Notcutts Rivendell Garden Centre

Garden Centre Reviews

Notcutts Rivendell Garden Centre

Click the picture to enlarge it.

We visited Rivendell in late October time when they had their full interior displays for Christmas. This is a large garden centre with extensive indoor and outdoor sales areas so we were looking forward to reviewing it.

This is a totally independent GardenAction opinion of Notcutts Rivendell Garden Centre in the Widnes area. Click any picture to enlarge it.

PLANTS AREA

The outdoor plants area is mainly open to the elements with only a small area under cover. Some thought has gone into the design of the area to make it appealing. Few straight paths and a few island displays make it more interesting compared to many other garden centres.

Specific plants are easy to find with large and informative overhead signs.

There was a good selection of plants on offer here although not the 3,000 claimed on the Notcutts website. You are unlikely to be disappointed with the varieties available.

What you will be disappointed with however, is the quality of some of the plants. The seasonal plants were in excellent condition but many of the other plants were sharing their pots with an inordinate amount of weeds. Whilst the picture on the left (click to enlarge) is one of the worst examples, some others were similar.

It's simply not acceptable to sell plants in a garden centre in pots containing a hundred or so weeds. The quality of the hardy plants is not up the standards of most other garden centres. We noted one row of plants which were dead.

INDOOR SALES AREA

With Christmas being only 7 weeks away at the time of our visit, the indoor sales area was understandably biased towards Christmas gifts and decorations. The range on offer was extensive although the displays were rather boringly arranged. One of the better ones is shown left.
A full range of gardening accessories is available at all times of year and the average gardener will find what they want at the Rivendell Garden Centre.

CAFE

The range of food on offer was good. Five main meals were available for around �6 to �7. They also served paninis at �5, baked potatoes at �4.25 and salads at �7. The food is on display at the counter which is good.

We sampled the scampi and chips and wished we hadn't! The scampi was dangerously luke-warm, not a good sign especially for a fish dish. Bizarrely, while we were being served the assistant was checking the temperature of some of the hot meals.

The interior is furnished with cheap-looking laminated furniture and the unattractive metal ceiling beams were uncovered. Having said that, the whole area was clean and the staff were pleasant. There were no queues at the time of our visit to the cafe at the Rivendell Garden centre.

PET CENTRE
The company website claims that Rivendell's have an extensive pet centre. At the time of our visit we saw none.

AQUATICS
There was a large aquatics centre stocking a large range of healthy looking fish. It also has an excellent range of fish feeds and aquatics accessories.

GARDEN SHEDS / GREENHOUSES
A franchise is on site selling a good range of garden sheds and a fair range of greenhouses.

WATER FEATURES
There was a reasonable range of water features for sale.

HOUSE PLANTS
When we visited we saw no house plants for sale. This may well have been because the Christmas displays had taken their place.

SPECIALITIES
None

TOILETS
Well past their sell by date but clean and functional. As well as ladies gents there were toilets for the disabled as well as baby changing facilities.

CAR PARKING
The car park was flat and well drained with lots of spaces.

DIRECTIONS AND CONTACT
The address is:
Notcutts Rivendell Garden Centre,
Mill Lane,
Widnes,
Cheshire WA8 3UL

Tel: 0151 423 2638
Email: info@rivendellgc.co.uk
Website: http://www.notcutts.co.uk/rivendell/

A map can be found HERE

Our sat nav

DISABLED ACCESS
There is good disabled access around the garden centre both inside and out. The paths were wide and flat with no significant obstructions. Wheelchairs, availble at the entrance, were free.

OPENING HOURS
Monday - Friday 9am to 5.30pm
Saturday 9am to 6pm
Sunday 10.30am to 4.30pm

SUMMARY
A well-arranged plants area but let down by the quality of the plants. The indoor sales area is extensive and unlikely to disappoint.

STAR RATINGS
The lowest rating is 1 star, the highest rating is 5 stars.

AREA RATED STAR RATING

Plants