Grass Clippings
Visiting expert
We were visited this week by our golf course agronomist Sylvain Duval, who walked the course and saw the improvements that have been made over recent years. We have been cautious during the pandemic and kept in touch with Sylvain via zoom and email. He has been pleasantly surprised by the weather and favourable conditions in recent weeks and the high degree of presentation that we have been able to achieve. Sylvain has assisted us on several projects, such as drainage design, to improve the course and ensure it is playable throughout the year. Sylvain works internationally, from Moscow to Saudi Arabia and is able to suggest ideas and techniques which are based on the most recent technology and product innovation.
Around our grounds
On the tennis courts, we are earnestly cutting at a time when usually the courts would be too wet to contemplate walking on. Chris Hughes and his team are also turfing the slopes around the croquet lawns to improve the outer area of the lawns. In the gardens, Sam and his team are doing an annual pruning of the shrubberies and climbers near to walled areas. Although next week could possibly colder, we are hoping for a continuation of the dry weather so we can continue with the preparation of all areas for spring.
Climate confusion
According to recent studies, climate change is causing UK plants to flower almost a month earlier on average. Just as autumn leaf fall is being delayed by warmer weather, flowers are appearing earlier on trees and shrubs. But while some might welcome these untimely blooms, scientists are warning of the risks. They say if the trend continues, there are knock-on effects for birds, insects and whole ecosystems. Ecological mismatch may kick in, which would have a dramatic effect on the functioning and productivity of nature and farming. Global warming is causing spring to arrive early and autumn to come late in many places, and not all plants and animals are adapting at the same rate. Scientists warn that if species get out of sync with each other, this could have disastrous consequences – a concept known as ecological mismatch. Pollen, nectar, seeds and fruits of plants are important food resources for insects, birds and other wildlife. And if flowers appear too early, they can be hit by frost, damaging the harvest of fruit trees. The study looked at hundreds of thousands of observations of the first flowering dates of native trees, shrubs, herbs and climbers recorded in a citizen science database, known as Nature’s Calendar, that goes back to the 18th Century. Cambridge researchers have compared the first flowering dates of 406 plant species with climate records, finding that early flowering is strongly correlated with rising global temperatures. To balance the number of observations, they divided the full dataset into records until 1986, and from 1987 onwards, finding that the average first flowering date from 1987 to 2019 was almost a month earlier than the average first flowering date from 1753 to 1986. Herbs saw the largest shift, flowering 32 days earlier.
Royal Horticultural Society growth
There has been a recent addition to the Royal Horticultural Society headquarters in Surrey. The development of part of the site to establish RHS Hilltop – the Home of Gardening Science, is the UK’s first scientific centre of excellence for horticulture and represents the charity’s largest single investment in its history. Around 70 scientists and students will be based at the new centre within RHS Wisley with research set to help gardeners adapt to the challenges posed by climate change, pests and threats, biodiversity loss, and the role played in promoting health and well-being. Designed by architects WilkinsonEyre and built by Osborne, the centre will house a plethora of specimens and collections including 25,000 entomology specimens, 90,000 dried plants in the herbarium, and a library of more than 28,000 books. There are also three ‘living laboratory’ gardens surrounding the science centre, each designed by RHS Chelsea gold medal winners, including the Wellbeing Garden by Matt Keightley; and the Wildlife and World Food gardens by Ann-Marie Powell. Check the RHS website for details of the opening times and for any restrictions.
Around your garden
Gardening advice is this week supplied by Sam Cumber our Head Gardener, with some timely advice regarding Wisteria pruning: ‘Wisteria flowers usually between April and June, depending on the species. This means that it flowers on last year’s growth which is why it is important to prune the plant correctly and at the right time of year. The correct pruning method is to cut the long new shoots back to five or six buds from old growth around August and then again to three buds in February. The August prune allows the next year’s flower buds to ripen as they get more sunlight, and the February prune encourages the plant to produce bigger flowers. On larger plants a single prune to 3-5 buds is sufficient.
While you are pruning it is the perfect time to train some of the new growth into new areas to increase your flower coverage. This can be done by tying the shoots to supports such as trellis, wiring, etc. Do not wind the shoot around your supports as this will cause damage when the shoot thickens’.