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For the past six years 100 scouts had dressed up as elves and run the Christmas grotto at Blooms Garden Centre between Coventry and Rugby but this year owner Wyevale Garden Centres is subcontracting all grottos via head office, meaning the Scouts no longer have the fundraising job. Source: Garden1

Rocket Licensing has been appointed to manage the worldwide licensing campaign for BBC TV show DIY SOS, to develop products and a show linked to the series. Source: Garden1

The General Secretary of both the DIY-Retail Association (EDRA) and the Global Home Improvement Network (GHIN), John Herbert will speak at the GCA’s golden jubilee event in January. Source: Garden1

Christmas sales are 457 per cent up at Hillier after three weeks of a new dedicated Christmas area. Source: Garden1

Christmas sales are 457 per cent up at Hillier after three weeks of a new dedicated Christmas area. Source: Garden1

The Gardman Group has announced the appointment of Pete Utting as chief executive. Source: Garden1

Gardman has announced the appointment of Pete Utting as chief executive. Source: Garden1

Scotts Miracle Gro UK marketing director Paula Parker has left the business as part of a restructure. Source: Garden1

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the EU Member States have finalised the re-assessment of glyphosate, concluding that glyphosate is “unlikely to pose a carcinogenic hazard to humans and proposes a new safety measure that will tighten the control of glyphosate residues in food”. Source: Garden1

Notcutts garden centres has announced profits for the 12 months to February 2015 of £7.4m against £1.3m for the previous year. Source: Garden1

Bransford Webbs are marking 25 years since the very first new Hebe variety ‘Rosie’ was introduced. Source: Garden1

For the month of October the overall garden centre performance was up by 11 per cent with a year to date change of 7.5 per cent. Source: Garden1

BALI has warned the 30 per cent spending cuts agreed with Defra and DCLG could undo the work of the landscape and horticulture industry in Parliament. Source: Garden1

The RHS has commissioned the Universities of Sheffield and Virginia to investigate the impact of gardening on physical and psychological health and well-being. Source: Garden1

Cornish timber merchant Duchy Timber has taken delivery of an automated feather-edged panel machine that will increase its fence panel production by 500 per cent to help it meet growing UK demand. Source: Garden1

The annual Global Retail Theft Barometer, underwritten by an independent grant from Checkpoint Systems, has revealed that UK retailers lost more than £3.1bn worth of inventory in 2014, equating to 0.89 per cent of total retail sales – down 0.08 per cent on the year before. Source: Garden1

Campaign group 38 Degrees is to try and find funding to see how much neonicotinoid residue is in plants being sold in garden centres. Source: Garden1

The HTA is to extend its National Garden Gift Voucher card scheme in spring 2016. Source: Garden1

Squire’s Garden Centres is open to applicants from all areas of retail, including internal and from other garden centres as it looks for a new managing director. Source: Garden1

Curvy garden centres are the next big thing, say Thermoflor. Source: Garden1