Landscape Juice

The RHS calls for a reduction of VAT on ornamental plants and seeds

Inga Grimsey, RHS Director General used the Chelsea Flower Show as a platform to call for a change in VAT rates on ornamental plants and seeds.

The standard rate of 17.5% VAT is currently charged but the RHS insists that Gordon Brown treats these as 'green' goods and applies the same principal as the government do to wind turbines and solar panels.

Monty Don takes a summer of gardening leave

Monty Don, the gardening guru who has hosted the BBC Gardeners World for the last five years has stood down as presenter after it has been revealed he has suffered a minor stroke.

The Rhizotron and Xstrata Treetop walkway takes Kew to another level

May 24th sees the official opening of the new Rhizotron and Xstrata Treetop walkway at Kew Gardens.

Visitors will be able to get right up and personal and look right into the canopy of the tree - a sight usually reserved for the birds and unlucky parachutists.

Chelsea Gold Medal Winners 2008

The gold winners at the Chelsea International Flower Show have been announced.

For all other Chelsea news - click here and for the show highlights - click here

Sir Tom Hunter gives up the fight to keep Dobbies independent

It is a landmark that the garden industry really didn't want to reach but finally, Sir Tom Hunter has thrown in the towel and conceded defeat to Tesco in the long running battle for Dobbies garden centre brand.

It has cost Hunter an awful lot of money and in my opinion, left his somewhat glorious reputation a little bruised.

Track your landscaping machinery with GPS and minimise the risk of theft.

I bet there is more than one landscaper or garden maintenance company that has had a piece of equipment stolen from a site?

Insurance usually takes care of the financial replacement but nothing can take care of the hassle, loss of productivity or the stress involved when a piece of kit goes missing.

Garden Networking proves a big hit

I could never have imagined that my garden network would prove so popular and I am delighted that our organic growth continues with eleven new members joining in the last week.

It is a great place to pitch questions and ask for advice or add you business details too.

The whole site is like a directory and the search engines are fully aware of the content so if you add your business name and details there will be a better chance of being picked up on the web.

Gardening is a very fluid pastime

"Doesn't anyone point out to their clients that gardens continue growing, needing maintenance, and it's not like having a new kitchen or bathroom?"

Part of a message that new member Andrew Faraday has just left on the thread titled "New landscaping design companies" - started by Richard Boyd - Juice Garden Network and is Andrew absolutely spot on.

Many a garden or planting scheme have we provided and presented to our clients that is a 'polaroid' image at handover.

Creating a good a brand

Very early on, I decided that I would ditch my scruffy T shirt look and replace my ex army olive green lightweight trousers with a proper corporate uniform. The result was astounding and it quickly set me out from the rest.

I went on to employ sixteen people at one point and by then, a proper company image was essential but you do not need to employ people to take pride in how you look.

Support in Sport clinches Champions League final spot

Whilst the Wembley pitch continues to cause concern for English football fans, there will be no such worries for the Russians after they called in Support in Sport to re-turf the Luzhniki Stadium pitch in time for the Champions League final between Manchester United and Chelsea on the 21st May.

However, despite the consideration that the UK climate is ideal for growing grass, the turf, which had been grown in Slovakia, was transported via refrigerated lorry and laid in time for the final.