Stewarts Office Plants

We supply many businesses across the South, from Sussex and Surrey, through Hampshire and Dorset to Wiltshire and Somerset. For more information about the services we offer visit our home page, or contact us here. In this blog you'll find news, interesting snippets, stories and pictures of our staff's adventures out on the road.

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

All ready for Christmas...

Apart from a shopping centre who had their trees weeks ago, the first of our customers received their fully-decorated Christmas trees this week. Here's a photo of a a few more all ready to go out.


Unfortunately, all the red & gold ones are at the front, but we also do some great combinations of silver, blue, burgundy, black, lime green (honestly!), bronze, etc. etc.
Delivering 72 trees to Dorset, Hampshire and Surrey in three weeks is quite a challenge; the real challenge is collecting them all between New Year and Twelfth Night. That's three working days!!!
As Rebecca said above, if this service interests you, then contact us in early autumn next year and we'll send you a 2008 price list.

Friday, November 16, 2007

What a difference a respray can make...


Rather than being a plain gloss colour, a lot of our latest planters are finished in matt metallic shades, which look great; a lot less plasticky (is that how you spell it?).

This looks just as good on more traditionally-styled planters, such as this Zenith planter, which is finished in a matt dark bronze, a perfect match for the brown leather furniture in this recently refurbished reception area in Salisbury.

Apart from our great range of competitively priced new fibreglass pots, we make extensive use of pots that have come back from old rental contracts, then been resprayed by the manufacturer, making them as good as new.

The reason for doing this? It's very economical! This display cost less than £70.00 + VAT; alternatively you could rent it for as little as £7.00 per month, which would include us looking after it for you. If you select the next size down of Zenith pot, we'll do it for even less!
So if you're in our coverage area (Dorchester, Bournemouth, Salisbury, Southampton, Portsmouth, Basingstoke and surrounding areas), and your office plants are in horrible old-fashioned pots, give us a call. You might be surprised how little it costs to upgrade!

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Christmas

Well, the team are well into Christmas now, preparing everything ready to install the Christmas Trees into clients' offices and receptions. This is an extra service that we offer to our clients alongside the office plants. We supply and decorate live and artificial Christmas Trees right around Dorset and Hampshire. Included in the service is collecting them before the twelfth night after Christmas. We are pretty full now with orders, but you are welcome to call to ask if there is any room to squeeze you in. If we are unable to help this year then bear us in mind for next year...put it in your diaries for 2008. It is best to contact us at the end of September or the beginning of October. Happy Christmas.

Thursday, November 08, 2007

No Parking!

I recently installed seventeen plants at a health club in Guildford. The club had a problem with customers parking on the pavement right outside, so rather than having a line of ugly bollards, we put a line of six simple blue square pots planted with Chamaerops palms (my favourite outdoor palm) across the kerb..... and bolted them to the ground!


As I worked, the occasional customer arrived and gave me a very dirty look as I permanently cordoned off 'their' space - job done! Got a similar parking problem? Drop me a line!

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

New balls for Portsmouth Football Club?


No, just 3 Echinocactus, chosen by Pompey for the Reception desk at their new headquarters in Portsmouth. Stewarts Interior Landscaping have recently supplied the Club with plants and containers for each area of the offices in Fratton.

Thursday, September 13, 2007

Stewarts help Hags win gold!

We recently provided the planting to the trade stand of Dorset-based play equipment supplier Hags at a commercial landscaping trade fair in Windsor. They subsequently won the gold medal for their category of stand!

Clearly it wasn't entirely down to the planting we provided, but I bet we tipped the balance in their favour. Quite apart from our contribution, the whole stand looked great, and their gold was well-deserved.



The brief was to plant up two beds that Hags staff would be constructing for us with 'sensory' plants (i.e. scented or tactile plants), so I used thirteen types of plant, three of each, including grasses, lavenders and rosemaries.

Friday, August 10, 2007

Predator bugs


This week, we've been to two of our sites (one in Weybridge, one in Chandlers Ford), releasing insects into the office plants there. Don't believe me? Read on....

We are forbidden by law from using chemical pesticides indoors. Keeping the plants very clean and shiny prevents most pests, but it's impossible to keep large (4m+) trees spotlessly clean all the way up. This is where predator bugs come in. We were treating a common pest called Mealy Bug, by releasing some bugs called Cryptolaemus, which are very small orange ladybirds. We can treat any pest this way, but only on large plants or display beds.
The theory is that the predators start eating the pest, then if there's almost none left their numbers decrease too, so that a stable population is established.
However... They are somewhat frustrating to release, as they seem to be quite happy to stay in the tube in which they are delivered, thank you very much, and don't seem that enamoured with their prey at first. Plus they need releasing in the evening, so a nice late night for me. D'oh!
P.S. It's worth noting that the garden centres sell a whole range of these predators too. You take a card and send it off and they are mailed directly to you.

Monday, August 06, 2007

Gorgeous burgundy rubber plant

I'm in love again!

White/pink-walled office, one of our lovely new burgundy/brown pots and to top it off, a burgundy-leaved rubber plant. My dutch supplier says it's called Ficus Elastica Burgundy or F.E. Abidjan; all I know is it's a real head-turner, and got a lot of attention when we installed it.


You've seen the old-fashioned green rubber plant, well this is similar, but with a deep, glossy dark red colour to the leaves.
As far as I know it's the only one in an office in Southampton, or anywhere in Hampshire & Dorset. Who's going to be second then?

Tuesday, July 03, 2007

Photographic images on display in Dorchester


Some of our wonderful photographic images are on display on canvas in Dorchester, Dorset. Prospect House, part of the Enterprise Group, approached us and asked if we would display our artwork for their one year anniversary of the building. Prospect House is located on the Poundbury development is designed for start up support for new businesses this includes rented office space.


Monday, June 25, 2007

Beautiful Photographic Pictures arrive at Stewarts

Stewarts Hampshire and Dorset Office Plants have just launched an exciting new product. As well as providing tropical indoor plants to many offices in the South we can now offer you unique and stunning photographic art. Perfect for receptions, offices, hotels and restaurants these stunning pictures will enhance your wall space for both your employees and clients to enjoy. The wall art is available as a print or canvas and can be ordered direct from the website or we would be happy to visit you to recommend the perfect colours/images for your space.

Sunday, June 24, 2007

Canvas Wall Art arrives

We have just launched a new website. We are now able to offer beautiful photographic images on quality canvas and prints ideal for your home and office area. Take a look at the beautiful unique picture gallery for you to choose from....they really are stunning. We have just recently sold some of our art work to an exclusive Golf Course in Dorset. Our images will also be displayed soon in an office in Basingstoke and on display in a gallery in Dorchester.

Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Special offer - buy 6 for £320!!

In case you'd like to try your hand at looking after your office plants in-house, why not purchase 6 assorted plant specimens from Stewarts, in smart tapered square containers like the ones shown in the picture, for just £320 + VAT. Round containers are also available.


After some time, if you find you need some help to look after them, we will be pleased to take over and maintain them for you, for a bargain price of £25.00 + VAT per month, which would include any plant replacements needed.
We are happy to offer this service to anyone south of, or on the A303/M3, from Guildford to Exeter, and all points in between (Portsmouth, Southampton, Bournemouth, Basingstoke, etc.).

You don't just have to restrict your plant purchase to 6, of course ...

Let me know if you'd like further details.

Ruth

Monday, May 21, 2007

You missed your chance!

To be the first to have the lovely Ficus Amstel Gold in your office, that is. That honour belongs to a civil engineering company in Ringwood in Hampshire, who took delivery of a pair in simple silver square pots a couple of weeks ago.



Here's a picture of Mike watering them for the first time, which is a reminder that we're famous for the standard of our maintenance service, with our staff having on average ten years service at Stewarts. Very few firms can say that, and having racked up nine years myself, I know that experience is the only way you can master the care of indoor plants.

Jonathan

Thursday, April 26, 2007

New styles and new prices!


In an attempt to make office plants more affordable, we've managed to come up with some excellent stylish new containers at some very reasonable prices. If we've been to see you before and provided a quotation you considered to be too expensive, or if you are considering plants for the first time, we'll price using these new containers. You can have any colour you like (including this great new matt metallic burgundy) and we have some lovely plants to go into them
too.
Hear from you soon!
Ruth

Friday, April 13, 2007

Claire's being creative again!


Our florist Claire has just created this artificial display for a client, using silk poppy flowers. Isn't it great? You could rent something similar, changed for a fresh display every three months, for £10.00 a month. As ever contact us for details!

New just in: Ficus Amstel Gold


Also just off the boat from Holland: an absolutely gorgeous variegated long-leaved Weeping Fig. The lower leaves are two different greens, further up they are almost yellow, and the new foliage at the top is a rusty red. I'm told this plant needs lots of light, so if you have a bright reception area in need of a plant, this could be the one for you. I'm in love with it, I just wish my house wasn't so dark.... If you want to know more get in touch or have a look in Gardenlands, where I pinched the idea from, if I'm honest!

New just in: Dracaena Art


Just off the boat from Holland, a new type of the trusty Dracaena family. It's like the common D. Janet Craig, but with a lovely vivid yellow stripe around the leaf edge. What's more it will cope in a poorly lit spot. Want to be the first office in Dorset or Hampshire to have one? Email me!




Wednesday, April 04, 2007

Hanging Basket Time


It's time to think about hanging baskets! If you want them ready for late May you need to order soon. Stewarts can supply baskets and tubs in a range of sizes to customers in Dorset, Hampshire and South Wiltshire, and we can look after them for you too. We can't offer a daily watering service, but we do install automatic irrigation systems, then visit fortnightly to feed and prune the baskets. Interested? Email Jonathan and you'll be sent a price list for baskets, or we'll come out and see whether a irrigation system could be installed if you wish.

Jonathan here


Hi, I'm in charge of the day-to-day running of Stewarts Office Plants. This involves delivery of new plant displays, and ensuring existing customers receive the highest quality maintenance service. As you can see from the picture, I also handle the removal of particularly tricky plants from their pots, after which I like to pose with my trophy....

If you are an existing customer and you need anything at all, email me without delay!

Monday, April 02, 2007

What a whopper

Roy de Koning from our main container supplier showing off one his huge pots! Of course, we can provide something a bit smaller for your office....
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Finishing touches - Ken Dodd style

Our popular Finishing Touches range is a great opportunity for Claire to try some wacky ideas in her search for creative innovation. Wire, String, Twigs, Bamboo and even feather dusters are pressed into service as embellishments to the living plant. In this case the live plant is the ever popular Anthurium . If you want know more about Finishing Touches then contact us.

Tuesday, March 27, 2007

New website!

Take a look at our shiny new web site: Stewarts Office Plants . We hope you find the albums easy to browse and that the information you need is there for you. If in doubt about anything please call 01202 882463 or contact us here.
Come back here now and again to find out what's happening in the world of office plants.