by Holly Chapman | 22 Jan 26 | News, Sustainability
The government has realised a new white paper which sets out its plans to reform the water sector and the wider water system.
In response, Jennifer Pheasey at the Horticultural Trades Association (HTA) says she and the HTA “welcomes today’s announcement of a move towards a more robust and accountable water regulatory system, and the recognition that long-term resilience has been lacking.”
When environmental horticulture relies on secure water supplies, it only uses 0.2% of the UK’s total water consumption.
So, whilst the director of policy and public affairs at the HTA recognises the structures relating to water needs to change, she adds “we need to see urgency in action on support for resilience today. Horticultural businesses need water, as do their customers.”
As the HTA continue to study the white paper, it hopes it identifies the need for action on improving water supply planning and less siloed working.
by The Pro Landscaper Team | 11 Dec 25 | Grounds Maintenance, News, Partner Content
Water feature specialist Waterscapes highlights the importance of consistent winter care to protect investments and ensure spring readiness.
As temperatures drop and winter sets in, many facilities teams assume water feature maintenance requirements decrease. However, leading water feature specialist Waterscapes is highlighting that winter creates different, not fewer, maintenance priorities.
“Winter doesn’t mean your water feature maintenance stops,” explains Ed Harwood, maintenance contracts manager at Waterscapes. “We consistently see that features receiving regular winter care experience fewer problems, require less intensive spring work, and maintain better overall performance. The facilities teams that maintain consistent inspection and care routines through winter report significantly fewer problems and lower costs.”
The winter maintenance challenge
Neglecting winter maintenance leads to deteriorating water quality that’s harder to correct in spring, equipment wear that goes unnoticed until failure occurs, build-up of debris and contaminants that damage surfaces, increased chemical costs when rebalancing water, and shortened equipment lifespan.
Winter brings significant changes to water feature behaviour. Cooler temperatures and reduced sunlight mean lower algae formation, though the risk isn’t eliminated entirely. Cold water holds more dissolved oxygen and experiences slower biological activity, affecting how treatments work and how quickly water quality can deteriorate.
Essential winter care areas
Water chemistry: For chemically treated features, continue regular water testing throughout winter. Weekly or fortnightly testing catches problems early. Chemical effectiveness changes with water temperature—chlorine works more slowly in cold water, requiring adjusted dosing strategies.
Plant room equipment: Pre-filters require weekly inspection, pumps need continuous monitoring for performance changes, and media filters benefit from backwashing every 2-4 weeks. Regular pipework checks identify leaks or joint movement before they escalate in cold conditions.
Surface care: Regular brushing prevents biofilm and mineral deposit build-up, while netting at least twice weekly removes wind-blown debris before it decomposes and affects water quality.
“The most successful approach combines consistent in-house daily and weekly care with periodic specialist inspections and support,” adds Harwood. “Your team handles routine maintenance whilst specialists provide expertise, equipment servicing, and problem-solving.”
Sustainability benefits
Consistent winter maintenance delivers environmental and financial benefits. Features receiving regular care require fewer repairs and replacements, reducing waste and resource consumption. Proper chemical management reduces environmental impact, whilst well-maintained equipment lasts longer.
“Every problem prevented through regular maintenance saves resources, reduces waste, and lowers costs,” notes Harwood. “Winter maintenance is an investment in sustainability and spring readiness.”
Professional support available
Waterscapes provides comprehensive winter maintenance support including professional water testing, equipment servicing, maintenance training, and complete winter care contracts. With over 20 years of experience across corporate, municipal, and private water features, the team understands the challenges facilities managers face.
Read the full guide: For comprehensive step-by-step guidance on winter water feature maintenance, read the complete article: waterscapes.co.uk/blog/winter-water-feature-maintenance
by Bethany Vann | 19 May 23 | Nature & Biodiversity, News, Sustainability, Topics
In alignment with Water Saving Week, the Horticultural Trades Association (HTA) is urging necessary action on water management grants to increase the industry’s resilience to droughts and encourage more businesses to reduce their reliance on mains water.
The National Drought Group met last month to discuss the critical need to focus on water resource preservation to reduce the risk of drought measures in the future.
A very dry February, followed by an exceptionally wet March and unsettled April, emphasise that businesses cannot rely solely on the weather and preserving water to prevent future drought measures needs to become the priority.
While much of England is in a considerably better position than last year with reservoir capacity across the UK at 94% as of the beginning of April, East Anglia, Devon, and Cornwall remain in drought and face temporary use bans.
The National Drought Group is preparing for the worst-case scenario of another hot, dry summer and is urging water companies and individuals to reduce leakage, decrease water consumption and find new ways of being resilient to drought.
On 4 April, the government published their ‘Plan for Water’, which outlines measures to increase drought resilience and ease water supply pressure.
It aims to take a systematic, local, catchment-based approach, using nature-based solutions and infrastructure investment. This is welcomed by the horticultural industry, which relies on water to flourish.
The HTA is encouraging horticultural businesses to reduce their reliance on mains water through the use of rainwater capture technology.
The current Water Management Grants from Defra are open to horticultural businesses growing or planning to grow irrigated food crops, ornamentals, or forestry nurseries.
However, the investment minimum needs to decrease for many members of the HTA to make it viable as these members want to implement reservoirs for self-sufficiency but do not need them at the current specified scale.
If the necessary, scale and investment were reduced more businesses could reduce their reliance on the national water supply. The HTA is requesting that water companies and the Environmental Agency provide or support a funding program for horticultural businesses to enhance rainwater capture, construct reservoirs, recapture run-off, and use grey water. This would help reduce capital costs for these businesses.
The industry fundamentally needs to grow sustainably to meet the government’s tree planting targets, mitigate against climate change, improve local biodiversity, and continue to contribute to human health and wellbeing.
This growth will become unnecessarily challenging should reliance on weather and mains water remain at their current level.
Additionally, the Environmental Improvement Plan released in February set out the government’s aim to increase the percentage of water storage used by the agriculture and horticulture sectors by 66% by 2050.
In the event of sustained drought periods before the necessary funding for investment is made available, the horticultural industry will continue to increase its use of rainwater capture.
However, it is imperative that water companies and the Environment Agency work together with the garden centre sector to encourage consumers to reduce water use in the garden and increase rainwater capture and water reuse at home so as to reduce mains reliance and be better prepared for the potential of another hot, dry summer.
