Italian Trip
01/03/2023
Vicky and I recently travelled to Tuscany to hand pick this season’s selection of large trees. There are no less than 186 nurseries in the Pistoia region covering a total of 1,482 acres so it was a pretty epic task! Each day started in Vannucci with an 8.30am catch up with our sales rep before heading out in the Fiat or golf buggy for a full day at the nurseries tagging hundreds of plants. We set cost and retail prices, as well as homing the plants all at the same time. Usually the day finished at around 6:30pm, giving us the chance to make the most of the fantastic food and drink before getting back to work, putting all the days’ orders onto the computer. It was a really successful visit and we can’t wait for you to see some of our amazing finds! – Will Clark, Plant Area Manager
The trees have now arrived in store! Discover them all in our outside plant area.
Top Plants of the Trip
Cornus Venus – A real rarity! A very unusual tree with beautiful white flower bracts in late spring followed by raspberry like fruits in autumn coupled with amazing autumn colour. Truly stunning.
Wisteria Yokohama Fuji Arch – Stunning rich violet buds open to lilac purple, richly scented flowers up to 15cm long. This specimen is trained over a huge arch, an absolute showstopper, great to mark an entrance.
Yucca Rostrata – This specimen has a woody, tree like stem with evergreen glaucous blue/green leaves. Produces striking large white flower spikes in summer.
Salix Babylonica (Weeping Willow) – A real feature of a tree, we would describe the form as a firework with a spreading crown of weeping branches. Long finely toothed leaves, green with a grey blue underside, slender catkins in spring. Eye catching stem.
