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BALI launches COVID-19 restart & rebuild strategy

The British Association of Landscape Industries (BALI) has launched its COVID-19 restart & rebuild strategy, incorporating three specific strands of support to help members out of lockdown. The strategy has been designed to provide guidance and support to members in three ways: firstly, helping those individuals working for BALI members whose mental health may have suffered due to the virus; secondly, supporting member businesses with financial, HR and legal support, as well as professional advice for working safely whilst on site; and thirdly, promoting members to clients via the BALI website to generate new leads. BALI’s chief executive, Wayne Grills,…

World Green Roof Day taking place tomorrow

World Green Roof Day (WGRD) will be taking place this Saturday 6 June to celebrate and highlight the benefits of green roofs. The event, founded by Chris Bridgman of Milton Keynes commercial landscape Bridgman & Bridgman, is being delivered by London-based green roof expert Dusty Gedge. Dusty says: “By celebrating green roofs and the environmental benefits they provide we hope that cities across the globe, in all continents and climate zones, see the value of greening roofs and act to ensure their uptake. WGRD allows us to celebrate green roofs and the benefits they bring to people and nature.” Green roofs large and small…

Trial using nature to reduce flood risk begins

A trial is being launched by the Environment Agency and University of Leeds at the Brownlee Triathlon Centre to look at how nature can be used to help reduce flood risk. This will be the first urban pilot site set up as part of the Leeds Flood Alleviation Scheme’s natural flood management (NFM) project. It is being launched at the centre, owned by University of Leeds, to inspire students and the Leeds community to test how natural solutions such as creating wetlands can be used to help reduce the risk of flooding along the River Aire and in Leeds. The…

Double episode – next week’s Pro Landscaper Online Summit

Next week will see the second instalment of our #getlandscaping series of webinars. The main focus for this season of our Online Summit is how the landscaping sector can get back to work safely, quickly and – more importantly – profitably. Winning work (at least, the ‘right’ sort of work) is key to all landscapers and designers of any size, which is why the next webinar on Monday 8 June will be debating this topic. We’ll be asking our panellists how they identify and find the type of work that suits their company. How much depth do they go into…

Forestry charity reveals what’s putting land owners off planting new woodland

Government hopes for widespread woodland creation are being scuppered by concerns around land use and excessive red tape, a new survey has revealed. Members of the Royal Forestry Society told the education charity in a recent survey that support for woodland creation is tempered by concerns over availability of suitable land, loss of land value resulting from change of use to woodland and accessibility of long term grants to support capital investment and maintenance. Woodland creation is a permanent land use change under the UK Forestry Act 1967. Simon Lloyd, RFS chief executive, says: “There is widespread interest in woodland creation…

National Garden Scheme reopens gardens

The National Garden Scheme reopened its gardens in England yesterday. Measures have been taken to comply with social distancing and other government guidelines. For instance, all gardens have a system of pre-purchased tickets for a timed slot at the visitor’s garden of choice. Tickets must be purchased via the National Garden Scheme website. Numbers of visitors per timed slot will vary from garden to garden, depending on size. These and all other relevant details can be found at a garden’s entry on the website. Gardens will not offer teas or other refreshments. At some gardens where there is sufficient space,…

Four new appointments to the Natural England board

Defra Ministers have appointed four new non-executive members to the board of Natural England. Rosamund Blomfield-Smith, Kim Shillinglaw, Kerry ten Kate and Peter Unwin have been appointed for three years commencing 1 June 2020. Rosamund is currently chairman of Museum of London Archaeology, a member of Ofgem’s Challenge Group, and chairman of Ofcom’s Independent Advisory Group. Kim is a senior media executive who has initiated content from Stargazing Live to Blue Planet II as Head of Science and Natural History Commissioning. Peter Unwin is an ex-civil servant with ten years Board level experience as director general at Defra and DCLG…

RHS cancels its Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) has announced that it is cancelling this year’s RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival. Initially postponing the event from July to early September, the RHS says it is “saddened” to cancel Hampton Court. The decision has been made due to the continued uncertainty about events amid the ongoing COVID-19 situation. Flower shows due to take place at RHS Garden Rosemoor and RHS Garden Hyde Hall in September have also been cancelled. This means no RHS flower shows will be taking place for the rest of the year. Sue Biggs, RHS director general, says: “We had so…

Chancellor extends Self-Employment Support Scheme and confirms furlough next steps

At the end of last week, Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced that the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) will be extended. Those who are eligible will now be able to claim a second and final grant capped at £6,570. He also gave further details on the extension of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, which currently enables employers to place members of staff on ‘furlough’. The extension allows improved flexibility to bring furloughed employees back part-time in July. However, it also includes a new taper requiring employers to contribute to furloughed salaries from August. So far, 2.3 million claims worth £6.8bn have…

RHS gardens to reopen tomorrow

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) has announced it is reopening its gardens tomorrow from 10am under a pre-booking system. Visitors are being assured that the RHS’ foremost priority remains the health and safety of its members, visitors and staff. It will be doing everything possible to ensure all government social distancing measures are followed. The number of visitors entering the gardens will therefore be limited. Safety measures being implemented at all four RHS gardens include: Strictly limited numbers of pre-booked tickets available for each day Restrictions on the number of customers allowed to shop at any one time, and a…

Furnitubes launches foot-pedal hand sanitiser

A street furniture manufacturer has designed a hands-free, mechanical, hand sanitiser dispenser. The product, from Furnitubes, can be used in offices, factories, schools, shopping centres and even public realm areas such as high streets and parks. Catherine Barratt, managing director at Furnitubes says: ‘With businesses, retailers and schools now preparing to re-open, demand for hand sanitiser stations will surge. We wanted to use our design and precision metal manufacturing skills to create a hand sanitiser dispenser that was more hygienic and sustainable than the usual sanitising gel holders or automatic dispensers.” The Zenith hand sanitiser dispenser is foot-pedal operated so there…

HTA launches new App

The HTA has launched a new mobile App, to give horticulture businesses access to up-to-date industry information, resources, and training opportunities. The HTA App can be downloaded for free on any smart device. It has an extensive library of industry specific content and compliance e-learning courses, as well as a live newsfeed. The App aims to help businesses keep up to date with all the latest information and news from the HTA and the ornamental horticulture sector. This includes actions the HTA are taking to promote and enhance the sector with Government decision-makers, information for interpreting Government guidance and legislation…

Public urged to report sightings of Oak Processionary Moth

The public is being urged to report sightings of the tree pest Oak Processionary Moth (OPM) caterpillars. Oak Processionary Moth was first identified in London in 2006 and has since spread to some surrounding counties. The caterpillars and their nests contain hairs which can cause itchy rashes, eye and throat irritations, and should not be touched under any circumstances at any time. The greatest risk period is May to July when the caterpillars emerge and feed before pupating into adult moths. OPM caterpillars feed on oak leaves and can increase trees’ vulnerability to attack by other pests and diseases, making them less…

New dates agreed for COP26

The COP26 UN climate conference will now take place a year later than planned. The Bureau of the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change), with the UK and its Italian partners, agreed that it will now be held between 1 and 12 November 2021 in Glasgow. The agreement followed consultation with UNFCCC members, delivery partners and the international climate community. The conference was originally set to take place in November 2020, but had been postponed due to COVID-19. In the run up to November 2021, the UK as hosts will continue to work…

Exbury Gardens to reopen to the public on Saturday

People’s Choice votes announced at Virtual Chelsea

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) has revealed the winners of its People’s Choice Votes at the Virtual RHS Chelsea Flower Show, sponsored by M&G Investments. Viburnum plicatum f. tomentosum Kilimanjaro Sunrise (‘Jww5’) was crowned RHS Chelsea Plant of the Decade after virtual visitors cast their votes throughout the show, which closed on Saturday. Visitors selected the Japanese snowball from the line-up of previous winners of the RHS Chelsea Plant of the Year competition that is held at the world-famous show each year. Bred by Jan Willem Wezelenburg in Holland, the plant was originally crowned the title in 2015 when it…

Pro Landscaper launches next series of webinars

As we move into the next phase of lockdown, in which – slowly, but surely – the construction and landscaping sectors are being encouraged to return to work, Pro Landscaper plans to continue its successful webinar programme with a new series focused on #getlandscaping. This second season of webinars will focus around getting the sector back up to speed in the most safe and efficient way possible. We’ll discuss what needs to be done to do this, as well as when, how, and what the pitfalls might be, amongst other areas. We will once again have panellists who understand the…

AMAFFI Perfume House gifts garden to hospital

Luxury fragrance brand AMAFFI Perfume House has gifted a scented garden to the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital as a lasting thank you to NHS staff. Hundreds of plants and shrubs grown to feature in the company’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show garden this year were repurposed into this new, plant-filled perennial garden which opened to staff and patients on Friday. AMAFFI decided to gift the garden to the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital as a token of its gratitude for staff’s work during the current pandemic. To repurpose the plants for the hospital garden, AMAFFI enlisted RHS medal-winning plantsman and RHS Ambassador…

New reservoir threatens ancient woodland, says Woodland Trust

A significant area of ancient woodland could be destroyed if new reservoir proposals go ahead in Hampshire, says the Woodland Trust. The new reservoir site put forward by Portsmouth Water is next to Havant Thicket, a large ancient woodland. This forms part of the historic Forest of Bere, which dates back almost a thousand years to 1086. Four areas of ancient woodland totalling 14ha could face the chop: Round Wood, Middle Clearing, part of Havant Thicket, and The Avenue – a long stretch of ancient woodland also designated as wood pasture. This site has been chosen as part of plans…