Plas Newydd's dazzling crocus purple patch

Llangollen’s historic Plas Newydd has once again been transformed into a stunning sea of purple and white as thousands of crocuses burst into bloom across its lawns.

Visitors to the picturesque site are being treated to a spectacular display of colour, marking the arrival of spring in the heart of North Wales.

Crocuses are among the first flowers to bloom in late winter to early spring, often appearing as early as February.

The vibrant flowers provide a crucial source of nectar and pollen for early-emerging bees and other pollinators.

The gardens at Plas Newydd are renowned for their romantic setting and rich history, famously associated with the Ladies of Llangollen. Lady Eleanor Butler and Miss Sarah Ponsonby made the site their home in the late 18th century and were lovers of nature and gardening.

The Ladies transformed the grounds into a romantic landscape filled with exotic plants, winding paths, waterfalls and decorative features that still enchant visitors today. The vibrant crocus display is a fitting tribute to their love of horticulture, adding to the beauty of the gardens they once cultivated.

The flowers are currently in full bloom and are expected to be at their peak for a further week. Visitors and photographers are encouraged to take advantage of this spectacular seasonal highlight before they fade for another year. The grounds of Plas Newydd in Llangollen are free to visit daily with gates closing at dusk.

Jillian Howe, National Landscape Community Engagement Officer, said: “The crocus display at Plas Newydd is always a breath-taking sight and this year’s bloom is truly exceptional. It’s wonderful to see so many visitors enjoying the gardens, just as the Ladies of Llangollen once did. Come and experience this stunning seasonal spectacle whilst the blooms are at their best!”

Councillor Alan James, Lead Member for Local Development and Planning added: “Plas Newydd is a historic gem that we are lucky enough to have on our doorstep here in Denbighshire. The historic property offers a unique exploration of a wealth of history and is a brilliant place to visit for all ages.”

 

Panto group hand over £2,500 to their chosen charities

* Above and below: Cast and crew of Beauty and the Beast line up for the cheque presentations to their two chosen charities.

Llangollen Pantomime group held their awards night and fundraising presentation at the RAFA Club on Saturday night. 

The fantastic response from the Llangollen and surrounding community, which provided full houses every night of the latest show, Beauty and the Beast, enabled them to raise £2,000 for Hope House Ty Gobaith Hospice, whose representative, Vicky Bradbeer, was presented with a cheque for that amount.The group also raised funds for Llangollen Parks Group and Jess Evans received a cheque for £500 which will go towards their next project refurbishing Pengwern Park.

The group's Neil Barrett said: "It’s been a fantastic time for Llangollen’s Panto. 

"Beauty and the Beast went down a storm with everyone who came to watch our performances enabling us to give an amazing amount to our chosen charities.

"We can't wait to get started on our next production in January 2026."

County council reminds residents to sign up for garden waste service

Denbighshire’s garden waste subscription service will reopen to residents tomorrow Monday, March 3 with a revised payment structure which comes into effect from April 1. 

Following a temporary suspension of the subscription process earlier this year to allow for an essential upgrade, subscriptions will be available again from 8am on Monday.

 

The council is encouraging residents who are subscribing for the first time to do this in good time to ensure their container can be delivered in time for April 1 and to take full advantage of the 12-month service.

 

Those residents who have an existing subscription which extends beyond April 1 will only pay a proportion of the 12-month subscription fee - from their renewal date to March 31 2026.

 

The revised subscription service will run for a 12-month period from April 1 to March 31 each year with online subscriptions costing £45 this year. 

There is an additional £5 administration cost for subscription requests via the contact centre or the council’s One-Stop-Shops. Subscription fees are reviewed each year in line with inflation rates. Thereafter, from April 1 2026, all renewals, subscriptions, and upgrades will run in line with the financial year.

 

Denbighshire offers the two-weekly service as an optional and cost-effective way of recycling garden waste. With 26 collections per year, this equates to roughly £1.74 per collection. The subscription charge is necessary in order for the council to deliver this non-statutory service.

 

Councillor Barry Mellor, Lead Member for Environment and Transport, said: “Ahead of the rollout of the new garden waste subscription service, I would like to remind residents who want to sign up to do so at their earliest convenience to account for the delivery time of any new bins and to take advantage of the full 12-month service.

 

“We recognise that some residents experienced an interruption to their garden waste service during 2024, and as a gesture of goodwill the council will hold last year’s price for those affected residents for the 2025/26 period.”

 

Residents can check whether they have a live subscription on the bin collection dates page of the council’s website on www.denbighshire.gov.uk/bin-collection-dates

 

A5 collision warning from police

 

Cefn people want to cash in on aqueduct's tourist boom

Cefn Mawr, a former industrial community located within a World Heritage Site, is seeking to benefit from the area's booming tourism industry. 

Despite being a stone's throw away from the increasingly popular Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, people living in the historic village say they feel overlooked.

* For the full story, see Wales Online at: 'Forgotten' Welsh village wants to cash in on tourism boom at world-famous aqueduct - Wales Online 

MS 'extremely concerned' for North Wales tourism industry

* Llangollen is one of North Wales's key tourist destinations.

Sam Rowlands, Member of the Welsh Parliament for North Wales, is backing a protest to raise awareness of the controversial new tourist tax. 

He fears introducing the proposed visitor levy will seriously impact businesses in North East Wales and is supporting the Welsh Association of Visitor Attractions (WAVA) who are protesting on March 1, St David’s Day, with a number of attractions set to close for the day. 

 

Last November the Welsh Government said they planned to introduce a levy of £1.25 per night for people staying in commercially-let overnight visitor accommodation from 2027.

 

Mr Rowlands, Chairman of the Cross-Party Group on Tourism, is totally against the tax and has continually expressed concern for the future of tourism in his region if it goes ahead.

 

He said: “The whole situation is becoming very serious and my heart goes out to anyone involved in the tourism industry in North Wales as it is not getting the support it should.

 

“The Welsh Government is quite clearly not interested in helping to promote and expand our tourist industry.

 

“First of all they introduced the crippling 182-day threshold for holiday lets, which will force many self-catering businesses to close, then came the disastrous 20mph default speed limit and now they have the tourism tax to look forward to.

 

“I think the action by the WAVA speaks for itself and just shows how worried businesses are in North Wales. 

 

“It is a real shame that WAVA members believe the only way to highlight their growing concerns and to get their message across is to close their businesses on a day at the weekend.

 

“ I remain extremely concerned over this constant war on the tourism industry. It is high time they and everyone who works in this sector were supported by the Welsh Government.

 

“Tourism is big business in North Wales but the Welsh Government policies are seriously impacting the industry and I really do fear for the future.”

 

Customers love clever Suzuki with its own voice

Suzuki Vitara drive by Steve Rogers

Clever car this Vitara. Not only does it get you from A to B but gives the sort of caring advice you get from your mum.

I had only been driving 15 minutes when a message popped up saying I was ‘looking drowsy and should take a rest’. Thoughtful.

I had just come off a windy golf course and was feeling as fresh as a daisy but Vitara has a new driver monitoring system that keeps an eye on your eyes and lets you know if you're not looking dead ahead. A little on the over sensitive side but it must have worked because I never got the message again.

Vitara, now in its 37th year, is still going strong although its role switched from big off roader to small SUV a decade ago, plunging Vitara into a hornets nest of crossovers, trying to keep pace rather than jumping to the head of the pack.

In that time nothing much has happened to Vitara. Suzuki would say there is nothing to fix and that is true when it comes to reliability. Customers love it and keep coming back.

This year’s refresh concentrated on new technology and additional safety with lane assist, speed control, driver monitoring and an emergency call button standard on Motion and Ultra models. Braking the car to a stop, if the driver doesn’t, in the event of a collision with vehicle or people has been sharpened with improved reaction at night.

A restyled grille and bumper is the main change to the body but the significant improvements are in the cabin with a new media centre and larger nine inch screen. Response time is fast enough and takes no time getting to grips with it. Heating control buttons are neatly laid out below the screen.

On the surface everything sounds fine but there is no getting away from the fact that the layout is dated. While rivals have a digital driver’s binnacle, Vitara has old school dials. There are a couple of pencil-like prodders to select various pieces of car information displayed between the speedo and rev counter which also houses a digital speed readout but that disappears when scrolling through the menu.

Yet you can’t help liking and admiring Vitara whose appeal lies in its simplicity. Get behind the wheel and get on with it; there is no wasting time learning how everything works. Perhaps being dated has its advantages. Heating controls are chunky knobs and buttons, and there is a bank of easy to reach switches for functions often found hiding in a touchscreen sub menu, the most annoying culprit is lane assist which I only use for motorway driving so a round of applause to Suzuki for fitting a simple on/off button.

Vitara has two trim grades, Motion and Ultra and a choice of, 1.4 turbo petrol mild hybrid, or a 1.5 litre full hybrid automatic both available with all wheel drive. Suzuki does not skimp on spec and buyers should take a serious look at Motion which has just about all you need and costs less than Ultra which, surprisingly, did not have heated front seats.

I was mightily impressed with the gutsy 1.4 litre Allgrip that is good fun mated to a slick six speed manual box, and excelled on economy always in the high forties and returning 57mpg on a 175 mile trip where the adaptive cruise control took away the stress on a busy motorway.

Vitara is a decent sized family car, not the roomiest of the pack and you will find more boot space in a Toyota Yaris Cross or Ford Puma, but is big enough and I liked the twin level boot floor that gave a flat loading area.

The ride is on the hard side and you really feel pothole thuds sitting in the back. Apart from creaking trim around the sunroof, build quality on my test car was good, it is just a pity that Suzuki favours too much hard plastic trim.

This is a big year for Vitara because it is going electric so it will be interesting to see if there are any major changes when the car is launched in the summer. In the meantime there is zero finance on a new Vitara until the end of March which is a nice sweetener for those looking for a refresh.

Fast facts

Vitara Ultra Allgrip

£30,449 (starts £26,945)

1.4 litre Boosterjet; 127bhp

0-62mph 10.2secs; 121mph

52.3mpg combined

128g/km. 1st road tax £220

Boot: 362 litres

Insurance group 22