Hardy trees and shrubs are well-represented in the four RHS gardens at Wisley, Rosemoor, Hyde Hall and Harlow Carr. Since early in the nineteenth century, the Society has supported plant hunting expeditions in foreign parts, leading to the introduction of many fine new plants.
Scientific work, mostly concerned with the taxonomy and identification of garden plants, has been a sustained interest. The collections have supported much valuable work to increase our knowledge of such plant groups as Rhododendron, Cotoneaster and Berberis.
Guidelines on pruning and other care are available in the Advice section. For example, browning of foliage may occur for a number of reasons, discussed in RHS Help & Advice.
Some tree and shrub interests within the RHS
For advice on growing, pruning, propagation, pests and diseases of these colourful shrubs click here
Conifers
Magnolia
Rhododendron
Registration of cultivar names
The RHS is a prominent International Cultivar Registration Authority, with responsibility for three important groups of woody plants - conifers, Clematis and Rhododendron. This work aims to stabilize the naming of garden plants, and an important element is the publication of registers and checklists for them.
RHS National Plant Collections
In all, the RHS gardens at Wisley, Rosemoor, Hyde Hall and Harlow Carr hold 13 National Plant Collections, under the auspices of the National Council for the Conservation of Plants and Gardens (NCCPG). Six of these are of trees or shrubs.
Woody Plant Committee (previously Floral B)
The Committee is a source of expertise for the RHS, for advice on all matters regarding hardy (H3 and H4) trees and shrubs including old hybrid roses and species, and lilies; rhododendrons and camellias are the responsibility of the Rhododendron and Camellia Committee.
Further information on the Committee
The Committee is responsible for judging all individual and group exhibits of hardy trees and shrubs and lilies, and group exhibits of rhododendrons and camellias. At Chelsea it judges only individual exhibits, the group exhibits being judged by a Council approved Panel. It is also responsible, through a subcommittee, for selecting cultivars for the Award of Garden Merit assessment and for judging the relevant trials at Wisley.
The Committee also holds discussions on specific groups of plants, at which nomenclatural and horticultural questions are discussed.
Discussion
on Daphne bholua in cultivation
Discussion on Liquidambar
in cultivation
RHS trials
The RHS arranges numerous trials each year including several for woody plants. The very best entries are recommended for the Award of Garden Merit.
Further reading
This is just one topic covered by the Society's monthly journal for members, The Garden, and recent articles of interest are listed below. The latest thinking from the best minds in horticulture today is to be found in the RHS journal, The Plantsman: some recent relevant articles are suggested here.
Brown, N. (1996). Notes on cultivated species of Euonymus. The New Plantsman 3(4): 238-243.
Dunlop, G. 2000. Anopterus: an Escallonia relative in cultivation. The New Plantsman 7(1): 24-29.
Gardiner, J. 1996, February. Wisley's top trees. The Garden (RHS) 121(2): 73-75.
Honour, M. 1995, July. Shrubs from summer cuttings. The Garden (RHS) 120(7): 416-418.
Middleton, D. 1995. Validation of the name Gaultheria x wisleyensis. The New Plantsman 2(2): 71.
Rushforth, K. 1997, July. Pea trees. The Garden (RHS) 122(7): 480-482. Cladrastis and Maackia.
Spongberg, S. & A.C. Bell (1996). Liriodendron tulipifera. The New Plantsman 3(4): 204-214.
Whiteley, A. (1997). The genus Schisandra in cultivation. The New Plantsman 4(2): 88-97.
Whiteley, A. (1995). Stachyurus 'Magpie': a cultivar of confused status. The New Plantsman 2(1): 50-53.