SMALL really is beautiful according to the customers of the Green Pastures Plant Centre and farm shop at Bergh Apton which has been crowned the Greatest Plant Sales Team in the Eastern region in a national competition.

SMALL really is beautiful according to the customers of the Green Pastures Plant Centre and farm shop at Bergh Apton which has been crowned the Greatest Plant Sales Team in the Eastern region in a national competition.

The public were invited to vote for their favourite garden centre people in a bid to find which teams of staff go that extra mile to make their customers happy.

The national competition is organised by Garden Media and Communication Company Limited.

The Bergh Apton-based enterprise is a small family business with a full-time staff of just four, Al and Rita Evans, daughter Michelle and apprentice Jack. Last year the team also opened a farm shop on the same Mill Road site.

As part of the competition customers were invited to comment on what sets their favourite garden centre apart from the rest.

“They always greet you with a sunny smile” and “You are always treated as a friend” were typical of some of the comments highlighted in the votes for Green Pastures.

The Evans family were presented with their award by England cricket star Mark Ramprakash in Birmingham last week.

“I see this as a real victory against the big boys” said Al. “Many of the other category winners were large multi-million pound garden centres so we began to think we had no chance.”

The Greatest Plant Sales Team is the only award of its kind decided by customers rather than a judging panel within the industry.