>Tree species</li>
</ul>

<a href="https://www.bonsaiempire.com/basics/bonsai-care/repotting" itemprop="url"><img alt="" height="200" src="https://www.bonsaiempire.com/images/articles-thumbnails/howto-repotting-bonsai.jpeg" style="width: 350px; height: 200px;" width="350" /></a><a href="https://www.bonsaiempire.com/basics/bonsai-care/fertilizing" itemprop="url">&nbsp;</a><a href="https://www.bonsaiempire.com/basics/bonsai-care/position" itemprop="url"> </a>

Indoor Plants & Bonsai Care

We offer extensive ranges from compost, Chemicals, fertilisers, gloves, tools<a href="http://www.burston.co.uk/products/garden-care/tools-and-machinery/">,</a>&nbsp;seeds, watering systems, pots<a href="http://www.burston.co.uk/products/garden-care/pots-and-containers/">,</a>&nbsp;&amp; seasonal items, and a lot more.&nbsp;

At the Hertfordshire Garden Centre can help you make it a place you want to spend your time in. Our Garden Care &amp; Indoor Living department can also give you the materials &amp; equiptment&nbsp;you need to help your garden look its best.

Garden Care/Indoor Living

<h2>- Gas</h2>

PLEASE SEE BELOW

<h2>- Charcoal / Briquettes</h2>

SMOKELESS COAL 20KG&nbsp;

<h2>- Fire lighters</h2>

ECO - NATURAL &#39;TWIZLERS&#39; - STANDARD PACKED

<h2>- Seasoned Logs</h2>

HARDWOOD LOGS (NET) - SLIMLINE DUMPY BAG

<h1>Calor Gas</h1>

<ul>
	<li>Butane</li>
	<li>Propane</li>
	<li>Patio gas (propane) (BBQ)</li>
</ul>

&nbsp;

<img align="right" alt="" height="263" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/gas.jpg" style="width: 400px; height: 263px; float: right;" width="400" />

<a href="https://www.calor.co.uk/gas-bottles/buying-gas-bottles/gas-refills-exchanges-returns"><img alt="" height="99" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/ref.jpg" style="width: 450px; height: 99px;" width="450" /></a>

<h3>Visit&nbsp;<a href="http://www.calor.co.uk/help-and-advice/technical-and-safety/gas-cylinders" rel="noopener noreferer" target="_blank">Calor&rsquo;s website</a>&nbsp;- for: type of gas, and regulator requirements</h3>

<img alt="" height="250" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/camp.jpg" style="width: 499px; height: 250px;" width="499" /><img alt="" height="250" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/outf.jpg" style="width: 402px; height: 250px;" width="402" /><img alt="" height="250" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/com(1).jpg" style="width: 278px; height: 250px;" width="278" /><img alt="" height="250" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/pato.jpg" style="width: 515px; height: 250px;" width="515" /><img alt="" height="250" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/port.jpg" style="width: 781px; height: 250px;" width="781" />

Gas & Fuel

Once you've installed your garden lighting, make life easier for yourself by connecting it to an automatic&nbsp;system which turns it on and off for you, so you never forget to turn your lights on – or off at the end of&nbsp;the evening. Automating your system also helps save energy by dimming the lights when full power is not&nbsp;needed, or turning lights off when nobody is in the garden in %locations%.
All the garden lighting you'll find in our garden centre can be automated so it's controlled from a hand-held&nbsp;remote, key fob, or programmable remote console, switching lights on at a time you choose and switching off&nbsp;again, too. You can even control your lighting choices from a smartphone via an app.
Alternatively, PIR (passive infrared, or movement detecting) sensors turn lights on only when someone&nbsp;walks by – perfect for garden path lights. You can also programme the sensors to come on at dusk and go&nbsp;off at dawn. An outdoor PIR unit is wireless, with a range of about 25 metres, and many have variable light&nbsp;settings.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about automating your garden&nbsp;lighting.

Automatic garden lighting

Lighting your garden after dark transforms your outdoor space into an evening living room under the stars.&nbsp;Even when the weather isn't perfect, looking out at your spotlit garden from indoors means you can enjoy&nbsp;your garden long after nightfall. Here are just a few ways to use lighting in your garden:
Spotlights highlighting special features like trees or statues turns them into theatrical statements. In our&nbsp;garden centre you'll find angled spotlights to place anywhere within the cable's length for varied lighting&nbsp;effects. Spiked versions go discreetly in the soil, but models with clips or brackets are fixed up high.
Lanterns and flares offer a soft, romantic backdrop to dining out: some incorporate insect repellents.&nbsp;Japanese lanterns in stone transform with a flickering candle at night, while simpler lanterns can be strung&nbsp;together to hang above your table: both are available in our garden centre.
Recessed lighting make steps and paths safer, as well as softly lighting patios and eating areas. Post lights&nbsp;or lighting set into walls are neat and inconspicuous: brick-shaped lamps can also be built into walls and&nbsp;steps, with translucent plastic or hardened glass covers.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about choosing garden lighting.

Garden lighting

Different types of lighting in a garden produce entirely different results, from a soft, gentle glow to the clear,&nbsp;bright light of safety spots or security lights. The choice is yours: but to help you decide, here's a lowdown of&nbsp;the main varieties of lighting you'll find in our garden centre in %locations%.
Fluorescent: a low energy alternative to halogen lamps, producing a warm white light with less glare and&nbsp;using two-thirds less electricity. They last twice as long as halogen, too.
Halogen: really clear low-voltage light ideal for driveways, decking, patios, pathways, sheds and house walls&nbsp;– anywhere where you need to see your way.
LED: the most long-lasting lights you can buy, with up to 50,000 hours of bulb life, and incredibly versatile as&nbsp;you can get LED garden lighting for almost any situation.
Solar: an environmentally friendly alternative to traditional garden lighting with a soft, glowing light, requiring&nbsp;no wiring and charging themselves even on overcast days.
Rechargeable: combining low energy LED light sources and high capacity batteries in polycarbonate cases,&nbsp;you can get multiple colour-changes and even float them in your pool!
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about which type of garden lighting&nbsp;to choose.
&nbsp;

Lighting knowhow

The very latest thing in garden lighting is the use of solar power, harnessing the sun's energy and releasing it&nbsp;as a gentle, warm glow after dark to light pathways, water features, special plants and more.
Solar lighting isn't just environmentally friendly: it's easy to use, too. There's no wiring, and you don't need&nbsp;timers as they switch on automatically when the sun goes down.
You'll find a good range of solar lighting in our garden centre in %locations%, from spotlights to colour-changing LEDs, path&nbsp;lights and lanterns. Here's how to get the most from your display.
•&nbsp;Place the solar panel in a sunny spot so it can charge fully during the daytime. It'll operate in 
&nbsp; overcast conditions, but you may find in winter there's rarely enough sunlight for a full charge.
•&nbsp;Keep your solar panel clean by wiping it gently with a damp cloth. If you let your solar panel get dirty, 
&nbsp; it won't be able to charge fully.
•&nbsp;A full charge lasts for around six hours, and a single rechargeable battery lasts for around 600 
&nbsp; charges – that's about two years – before it needs replacing.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about using solar garden lighting.

Solar garden lights

You can create a real fairy-tale night landscape in your garden with clever use of lighting, placing spots in the&nbsp;ground and on brackets in trees so that the lights work with the plants around them to create a strong sense&nbsp;of atmosphere. Here are some of the effects possible using garden lighting available from our garden centre in %locations%:
Uplighting emphasises contrasts: light up white silver birch and coppery Tibetan cherry (Prunus serrula) for&nbsp;a striking effect.
Use silhouettes by lighting a house wall from behind a sculptural acer or craggy pine to cast its shadow&nbsp;onto the surface.
Light trees in groups in different ways to avoid a uniform look: light some from the front, some from&nbsp;beneath and others from the side to create interesting effects.
Moonlighting is when lights are fixed in a tree pointing down, to cast a dappled shadow on the ground&nbsp;below: anyone sitting on a tree seat underneath is bathed in subtle light.
Hanging lights can be used in smaller trees to provide pools of light or glimmering, sparkling dots of light for&nbsp;a magical, almost fairy-like effect.
Please ask the staff in our %locations%&nbsp;garden centre for more information and advice about how to use lighting to create&nbsp;special effects in the garden.

Lighting special effects

Lighting up your garden after dark transforms it into an outdoor living room, so you don&#39;t have to go in just&nbsp;because the sun has. Once night falls, use clever garden lighting to turn your outdoor space into a theatrical&nbsp;stage set full of drama and intrigue.

In our garden centre in %locations%&nbsp;you&#39;ll find a small range of solar &amp; traditional lighting from plugs to no plugs, batteries, or electrical. Different lights to make your night-time garden whatever you&nbsp;want it to be. Here are just a few ideas to get you started:

<h3>Create a winter wonderland or a midsummer night&rsquo;s dream. </h3>

&lsquo;In the daytime, lanterns and lights from the Cole &amp; Bright collection simply add a stunning new dimension to your garden. Then something amazing happens. Relax as the evening gives way to twilight and the warm glow of your outdoor lighting gently, almost imperceptibly, takes over from the slowly setting sun. Artfully arranged, it creates a softly illuminated sanctuary where heady floral scents mingle with the chink of ice and the clink of glasses. Bliss&rsquo;

Cole &amp; Bright.

*please be advised a variety of our products are only seasonal.

<img alt="" height="150" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/batteries.jpg" style="width: 150px; height: 150px;" width="150" />&nbsp;<img alt="" height="150" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/post.jpg" style="width: 150px; height: 150px;" width="150" />&nbsp;<img alt="" height="150" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/ultra.jpg" style="width: 150px; height: 150px;" width="150" />&nbsp;<img alt="" height="150" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/string.jpg" style="width: 150px; height: 150px;" width="150" />&nbsp;<img alt="" height="150" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/deco.jpg" style="width: 150px; height: 150px;" width="150" />&nbsp; &nbsp;<img alt="" height="150" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/coler.jpg" style="width: 150px; height: 150px;" width="150" />

<h3>ALSO NOW STOCKING SOLAR CENTRE (NEW IN)</h3>

<img alt="" height="89" src="https://www.thehertfordshiregardencentre.com/files/images/Untitled(1).jpg" style="width: 400px; height: 89px;" width="400" />

<h3>The Benefits of Solar Lighting</h3>

Simple and easy to use, solar powered lighting offers a stunning way for you to instantly illuminate the borders, beds or pathways and create beautiful mood lighting for garden parties and outdoor entertaining.

Lighting & Solar

<h1>Garden Sheds</h1>

The Hertfordshire Garden Centre&nbsp;are agents for&nbsp;<a href="http://www.albanysheds.co.uk/" target="_self">Albany sheds</a>&nbsp;who have&nbsp;been manufacturing quality garden sheds for over&nbsp;30 years and&nbsp;will supply a shed to suit your particular purpose. Contact us today for a detailed quote and up to date delivery times.

<h2>View the range</h2>

Our helpful staff will be happy to advise you on the selection and any other queries you might have.

Alternatively, call 01582 792255&nbsp;for more information.

&nbsp;

<h1 style="text-align: center;">&nbsp;</h1>

Sheds / Outbuildings & Storage

At The Hertfordshire Garden Centre, You&rsquo;ll find items from furniture, barbeques, chimeneas, solar lighting and everything you need for a summer picnic, or them winter cosies.

Outdoor Living

Tea Room Renovations

Hiab Delivery Service

Stoneware

Indoor Gifts & Pots

Thompson & Morgan Seeds

Woodshaw Range

New Plant Suppliers & Varieties

New BBQ Range

FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE CALL US ON 01582 792255

Product range

Christmas

Plants

Garden Care/Indoor Living

Outdoor Living

NEW SEASON