Wych Cross Garden Centre in Ashdown Forest is under new ownership after being taken on by Coolings Nurseries.
The company was established in 1913 by Arthur Cooling, and today chairman Paul Cooling is the third generation of the family overseeing its four garden centres.
Wych Cross Garden Centre was established more than 50 years ago as a traditional nursery specialising in roses, and at the beginning of the 2000s it had one of the largest retail selections of roses in the UK, with more than 1,400 varieties.
Following interim ownership by Wyevale, the Coolings family said they are looking forward to restoring the production nursery and in 2020 they plan to begin growing roses again on-site to supply all four of the Coolings Garden Centres.
Paul Cooling said: “The whole team at Coolings is looking forward to welcoming their new colleagues and customers from Wych Cross. The traditional nursery business, that has a great reputation for roses, is a great fit for Coolings.”
Also new for 2020 will be the Coolings Wych Cross display rose garden, designed by David Austin.
The centre will be closed for three weeks in August to allow for Coolings Garden Centres to refurbish and improve the customer facilities.
Wych Cross Garden Centre will reopen on Saturday, August 24 with special offers on plants and garden products.
The Coolings’ focus is on plants and products for garden lovers, and visitors will be able peruse the new seasonal plant area, the vastly increased range of herbaceous, perennial plants and shrubs.
The company will add a full range of stoneware and introducing a popular Cook counter so that visitors can pickup healthy ready meals.
Sustainability and green credentials are an important factor for the group and the company said it looks forward to introducing its award-winning environmental practices to the centre. Customers will now be able to bring back their plastic plant pots for recycling.
The Cooling family owns and operates three other Garden Centres in Kent.
The Gardeners Garden Centre, Rushmore Hill, Knockholt, is a 14-acre site housing the production nurseries for the group.
Green and Pleasant also in Knockholt has a six-acre nature trail and award winning eco shop. And The Potted Garden in Bearsted was newly acquired by the Group in 2017.
Coolings Nurseries is renowned for their garden centres which focus on producing a huge variety of top quality plants for all garden lovers.
