THE former Plowman’s nursery in West Parley will reopen today after being taken over by popular brand Baskets and Blooms.

Ex-boss Vic Plowman still owns the freehold but will no longer be working at the popular garden centre.

Instead it will be run by Baskets and Blooms, which also has a base in Stuckton, near Fordingbridge.

Spokeswoman for the company, Tracy Harris, told the Daily Echo: “Baskets and Blooms is both a plant grower and retailer and the brand has become very popular.

“The car park was over capacity and we were attracting people from a wide area so we decided to look for a second site to serve this area.

“We have been closed for the last six weeks for refurbishment and 70 per cent of the site has been redeveloped. The rest will be done over the winter.”

She added: “We are local growers and have been supplying Plowmans for years.”

Earlier this year the nursery was being leased by a company called Home and Garden.

Home and Garden went into administration in April and the nursery was briefly closed. They said the devastating weather conditions brought by the Beast from the East contributed to the downfall of the business.

Mr Plowman, who built up a loyal customer base and good reputation over 25 years at the nursery, took over and opened it up again until someone else could be found to run it. He said he was unable to do so long-term due to ill health.

At the time he told the Daily Echo: “I have to get up at 4am to do a 600-mile round trip to get plants and that is not something I can keep up forever because of my heart problem.”

The closure of the business upset customers, many of whom had been using the centre, in Christchurch Road, near to Bournemouth Airport, for years.

Plowmans was also the home of a miniature railway which attracted thousands of customers, particularly for its popular Santa rides which took children through a tunnel of festive gifts.