Napoleon was not long dead, Beethoven had just completed his ninth symphony, cholera was on the horizon and George IV was the king of England.

It was 1823 and times were tough for Sussex farmers in the aftermath of the Napoleonic wars.

George Elphick sold his farm in Chiddingly to concentrate on the mining of the chalk pits he owned around Lewes.

He set up a firm operating river barges from the chalk pit to the river and opened a store, selling farm supplies and seeds from a house in Cliffe High Street.

One hundred and eighty years later, the mines have been excavated and the barges are gone but the store remains, although the man behind the shop counter now is George's great-great- grandson.

Elphick and Son is one of the oldest family-run businesses in Sussex but the end of an era is approaching.

The store, now a garden centre, will close for the last time in July, allowing the premises to be rented out to a new generation of entrepreneurs.

The closure comes with the decision of current owner Tony Elphick to retire after 43 years in the business.

He followed his father Cyril into the family firm; Cyril had followed his father Samuel, who had followed his own father Samuel, the son of original founder George.

Mr Elphick, father to four daughters, believes it is time to move on.

He said: "It has changed gradually over the years. We came out of farming in the Sixties and went into garden and pet supplies until the Eighties, from when we concentrated exclusively on the gardening."

It proved a wise move, with gardening exploding in popularity among a whole new generation who had never heard of Gardeners' World.

Popularised by television shows like Ground Force, gardening took over from cookery as the latest trendy middle-class pastime.

At Elphick and Son, business boomed.

Mr Elphick said: "It started changing in 1958 when the introduction of plastics revolutionised gardening.

"It brought a massive range of new products on to the market, such as plastic hose connections and netting.

"Packaging was introduced, bringing colour on to the shelves.

"It had been very basic before, people didn't even have greenhouses. Now everything is much more exotic."

Where once it was wallflowers, now people want to grow poppies. The most popular vegetable seeds today, spinach and rocket, were still unknown to many just a few years ago.

Sales in trellises and tools have also soared.

Mr Elphick said: "We have a lot of people coming in who have seen something on television and they want their garden to look like that right now.

"But it doesn't work like that.

"We get quite a few customers from abroad buying things like metal watering cans. They don't seem to be able to get hanging baskets on the Continent.

"And we are still selling lots and lots of seeds. But times have changed.

"We are not a large garden centre in the countryside and that is the way of the future."

Dozens of green-fingered locals would disagree, including the constant stream of famous customers who have graced the shop over the years.

Mr Elphick is reluctant to name names but they include world-famous actors, titled lords and a former prime minister.

One of Mr Elphick's favourite customers was Dame Thora Hird.

Another regular was legendary singer Gracie Fields. He said: "Dame Thora used to come in all the time and was a wonderful person.

"I have met the most interesting and knowledgeable people. It is a very friendly business. It has been great fun but all good things must come to an end.

"My mother Connie and the rest of the family are backing me all the way."

At its height, Elphick's had four other branches - in Seaford, Eastbourne, Crowborough and another in Lewes. The firm employed about 50 people.

The remaining store now employs seven staff, including Mr Elphick. Elphick's has only failed to open once in 180 years. It stayed open throughout two world wars but was shut for five months after the great floods of October 2000.

Water poured into the shop, writing off everything inside.

Mr Elphick said: "That's the only time we've ever been closed but the customers all came back.

"I would like to thank all our customers and suppliers for their great loyalty over many enjoyable years."

A closing down sale begins at the start of July and the store will close on July 31.

The more than 5,000sqft premises with an additional 5,500 sqft of outside space is being let through the Brighton office of Oakley Commercial.

Chris Oakley said: "It is a great shame to see such a well established business close its doors, although I'm sure Tony will now enjoy his retirement.

The premises will offer a fantastic opportunity for a vibrant new business to make its mark in Lewes."

Friday April 11 2003