(All links open in a new window.)
www.rhs.org.uk
Another gardening charity we just couldn’t be without. Their knowledge is just about as definitive as it gets. Nice web site with loads of helpful information, and useful plant finder. Become a member and you get the privilege of speaking to an adviser personally.
www.plantlife.org.uk
When redesigning, landscaping and maintaining gardens it is all too easy to forget about the natural habitats of plants and the pressure we put on them. The Plantlife website helps remind us how precious our natural environment is. We are proud to support this charity, as after all it is flora that our business is built upon.
Buglife
www.buglife.org.uk
Find out about the mini beasts in your garden in this fun site. Read on and it doesn’t take long to realise just how crucial our tiny neighbours are for a healthy ecosystem. This web site is reason enough not to use pesticides and herbicides in our gardens or farmland.
The Bumblebee Conservation Trust
www.bumblebeeconservationtrust.co.uk
Learn about beautiful bees in this lovely site. There’s an interesting page about gardening for bees too.
Wildlife trust for Hampshire and the Isle of Wight
www.hwt.org.uk
C.A.R. Gardens became Wildlife Investors in 2008, the first business to join on the Isle of Wight. The Wildlife Trust is a UK wide organisation with 47 local trusts. They work together to protect wildlife in towns and the countryside. We have found their work inspiring to take action for our natural world. Their web sites are packed full of information including promoting gardening for wildlife.
Ventnor Botanic Gardens.
www.botanic.co.uk
Visit this site and you’ll soon need to visit The Botanic Garden on the Isle of Wight. A young garden full of plants from around the world, thriving in the unique micro climate of Ventnor. There’s a nice nursery with plants on sale grown in a sustainable way.
The Lavender Farm, Newport.
www.lavender.co.uk
For all things Lavender, this is the place to visit.
Godshill Organic, Godshill.
www.godshillorganics.com
What ever we can’t grow at home we look to these people first for our organic produce. They aim to equal or better the prices of supermarkets, and they’ll deliver locally too. The shop has the best selection of all organic produce on the Island, and it is an enjoyable experience to visit them! Buying locally and seasonally is made possible with farms like this. Godshill Organics are proof that sustainable living is viable.
Centre for Alternative Technology
www.cat.org.uk
There is an alternative! Visit this site to learn how to green up life, your home, and your garden. They have a good on line shop too.
Recycle Now – Going Greener in the Garden
www.recyclenow.com
This site promotes recycling, with hints and tips to help keep our waste from landfill. Living and working on a small Island makes you realise just how important it is reduce, reuse and recycle. C.A.R. Gardens take great pride in recycling our customers green waste into useable compost.
Friends of the Earth
If you want solutions to environmental problems then this site will be of interest to you. Climate change lobbyists. Their shop ‘the natural collection’ is well worth a browse; and if you get feed up with sending greeting cards, you could try their E cards.
Rapanui Clothing- Organic and sustainable clothing
A brilliant site by a local Island company promoting sustainable living. Their clothing range is pretty good too! Organic, fair wear and sustainable. C.A.R. Gardens have bought our team Ts and Hoodies from their range. Organic fabrics really do feel different! Check out their bamboo fabric for ultimate comfort. So nice though, you may not want to wear them for gardening!