Garden Centre Research Team
Eight garden centres and nurseries sit across north and east London, from Crews Hill and Enfield in the north round through Bounds Green, Woodford Green and Ilford to Romford and Poplar. Two specialist nurseries sit two kilometres apart in Enfield, which makes that corner of the city the most efficient plant-buying trip in London — you can compare them properly in one morning rather than driving across the capital.
Four of the eight are reachable on public transport, which matters more here than anywhere else in this directory. All eight are below, each linking to its full listing with current opening hours and directions.
Quick picks
- The best plant trip in London — Clockhouse Nursery and Glebe Nursery, both in Enfield, both 4.8, two kilometres apart. Do them together.
- Trees and hedging — Thompsons at Crews Hill, wholesale and retail, open from 8:30am.
- A plant guarantee — Sunshine Garden Centre at Bounds Green carries a five-year plant guarantee.
- No car — Sunshine is near Bounds Green tube, and Plant World London is a short walk from Poplar DLR.
- Tropicals, cacti and succulents — Plant World London in Poplar.
- Garden furniture — Garden Living at Romford, or Sunshine’s Weber BBQ World store.
How the area breaks up
Crews Hill and Enfield form one genuine cluster in the far north, where the city runs out into nursery land — three of these eight are within a few minutes of each other there, and it is the only part of London where you can compare specialist nurseries side by side rather than driving across the city between them. Bounds Green sits inside the North Circular. East of the Lea, Woodford Green, Ilford and Romford follow the A12 and A118 out towards Essex. Poplar is the outlier, an urban plant shop rather than a garden centre.
If you are planning one trip, make it Enfield and Crews Hill. If you are buying furniture or a barbecue rather than plants, Romford and Bounds Green serve better.
Enfield and Crews Hill
Clockhouse Nursery
A specialist nursery at Enfield, and the one reviewers say is worth the trip from further afield — specifically because of the staff expertise rather than the range or the setting. That is the right reason to choose a nursery: someone who can tell you why the last one died. It carries hardy plants and a wide variety, with on-site parking, and opens seven days on seasonal hours — 9am to 5pm from February to October, 9am to 4pm from November to January. Call ahead for specific plant requests. Rated 4.8 on its listing.
Glebe Nursery
Also Enfield, and two kilometres from Clockhouse — so there is no reason to choose between them. A small independent dealing in specialist plants and unusual varieties, with expert advice and parking, and it is dog friendly. Because it is a smaller site, a focused visit works better than an open-ended browse: go knowing roughly what you want, or what problem you are trying to solve, and call ahead about unusual varieties. Between Glebe and Clockhouse you have two specialist plant sources within a few minutes of each other — a rare thing in London. Rated 4.5 from 119 reviews.
Thompsons Garden Centre
A large site at Crews Hill trading both wholesale and retail, with a big car park, cut flowers, bedding, and — the reason to come — trees and hedging. Buying a hedge from a wholesale-retail nursery is considerably cheaper than buying it plant by plant from a retail centre, and this is the place in London set up to do it. Early opening from 8:30am Monday to Saturday suits trade visits before the main rush, and suits anyone wanting to load a car without an audience. Call ahead for tree and hedging stock availability. Crews Hill has several garden centres, so combine it with Clockhouse, two kilometres away. Rated 4.1 from 458 reviews.
Inside the North Circular
Sunshine Garden Centre
An award-winning independent at Bounds Green, and the most complete offer in this group: a five-year plant guarantee, a 65-space free car park, Café Sol-E-Mio on site, and a Weber BBQ World store. The guarantee is the thing worth planning around — it changes the calculation on an expensive shrub or tree, and it needs the receipt. It is close to Bounds Green tube, which makes it the most practical choice in this guide for anyone without a car. Three practical points: café last orders are mid-afternoon and earlier on Sundays, seasonal stock sells quickly so visit early in the season, and the car park fills on busy Saturdays — mornings or late afternoons are quieter. Ask in store about the free loyalty card. Rated 4.6 from 1,418 reviews.
Plant World London
An urban plant shop in Poplar rather than a garden centre — tropicals, cacti, succulents and rare varieties, which is exactly the right stock list for a flat with good windows and no garden. It is easily reached from Poplar DLR, so no car is needed. Two things to know: it is closed Monday and Tuesday, opening Wednesday to Sunday, and there are very few public reviews so far, so call ahead to confirm availability of specific tropical varieties rather than travelling on spec. Rated 5.0 from 8 reviews.
East along the A12
Redbridge Garden Centre
Family run at Woodford Green, with a large outdoor section, seasonal plants, houseplants and on-site parking. Dogs on leads are welcome in the outdoor areas. It is the most straightforward general garden centre in east London — a place to buy bedding, compost and a shrub without a special journey. Sunday hours are shorter than weekdays, 10am to 4pm. Call ahead for plant availability if you want something specific. Rated 4.3 from 516 reviews.
Forest Road Garden Centre
A family-run nursery at Ilford with a wide plant variety, houseplants, trees and shrubs, competitive prices and on-site parking. Spring and summer bedding sell fast, so visit early in the season if you are planting containers or a bedding scheme — by late June the choice at any nursery is what nobody else wanted. Weekday mornings are quieter. Call ahead to check availability of specific plants. Rated 4.4 from 304 reviews.
Garden Living
At Romford, and weighted towards indoor and outdoor living rather than horticulture — garden furniture, gifts and homewares alongside plants and shrubs, with a café and on-site parking. That makes it the right stop if furniture is the reason for the trip and plants are incidental, rather than the other way round. Furniture is popular through spring and summer, so go early in the season for the best choice. Sunday opening is 10am to 4pm, shorter than weekdays. Rated 4.5 from 262 reviews.
Comparing them at a glance
| Centre | Best for | Café | Transport | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clockhouse, Enfield | Expertise, hardy plants | No | Car | Open 7 days · seasonal hours |
| Glebe, Enfield | Unusual varieties | No | Car | Dog friendly · small site |
| Thompsons, Crews Hill | Trees & hedging | No | Car | Wholesale & retail · opens 8:30 |
| Sunshine, Bounds Green | Everything, guarantee | Café Sol-E-Mio | Bounds Green tube | 5-year plant guarantee · 65 spaces |
| Redbridge, Woodford Green | General garden centre | — | Car | Dogs on leads outdoors · short Sundays |
| Forest Road, Ilford | Value, bedding | — | Car | Go early in the season |
| Garden Living, Romford | Furniture, homewares | Yes | Car | Short Sundays · plants secondary |
| Plant World, Poplar | Tropicals, cacti, rare | No | Poplar DLR | ⚠️ Closed Mon & Tue |
Practical notes for this area
Do Enfield and Crews Hill as one trip. Clockhouse, Glebe and Thompsons are all within a few minutes of each other, and between them cover expert advice, unusual varieties, and trees and hedging at wholesale-retail prices. There is no comparable concentration anywhere else in London.
Four of these need no car. Sunshine is near Bounds Green tube and Plant World is a short walk from Poplar DLR. Redbridge and Forest Road are both in well-served parts of east London. If you are buying a few plants rather than a boot-load, that is a real option.
Check Sunday hours before travelling. Redbridge and Garden Living both close at 4pm on Sundays, earlier than their weekday hours, and Plant World is closed Mondays and Tuesdays entirely.
Seasonal note, September 2026: autumn is the right time to plant a hedge or a tree, and bare-root stock — much cheaper than containerised for a hedging run — becomes available from around November to March. That is when Thompsons at Crews Hill is worth a specific visit. Bedding at Forest Road and Redbridge is a spring purchase made early rather than late. Christmas and seasonal stock at Sunshine sells quickly, so go at the start of the season rather than the end.
Common questions
Which garden centre in London is best for plants?
Clockhouse Nursery and Glebe Nursery, both specialist nurseries in Enfield, sit two kilometres apart and are best treated as one trip. Reviewers at Clockhouse specifically say the staff expertise justifies travelling from further afield.
Where can I buy hedging or trees in London?
Thompsons Garden Centre at Crews Hill, which trades wholesale as well as retail and opens from 8:30am Monday to Saturday. Call ahead for stock availability. Bare-root hedging, which is considerably cheaper for a run of hedge, is a winter purchase.
Which garden centres can I reach by tube or DLR?
Sunshine Garden Centre is near Bounds Green tube, and Plant World London is easily reached from Poplar DLR. Just across the boundary in Essex, two more are reachable on the Central line from Loughton and Epping.
Which has a plant guarantee?
Sunshine Garden Centre at Bounds Green carries a five-year plant guarantee. Guarantees generally apply to hardy plants rather than bedding, and you will need the receipt.
Where can I buy houseplants and tropicals?
Plant World London in Poplar specialises in tropicals, cacti, succulents and rare varieties, and is closed Mondays and Tuesdays. Redbridge at Woodford Green and Forest Road at Ilford both carry houseplant ranges alongside their outdoor stock.
Nearby areas
East across the boundary into Essex, fourteen more sit around Epping, Harlow, Loughton and Ongar — including two reachable from the Central line and the best-rated Essex centre at any real scale. West, a further group runs through Ruislip, Harrow and Stanmore into the Chilterns.
Ratings and review counts were sampled from public Google reviews in September 2026 and will drift over time. Observations attributed to reviewers are editorial summaries of recurring themes, not verbatim quotes, and are not our own assessment. Opening hours and plant guarantee terms change — check the individual listing or contact the business before travelling.
