Millais Nurseries and the Environment

We are proud to be in the horticultural industry, growing evergreen plants which turn carbon dioxide into oxygen every day of the year. But we go a lot further than that. For the last few years we have embarked upon a journey to grow plants in the most environmentally friendly way.

Rhododendrons love growing in peat, but to conserve natural habitats, we are growing all our plants in a 40% reduced peat mix. Almost all of our peat is sourced from the huge peat reserves of the Baltic where it is regenerating faster than it is harvested. Our latest mix includes 20% composted bark to aid aeration and drainage, 15% humic compost which is rich in beneficial biological and fungal organisms, and 5% coco coir fibre top dressing to aid root aeration and to eliminate chemical weed control.

Apart from the Inkarho lime tolerant plants which are grown in Germany under licence, all our plants are British grown, and we grow nearly all here on our extensive nursery. This reduces 'plant-miles' and we grow a far superior plant compared to cheap European imports which have a habit of dying during the first year.

Over the past few seasons we have eliminated most chemical sprays. This starts by good plant selection to ensure we only propagate healthy trouble free varieties which will perform well in our nursery and well in a garden situation. We keep the plants healthy with many different products including Compost Tea which we brew every 14 days or so at the nursery, Iron rich seaweed, Citrus seed oil, beneficial microbes and fungi, and a range of plant tonics and bio-stimulants.

We make minimal use of expensive chlorinated mains water, as we have our own spring fed supply with its natural slow sand filters and bio-beds for improved water quality.

All old plastic pots are recycled, either back into production again, or returned to the manufacturer for remoulding. You are welcome to return any empty pots for recycling, but they must have been supplied by us originally.

Green waste is composted for later re-use in the nursery and garden.

Fallow land between crops is sown with Phacelia as a green manure to put energy back into the soil. The bumble bees love it!