Camellia‘ Leonard Messel’
Joys of Spring
By Caroline Knight
Who doesn’ t love spring? It’ s too soon for wasps to spoil the party, too late for most of us to worry about icy roads and bad weather stretching ahead for months, yet there’ s still time to plant while shrubs and trees are dormant.
The main problem with early spring is that the ground is often a quagmire. Walking on lawns can turn them into mud baths and trampling on beds can squash the air out of the soil. Everything should be handled with care in March but there’ s still every reason to enjoy this time of optimism and growth.
RHS AGM( Royal Horticultural Society Award of Garden Merit) logo. The familiar marker with its cup-shaped design evokes a feeling of trust and acts as a seal of approval. These plants have been judged by the RHS to be reliable performers. The assessment requires that the plants are stable in form and colour, relatively resistant to pests and diseases, suitable for garden use and readily available.
Testing and assessment take place during a trial period that can last several weeks, months or even years. These trials are often carried out at RHS Wisley in Surrey. Results are judged by experts who assess the results using characteristics of the plants, together with performance. The results are validated by the relevant plant committee.
Planting top performers The best thing about spring for garden-lovers is the uplifting thought of adding some beauty to the borders. You probably know what you like but how do you choose a variety or cultivar of a particular species?
One way to decide is to look for plants that bear the
There are currently more than 7,500 plants carrying the RHS AGM and more are being added to the database all the time. Some, however, leave their glory behind if they are shown to have deteriorated or even become invasive over time. The AGM is subject to regular review and, since its inception back in 2002, more than 3,000 plants have been dropped from the list.
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