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or visit us in store – click here to find your nearest Coolings Garden Centre
Blog
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Planting for a Colourful Spring
Here are a few of our favourite bulbs, each unique in colour to give your garden a gradient of complementary colours.
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Easy-Going Echinacea
Echinacea purpurea create an impressive display of daisy-like blooms with their incredibly vibrant petals radiating around a central cone, giving them their common name ‘coneflower’. Always a popular addition to plant in beds, borders and even pots because of their easy-going habits.
- Available in vibrant shades of pink, orange, yellow, red and green but mostly known for the purple shades
- Long flowering period from June through to September
- Extremely attractive to bees, butterflies and birds
- Very easy to grow as they tolerate most soils in a sunny position (except very dry)
- Their stems are very sturdy meaning they won’t need staking
- Excellent as cut or dried flowers
Pictured above: Echinacea Sunseekers ‘In Tanz Red’ | ‘Delicious Candy’ | ‘Sombrero Lemon Yellow’ | Echinacea purpurea ‘Magnus’
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School Holidays with Coolings
1. Plant a colourful bedding container
Get your hands messy and plant a colourful bedding container just in time for summer. We have all you need from the container to the compost – all you have to do is assemble! *bedding availability may vary*
2. Create your own wildlife pond
Create a hub for life in your garden, not only is it a creative way to have fun, but you can monitor it throughout the year to see the wildlife that your garden attracts. Follow these easy steps to make your own!
3. Grow a cress friend
Sow cress seeds inside empty egg shells with faces drawn on! It will make them look like they have a funny haircut, seeds available here and in store.
4. Treasure hunt around our garden centres!
Download a sheet from here – hunt around our centres for exciting different objects that will entertain the kids whilst you shop.
Click Here for Wych Cross Garden Centre | Click Here for Coolings Lifestyle
5. Shop for picnic essentials
From pantry goods, delicious sweets and refreshing drinks to comfy blankets and outdoor kitchen-wear, we have everything you need to host the perfect picnic in the park – plus, keep an eye on our social media pages to win picnic and outdoor essentials!
6. Visit Willows Birds of Prey & Wildlife Trail
Located inside Coolings Lifestyle, visit the wildlife trail and come nose to nose with birds of prey!
7. Free Ice Cream!
We have 3 wonderful cafes/restaurants throughout our centres, with outside seating and lovely views. In August, Coolings Family members will receive free ice cream when you spend £10 or more in one transaction! Perfect for enjoying in the sun whilst you have that well deserved coffee.
8. Feed the Birds
Get close to nature by providing food and a rest stop for our feathered friends. With a bird box, bird feed and a keen eye, learn all about the different birds that live in the local area.
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Garden Centre of The Year 2023- South Region
This puts us forward for the National Award for Best Planteria – The Ruxley Rose Award, fingers crossed!
Dwayne Ross, our Managing Director at Coolings said: “This is an amazing achievement for the whole team. Being such a plant-based business, we are delighted to have been recognised.”
A massive well done to our amazing Coolings team, a fantastic achievement for all!
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The History of Wych Cross Garden Centre
The Water Pump
As celebrating the heritage of the Wych Cross Garden Centre is at the heart of our passion, we undertook a restoration project of an old water pump, that sits upon the rose garden. It once provided water for the garden centre and the hotel that sits upon site. The restoration was a huge job as the pump had to be relocated from its initial position, and although it isn’t a functional object, it allows us to reflect on the vast history of the site.
The Hybrid Tea Room
The Hybrid Tea Room at Wych Cross Garden Centre, a wonderful cafe that offers a range of drinks, cakes, breakfast and lunch, looks upon the rose area of the centre. The picturesque view from the terrace presents aisles and aisles of colourful roses, pinks blushing throughout each row.
Watch this video to take a walk through our Garden Centre!
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Plant the Rainbow with Coolings
Here are some of our reliable favourites, ready to add instant colour and save you money for years to come. Why not plant the rainbow with Coolings, create a kaleidoscope of colour across your garden, reoccurring for years to come!
(Please note individual plant varieties may vary across our centres and online shop)
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July & August Feel Good Gardens
Summer is all about being outside with friends and family, so we’re celebrating ‘Togetherness’ in the Feel Good Gardens this July and August.
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Bon Voyage! But don’t forget about the garden
Deadhead flowering plants, alongside removing flowers that are fully open. This ensures that existing buds will be blooming on your return.
Mow the lawn (not too short!) – cutting the grass just before you leave will encourage good growth and maintain the garden to keep the weeds to a minimum. However, don’t cut it too short as it will make it susceptible to drought.
Pick your Kitchen Garden – Harvest your fruit and vegetable patch before you go to keep them coming back whilst you are away. Either enjoy before you go, or freeze and enjoy when you arrive back! Freezing fruits makes for the perfect blended smoothie (or cocktail), perfect for enjoying over the summer months
Water your pots well – Putting saucers underneath your pots before you water them collects the water and increases humidity, encouraging a heathy growth. If the weather is forecasted warm, move them to a shady spot, where they will dry out slower! Shop our range of watering cans.
Cover your soil with mulch – the protective layer across your soil will allow water retention when it rains. This will provide benefits throughout the summer months to help maintain your garden. Shop here.
Give your hanging baskets a ‘hair-cut’ – To make sure that baskets aren’t looking messy, trim them back and feed them with a continuous release feed so that once you’re back they aren’t out of control.
