Christmas at the Wisley Plant Centre

Christmas at Wisley Plant Centre

There is a strong vibe in the Wisley Plant Centre; the afternoon glitter in the glasshouse of twinkling lights above a swathe of brightly coloured Poinsettias, the sweet smell of freshly cut Abies sp. (Christmas Trees), children chatter excitedly awaiting the arrival of Santa, Christmas is here!

In the lead up to Christmas, stock must be rearranged and moved to make way for the mass of Christmas related products – decorations, trees, gifts and more. The cut and containerised (‘potted’ or field grown as opposed to ‘pot grown’) trees require much of the space in the glasshouse, making it a logistical nightmare if not planned for. As a training assignment I was assigned project manager, with the hope of bringing a fresh approach to the display of the trees. Having never worked with Christmas trees, cut or containerised, it was an exciting and prosperous challenge for me. Last year a huge amount of trees ended up being chipped as they were not sold, our margins are far better this year, which has been attributed to strong customer service and inspiring displays.

There are two Aussie favourites which I feel deserve an honourable mention that have sold incredibly well as a unique alternative to a traditional cut Fir. The first of these is The Woolemi Pine, and the second a trained Grevillea lanigera cultivar which at about 2 foot tall and being in flower, holds high appeal for those with smaller homes.

Children in Horticulture

Christmas is one of my favourite times of the year, and having children around makes it even that more exciting and enjoyable! Their enthusiasm is contagious, and I think it is important for us in the industry to harness this and encourage this younger generation to grow up with an interest in their surrounding environment. The RHS has recently released a new Strategy with the aim to build a sustainable charitable society into the future and focuses on three driving goals– Membership, Environment and Children. Their Children driving goal aims ‘to bring the joy of gardening to a significant number of UK children’, and in doing so, this will ultimately boost their awareness and interest in plants.

I have observed in the gardens that there is already a strong family presence with many small children visiting not only the gardens, but the plant centre too. Getting children interested in plants can be a challenge, but it is evident in this country the natural generational trend whereby plant knowledge is passed down, and children are introduced to plants from a young age. I don’t believe this is as strong in Australia, with many Generation Y people having a minimal knowledge base of plants. As a result, this has led to new homeowners requiring not only low water use, but low maintenance plants which ultimately does not promote the many benefits of gardening. Our challenge in Australia should be to capture the inquisitive nature of children and adopt this to build a newer generation of people interested in plants and gardening as an ongoing practice, and not a plant and forget approach.

The Wisley Plant Centre carries two significant product Lines that are aimed specifically at Children. One is a series of colourful small tools and accessories which makes gardening fun and interactive such as a pair of gumboots (or Wellingtons) which can be decorated with permanent paints to the child’s liking. The other product line is based around propagation and again is marketed incredibly well with bright colourful pictures and characters that are attractive to kids. Such products are excellent in fostering children’s interests in plants; and all in all makes gardening FUN!

Text and Photos by Anthony J Curnow