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New chairman Justin King and chief executive Roger Mclaughlan are starting to make their presences felt at the 151-centre chain. Source: Garden1

Parrot Pot, the latest connected gardening gadget is now available in the UK at RRP £129.99 to manage the care of plants directly from a smartphone from Amazon, Argos, Littlewoods & Very. Source: Garden1

A bumper crop of new plants and professional products have been entered into the Four Oaks Trade Show Awards which are due to take place tomorrow evening at the leading horticulture industry show. Source: Garden1

The GROW Observatory (GROW) is a 5m euro, European-wide project aiming to involve tens of thousands of ‘citizen scientists’ to make a contribution to global environmental monitoring and to give family farmers, gardeners and growers knowledge on sustainable practices. Source: Garden1

Woodlodge, the supplier of garden pots, will raise money for Greenfingers charity at Glee 2016 (Birmingham NEC 14-15 September) by hosting a raffle. Source: Garden1

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) has announced that long-term licensee Frances Lincoln, the publisher of illustrated books, has produced three new ranges of illustrated RHS books and stationery. Source: Garden1

Horticulture Week will be out in force at Four Oaks Trade Show hosting, not least, the Four Oaks Trade Show Awards where editor Kate Lowe and technical editor Sally Drury will be among the judges. Get updates on news, highlights and snippets in Horticulture Week’s new live show blog which will run through the two days of the show. Source: Garden1

Hour-long BBC2 Gardeners’ World TV shows, designed to appeal to a broader audience, have come under the eye of the critics. Source: Garden1

Grange Fencing in Telford, Shropshire is entering a consultation with 110 of its 230-strong total workforce about closing its UK manufacturing operation by the end of the year. Source: Garden1

Steve Harper’s Sharper Thinking is working with Italian, Irish and Finnish companies looking at the UK market. Source: Garden1

Plans for a residential development on the site of the former Ned Yates Garden Centre in Wilmslow, Cheshire, which closed in 2014, have won approval. Source: Garden1

The winner of best new retail product or service at Four Oaks Trade Show 2015 is set to launch a set of new set of products at this year’s show. Source: Garden1

On a total basis, sales declined 0.3 per cent, against a 0.1 per cent increase in August 2015, but gardening bucked the trend. Source: Garden1

On a total basis, sales declined 0.3 per cent, against a 0.1 per cent increase in August 2015, but gardening bucked the trend. Source: Garden1

Overall shop prices reported deflation of 2.0 per cent in August, from the 1.6 per cent decline in July, while deflation in the DIY, Gardening and Hardware category slowed to 2.4 per cent from the 2.6 per cent fall in July, according to new figures from British Retail Consortium (BRC)/Nielsen. Source: Garden1

Gardman chief executive officer Pete Utting has outlined a new strategy. Source: Garden1

Marcus Eyles and Neil Stevens have departed the 10-strong garden centre group Hillview, where Boyd Douglas Davies is chief executive officer. Source: Garden1

MossOff Multi-Surface Concentrate is a newly launched biocide-free way of controlling moss and algae on all outdoor surfaces. Source: Garden1

Bayer Garden says general purpose weedkillers confuse garden centre customers. Source: Garden1

New research from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) found small firms are meeting the challenge posed by the new National Living Wage (NLW) with the majority (59 per cent) absorbing the costs by taking lower profits. Source: Garden1