Bents Garden Centre

William and I spent most of Saturday with two of the nicest, most fun to be with people we know, John and Lesley, and lucky for us they just happen to live right next door.

We set off at 11 a.m. and our destination was Bents Garden Centre over on the way to St.Helens, just about 40 minutes away.    John and Lesley have been before several times and wanted to take us because they knew we would like it.

They were right, we did like it. 

Bents is definitely the most impressive garden centre I have ever been to.  Talk about big, this place is ginormous!  The restaurant is to die for, the range of goodies to eat is huge and  very tempting.  Naturally this is where we went first for a coffee while we planned our strategy for looking around.  We drank our coffee out on the decked terrace overlooking a pretty landscaped area complete with pond.

There are some beautiful plants.  The greenhouse is a vast space.  I really didn't take a lot of pictures, there are signs up saying no photography allowed.  I had taken these pics before Lesley pointed that out.  As well as the usual everyday plants on offer you can buy yourself a fully mature palm tree if the fancy takes you.  It'll only set you back about £1,200!  I wonder if they sell many?

We spent a good couple of hours mooching around and enjoyed every minute of it.  The day didn't finish there,  back at the ranch we had a couple of drinks and an impromptu barbeque in J & L's garden.  The sun had more or less disappeared by this time and it was a bit chilly but we're a hardy lot and just put our jackets on.  However when the wind got up and started to blow a gale we called it quits and headed indoors.  

I've just been reading Bents' website and apparently there's a  "garden of distinction" next door to the garden centre and  next time we visit we'll definitely have to take a look at it.   Have you and John visited it, Lesley?  (Lesley reads my blog, don't you Lesley?)

Kathleen.