- Quality Plants Guaranteed
- As seen in The Sunday Times
- Multi RHS Gold Medallist
- 5 Star Reviews
- As seen in The Sunday Times
- Quality Plants Guaranteed
- Multi RHS Gold Medallist
- 5 Star Reviews
I’ve been growing plants with my Grandma, Lily, for as long as I can remember… Grab a cuppa, it’s quite a story.
I remember growing sweet peas from seed with my Grandma to cut for teachers at the end of term when I was in my younger years at primary school. That’s how it all started. Grandma is my inspiration for all things plants and gardens. Read on to find out how I turned this passion into an award-winning nursery.
In 2017 we started to grow plants to sell at Grandmas local church, where she was Church Warden, Holy Trinity Winster, near Windermere for their monthly Book & Plant Day. The coffee morning style day was a fundraising event to keep the Church and the neighbouring Old School Room in tip top shape. The regular supporters loved the plants and so we kept on growing a wider range of plants for the next couple of years. In 2019 I started to work for Low Sizergh Barn, the award-winning farm shop on the edge of the Lake District. They took an interest in my plant growing side hustle and started to sell some plants outside the shop. And then COVID came and turned everyone’s life upside down, but as a result more people took to their gardens and fell in love with plants which created a huge demand. I took the opportunity to service this demand and grow more plants than I’d ever grown before, completely taking over my parents and Grandma’s garden. Turning beds and borders into growing areas, greenhouses started to appear on patios and corners transformed into storage areas.
In 2023 I started to lease some land on the Sizergh Estate, close by to Low Sizergh Barn, so I could really grow my plant nursery business. The nursery started with a single polytunnel and a pallet of compost, and now comprises of 3 commercial polytunnels, a farm stock and deer proof outside growing area, storage unit, and just enough space to turn my van around! I haven’t got much space but I try and make it work as hard as it can. I’m always potting new plants, straight after plant fairs and shows, to keep the growing cycle going all year round so I can offer a wide range of plants, most of the year.
I graduated from the University of Cumbria in 2024 with a First Class degree in Applied Management, it was hard work juggling working, studying, and growing plants, but so worth it, hard work pays off and now I have the knowledge and experience to grow Dan’s Plants further into a business I can one day happily live off. Fingers crossed!
Adam Frost, Gardeners’ World presenter and 6 times Chelsea Gold Medallist said (on TV!) that meeting me was his highlight of the RHS Malvern Spring Festival.
I’ve always been interested in visiting flower shows from a young age, so I was thrilled to be invited to attend my first one at the RHS Malvern Spring Festival in May 2025. I was delighted to be awarded a Silver-Gilt for my display and even featured on BBC Gardener’s World. Just two months later, I was amazed to take home a Gold Medal at the new RHS Flower Show Wentworth Woodhouse. I’m incredibly grateful for the support I’ve received, especially from my parents, who have helped me with every decision and risk along the way.
From a passion to a family business. Thank you for supporting Dan’s Plants, I can’t wait to see what the future holds.