Mark McNee

Year: 2012

  • Enzymes

    These are catalysts which drive and control all the processes in living things. These are proteins just like muscle and hair and work as a result of their complex structure. Catalysts are something which causes a chemical reaction to occur but remain unchanged by the reaction so that it can repeatedly act on the same…

  • Organic matter

    This is the part of the soil which is made up from partly decomposed plant material or material which can beaded to soil to increase the amount of soil organic matter. It is very important as a reserve of nutrients and in the structure of the soil. Typical sources include peat, compost, farmyard manure and…

  • Organic

    Originally this was something which served as an organ and with time was adopted by chemists to refer to carbon based compounds. As a result of living things being carbon based it extended to which living things and material which resulted from living things; hence organic matter. The latter half of the 20th century saw…

  • Nomenclature

    This is simply the process of giving things names.

  • What to put in the garden

    What to put in the garden

    By now we’ve got the garden under control and we can take time to consider what we are going to do with it in the longer term. I can’t give a list of what to put in as every garden is different as are its owner’s needs.  What actually goes into the garden is going…

  • The Concise British Flora in Colour by W. Keble Martin

    William Keble Martin was an amateur botanist in the must noble tradition of amateurs. That is to say he was not employed as one but was every bit as skilled and dedicated as any “professional” botanists. He was formally trained as a botanist but instead of following this path chose to be ordained and spent…

  • Ginkgo biloba

    Ginkgo biloba

    Ginkgo biloba L .in leaf is probably the easiest tree to recognise, it’s leaves are so unique. Its heart shaped leaves resemble an enlarged version those of the maidenhair fern (Adianthum sp.) and so the common name the Maidenhair tree. The tree is quite narrow in habit, slowly growing to be a large tree. Hardy…

  • Tiding up to see what you’ve achieved.

    Once the overgrown trees and shrubs have been cut back a lot of rubbish will be left; which we need to do something with. Its only once you’ve tidy up your hard work can you really get an idea of what you have achieved and the sense of space you will have created. There a…

  • Eucryphia × nymansensis ‘Nymansay’

    Eucryphia × nymansensis ‘Nymansay’

    This may not be a very popular plant; I fear the name may put off some, but it should be far better known. Not only is it an evergreen with attractive foliage all year round but every late summer it disappears under a mass of white flowers. Though not spectacular individually they are borne in…

  • Autumn Tidy Up

    With the arrival of dark mornings thoughts turn to tidying the garden up for winter. The first frosts will soon finish off the annuals and tender perennials, while the hardy perennials die back for the winter and the deciduous trees and shrubs will take on their autumn colours before dropping their leaves. Any tiding up…