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industry news


Suttons senior horticultural manager to retire after 44 years with business


Tom Sharples, currently senior horticultural manager at Suttons, is retiring after 44 years with the company.


Tom initially joined the group with sister company Dobies as trial grounds manager when the company was based in Llangollen, North Wales. He then took charge of young plants and was responsible for the introduction of the first seedlings and plug plants available to the home gardener, in 1977. Tom then was additionally put in charge of the Dobies catalogue, a position he held until the takeover of Dobies by Suttons and subsequently moved down to Devon. He was then given responsibility for the production of both Suttons and Dobies mail order catalogues. A further move took Tom to the retail side of


Suttons as marketing manager with further responsibility for product development, which among other things involved considerable travel around the world, looking for new and interesting seed and plant varieties and growing techniques suitable for the home gardener.


Latterly in his time with the company, Tom adopted a training and advisory role, mentoring young horticulturalists joining the company. Tom is not planning to put his feet up in his retirement and will continue with his judging Britain in Bloom and RHS trials, together with lecturing and writing. He is also hoping to get involved in ‘putting something back’ in an industry he loves by working with schools, parents and children to encourage and improve gardening knowledge.


manufacture of the 6X and Grow Organic range of products. The move will see Andy support Vitax’s new managing director, Carl Welsh (pictured right), as Vitax continues to build on its plans to take the business forward and to meet a growing demand for its products. Vitax chairman Paul Gooding (pictured left) commented: “Andy has been with Vitax for over 10 years and has a depth of knowledge which is invaluable to the business across all its sectors including both retail and professional.


New director joins Vitax board


Vitax Limited has appointed a new director to its board as it merges the Organico 6X brand with the Vitax business. Andy Gurney (pictured centre), who was formerly the managing director of Organico, will take on the role of operations director at Vitax from September 1 2018.


Based in Somerset, Organico Limited was acquired by Vitax in 2014 and is well known throughout the gardening industry for the


“More recently Andy has also been instrumental in overseeing the extension and development of the manufacturing facility at Coalville and will bring his drive and industry knowledge to the business at a critical time. We believe in nurturing talent from within and are delighted to have him on board.” Andy joined Vitax from DRC Surfacing Limited, specialists in the


construction and refurbishment of sports surfaces, before taking on a variety of sales and internal management positions within the company. He said: “This is an exciting time to take on this new role within Vitax and I’m looking forward to utilising my skills and experience to support Carl in the development of the business.”


Greenfingers gears up for 20th anniversary at this year’s Glee


With its 20th anniversary on the horizon in 2019, there are lots of exciting plans afoot for Greenfingers Charity, some of which are set to be revealed at this year’s Glee. Greenfingers, founded in 1999 by gardening


journalist and broadcaster Richard Jackson, will be joining one of the charity’s key supporters, the Horticultural Trades Association (HTA), who have generously donated the charity stand space. The Greenfingers team will be on hand to


speak to both visitors and exhibitors about upcoming activities to celebrate this important and prestigious milestone in the charity’s history. Amongst these will be the launch of a new


product partnership with garden décor supplier Vivid Arts, and a festive fundraising initiative with Christmas tree supplier Needlefresh. The charity’s annual fundraiser Garden Re- Leaf Day, now in its eighth year, has become a key event in the gardening calendar and sees many supporters, old and new, come together


GCU September 2018


to raise funds for Greenfingers Charity, with 2019’s event to be officially launched at Glee. Greenfingers will also be gratefully receiving donations from their industry supporters with cheque presentations taking place over the three days of the show. As well as this, the Greenfingers’ stand will be


packed with information on how to get involved with the work they do. Whether it’s designing and building gardens, holding or participating in events, FUNdraising or donating gifts in kind or at cost, every penny raised, and every penny saved helps to make a difference to thousands of children and their families. Greenfingers Charity chairman John Ashley said: “2019 is an exciting year for us and we have a lot of great ideas up our sleeves for our 20th year celebrations. Our work is only possible thanks to all those in the garden industry who get involved and we couldn’t do our precious work, supporting life-limited


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children and families without you. “Please do visit our stand to find out how you can take part; we are grateful for any participation or donation, no matter how big or small. Special thanks to HTA also for allowing us to share their stand space. We look forward to seeing you at Glee.”


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