L to R: Peter Freeman, Paul Masters, Charles Valin, Colin Randel

With 140 years of horticultural experience between them, our newly formed new product development team is able to boast a rich diversity of expert horticultural knowledge.

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Sonia Mermagen

Sonia works at Thompson & Morgan in the role of press and communications officer. She is a self-proclaimed ‘reluctant’ gardener and is generally amazed if anything flourishes in her garden. Sonia has a ‘hands off’ approach to gardening and believes that this helps to encourage bees, butterflies and other wildlife. (That’s her excuse anyway!)

www.thompson-morgan.com

Stuart and Ian Paton with their record-breaking pumpkin

At this weekend’s Autumn Pumpkin Festival in Netley, Southampton, sponsored by Thompson & Morgan, no less than four British records were broken.

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Sonia Mermagen

Sonia works at Thompson & Morgan in the role of press and communications officer. She is a self-proclaimed ‘reluctant’ gardener and is generally amazed if anything flourishes in her garden. Sonia has a ‘hands off’ approach to gardening and believes that this helps to encourage bees, butterflies and other wildlife. (That’s her excuse anyway!)

www.thompson-morgan.com

We were alerted last week by a customer on Twitter who remarked on the impressive sight of Thompson & Morgan’s begonia pots at Ipswich station. We quickly despatched T&M’s intrepid photographer, Helen Freeman, to capture proof that these fabulous plants were indeed still flowering on the platforms four months after planting!

T&M begonias still blooming on Friday 29th September, four months after planting

And here’s the proof! The plants were indeed still going strong on both sides of the London to Norwich line.

Back in June, we donated pots of beautiful begonias for a joint project with Ipswich-based ActivLives charity who undertook the planting up of the pots which were then positioned on the platforms of Ipswich station.

Volunteers and young learners from charity ActivLives created 26 summer pots, filled with begonias supplied by Thompson & Morgan. The pots have brightened up the platforms of Ipswich station on the Norwich to London mainline since June, and staff at the station say that customer feedback has been plentiful and positive.

ActivGardens brings people together in an active and healthy way, creating change to improve the vitality of local communities. Susannah Robirosa, ActivLives’ Development Manager said:

“I’m delighted ActivLives has been able to collaborate with Thompson & Morgan in this way to brighten up the town for the benefit of residents and visitors.”

According to Thompson & Morgan’s head of sales, Victoria Ager, Begonia ‘Whopper’ is a firm favourite with T&M customers – so it was the obvious first choice of the company’s many flowering plants to dress up the station.

Jackie Rathbone, Greater Anglia’s Assistant Customer Service Manager, said:

“We are delighted to be involved in this project and working with ActivLives and Thompson & Morgan once again. We are very impressed with the hard work of the volunteers of all ages and abilities involved.”

Sonia Mermagen

Sonia works at Thompson & Morgan in the role of press and communications officer. She is a self-proclaimed ‘reluctant’ gardener and is generally amazed if anything flourishes in her garden. Sonia has a ‘hands off’ approach to gardening and believes that this helps to encourage bees, butterflies and other wildlife. (That’s her excuse anyway!)

www.thompson-morgan.com

Champion pumpkin growing twins, Ian and Stuart Paton from Southampton are at it again!  This year they have four pumpkin babies which are currently piling on a massive 60lb or 4 stone a day!  The twins are well on the way to giving their record-breaking 160 stone pumpkin of 2016 a run for its money.

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For the third year in a row, Morrice and Ann Innes of Newmachar, north of Aberdeen, have won a prestigious RHS Chelsea Gold Medal for their potato exhibit in the renowned Flower Show’s Great Pavilion. However there are no flowers on their stand which is sponsored by Thompson & Morgan; only potatoes.

Gold award winners Morrice and Anne Innes

Their award-winning potato display of 154 different varieties aims to highlight the diversity and versatility of the nation’s favourite vegetable, whilst tracing the origins of some of the potatoes in Morrice’s extensive collection of some 500 varieties.

The gold award winning Chelsea display of 154 varieties.

In 2015, Morrice and Ann won the first ever Chelsea Gold Medal for a potato-only display in the show’s 150 year history. They won again in 2016 and have again been awarded Gold today, scoring the maximum number of points possible in all three marking categories.

Displayed on the stand this year is a selection of Wild Solanum potato plants, grown by Morrice and Ann, and by Thompson & Morgan’s Joseph Jarrold and Sharron Cook. Also on show are tubers of Solanum Tuberosum, cultivated from wild species of the group Stenotomum, as well as a selection of mini tubers which are in the early stages of new variety production.

Thompson & Morgan’s commercial director, Paul Hansord, said: “Amid all the glamour and colour of the world’s most celebrated flower show, it’s great to see a homage to the humble potato win another Gold Medal. Morrice and Ann have put on a fantastic show again this year.”

Colin Randel commented: “With their display, Morrice and Ann tell the tale of the potato. There is an incredible array of colours, shapes and sizes, from very old heritage tubers, right up to our new variety, Vizelle, which will be available exclusively from Thompson & Morgan in September ready for the 2018 growing season.”

With young royals highlighting mental health issues, T&M asks ‘Could gardening help?’

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Sonia Mermagen

Sonia works at Thompson & Morgan in the role of press and communications officer. She is a self-proclaimed ‘reluctant’ gardener and is generally amazed if anything flourishes in her garden. Sonia has a ‘hands off’ approach to gardening and believes that this helps to encourage bees, butterflies and other wildlife. (That’s her excuse anyway!)

www.thompson-morgan.com