OK, so I'm a bit biased, as I tend to automatically love anything green. However, Bournville Garden…read moreCentre is a particularly good haven for all things bright and beautiful that you may fancy in your garden. Personally, I would like almost everything that they stock in my garden. But this is sadly unfeasible. As well as the beautiful plant displays outside, they also have a lovely shop inside, with lots of lovely Emma Bridgewater-style gardening ornamentation as well as things for the boys like barbecues and fire pits. They also do a great Christmas tree service: they will cut and plant to your requirements as well as carrying the darn thing out to your car. The shop always looks amazing at Christmas as well, with lots of lovely hand-crafted decorations. They have their own store card as well, which is great if you're a regular. Which I am. Even if I just spend most of my time strolling around looking at plants rather than actually buying anything. Perhaps I need to get out more....

I'm a big fan of this place. As a garden centre it's a lot bigger than you'd expect, given it's…read morelocation in sleepy Bourenville. There is a large outdoor section with a huge selection of plants and shrubs and the interior boasts a whole host of goods, from the decorative to the useful. As I'm currently taming my large and unruly back garden, I'm often in here looking for dangerous chemicals! The have a 'Gardening Club' reward scheme that is free to join and actually works out as a genuine reward scheme - many is the time I've got to the counter to pay and fished out my card to receive a discount. They also post you a leaflet every month or so with a list of offers and some vouchers.

Wandering around the Ladypool Road one afternoon - as you do - I stumbled upon this place, and…read moreloved it immediately. It's a little green oasis, snug between St. Paul's Road and Ladypool Road, where the emphasis is on community, and domestic plants. What a great combination. It's also the home of the Balsall Heath Forum, I later discovered. It's quite a spacious patch of land, with greenhouses and plant displays surrounding a wide walkway where the good folk of the Forum no doubt stroll around, discussing all things Balsall Heath. It's lovely to happen upon a welcoming colourful spot like this in the middle of a built up urban area. The only reminders that you're not in Kansas anymore are the frequent CCTV warnings all over the displays. I'm not sure that Balsall Heath's hardened criminals are planning on running off with armfuls of gerberas, but at least tey know the consequences if they do...

This is one of the most diverse garden centres I've come across. There's a great outside area that…read moreis literally cluttered with plants, from fruit growing to small indoor varieties. I bought a Chinese lantern plant from here, which kept me great company in my first year at University (until I forgot to water it and it died). As well as plants, Ambleside sells aquatic pets at great prices. I have a tropical tank at home, and many of the fish I've bought originated from here. They also sell little terrapins in store, which I'm always tempted to purchase. Ambleside is the home of Earlswood cheese, which can be found at Moseley Farmers Market. They have a much wider selection here, and sell my favourite the Warwickshire Truckle. Other delicatessen-type food can be bought from the garden centre too. It is a little pricey, but tastes delicious. At the back of Ambleside, you'll find a cafe/restaurant serving a wide range of herbal teas, coffees, cakes and snacks. Again, the cafe is a little costly, but you'll definitely be tempted to try something different, because the menu is very unusual. I bought a cup of Buddha's Eyebrow tea from here once. It was quite peculiar! Of a night, the cafe opens out into a restaurant. I am yet to sample the evening menu here, but I do intend to very soon. On your way out, you'll pass the counter, and you might end up missing the friendly dog that lives here if he's sleeping. He is great with kids and gets very excited to greet new people, which adds an extra memorable touch to this garden centre.

Went there for an evening - you deffo dont wanna go in ya best clothes - chairs are made in Africa…read more- good for the ppl who made em - but not for your best skirt - get caught on a nails. Car park wasnt good for your best shoes either - suggest jeans trainers and tee shirt. Reading the reviews - it seemed a great place to go - but they are dated 2012 - its now 2019. My friend googled their food cleanse things and was horrified to see zero rated. Summer 2019. ive just checked and its not changed. Go enjoy the garden centre - great plants and stuff.

I first went to Akamba in April this year. I'd found it online a few weeks earlier, whilst looking…read morefor tribute nights locally, and then a friend mentioned she had a voucher for a meal there, so we gave it a go. Let's be honest, eating dinner at a garden centre usually sounds like the sort of things your parents or grandparents (depending on your age!) would do, however, this little slice of African themed heaven is a far cry from what you'd normal expect of such a place! I've not made it to Africa, though have traveled widely in Asia, and the outside felt totally authentic, being similar to bars and restaurants I've eaten in abroad. Even outside, you are sheltered from the rain, and inside, where the buffet is served, it's warm and cosy, with live music of an evening, and the most amazing spread of food. I've been a number of times since that first dinner, having returned in the day with my dog, as it's dog friendly if you're happy to sit outside - they even bring a bowl of water for our four legged friends! I've had lunch there, and the most fabulous afternoon cream tea, and cake, whilst the choice is limited, what they offer is very tasty (and I'm a fan of cake!) I loved it that much the first night, that I've refused to go there for a meal again, as I'm going for my 40th, which happens to fall on a Thursday, and looking forward to sharing the experience with close friends. The service is always friendly. It's not always super fast, as it runs on Kenyan time, so this isn't the place to go in a rush. Indeed, why would you? It's such a delightful experience that it deserves to be cherished. Oh, and the shop is pretty fab too! So yes, dog friendly, fab food, great shop and friendly service!

The shop-keeper rouses himself from bench-pressing weights in the mini gym that he has out back and…read moregreets me. So what exactly is hydroponics? He explains. Hydroponics is a system of growing plants via an system a called 'ebb and flood'. The plant sits in a top tray on a bed of clay pebbles and nutrient-filled water from a tray below is sucked up to later drain away to the bottom tray, and the cycle continues. This means that there is a constant flow, of water, air (and therefore oxygen), and so the grower can attain higher yields from the plant. The shop sells ebb and flow trays, nutrients, heat lamps and specialist horticultural magazines and literature. Most people starting out in hydroponics might not have a clue of how to get started and the shop-keeper is well used to this. He tells me what I'd need to get started, asks me what I'm growing and the quantity of what I'm growing. Then he sends me off with a more information so I can do some research and come back when I'm ready to buy. The most obvious application for hydroponics is the farming of cannabis plants. If you take off your blinkers though there's a world of growing that hydroponics can be applied to. Chillies, and tomatoes are some other plants that you can get high yields from. Who knows, maybe I'll start with grapes and we'll soon see Chateau Ben Shiraz on sale at craft fairs in the area soon?

Yardley residents have more than their fair share of garden centres. There's the all-singing,…read moreall-dancing Ripe 'n' Ready up the road and then this, too. Here there are more display racks and shelves with house plants like yukkas and palms, and vegetable plants such as tomatoes. There's a whole separate section clearly marked 'Bedding Plants' so if you are buying one for a gift then you don't have to look a fool by asking if what you have in your hand is suitable. They have a good line in Asiatic plants including the bizarrely named Mount Duckling. Inside is a modest array of pets including budgies, and some toys and feed for pets too.

You can't miss this store at the Yew Tree; There's an array of seasonal, brightly coloured flowers…read moretaking up most of the pavement at the shop front. I've bought my fair share of lavender plants, marigolds and chrysanthemums from here, and they're still growing steady in my garden. Lots of gardening shops I've been to sell plants that look unhealthy and weak, but Pets & Gardens makes sure that it only sells strong and multi-flowering plants (which is exactly what every gardening shop should do!) The inside of the shop is a little small, and very few people can fit in at one time. There's a few cages at the back which contain small pets. I nearly bought a hamster from here last year, but the staff didn't know which cage was for males, and which was for females, which I found a little worrying. Pets & Gardens is great to buy bird seed from, and costs as little as 60p for £250g. I always buy the seed from here for my outdoor feeders.

I love it! They have all the essentials you need to set up your home. Tools, paint, wallpaper,…read moretiles & flooring. I'm not renovating but I get grand ideas about re-tiling my kitchen every time I go in. They have a nice selection of accessories and linens too. Better quality than most of the shops nearby, if a little more pricey. It's great to have Homebase in the neighborhood, I find myself going in all the time for little odds and ends, like a new doorbell, lightbulbs, screwdriver, lampshade, etc.

Don't waste your money on a Sovereign leaf vacuum like I did. Wish I had spent the extra and got a…read moreproper leaf vacuum not this childs version, any more than 2 leaves and it blocks up, useless. I'll spend a bit more next time and get a reputable make. Only have myself to blame it seemed like a bargin at £29 and as I don't need one that often it seemed a waste to have a dear one hanging around seldom used, I know better now.