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Sempervivums (Houseleeks) and related plants
I
hold the Plant Heritage National Collections® of Sempervivum,
and
Jovibarba. Based on a lifetime of
growing experience I give an illustrated account of these
beautiful, hardy, alpine succulents and their natural history,
cultivation and garden uses. |
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Phormiums (New Zealand Flax)
In
this talk I give an introduction to the species and cultivars of
New Zealand Flax, and their cultivation and uses in the garden. I
also demonstrate how Phormium leaves can be used for plaiting
and weaving crafts.Until 2011 we
held a Plant Heritage National Collection® of Phormium. |
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A plant lover’s tour of New Zealand
This is an illustrated account of our 2007 visit to New Zealand when
we toured both islands with the aim of seeing as much as possible of
the scenic wonders and natural vegetation of the country. We also
visited a number of famous botanic gardens of New Zealand. |
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The Beauty of Leaves
It is easy to admire plants when they are in flower but we can
overlook the importance of their foliage during the rest of the
year. In this talk I give many examples of the amazing range of
shape, size and colour of leaves and show how they can be used to
great effect in the garden. |
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Plants, gardens and landscapes of Madeira
Madeira is known as ‘the floating garden in the Atlantic’ and is a
paradise for plant lovers. As well as amazing scenery and its own
unique and fascinating native flora, its gentle climate also
supports a wide range of the world’s most beautiful cultivated
plants. |
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Numbers, patterns and plants
This talk is a non-technical guide to looking at plants from a
numeric point of view. Using a wide range of photographic examples
I talk about the beauty of plants, and provide a ‘gentle’
introduction to the mathematics of plant structure, growth and
development. |
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The wonderful world of Flowers
The colours,
shapes, patterns and scents of flowers are a wonder to us all, but a
basic understanding of their biological functions can add greatly to
their interest. In this talk I show a wide range of different
flowers to illustrate their structure, function, and evolutionary
relationships.
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Nature reserves of Costa Rica
The stunningly beautiful country of Costa Rica with its Pacific and
Caribbean coasts, volcanos, cloud forests, jungles and gardens is a
paradise for nature lovers. For its size it has probably the
greatest biodiversity of any country and almost a third of the land
is environmentally protected. |
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Plants of the Italian
Dolomites
The Dolomites of Northern Italy are considered by some to be the
world’s most beautiful mountains. They were declared a World
Heritage Site in 2009. The range and variety of the plant life is
amazing and the presence of ski lifts means that there is easy
access to high levels in the spring and summer. |
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Exhibiting at RHS Flower Shows
We have been awarded RHS Gold Medals for our exhibits
at all the major RHS Flower Shows including Chelsea, Hampton Court,
Gardener’s World Live and Tatton Park. In this talk I give a
‘behind the scenes’ account of show preparation, transport, display
setup, judging, selling and breakdown. |
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Gardening for wildlife
One of our aims in developing our garden at Fernwood has been to
encourage, support, and study our native wildlife and wild flowers.
In this talk I describe our methods and results and give a number of suggestions
for those wishing to enjoy their garden in an environmentally
sensitive way. |
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Gardening with a digital camera
In recent years the introduction of relatively inexpensive digital
cameras has revolutionised amateur photography in the garden. In
this talk I
show the results of digital photography in our own garden, and
describe various other ways in which we have found a digital camera
to be a useful ‘garden tool’. |
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Plants, gardens and volcanic landscapes of Tenerife
Tenerife is the largest, and the most spectacular of the Canary
Islands. Its warm climate supports a wide range of endemic and
introduced plants and the volcanic scenery is amazing. In this talk
I describe our 2008 visit to Tenerife to explore the landscape and
the plants. |
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Great British Gardens
Great Britain
has a large number of wonderful gardens showing an incredible range
of plants and a fascinating diversity of gardening styles. In this
talk I describe a selection of gardens that are open to the public
and which we have particularly enjoyed visiting. |
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A trek in the Himalayas
In October 2009 my wife and I went on an unforgettable trip to Nepal with the
aim of trekking to Annapurna Base Camp in the Himalayas. We describe
our experiences of this journey: the amazing country, it’s charming
people and the wonderful natural scenery and wildlife. |
Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone was established in 1872 – the first National Park in the
world. It contains spectacular volcanic scenery and numerous
geothermal features. More than 300 geysers – approximately half the
world’s total - are found within the park. It
is home to bears, bison, wolves, hundreds of birds and over 1100
native plant species.
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California National Parks
The state of California is home to 13
amazing National Parks. The scenery is magnificent and the parks are
home to some amazing animals and plants including the oldest,
tallest and largest trees in the world.
In this talk I describe some of the highlights of visits to Redwood,
Sequoia, Yosemite, Inyo and Lassen Volcanic National Parks. |
