MEMBERS attending the November meeting of the Minchinhampton Gardening Club enjoyed a very interesting talk by Jim Teague entitled "New Plants getting to Market".

We were surprised to learn that if a grower wishes to send plants to garden centres, the number of plants needed will be in the high thousands.

Therefore sophisticated methods of producing such large numbers had to be developed.

Some plants need to be grown from seeds, taking months or years to produce plants in the required numbers and in a good size to put on sale.

Cuttings can be used to reproduce shrubby plants and some perennials such as penstemmons, but a bud can be cut from some suitable plants, which is cut into minute slices under a microscope.

Each slice will eventually grow into a full-sized plant, saving a great deal of time and space.Mr Teague then went on to tell us how new plants can be developed from existing varieties, using, as an example, the choisya, which originated as a darkish green perennial bush.

One day, a grower noticed a twig bearing yellow leaves on one bush - he took cuttings from this twig and eventually produced the golden variety of choisya.

Subsequently other varieties were produced and now gardening centres can offer quite a few different ones. Developing new plants in this way can take many years, but Mr Teague suggested that if any member comes across an unusual variation in one of their plants, it might be worth contacting a grower to see if this is a 'new plant'.

Among pot plants, orchids were recommended as the easiest to keep indoors, contrary to the popular belief that they are difficult to grow.

It is important not to over-water them - the best method is to stand the pots in tepid water for several hours, then leave them on the draining board to allow the surplus water to escape.

This only needs to be done every few weeks.

It is quite easy to tell when orchids need watering by looking at their roots - if these show green at the tips, they are sufficiently damp, but if they look dry and no green shows through, watering is needed.

The roots need to be able to get to the light, so do not keep orchids tightly fitted into round pots, but stand them in a larger, preferably square container so that light can reach them.

Mr Teague also showed us some innovative products going on sale, such as planters made from reclaimed plastic bottles and even comic flip-flips covered in Astro Turf, which he kindly donated to the raffle.

The Club members will shortly be meeting for their Christmas meal and social evening and the AGM will take place on January 19 at Minchinhampton Primary School, followed by a talk from Taylors Butchers.