Garden centres are rivalling tourist attractions as the new places to go. STEPHEN LEWIS checks out what's available in and around York

THERE'S a new kid on the block challenging traditional tourist attractions like museums and theme parks.

More and more people looking for a fun morning out at the weekend are heading off to their local garden centre.

Tourist chiefs nationwide are so worried they are launching an "action for attractions" plan to help fight off the challenge from garden centres and fitness clubs.

They might have a tough job.

Our passion for garden centres is part of a booming interest in all things green-fingered that is gripping the nation. Whereas once the gardener's only look-in on TV or radio was Gardener's Question Time, there are now a host of prime-time shows from Ground Force to Charlie Dimmock's latest vehicle, Charlie's Wildlife Gardens.

In York and North Yorkshire, the serious gardener and tentative beginner alike are spoiled for choice for places to go. At centres such as Dean's Garden Centre in Stockton Lane, or the Wyevale Garden Centre in Upper Poppleton, there is everything the serious gardener could ever need. Then there's Barnitt's in the city centre which has a good garden tools section, B&Q, Homebase and even Asda.

Dotted across the county there are also a host of first-rate nurseries, where you can find locally-grown seedlings or plants for your garden.

And a favourite with some of my colleagues is Poets Cottage Shrub Nursery, at Lealholm, on the northern edge of the North York Moors. This is beautifully landscaped and laid out so the customer can see what the heathers, conifers and shrubs he is planning to buy will look like in a garden.

But too much choice can sometimes be a bad thing: especially if like me, you're a gardening novice. On my one visit to a local garden centre I was overwhelmed. There was a bewildering variety of plants, seedlings and seeds available - and I had no idea which of them would grow well in my own little scrap of a garden.

Then there were the garden tools, the furniture, the fertilisers, the weed-killer and lawn food, the water features, statues, decking and all the other paraphernalia essential to the Ground Force generation.

Andy Suggitt, outdoors manager at Dean's Garden Centre, says the popularity of TV shows has led to a surge in interest in gardening - especially by a younger generation of gardeners. The "architectural" side of gardening is also much more popular now, he says - thanks to Ground Force.

But he says while the sheer range of choice on offer can be bewildering for novice gardeners, his staff will always be ready to advise.

If you want some serious advice, it might be worth trying to set aside time to go along during the week, when staff are less busy, he suggests.

"Then we can sit down and talk with them. We don't actually offer a design service, though there are people we can recommend. But we will spend time and go around with customers, picking plants that will fit their situation, or giving help with choosing the right secateurs. We're all trained horticulturally."

Gina Parkinson, the Evening Press gardening correspondent, says garden centres are great for tools and equipment - but says if you're looking for some plants that are a little bit different, the choice can be limited.

The serious gardener's bible when it comes to ordering plants is Plantfinder, the annually-updated catalogue of all things horticultural. It can be found in most good bookshops and will help you to find out if there is a local stockist for the type of plant you want; and if not, where you can order it from.

She herself tends to favour local nurseries when it comes to buying plants. Some of her regulars include Skelton Nurseries (Shipton Road), Vertigrow (Malton Road), the nursery at Burton Agnes Hall (near Driffield), Stillingfleet Lodge and RV Rogers (Malton Road, Pickering) - but Yellow Pages lists loads more.

Many nurseries are small affairs, and may be closed to the public for the winter months, so call to check first. But they are, says Gina, great places for beginners to start to learn about plants.

"You can actually see them growing in the gardens, and then go and buy them in the adjacent nursery," she says. "And you know, if you're buying a plant from them, that it has been able to survive in this region, and so know it will in your garden.

"The danger of buying mail-order seeds from Devon is that the plant might not be hardy enough for here."

Dean's and Wyevale Garden Centres are both open seven days a week. Dean's is on 01904 400141, Wyevale on 01904 795920.

Yellow Pages lists many other garden centres and nurseries in the region.

Christmas present tips

Gardening gear can make a great Christmas present, suggests Gina.

But make sure you buy something that will be really useful.

Ask the person you're buying for what they need in the garden first.

For beginners, a spade or fork can be useful. Small hand trowels, secateurs or a new pair of gardening gloves are also favourites.

Gina herself loves terracotta pots - "People love getting things like that," she says. Her top tip for a gardening gift to remember is a year's subscription to Gardening Which? "That would be a great present," she says.