Jack Aldridge, for whom Cornus is not the only genus

by Clare L. E. Foster, WHF Trustee Jack Aldridge, WHF Trustee and Horticulturalist at RHS Wisley, gave a Thursday Garden Chat for Garden Masterclass about his work on Oakwood at Wisley; other recent talks range from ‘Woody Plants that Should be Better Known and Grown’ for Plant Heritage, and an overview of Camellia sasanqua forContinue reading “Jack Aldridge, for whom Cornus is not the only genus”

Erwan Le Bec shares his experience of interning at White House Farm

Erwan Le Bec, a French horticultural student at INH school (Agrocampus Ouest Angers) writes about his recent visit to us as an intern. He left us with extraordinary photographs and research notes about our collections. Since I was a child I’ve had a particular interest in the world of plants. It started with my grandfather’sContinue reading “Erwan Le Bec shares his experience of interning at White House Farm”

Is a pink-flowered philadelphus a real possibility?

By WHF Trustee Christopher Sanders, VMH It’s well known that some Mexican species and their hybrids such as P. maculatus, P. mexicanus and P. ‘Belle Etoile’ possess a gene for the colour pink, but this is manifested as a more or less basal blotch on the inner surface of the petals, resulting in a central ring of pink orContinue reading “Is a pink-flowered philadelphus a real possibility?”

Magnolia Study Day 2023

On Saturday April 8th students and faculty from Wisley, Great Dixter and Kew gathered round a table of vases of magnolias in current bloom, selected from the WHF collection of around 250 species and cultivars from Magnolia, Michelia and Mangleitia. These students were joined by WHF Friends and Volunteers from a variety of backgrounds, fromContinue reading “Magnolia Study Day 2023”

Propagation: crucial now not just for garden collections, but also for conservation

WHF held a propagation skills workshop on a cold weekday in early March 2023. Talks were given by Chris Lane on grafting, Peter Shotter on seed germination, Maurice Foster on cuttings, and Nadeesha Bandara shared details of the research project she’s part of at Nottingham University about the influence of hormones on rooting. We hadContinue reading “Propagation: crucial now not just for garden collections, but also for conservation”

‘Planting an Idea’: Maurice Foster asks should more be done to reconcile good taxonomic practice with the needs of gardeners?

This article first appeared in The Plant Review (previously The Plantsman), the RHS publication devoted to the diversity of cultivated plants rhs.org.uk/theplantreview