The Very Great Outdoors

The gang’s all here… SUN27NOV22

hey’re a happy bunch up at Ourdoor Living by the Glen Of The Downs woods.

And sure, why wouldn’t they be?

They’re sitting pretty on 75,000 square feet of garden goodies, with everything you could ever need to make that green patch just outside your window a home just outside your home.

And with the biggest display of outdoor furniture in the land – we’re talking over 300 set-ups to choose from, from chalet-style options to gorgeous gazebos – Outdoor Living have a great escape to suit everyone’s space, taste and budget.

A garden centre for all seasons, the mantra here seems to be, no matter what the weather, the living is easy.

Swinging by on this sunny Sunday afternoon, it was easy to lose track of time in a place like this, given the sheer size of the layout, and the seemingly endless ranges of garden furniture, BBQs, flower pots, garden tools, plants, artificial lawns, water features, patio accessories, greenhouses, benches, fire pits and beyond.

It’s a good thing too that they have tea and coffee, agus snacks, on offer.

And right now, a chunk of it is up to 70% off. Which is nice. And given that there’s so, so much to choose from, thank Elvis they also have gift vouchers.

And just to spread some extra love and caffeine, the Outdoor gang even hand out free coffees on the first Friday of every month, from 9.30am to 12pm.

And then there’s their great big Christmas shop up and twinkling right now, with a wide range of decorations (including inflatable Santas and snowmen plus 7ft outdoor Christmas trees made up entirely of fairy lights) and gift ideas. In the bauble section, there’s an instore-only 3-for-2 special on Christmas decorations, whilst outside, Eoin is yer man for those 2metre-plus Premium Nordmann fir Christmas trees. Just €59, or you can grab yourself an easy-fix stand along with your Nordmann Christmas tree for just €79.99, saving yourself a handy tenner.

And that’s just what we spotted today. You can find out lots more over on the Outdoor Living website here, and check out their full range of sale specials right over here, many running till December 31st.

That this should all be the vision of pretty much one man is remarkable, but it was during his time doing thyme over in Kilquade that Pat Kelly began to think that his garden centre could be bigger. And much, much better.

As fate would have it, it was also around this time that the long-standing Glen Of The Downs purple patch of a garden centre sandwiched between the N11 and Ballydonagh Lane came on the market.

“I just couldn’t believe my luck when Horkan’s went up for sale,” says Pat. “This is the original of the species in Wicklow when it comes to garden centres, and to be able to bring my family’s years of experience to this perfect location, it’s literally been a dream come true…”

Just how that dream came to blossom, we decided to find out when we sat down with the man himself…

Outdoor Living at Glen Of The Downs is open Monday to Saturday 9.30am to 5.30pm and Sundays 12pm to 5.30pm. Further details here.