Take the strain

摘要

As soon as architectural plants owner Angus White heard about the Kela, he was sure he wanted one. After 10 seconds of watching the Kela being used, he was totally sold on the new Italian concept in transporting large container stock. One year on, he has two of the units working on his nurseries at Horsham and Chichester, and assisting in the delivery of trees and shrubs to customers. Architectural Plants propagates and grows a wide range of exotic-looking plants and bold, textural plants. The nursery is essentially retail, but does a lot of business with the trade and with local authorities. Originally a furniture designer, White established the nursery in the late 1980s, having been inspired by the great concentrations of plant collections around Horsham. "At Wakehurst Place, Nymans, Leonardslee and Wisley, I was confronted with plants I'd never seen before. I made notes of those liked, but when I asked for them in garden centres, staff often didn't know what I was talking about," recalls White. He had spotted a gap in the market. Now, in order to satisfy demand he goes to Italy to supplement homepropagated stock. Much of the stock is large. "I found the prospect of having larger specimens made for a more interesting nursery, but suddenly we were dealing with plants that are probably bigger than is sometimes prudent," admits White.