Indian Bean Tree – Root and Branch Review

There are a lot of things to go wrong with plants in the greenhouse but a red spider mite infestation is one of the most frustrating. This tomato plant in India has had its day.

New Trees: Recent Introductions to Cultivation by John Grimshaw, Ross Bayton and illustrated by Hazel Wilks. Amazon

Cedar of Lebanon

This species of plants originate in central China. The closely related species R. molle japonicum come from Japan. Both these deciduous varieties are relatives of the popular Ghent and Knapp Hill hybrids.

Ornamental Japanese Maples are widely available for planting in your garden. The autumn colouring makes these trees spectacular when planted en mass in a woodland or Japanese garden setting.

Red, White and Blue the patriotic colours of the Hydrangea are augmented by pinks and purples like H. Ayeshia above as a variation on those themes. Flowering from mid-summer these shrubs give a magnificent display with very little effort. Did you see Hydrangea maritima on seaside holidays in large displays of sugary pink and sometimes blue.

An unusual tree with even more unusual fruit.

The Papaya is a widely grown fruit tree of the tropics. It’s large fleshy fruit contains many seeds but can weigh from 1 pound up to 20 pound on some varieties.

My Rhododendrons were in full bloom when a late frost caught them quite badly. Winter has been wet and mild but if the USA is anything to go by hard frosts may still be on the way so look after your early flowering Rhododendrons.

A water loving tree that is comparatively short lived at about 150 years. It is fast growing and can often be found near river banks.

I originally wrote this last year but now in April I have checked my Chrysanthemum plants in the cold greenhouse and find I am infested! So it must be worth a rerun. Evil weevil grubs eat roots and tubers of your favourite plants. My tuberous begonias were attacked and destroyed by these pesky pests. It is the white grubs that cause the damage as they eat roots and tubers throughout vine weevil puberty to become small black beetles. The beetles will nibble the edges of leaves but it is the laying of eggs that ultimately cause the problem. The eggs become grubs and your Cyclamen, Primula and Camellias become grub for weevils. Pot grown plants are most susceptible to attack but this pest also affects other plants such as Fuchsias, Gloxinia and Strawberries.