Ravensworth Nurseries Ltd, (historically trading as Bradbrook & Hannah) is an English horticultural business and
garden centre located in
Ravensworth, North Yorkshire
Ravensworth is a village and civil parish in the Holmedale valley, within the Richmondshire district of North Yorkshire, England. It is approximately north-west of Richmond and from Darlington. The parish has a population of 255, accordi ...
.
It supplies garden centres and retailers across the United Kingdom as well as its own on-site sales.
History
The business was founded by Doug Bradbrook and his brother-in-law William Hannah in 1966.
The business began by growing lettuces and tomatoes, but increased competition from the
Common Market and rising heating costs saw them move into
bedding plants and later
pot plants such as
poinsettia
The poinsettia ( or ) (''Euphorbia pulcherrima'') is a commercially important flowering plant species of the diverse spurge family Euphorbiaceae. Indigenous to Mexico and Central America, the poinsettia was first described by Europeans in 1834 ...
s.
They are one of only two businesses that grow poinsettias in the United Kingdom, growing around 18,000 of the plants in 2012.
In 1996 they erected the world's largest
hanging basket.
The basket weighed , was across and high and contained 1,000 plants of one hundred different varieties.
By 2006, the business had a £1.8 million annual turnover, six
acre
The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial
Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism.
Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to:
Places
United States
* Imperial, California
* Imperial, Missouri
* Imp ...
s of glasshouses and employed around 35 people. Since 2006 the business has used an
eco-friendly woodchip burner to heat three of its glasshouses.
Waste wood is delivered for free by local companies, and the wood is chipped on site, once a week.
References
{{Reflist, 2
Horticultural companies of the United Kingdom
Garden centres
Retail companies of England
British companies established in 1966
Retail companies established in 1966
1966 establishments in England
Companies based in Richmondshire