Island Life Magazine Ltd October/November 2006 | Page 63

GARDENING

The Christmas
WOW factor!

The gardens are open from
11am – 5.30pm Sunday to
Thursday until 29th October.
Admission charges apply.

Island Life - www.isleofwight.net

Chris Lesley and his dedicated team from the
Busy Bee Garden Centre in Ryde, have pulled
out all the stops this year for Christmas. Chris
commented:
“Last year we had a bit of a late start due to
building works being carried out at the Garden
Centre, however now all the works are complete
it has given us another 7,500 square feet to create
this year’s Christmas Wonderland and believe me,
it will be spectacular to say the least.”
Chris is known on the Island as Mr Christmas
because of the spectacular displays which he
seems to improve on year upon year.
“It’s about being ahead of the game. I order my
Christmas stock almost a year in advance and the
trick is predicting what is going to be the trend
12 months before it happens. This year is quite
special as we have just finished the extension
to create more sales space, so there will be more
variety for the customer.”
In addition to the extension to the sales floor,
Chris has also just completed a large conservatory
extension to the Busy Bee cafe:
“I have tried to create an oasis. The new area
is light and breezy and for the summer months
we have incorporated a large glass sliding roof
and of course it all overlooks the downland. I
hope that I have managed to create a real relaxing
atmosphere which customers will like.”
Part of the Busy Bee tradition is to sponsor
Isle of Wight Radio’s “Wight in Lights”. This is a
competition to find the best lit property on the
Island leading up to the Christmas period. The
judges look for creativity, theme, animation,