My Climate Change Garden

The Royal Horticultural Society as the UK’s leading gardening charity has embraced the issues facing gardeners as a result of climate change. It provides excellent climate change information pages on its web-site with advice about the issues our gardens are facing – both now and in the long term future.

http://www.rhs.org.uk/climate/index.asp

On 6th September RHS Wisley and the British Ecological Society will be providing guided walks around areas at Wisley that are threatened by climate change like woodland gardens, herbaceous borders and lawns. These informative walks will examine areas better suited to change, from Mediterranean plantings to orchards.

RHS botanists, entomologists and plant pathologists will be on hand to answer questions on pests and diseases, climate change, composting and the plight of the honeybee.

The RHS is also carrying out an experiment at Wisley called Plants for Bugs. The ongoing project will help discover whether the geographic origin of plants is a factor in attracting wildlife. The plants are divided into native/near-native and exotic plants.

Dr Andrew Halstead, who wrote the RHS/Dorling Kindersley Pests & Diseases book, will be demonstrating a moth light trap — a key tool used as part of the Rothamsted survey, a nationwide experiment to monitor moths. Halstead and his colleague, Dr Andrew Salisbury, have 23,000 insect specimens in their collection and have also been working on mapping garden pests such as the scarlet lily beetle.

Dr Roger Williams, head of science and advice at Wisley said: “A scientific outlook underpins the work of the RHS but much of our research work is hidden away behind the scenes. We are delighted to be part of the British Science Festival, bringing our science into the garden for our visitors to discover and enjoy”

http://www.britishscienceassociation.org/forms/festival/events/showevent2.asp?EventID=71