YORK'S newest plant and seedlings shop has been doing a roaring trade since opening on Saturday.

Business was non-stop all day at The Plant Shop, based in Homestead Park, on the first day of opening, says project co-ordinator Mark Draper.

"It was a really good day! Sunday was a bit quieter, because of the weather. But it was a good weekend. Gardening is obviously right up there on people's minds at the moment!"

The shop is a partnership between the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, which runs Homestead Park, and Blueberry Community Enterprise, which supports adults with a learning disability to develop the skills and confidence they need to find a job.

It is stocked and run by Blueberry, with a range of herbs, plants and seedlings all grown in Homestead Park's own glasshouses.

There are also crafts on sale.

“We are very excited about the opening of our plant shop," said Andrew Cambridge, director of the Blueberry Academy. "We have had trainees working in the Homestead Park and behind the scenes in their glasshouses, and this partnership with the Joseph Rowmntree Foundation goes from strength to the strength.

"The hard work of Mark Draper and the rest of the team has been fantastic.”

Dan Booth, the landscape manager at Homestead Park, added: “Our team have developed an excellent relationship with Blueberry Academy over the last three years and this new and exciting venture boosts our partnership even further.

"Visitors have always enjoyed our plant sales but with our colleagues at Blueberry we are hoping to take it to another level with a wider variety of plants and other craft items for sale. The team from Blueberry Community Enterprise have worked really hard to get this off the ground and we are sure it will be a great success”.

The Plant Shop is open four days a week, on Mondays and Fridays from 10am-2pm and Saturdays and Sundays from 10am-3pm. Details of plants available for sale can be found at facebook.com/HomesteadThePlantShop or facebook.com/HomesteadPark