If you're an avid gardener or even just an armchair gardener I'd suggest you ditch the local…read morefranchises and their overpriced wares and instead head to Mclarens nursery. They cater for every style of garden from the traditional small bedding plants to colourful exotic grasses, they even have a huge section devoted to trees. Frequented by landscape gardeners and the general public alike, this is the place to go for good quality plants and value for money.

From the owner: At McLaren's Nurseries Ltd you will find all of your plant needs. A massive range of many different…read moreshrubs, perennials, conifers, grasses, fruit bushes and trees, climbers, bamboo, Rhododendrons, Azaleas and Roses. A family run buisness we now span 50 acres and are a plant lovers paradise!

A Walled Garden built on a farm on the edge of Devilla Forest. In addition to the Garden, there is…read morea Farm Shop selling their produce and a lovely log cabin cafe. The cabin is kept warm in winter with a feature stove fireplace and the owner is equally as welcoming. We fancied a snack, so opted for homemade soup with crusty bread. One of the party had a cheese & spring onion toastie - good uncomplicated fare. For afters, Mum had the Meringue with a pot of Earl Grey. Being more of a savoury fella overall, I don't often go in for cakes etc, but I decided to try the Apple & Cinnamon Scone with Butter & Jam. It was delicious, I have to say. They are expanding at the moment to allow more visitors to the cafe. Given the quality of the food, I think this will prove popular with ramblers and those looking for somewhere to relax that's a little bit different from the norm.

Lovely little gem hidden away. Ideal for a nice afternoon. Lovely helpful staff and you can bring…read moreyour (well behaved) four legged friends.

Thomson's has now moved to the outskirts of Dunfermline - next to the retail park to the north eat…read moreof the town. The new store is much lighter and airier than the old one. It is on two levels and has a cafe area for customers. We visited between christmas and new year looking to buy certain furniture. The salesman was very convincing about their prices being the best. However we decided to look around and visited a competitor nearby. I am glad that we did as we found the same furniture on offer at almost five hundred pounds cheaper. A lesson here to always look around. Apart from that i have bought several items from Thomsons and have always found the service to be very good - especially the carpet department. I believe that thomsons which was once a family store has now been taken over by another local much larger department store which is a shame really as it just means that there is less chance of being able to find something different in the are

Rubbish quality and customer service from the maker and seller…read more Within months of buying a recliner the seat settlement reached and probably exceeded the 30% expected "natural settlement". The chair was repaired but within 6 months the new seat had also collapsed. I complained to Lay-Z-Boy and Thomsons World of Furniture and I got blanked as if it was my fault for buying one of their products and had the hard neck to suggest I pay them more to fix their product's inherent fault. Lay-Z-Boy knows the failings in their quality of products and yet they insist it's normal. I would suggest that nobody buys one of their products.

Woodside is a small plant nursery, organic garden and coffee shop situated in an old walled garden…read moreabout 3 miles from Jedburgh. It is one of the most pleasant places I have ever been for a peaceful cup of coffee. The coffee shop itself is in a log cabin in one corner of the garden. it is a reasonably new building, but sits well with the ambience of the rest of the garden. There are bird feeders outside one of the windows, providing hours of entertainment watching the numerous birds. The furnishings are aged pine tables and chairs. There is a woodburning stove and bookcases with books/magazines on gardening and cooking. The menu is very small, 2 soups, the variety of which changes daily, half a dozen different kinds of sandwich with interesting fillings, and about a dozen different kinds of cake. All the produce is homemade on the premises and is delicious. Many of the ingredients are organic and local. I love Woodside - just the place for recharging the batteries.

I used to feel like this garden centre was a second home and I felt at one amidst the bracken and…read moreshrubs in the green house. My Grandparents used to take me and my brother here when we were young and I can remember going pretty much every other day. Quite bizarre now I think about it, as they only had a tiny garden. This place is huge and you can get everything you could ever imagine for a garden, gnomes, compost, plant pots, you name it, it's all here. So if you're green fingered then head down to Rouken Glen Garden Centre to pick up a plant or two and maybe even some tips from the other plant fanatics.

Is there anything more exciting that wondering round a garden centre?…read more Yes, lots of things. In fact anything! But that's not the point! As far as garden centre's go Rouken Glen is one of the best. I'm not a big plant lover because they require care and attention and I am too busy caring for and attending to myself but, they don't just have plants at Rouken Glen! There is also a large gift shop which sells all manner of randomness from vases and candles to jewelry and mugs. The pleasant little coffee shop sells some yummy cakes and light lunch items. When I go to visit my wee 89 year old Granpa I take him to this coffee shop and he flirts with all the old ladies, sweet and disgusting in equal measures! My favorite thing about Rouken Glen is the Christmas section; it is a magical winter wonderland! I particularly like the outdoor Christmas light section, a little wonder around here is a great way to get you in the festive mood!

Jacks is somewhat of a Lanark institution. I think The original Jack (whoever he may be) might be…read moreLanark's favourite Jack, edging out Nicholson, Ruby, Kerouac and even Daniels... It's one of those old fashioned ironmongers - if you remember the sorely missed Crockett's in Glasgow, this is a smaller version, but essentially the same theory. If you can use it in the house, on the house, above the house, under the house or near the house, then Jacks will have it. The price for this mish mash of usefullness is that some things will be more expensive than, say, Homebase, which doesn't exist in Lanark any more - Jacks was here before them, and is here after them. Three or four times this past month I've needed something and the phrase "Aye, Jacks will have it" was the first thing said to me. I went in today and sure enough, got everything I needed. There's something great about just wandering around these kinds of places, and discovering things you never knew you wanted, probably didn't need, but you end up with three of them anyway. That's Jacks... and nobody in Lanark would change it.

I have to say that this place is a hardware shop very much in the mould on the one seen in the Two…read moreRonnies fork handles sketch, but in a good way. It's one of those shops that's actually surprising to find, a small local business where the staff are helpful, friendly and knowledgeable all in the right quantities. This is the place to go locally for all manner of hardware items, fireplaces, tools, mouse traps, axes, scythes and all other weird bits and bobs. They also sell homeware items and ornamental things, the range and the service that this shop provides just can't be touched by somewhere like B & Q or Homebase.

Rarely do I review but I expected a nice lunch out with my wife down the…read more Clydeside. Not been in for a few years and based on lunch I won't be back ever. Only 4 main items on the lunch board with one rubbed out - I went for sausage with onion gravy and mash - big mistake. Square sausage (assuming lefts overs from the breakfast menu), no onions visible in the gravy by sight or taste - mash mysteriously turned into frozen chips. Unfortunately my wife was fairing just as poorly with a bedraggled ham salad baguette. Both dishes , the lack of service and the total lack of attention to detail all added to an extremely poor experience but we are at least wiser now.

This garden centre is to the smaller locally owned businesses, what Asda is to your local green…read moregrocer. The shop is bigger and some things might appear cheaper, but I have generally found the actual range of items available and the knowledge of the staff somewhat lacking. It feels as though most of the place is taken up with conservatories and china and candles, is that what a garden centre should be? The last couple of times I've been in looking through the garden tools and thought: yes this is all very good for a bit of topiary, at the most, but where are the proper tools. I'll stick to going elsewhere in future.

Dobbies added to their chain of garden centres with this one in Dunfermline nearly two years ago…read more As well as the usual plants, garden equipment and furniture, gifts etc., they also have a concessions of Cotton Traders, a butchers, a farm food hall and great café. Throughout the year they hold various events including lecture and demonstrations there is usually a nominal fee to attend these. For just £10 you can join their gardening club this allows you to get 10% of a range of plants and seeds you also earn reward points every time you shop which can are redeemed as monetary vouchers to spend in the store. In addition you get vouchers entitling you to 2 free teas or coffees each month. So even if you only pop in for a coffee once a month it is still worth joining.

There is nothing wrong in general with this place until you need to visit the loos…read more Since the building was built, they have gone downhill. The toilet seats don't sit right. The soap dispensers do not work, the hand dryer is hopeless. The toilets are filthy, not sure when they were last cleaned.

This gorgeous homewares shop opened about 5 months ago but somehow I'd completely missed it in this…read moretime. It's got some really lovely bits and pieces - Glasgow road signs, vintage map wall art, luggage cases, Shetland wool blankets, chandeliers, furniture as well as wee decorative pieces. One of my favourite finds was a glass pineapple that has a silver coating and now sits on my lounge room table. I didn't realise but they also have a shop through in Edinburgh and an online store. With fantastic customer service and great, unusual pieces, I'll definitely be popping in more often.

The window displays are so beautiful here, it almost put me off because I was scared my…read more'clumsiness' would mean I would knock everything over! Anyway, needed a mother's day gift and I'm glad I went in. I was focussing on the unique candle scents, rhubarb and ginger or fig to name but a few, for the gift. These were so delicious I came away with one for mum and one for me. Other things that caught my eye were the range of blankets/throws and room diffusers. Staff here are extremely helpful and friendly (none of the pouncing/smothering approach some people go for) and a pleasure to do business with. If you need something lovely...time and tide. (Even if you are clumsy!)