The Forestry Commission scientists have identified the pathogen Phytophthora lateralis for the first time in Britain on a Lawson's cypress tree at Balloch Castle Country Park, on the banks of Loch Lomond. They are now testing samples from the other 80 Lawson's cypress trees in the park showing s...

'Christmas Rose' or Helleborus niger is an ideal plant for dappled shade and flowers from November through to March. There is always a plant flowering at some time of the year and those that offer up their blooms during the short, cold days of winter are especially welcome. Make room in that odd c...

Artifical turf sales are on the increase as garden owners seek a lawn that looks good all year round and requires little maintenance. Even the Royal Horticultural Society's main garden at Wisley in Surrey is using artifical turf as well as as Kew Gardens and The Nationals Trust. The Artifical Lawn C...

There is a first time for everything and now gardeners will be able to purchase bees either by mail order or from garden centres. Dragonfli and Wildlife World will be marketing live bumblebee hives for gardeners and garden centres.Gardeners can purchase a wooden hive known as the Beepol Bumblebee...

Fargro launched two new biopesticide products at Wellesbourne Centre. A granular bioinsecticide - Met52 from Novozymes contains the natural Metarhizium fungi and is for Vine Weevil control. for protected and outdoor soft fruit and ornamentals, containers and open ground.Also, Prestop from Verdera a ...

The original maze at Cliveden has been lost, but The National Trust has recreated the original one commissioned by Lord Astor. It took over two years to reconstruct and last winter over 1,000 2 metre high Yew trees were planted and the maze is now open. This is just one part of the large formal gard...

In the UK we have experienced two very severe winters with many gardeners experiencing at least one loss of a plant and some many from newly planted to established plants. Nursery growers suffered significant losses of stock and with tight margins it has been very hard for them. Now garden centres ...

The closed world of judging by Royal Horticultural Society is up for review and not before time some would say. To all those designers that have toiled away at the recent Chelsea Flower Show may well wonder why they got the medal they did, not matter what colour. As feedback is all but non existant ...

Halloween means high demand to buy pumpkins. One of the largest growers in the UK is David Bowman, with a 200ha farm growing three million pumpkins especially for this time of the year. Over 100 staff lift the massive crop into the warehouse to ripen then they are shipped out to the major supermarke...

A trial at Oxford Botanic Garden using electrical apparatus provided successful for weed control without leaving harmful residue. Engineering consultant Roger Balls and electrical engineer Dr Mike Diprose demonstrated success in initial trials on the rampant onion weed, Nothoscordum.The method is e...

Winter squash and butternuts vary in shape, size and colour and many varieties tend to be vigorous trailing plants. Squashes flower and fruit later than summer squash should be harvested before the first heavy frost and then dried off and stored in a frost-free shed until November/December before s...

Poor root systems deplete storage reserves by up to a third, starving trees to death. But sugar may provide the help required to stimulate tree growth. Dr Glynn Percival from the University of Reading has spent eight years prompting root growth through agents from bio-stimulants such as compost tea ...

Fusarium Patch - Snow MouldThe disease it causes was known as snow mould because it was most often associated with cold, wet weather in spring - damage would be revealed when snow cover melted.However, the fungus can damage turf whenever conditions are cold or frosty and wet. It has now become much ...

Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew has secured a Heritage Lottery Fund grant of £14.7m as part of the £34.3m restoration project of the Temperate House at Kew Gardens, which is a Grade One listed heritage building.The £34.3m restoration project will be completed in May 2018. The Temperat...