A WEST Devon nursery scooped a top award in a national competition last week.

Hewton Nursery, run by Nigel Timpson at Hole's Hole near Bere Alston, won the Four Oaks Nursery Stock Grower of the Year award in recognition of the quality of his plants and the exceptional service offered by his nursery.

Peter Rogers, editor of Grower magazine which organised the awards, said Hewton Nursery was regarded as 'a highly professional company at the forefront of the young plant industry'.

The Grower of the Year awards recognise individual and corporate achievements in British horticulture.

Mr Timpson travelled to Harrogate to attend the prize giving ceremony.

He said he was 'still surprised' at coming away with the top trophy.

'I didn't think we would win, I thought the competition was quite tough, but I am really pleased,' he said.

Mr Timpson paid tribute to the part his staff played in winning the award.

'It's a team effort, I know everybody says that, but it is important. Obviously these things very much rely on the efforts of everyone.'

The nursery, established as a shrub liner producer 23 years ago, now employs 30 full-time staff — a major employer on the Bere Peninsula.

The importance Mr Timpson places on his workforce was recognised officially when the nursery was awarded Investor in People status.

Mr Timpson said winning a national award may enable him to expand his business further.

'I hope it will mean quite a lot. Certainly it will give us some good exposure within the trade, there is a certain amount of prestige involved in it and it raises our profile,' he said.

Hewton Nursery has expanded its business considerably over the last five years in both the UK and abroad.

Its sales have increased by 68 per cent and this year's turnover is expected to be in excess of £1.3-million, with approximately 350 customers throughout the UK.

The business sells young stock to many leading wholesale nurseries in the country from its 1.5 hectares of glasshouses and polythene tunnels, where around 1.4-million plants are grown annually.

Mr Timpson is involved in many aspects of the horticulture industry, being chairman and founder of the Association of Liner Producers, a member of the International Plant Propagators Society and other national committees.