Filpumps help keep National Trust for Scotland in Bloom
Steve McNamara of National Trust for Scotland’s Branklyn Garden, Perth, approached Filpumps in 2003 with the seemingly no-win situation he was faced with.
The garden is famed for it’s collection of outstanding plants including alpines, herbaceous, peat garden plants and rhododendrons – the problem which he had was that these rhododendrons require a great deal of water in the Spring. This in itself was not an issue, the dilemma was that the water jet sprinklers used to keep the plants hydrated were harsh on the flowering buds and therefore constantly knocking the heads off and affecting the bloom yield, also they tended to hit trees or large shrubs and this prevented the plants behind these from being hydrated.
Ken Gordon of Filpumps considered the situation and came up with a design solution which would allow the plants to get the water required without the harsh impact of jet water knocking the heads off.
The answer came in the form of a trickle irrigation system, where specially designed pipes are concealed below a mulch of compost, providing water directly to the root zone of the plants. The water is supplied frequently and in small quantities to keep them at the optimum moisture level required to bloom without damage to any part of the plant.
Needless to say Mr McNamara was delighted with the outcome and the proof of it’s success is apparent after 4 years of the system being in place, the rhododendrons are continuing to thrive and produce magnificent blooms year on year.
Visit The National Trust for Scotland website.