What's the Story Behind Ashton's Garden Centre?

I love gardening! Despite never getting the chance to be professionally taught, I still have a pretty good looking garden if I may say so myself. For a novice gardener, listening to horticultural experts can be baffling. In fact, it can fill a newbie gardener with terror and make them run for the hills!

But gardening can be easier than it seems at first. Sure you can get into some of the more complicated aspects like growing rare orchids but, personally, the flower beds in my garden and a few house plants is what gardening means to me.

When I emigrated from England to Nova Scotia there were lots of new plants I wasn’t familiar with and whenever I visited a garden centre the signage was often lacking information and I didn’t know what things were for. It got me thinking, “If I’m confused as an experienced gardener, how do new gardeners feel?” I was also bothered by what seemed to be a lack of care and consideration for the environment in the gardening industry as a whole.

From there I started to build my ideas into what is now Ashton’s Garden Centre!

I originally planned on opening in May 2022 but, following the announced closure of 2 much loved local nurseries, I realized that there was a need for us to open earlier than planned!

So in May 2021, after a rush to get up and running, we opened our doors on the first day of the COVID-19 lockdown and it became a roaring success!

By 2024, we expanded our range to include: herbs, vegetables, annuals, perennials, shrubs, and trees. We have a Woodland Fairy walk that is brimming with thousands of daffodils and bluebells that we planted over the years! It is home to a community of fairies that you just might see among the trees and flowers!

Visiting a garden centre should be a fun experience for all levels of gardeners from the novice to the highly experienced. We have signage that helps you find the plants that you want and need as well as information on how to care for them. Backed up with knowledgeable staff, available to help you make decisions when you need our assistance, and point you in the right direction when you’re not sure where to start! There’s nothing worse than buying a plant and seeing it die because it wasn’t suited to your location! We’re here to make sure that doesn’t happen!