February 15th to March 12th

Thankfully we have had 2 weeks with no rainfall so we have been able to complete our field planting before it rains this weekend and our potting programe only has another three weeks to run.

This year we have added Tilia Harvest Gold into our range and limited numbers will be available at 10cm in 45lt Light Pots this autumn. It is a cross between Tilia cordata and Tila mongolica so represents an exciting addition to our trees which are most suited to urban planting. We have bulked up this variety in the field but it will be several years before we lift them for Light Pots. In the meantime we are limiting supply to 10 per customer so e mail Julie or Keith if you want some!! I first saw this variety in the States where it is rated very highly but this is the first year I have been able to lay my hands on material to grow on. There are several other new varieties to the UK market we are trialing this year so feel free to visit us this Summer (by appointment) to see what's in the pipeline.

Keith came back from New York bouyed up by what they are doing out there. 20,000 extra heavy standard trees are being planted in New York every year until they get to their 100% Urban Tree Cover target. Interestingly they are concentrating on the poorer areas first, especially where there is a high incidence of asthma, as reasearch verifies that it is a no brainer for trees to significantly reduce this illness. As the UK has the highest incidence of asthma in the world one hopes it is only a matter of time that our politicians at last get behind the importance of trees and put our money where their mouths are!! In the meantime New York and America lead the way. To find out more on this, Keith will be talking at various venues in the near future to get the debate rolling.

Enjoy this long awaited warm spring weather and look forward to dormancy breaking and return of leaves on the trees!

All the best

Mike