* I was invited to the Garden Press Event, a one day show which connects garden product suppliers with garden media, therefore I’m marking this post as 'Ad’ though as usual my views and opinions are very much my own.

I always find this single day show a great event, and a good one to catch up with contacts and suppliers and to see what’s new and coming to garden centres near us this year. This year was no different though it was slightly surreal to arrive to hear the actor who played Carson in Downton Abbey pulling raffle winners, though on a par to having Jekka McVicar join where I was sitting last year to eat lunch.

But anyway, here’s some of the things that caught my eye this year:

HOZELOCK - WITH AN IMPRESSIVE METAL ‘TWIDDLY BIT’

I thought Hozelock’s development of adding a metal ‘twiddly bit’ or more boringly the function selector to a multi-function spray head was a great idea. It’s the bit that gets the most use, and I know it’s the bit that we most often replace through wear.

I was also intrigued by Pro-Grow’s Rockdust. Not only is it a great name, it’s descriptive too as the product does actually look like rock dust.

PRO-GROW’S ROCKDUST LOOKING LIKE ROCK DUST

It’s not just about the new products though, there’s plenty of inspiration on show from the sector’s big names - and on a dull February day it’s great to wander among such gardening displays, and be inside at the same time!

I saw plenty for my own garden too, and these Hex smokeless fire pits are top of my list. I love a firepit - they’re great to sit around, but I’m not so keen on the smell of smoke, or constantly having to move to avoid being in the direct line of said smoke, which always seems to follow me! We have a firepit but it’s larger than we need, so we were looking for something smaller.

I like these as they take real wood, rather than gel which we’ve seen before, and are small enough to be able to fit into a relaxed seating area. The only downside of these for me is that the patterned tops aren’t available in each colour. I preferred the design of the black top, but probably wouldn’t opt for that colourway. I’m not losing too much sleep over that at the moment though, as I think I’ve more to do before I get to firepit stage, but they are lovely and on my wish list.

This standalone solar standard exterior light on the Dobbies stand is also on my list. I like the idea of having an outdoor lamp, though of course it’d need to be pretty robust to withstand the wind on our patio, though with more planting we might be able to tame that a bit, or I’m hoping so anyway.

I also fell in love with the dinnerplate Dahlias and was promptly reminded to add dahlias to my ‘to plant’ list. Our nearest Dobbies is most probably Chesterfield or Derby, and we haven’t made it to a store yet, but in the hunt for that light that may just happen, and I may also just happen to wander past these at the same time.

The final thing that caught my eye as I wandered around this show was this vintage inspired metal seed chest. It looks great, is lockable and you can store it in a greenhouse or shed as it’ll keep your seeds safe from pests too. The compartments are seed packet sized and the month dividers are a whole lot more professional looking than my ‘old CDs with the month written’ on versions (though mine can also be repurposed as bird scarers if needed!)

I’ve a feeling that once I get my new greenhouse in place I’ll be hitting the Crocus website for some of their storage ideas, as well as the seed trunk above they’ve also got a compartmentalised wire bench top storage unit which looks right up my vintage inspired street.

Trying out Monty Miracle at home

One of the products I’d read about before the show was the Monty Miracle Outdoor Cleaner which launched in this smaller size, which covers up to 4 square metres, at the show. I was keen to learn more as the blurb said it could be used on any outdoor surface, including the coloured Indian sandstone which we have (which is the same as we laid in our London house and were keen to avoid in our new house, but never mind!) and which needed some attention after winter.

MOH cares for our patio and it’s a never ending job. This winter seems to have been especially bad for leaving black marks and for generally making the slabs look neglected, despite them being cleaned regularly (though obviously not over winter). Jet washing is a balance as it can be harsh on the surfaces, and so he too was keen to see if this lived up to the promises of being fast and effective. It’s claims are to be eco-conscious, and child and pet safe after rinsing, I think that’s the paving slabs not the child and pets to be clear.

As with trying any new product it’s always worth trying it out in a discrete area - luckily one of the corners of the path around our house is just that, and also pretty filthy. It’s also on MOH’s route out with his bike and he’s been saying how slippy it’s getting so it was worth a try. The instructions say to water any plant life before and after application, but as our test spot was next to the last remaining lavender that needed cutting, having missed out at the end of summer last year, it was a good prompt for me to give that a trim too.

As you can see from the before and after photos above, there’s a marked difference in the three slabs that he used as his test area (which was larger than I was expecting it to be). His verdict is that it cleans well, but does still need some brushing (or agitating as it says in the instructions) but that it’s good to see the results so quickly. Now he’s working out just how much he needs for the rest of the slabs we have and if that bottle will do it, or not. I’m pretty sure it won’t be enough so I’ll be ordering a 2litre container later!

Seeds, Rockdust and a crocheted keyring

I wasn’t expecting to leave the show with a crocheted vegetable that’s for sure, but I love my little mustard squash from FRÿD which is an app which aims to be the ultimate vegetable growing app. It’ll help you create tailored planting plans and get reminders when to sow, plant and harvest so could be invaluable for both new and seasoned growers.

I’ve a couple of packets of seeds from the show including some Dill from the new Gourmet Gardener range at Blue Diamond Garden Centres. Each pack of seeds unlocks a recipe online, for Dill it’s a Creamy Dill and Cucumber salad, the intro for this is printed on the inside of the seed packet, which while it makes sense from an eco-friendly point of view, it does mean to see it properly you need to dismantle the seed packet, which isn’t ideal.

SEEDS FROM THE GOURMET GARDENER, TAILORED PLANTING PLANS WITH HELP FROM FRŸD AND THEIR CROCHETED KEYRING, HERITAGE ‘LETTUCE EMERALD’ SEEDS FROM GARDEN ORGANIC AND MY ROCKDUST SAMPLE

The other pack of seeds I’m keen to try is the heritage seeds of ‘lettuce emerald’ by Garden Organic. It seems that I’ll be in good company as a parcel of seeds from the Garden Organic National Collection of Heritage Vegetables are also being grown at Highgrove. King Charles III has had a long association with them, expressing recently how important the work of the Heritage Seed Library is. He became patron of the organisation which later became Garden Organic some 45 years ago, when it was rescuing heritage vegetables because at the time all the old varieties were being thrown away and weren’t considered worthwhile, which to me today sounds a peculiar approach and it also goes to show that there were people, including the King, who were ahead of their time in areas such as these.

And then there’s the rockdust, which as you’ve seen above looks like dust from rock!

It’s purpose to remineralise our gardens and boost soil healthy ‘by adding macro and micro-nutrients that work with soil and compost biology’. It’s made from freshly crushed ancient volcanic rock which is a by-produce of UK quarrying, so it’s a waste product that’s actually good for our gardens.

With a new build garden I’m yet to really discover what state my soil is in, though I suspect it won’t be the most nutritious, but of course I could be wrong. But even so, the soil that’s currently covered in grass (and weeds) is likely to be an entirely different matter to the already existing beds, and I suspect that’s where my garden will get the most benefit. I only have a small sample, so how I use it will be limited but I’m keen to see how it affects my growing, and I’m hoping that it will do wonders as other gardeners have testified when they’ve used it in compost and top-dressing pots, with worms also loving it. It’s a case of watch this space, even if that’s a small space!

I love going along to this event as it covers the breadth of the gardening industry and it’s great to get insights into what’s coming into the garden centres we love to visit, but also to see the thinking and hear about the research and development for the products in the early stages of their journey to market. Plus the inspiration for my own garden and the opportunity to try some products I might not see any other way, and it becomes one of those rare inspirational and educational days I don’t want to miss.

I do like a mooch around a good shop when I’m in London, and this trip was no different. After a day in Islington I headed to a haberdashery extraordinaire just off Oxford Street. Now why I’ve just discovered this is a mystery to me, though it’s probably a good thing that I hadn’t found this shop while I actually lived in London!.

Yes, not that far away from Oxford Circus tube I found myself standing outside MacCulloch & Wallis admiring their window displays, and having an internal smile of how they’d displayed balls of wool on models of sheep.

Wool displayed on sheep with inbuilt compartments

There was every kind of haberdashery item you could possibly wish for, plus wool, plus fabric and with a lot of vintage charm.

A wooden vintage shop unit - full of more wool

I couldn’t help but think wouldn’t it be lovely though to have a similar unit for my own craft supplies, though the wooden storage unit above also reminded me of a school uniform supply shop, just me?

A display of tapestry wool in every colour

Throughout the two levels of the shop there was a rainbow of colour.

Trims and edgings - this is just a selection of the green options

Bolts of fabric stacked on the shelves with lace and trimmings either side

At the very back of the shop on the ground floor I found the cutting table, and even that was a cutting table with a difference as the centre was filled with buttons.

A large wooden cutting table, with a central channel of buttons

Thankfully though, buttons weren’t in short supply - just look at the range available. And to think I thought the selection in Liberty was extensive when I visited last year!

A very extensive button range - organised by colour

Tailor's chalk in charcoal, pink, blue, yellow and white

I was tempted by some of the Tailor’s Chalk, but I resisted - I have some, though not as beautiful as this, and well, there’s only so much of it you can use isn’t there?

Packs of needles - of every size, for every craft

In the basement, alongside the tempting Tailor’s Chalk were rows and rows of needles, cards of every type of fastening you could ever want.

Boards with sample fastenings - of every type

And miles of zips.

A wall of zips - choose your colour and length - it's not as easy as you think!

Another wall of thread to match your sewing project

With cotton and ric rac in an array of colours.

A whole range of rik rak - different colours, sizes and just full of joy

In fact the choice was vast, almost overwhelming - this is definitely a shop you need to go to with a plan. A browse is good, but just wow - it’d be even better with a plan!