This is another big but fairly expensive garden centre that sells everything you'd expect, from…read moreplants, pots and garden ornaments to barbecue equipment, garden tools and furniture. This place stands out from the rest, however, for its range of miniature 'Show Gardens' where they offer ideas and inspiration for your own garden, including some interesting designs and layouts, use of a variety of materials, and different planting styles. I was also quite impressed by their range of plant pots, both for indoors and outdoors, which included more choice (in terms of colours, styles and materials) than many of their competitors. They're also good for trellis, patio furniture and garden tools. There's a section selling aquatics, another selling gifts (some of questionable style, in my view, but each to their own!), plus a cafe.

A pretty good garden centre, large, with just about everything you'll need. An impressive range of…read moreoutdoor and indoor plants and pots, trellis, netting, patio materials and garden tools. Artificial flowers too, a gift department and a cafe (which could do with more choice, especially vegetarian). The 'show gardens' are interesting and a good idea to help people trying to plan the lay-out of their new gardens. Quite an expensive place.

A truly enormous garden centre on the eastern outskirts of Cardiff, conveniently situated adjacent…read moreto junction 29 of the A48M where it meets the old A48 Newport Road. It's a popular shopping destination in its own right, and is actually part of the large UK-wide Wyevale chain. As well as an enormous range of plants, seeds, gardening tools and gardening supplies, it sells all sorts of gardening-related merchandise, such as garden buildings, garden furniture, pet supplies, books, ornaments, greeting cards, toys, clothing etc. Their prices aren't the cheapest, but it's all in one place and the quality is not bad (and it is getting very hard to find independent high-quality traditional nurseries, these days). Many of the staff are not that expert in the plants, though - certainly not compared with the horticultural or botanical expertise that resides in parts of the British gardening fraternity. That said, they always seem to be pretty friendly and willing to help, and the whole experience is rather less intimidating than it can be in some traditional nurseries. For those living in hope of a dry summer, there is an extensive range of barbecues and barbecue supplies. (Note: worth getting in stocks of charcoal, as there is always a run on supplies at the first sign of Bank Holiday sun). They also have a hire service for a very extensive range of garden and building machinery, if buying your own rotovator or mini-digger seems something of an indulgence. Perfect for the would-be 'Bob the Builder' (or 'Bob y Bildar'). There's a decent sized cafe, which is quite pleasant outside the week-end peak times, although there's no escaping the warehouse 'architecture'. It's very popular with pensioners during the week. At week-ends, the whole place is packed by families on an afternoon out, which makes for a slightly more stressful shopping experience. The centre has toilets and is designed to be accessible for wheel-chair users. The Wyevale website is quite interesting for the novice gardener, with a 'plant finder' facility, which tells you what you can grow in the soil and aspect of your garden.

Blooms is a massive garden centre that's easy to get to from either Cardiff or Newport, with…read morehelpful staff (though not all of them perhaps 'experts') and a huge array of plants, garden furniture and ornaments, and gardening tools and accessories. The centre is also home to a decent little book shop and a café, and it sells jewellery, clothes, pet-related products, farm-style foods and even fresh Welsh meat, jams and chutneys! Blooms even offer an equipment hire service, so you can hire garden and building machinery rather than go out and buy it if you only need it for a one-off occasion. Some of the stock can be a bit on the expensive side, but I think most big nurseries are the same, and at least you can browse around lots of different departments under one roof here.

The ordering process did not go smoothly. I had to explain what I wanted to a second person, two…read moredays after I had originally placed the order. I asked for the bouquets to be delivered to a particular place and they were delivered to a different place. But the worst thing was the actual flowers. I asked for brightly coloured flowers. Instead I got a mish-mash of random types of flowers, and most of them in drab and washed-out colours. A lot of them had started curling at the edges of the petals, even though they were still in water and there were lots of stalks of berries for some reason. I asked for flowers, not berries. It looked like I got palmed off with the flowers nobody would choose at the shop.

I don't like red roses, boys/ men. Take note. I do like flowers though. Actual, real flowers in the…read morewild, in plant pots, but mostly in big bright beautiful bouquets given to me, meant for me, from someone quite lovely. What kind of flowers? Orange gerberas. Sunflowers. Crazy exotic creations. Daffodils. Cornflowers. Pretty little posies of wild flowers and sweet peas. I am not alone in this. A lot of people like giving and receiving flowers. They say things we don't know how to otherwise. Things like: 'Sorry' I dumped you/ ran over your cat/ spilt red wine on that dress I borrowed and promised not to spill red wine on... 'I love you' friend/ mum/ tiddles/ Romeo/ Charlotte Church 'Thinking of you' ... I know I've not called for three years but, well I've been busy Gran, and I'm sure you understand. Things like that. If you need to say things like that I'd recommend the Secret Garden because they can say it beautifully. They've got fashion know how to bring to creating bouquets. They offer a sensational selection of seasonal blooms, full of vibrant colours for any occasion - hand-tied bouquets; wedding flowers; corporate contracts; gift ideas and sympathy flowers. Delivery: They have a same day delivery service to surrounding Cardiff, and a next day delivery for nationwide orders placed before 2pm.

Sometimes I feel as though I'm a little bit of a fraud, going into places like this. Next time you…read morego to one, just stand at the side and watch the people who go in and out. You'll see people carrying trees, people in pairs to carry long bits of wood, people struggling with large containers. And all I wanted was a pot plant. Nevertheless, despite my shame, I continued about my business and I came across a little chilli bush which seemed just the perfect thing to have in my room. Taking it to the till, I continued to feel embarrassed by my meagre offering to the home and garden gods, until I noticed that I was one of very few people NOT huffing and puffing. Then I just felt smug. Anyway, good service, good prices, good products.

Brynawel Garden Centre is located on Sully Road near Penarth and also incorporates the Brynawel…read moreFuchsia Centre, a section containing a blast of pink and purple fuchsias alongside many varieties of geraniums. It started out life in 1976 as a family run nursery growing tomatoes and lettuce for the wholesale market, followed by spring and summer production of flowers for the same market. Over the years, it expanded into the garden centre it is today - aimed at domestic customers. They produce most of their own bedding plants and their main specialities are Fuchsias (more than 1000 varieties) and Pelargoniums (more than 200 varieties). The fuschia shop is said to attract people from far and wide, and is open from March to September. They also sell shrubs and trees, spring bulbs, fertilizers, pots and planters, hanging baskets, garden furniture, watering products, Wolf tools, and lots more - then at Christmas they also sell Christmas trees. Brynawel also offers free local delivery within Penarth, Barry, Dinas Powys, Sully and Wenvoe on Monday and Friday. If you lie outside those areas you can still get delivery, but they make a small charge. The garden centre is a Wolf tools main agent, so sells plenty of gardening equipment from hoes and rakes to battery hedge shears.

Loads of different plants to other garden centres and very well priced. It is a bit run down but…read morethe stock justifies it! The toilets are very run down but useable. Was quite quiet however a really nice garden centre. If the owner is reading this I highly suggest you set up social media to attract more people. I highly recommended you visit.

If your garden is in need of a makeover of some kind then you don't need to look much further than…read moreCaerphilly Garden Centre. This large and well-stocked garden centre has everything you'd need (and a load of stuff you'd never need) for your garden. It boasts a huge array of flowers and plants in its outside courtyard-type area, as well as garden ornaments like frightening gnomes or bewildering pandas. It's got seeds, guys. Loads and loads of seeds. It also offers garden furniture and things like wooden arches for climbing plants. It would be nearly impossible to convey how much garden-related paraphernalia is on offer in this place so you'd have to see for yourself. The staff are friendly and full of advice, so if the stupidly long Latin names are too much for you then just ask and they can most likely point you in the right direction.

Found on the outskirts of Caerphilly, the Garden Centre is Caerphilly's home of horticulture…read more With more garden products than Alan Titchmarsh's shed, this is the place to go if you're in need of anything for your back yard. Whether its compost, plants, weedkiller or flowers, Caerphilly Garden Centre will have what you're looking for; and a great selection at that. They also stock a wide range of garden furniture and patio sets, for those rare occasions the weather is decent enough to warrant a relaxing lounge in the sun. In addition to these, they offer a good variety for the budding outdoor chef with their extensive barbeque range. If you're bringing the kids along for the ride, the various pets on display will surely keep them occupied; with animals such as birds, reptiles and tropical fish. Also, should you be visiting during the festive season, the Garden Centre boasts one of the best Christmas Grottos this side of Lapland. And if that still doesn't entice you to the Garden Centre, then how about sampling the on-site restaurant, which offers a great selection of food; from steak and ale pie and beer battered cod to toasted sandwiches and baguettes, as well as a range of specials which alter daily. They also offer a variety of freshly baked cakes for those who just feel like stopping by for a brief snack and a cuppa. The restaurant is available for private functions, and the manager will be happy to alter the menu to suit your needs.

There's been a garden centre here for a long time, but in the last year it has been taken over by…read morePugh's. Like many garden centres, the garden element no longer feels centre stage as there's a discount bookshop, stationery, a bath bomb and a clothing concession... you get the picture. There's some really tacky stuff (glass fairies, for example) alongside nicer artisan items. That means it can be a good place for gifts and just to browse, along with looking at plants and garden furniture. At the rear, there's a cafe called the Orange Tree, which sells sandwiches, soups and light meals, cakes and, on Sundays, they do a full roast. We went there recently and two roast dinners, a bowl of Cawl with bread, and a bacon and Brie panini with drinks came to under £40. Staff were pleasant and I found the veggie roast (mushroom nut roast) with a Yorkshire pudding and roast vegetables to be surprisingly good - they were all perfectly cooked. The only downer is that the car park is roughly gravelled surface, and the entrance isn't obvious off the south Wenvoe roundabout - from Barry, you take the left turn and bear right almost immediately (it helps not to swing in too fast).

There are garden centres galore in and around Cardiff, but this place is a bit different because…read morethe emphasis is mainly on garden buildings and paving rather than plants and accessories. If you're looking for a shed or summer house, or even a garden office, they have far more choice here than you'd ever get at the likes of B&Q or a general garden centre, with a greater variety of sizes and styles to suit different spaces. They also sell Vitavia Greenhouses, log cabins, play houses, thatched gazebos, and even a wooden garden bar! When it comes to garden paving and gravels, they have an impressive range of products for different budgets and garden styles. They're the largest stockist of Bowland Stone (one of the UK's market leaders in landscaping and flooring products) in Cardiff, and also offer more specialised products such as sandstone paving as an alternative to traditional paving. Note that the above opening times are for winter - in the summer (1 March - 30 September) they open longer hours: Monday - Friday 9.00am - 5.30pm; Saturday 9.00am - 5.00pm; Sunday 10.30am - 4.30pm.

Pughs garden centre is the ideal place for all your gardening needs. The quality of their plants is…read moreexcellent, and they stock a wide variety of species. The staff are both knowledgeable and helpful. Attached to the garden centre they have a number of franchises, such as a pet centre, and more recently have opened a farm shop. At Christmas time this is certainly the place to come for your tree, I can never get over how many they have. An added attraction for me at Pughs, is the Bay Tree coffee shop, which serves the most delicious cakes.

Pugh's Garden Village in Radyr is a site that incorporates a number of stand-alone businesses…read morecovering gardening, pet care, aquatics, crafts, and a farm shop. Rather than try to do everything themselves, Pugh's - who themselves focus on being a specialist horticultural company - decided to bring in other complimentary businesses so that they could provide a wider offering at their site without losing their own focus. This resulted in the concept of the 'garden village' rather than simply a huge 'garden centre'. Pugh's Garden Centre is still the shop that dominates the Garden Village, however - offering all the usual plants and gardening accessories, with a clear seasonal focus. Then there's Ty Nant Farm Shop - a great place to pick up farmhouse-type foods, treats, and gift hampers. There's the Bay Tree Coffee Shop, serving breakfasts from 9am plus lunches and snacks throughout the day. And then there's PamPurred Pets, which as you'd expect specialises in foods and accessories for dogs, cats, birds and small animals. There's plenty to browse around on a rainy day, and the place attracts its fair share of oldies enjoying a good browse! The garden village is accessible from J32 of the M4, and the A470 Cardiff Valleys road and all suburbs in North Cardiff.