Summer fun for the whole family at Poplar Garden Centre

Summer at Poplar:

Poplar Garden Centre in Colchester is the perfect place for family‑friendly summer activities, offering a mix of outdoor adventures, creative fun, delicious food, and garden inspiration. Whether you’re visiting with toddlers, teens, parents, or grandparents, Poplar has something for everyone.

Poplar's Animal Trail:

Dates: 18th July - 6th September 2026

Price: £1 per child. No booking required.

All proceeds to charity.

Children's drop-in craft activities:

We will also be running drop-in craft activities twice a week during the school summer holidays from 10am to 2pm on the dates below in our cottage.

Dates: 21st July - Kite workshop

23rd July - Paper plate snails

28th July - Paper plate octopus

30th July - Flower crowns

4th August - Paper plate UFO's

6th August - Sun catchers

11th August - Rainbow art

13th August - Flower pot workshop

18th August - Rocket art

20th August - Paper plate fish

25th August - Ice cream plate

27th August - Hot air balloons

1st September - Caterpillar art

Price: £2 per child. No booking required.

Poplar Miniature Railway:

Suitable for both adults and children, the Poplar Miniature Railway is the only one of its kind in the area and provides those who travel with us the unique opportunity to ride on one of our miniature trains.

Over the years the railway has become a firm favourite with families, opening every weekend and school holidays from February onwards. Suitable for people of all ages but especially for young children, our line runs for 350 yards from the station in front of the play area.

Dates: open everyday from 10am to 4pm (Sunday 10am to 3pm), weather permitting.

Price: Standard tickets £2 for the first ride and £1 thereafter, or all day wristbands are available at £5 for unlimited rides. (Contactlesss payments accepted.) No booking required.

Find full details on our Poplar Miniature Railway page.

Stop for a bite to eat:

Our restaurant is the perfect place to stop and relax for a while. We serve breakfast, lunch as well as coffee and cake. There is ample seating inside, outside and in our conservatory which overlooks the play area, gardens and miniature railway.

As well as our seasonally changing menu, we also offer a variety of Afternoon Teas including Traditional, Savoury and Children’s options. (Please note that booking is required at least 24 hours in advance for all Afternoon Teas.)

Click here to view our restaurant pages for details of opening times and menus etc.

For the adults:

Poplar Nurseries was established in 1938 by Eric Cowan, father of Martin Cowan (now retired) and grandfather of Matthew Cowan, Managing Director. Over the years we have grown from strength to strength to create the garden centre that we are all very proud of today.

Customers can wander around our plant displays to gain ideas and inspiration to take back to their own gardens, or visit our huge Outdoor Living department for garden furniture and accessories. Of course, you will also find everything else you would expect to find at a garden centre including statues, water features, all the gardening equipment you could possibly imagine, plus a Home and Gift Department with something for everyone.

Don’t miss a visit to our Poplar Food Hall where you will find delicious local and British produce and fresh home cooked dishes, meats, cheeses and much more from our deli counter.  Our 3,000 sq ft Food Hall is located next to the entrance of the main Garden Centre.

Click here to visit our Food Hall pages

Have a great summer and we hope to see you soon!