INTERVIEW
Peter Alexander and Mrs Thompson at Knighton Christmas Tree Farm
before being distributed around the
various garden centres. Some of the
baby plants are grown on at our other
two nurseries on the Island.
Thompson’s Garden Centre also
took over the Shide Christmas Tree
on the edge of Newport site in 2000.
The trees are grown on a 10-acre
site, and sold just before Christmas
each year on the adjoining site. A
year later they acquired 100 acres of
land at Knighton, and began planting
Christmas trees there.
Mrs Thompson recalls: “David was
on the tractor and I was passing him
the plants. The first year we planted
40,000 trees, and it takes about seven
to eight years to produce good sized
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trees. We now plant each year 20,000
trees, as well as 1,000 pot grown trees
to sell as a living tree. Our Island
grown Christmas trees are now sent to
our other four garden centres on the
mainland, as well as supplying Shide
Christmas trees and our garden centre
at Newchurch.”
“David’s main ‘mission statement’
was to grow in our own nurseries 90
per cent of all the plants that we sell at
our Garden Centres and source the rest
from British growers. Our customers
should be looked after and served by
knowledgeable staff to ensure the best
possible customer service.”
Sadly, David passed away in July
2008, aged 67. Mrs Thompson added:
“The Knighton site was a wonderful
legacy that he left us. He worked
so hard throughout his life, and he
loved that site working among the
Christmas trees. He was more or less
in semi-retirement, but was out there
with the birds and the animals, and
that is what he wanted.”
Peter Alexander is the senior manager
on the Island. He now oversees the
three production nurseries here and
runs the Christmas Tree Farm and
Shide trees.
Mrs Thompson added: “David would
have been thrilled to know that in
2010 one of our Norway spruces was
awarded ‘Best Spruce’ by the British
Christmas Tree Growers Association.”