Sustainability and Environmental Policy

Here at Pugh’s, with the garden centre and our natural environment being at the heart of our business, we want to become as transparently sustainable as we can and take steps to help tackle the war on waste and the climate crisis.

We recognise the impact that gardening and the garden industry has on the environment and as business with a wide reach, we aim to make sure that Pugh’s and our customers are in some way able to reduce it. We have created a long-term Environmental Ethos and have already made a start across our Garden Centres. Have a look through some of our sustainable initiatives below.

Pugh's Sustainable Initiatives

Click here to watch our video on the top ways we are investing in our planet

Click here to watch our video on Regenerative Gardening Methods

Pugh's Plant Nurseries - Nurturing our home grown values

Click here to learn all about our plant nurseries in Caerphilly where we home-grow a range of plants to lower our carbon footprint.

Pugh's stance on Peat-Free

At Pugh’s Garden Centres we aim to provide the best possible resources for our customers, helping their gardens to flourish. We offer a wide range of composts to suit all your gardening needs.

We understand that peat-based composts offer affordable, tried and tested growing mediums and that many gardeners still want them, however we are aware of the environmental impact of their use. This is why we feel it is essential to also offer excellent reduced peat and peat free alternatives, a range that is constantly expanding.

We support and encourage the efforts of our suppliers to reduce the peat content in their products, in developing alternatives and regenerating used peat fields and mire to create a sustainable future for the industry.

We also recognise that growing in peat free composts can be different to growing in peat based composts (e.g. water and nutrient levels can vary). We are continuing to test and trial new peat-free composts at our own plant nursery, and will only sell peat-free composts which perform well in our trials.

CLICK HERE to find out the best ways to use Peat Free Compost

Pugh's stance on Pest Management

Below is our four-step plan to coping with pests in your garden

Try to cope with a few pests and achieve a 'natural balance' - This will allow the natural predators for those pests to thrive in your garden and keep pest numbers under control
Pick off (or wash off) visible pests and use other natural means - Use mesh and other barriers to protect plants, use 'companion plants' to discourage unwanted pests and to encourage natural predators such as lady birds and hoverflies
- Use high potash balanced fertilizers to encourage 'stronger' more resilient growth
Use organic pesticide options - These are available within the garden centre
Only use pesticides as a very last resort and with very careful application - If, and only if, absolutely necessary to spray a pesticide then do so only later in the day when bees etc are less active
- Wash off any dead insects/pests the next day to reduce any risk to birds etc
- Follow the instructions on the package thoroughly to ensure safe use and minimise environmental impact

Pugh's stance on Recycling & waste management

We feel strongly about our environmental responsibilities, we recycle all plastic, cardboard, wood and metal from our deliveries and stock. Any wooden pallets are returned to suppliers or recycled on site.

Although we do provide bags for our customers’ convenience, these are biodegradable and at an additional charge. We also have re-usable bags for life available as a more sustainable option which we encourage customers to purchase. In addition, we also offer cardboard boxes and trays as practical, eco-friendly alternatives for customers to carry their products to their cars and encourage our customers to reuse or recycle each option.

We also have 'plant pot swap sheds' available at both garden centres where we encourage customers to bring in their unwanted/unused plastic plant pots to recycle into the shed for somebody else to pick up and take home to re-use!

Pugh's recommendations for plants & products

We feel it is important to encourage the creation of wildlife friendly spaces within gardens to recreate some of the natural habitats being lost to development. We have a large range of products to help introduce and maintain wildlife in our gardens. We offer an extensive range of wildlife friendly plants to suit all conditions and needs, from attracting animals and insects into your garden to natural repellents to help keep cats and pests away. We also offer a wide range of insect, bat and bird boxes to help create wildlife friendly habitats in your garden. Please ask any of our plant team for advice on which plants to use to create nature and environmentally friendly gardens.

We also stock a large range of organic and chemical free feeds, repellents and pest control for your garden in our sundries shop and encourage our customers to reduce the input of chemicals into the ecosystem.

Our knowledgeable plants department can also offer advice on how to solve many gardening problems in eco-friendly ways, as well as which plants would best suit the soil and weather conditions of your garden to avoid plant wastage and the need for soil enhancements. We also stock a selection of products to promote recycling any garden waste that does occur into the natural goodness of homemade compost.

It is important to be environmentally aware and conserve water, especially in the dry summer months; however, we still like to see our gardens lush and healthy. We can achieve this by collecting rain and surface water throughout the year by using water butts in the garden connected to drain pipes to water our plants and lawns. All the equipment you will need is available in our garden centres in a wide range of sizes and designs, suitable for all needs and tastes.

Pugh's stance on Sustainability at Christmas

The following is available or implemented during the festive season at Pugh's Garden Centres.

100% recyclable Christmas Cards from Woodmansterne. These also include unwrapped cards where no plastic wrap is used to help tackle waste!
Recyclable Kraft Christmas bows and packaging by 'Glick'.
Sustainable gift ideas such as Myddfai Luxury Welsh Bath & Body products in re-usable glass bottles
Recyclable Christmas Crackers
Kaemingk Recycled Ribbons. All ribbons are made of recycled or renewed materials, like recycled PET bottles, cotton or other recycled materials. The ribbons are produced with low water consumption and the spools are made of recycled PET bottles. The displays are made of unlaminated craft carton which can be easily recycled.
We look after and keep all of our display decorations, including our artificial display Christmas Trees, one of which we have had and used for over 10 years! Our display decorations are circulated between our stores to be re-used year on year. This helps reduce waste within our visual merchandising displays and give new life to pre-loved decorations.
We sell LED Christmas lighting which are the most energy-efficient and environmentally-friendly lighting technologies!
Our Real Christmas Trees are grown and managed in sustainable ways. Christmas tree plantations provide an excellent habitat for wildlife, with many bird species nesting in the growing trees and feeding on the insects that live among them. Christmas tree cultivation absorbs and stores more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than it releases, which helps to offset greenhouse gas emissions, and for every Christmas tree that is harvested, a replacement is planted the following spring. Since it is completely biodegradable, your cut Christmas tree can be put to good use once the festive season has finished. We encourage customers to consult their local recycling authority, who can advise on the best means of disposal. We also provide creative ways to re-use parts of your Christmas Tree after the festive season has ended. Eco-conscious customers can also purchase living pot-grown trees which can be re-planted in your garden and re-used.