Shrub Identification and Care

I have noticed the breadth & depth of knowledge exhibited by so many on this site. I have just started out(Summer 2011 onwards) in the gardening business,concentrating essentially on grass cutting,weeding & ground clearance..I work by myself and am not at all keen on fencing or other hard landscaping projects.I did an HNC Hort Course in 2009/2010 which did include a plant identification module,but only'skimmed the surface' so to speak,though it did include the expected aspects of bud & leaf locations & shapeas well as of flowers.

I am studying as much text book & internet material on shrubs,being the backbone of most gardens,in order to effect proper pruning & general maintenance regimes for shrubs in gardens I will be working on in 2012 & hopefully beyond.

I must be candid,however, in stating that I am becoming somewhat overwhelmed by the ranges of groupings & varieties for any one shrub and the different pruning/maintenance regimes required .

Clearly as regards pruning timing & methods & overall care ,identification of all shrubs down to variety thereof in a client's garden must be the first step.I am finding the ID side of things extremely difficult,(in particular with deciduous shrubs which will still be mainly leafless into March often but also with shrubs in bloom& evergreens to a fair extent).

As much advice as possible please on the best way forward for me. I live near to Glasgow & would be more than willing to attend any further Courses or receive one to one tuition from anyone .

Many thanks, Harvey

I was lucky, my first job after school was in a proper garden centre (1980s, so no computers). I spent 6 months writing out the plant lables, with info about conditions they liked. You learn a whole lot by the old-fashioned method of constant practice!

I've found that over 25 years I've rarely seen more than the most basic range of plants in most gardens. Once you can tell a Choysia from a Clematis you'll be fine. Gardens with very complicated planting either have an owner who will be wanting to follow you around and tell you exactly what to do, or they'll not have a clue, but should have a planting plan from the designer and you can study it at your leisure.

The key is to be confident when you know what you're talking about; don't let the client bully you in to pruning at the wrong time of year as they'll moan like mad when the plant dies or fails to flower. If you aren't sure, be honest and say you'll go home and double-check your reference books. So long as you never say "i'll look it up on the internet" you'll find the clients respect this.

Replies

PRO

Adam Pilgrim December 15, 2011 at 7:04pm

I have found that charity shops can be an invaluable source of, what were obviously once very expensive, plant identification and reference books. My entire 'plant libary' as I call it, cost me little more than£10 and has proved invaluable on several occasions. Some of the most useful ones live in the van permanently now.

I freely admit that this is an area that I need to improve in, although my work is mainly maintenance based, some customers expect (perhaps rightly) that you should be a walking brain with an encyclopedic knowledge of plants.

I am lucky in that many of my older generation customer know a great deal about plants and will freely pass on the information if asked.

I shall watch this discussion with interest and see what people suggest to help.
Harvey Harris December 15, 2011 at 7:08pm

Thanks Adam.

Adam Pilgrim said:

I have found that charity shops can be an invaluable source of, what were obviously once very expensive, plant identification and reference books. My entire 'plant libary' as I call it, cost me little more than£10 and has proved invaluable on several occasions. Some of the most useful ones live in the van permanently now.

I freely admit that this is an area that I need to improve in, although my work is mainly maintenance based, some customers expect (perhaps rightly) that you should be a walking brain with an encyclopedic knowledge of plants.

I am lucky in that many of my older generation customer know a great deal about plants and will freely pass on the information if asked.

I shall watch this discussion with interest and see what people suggest to help.
Jen@A&J Owenwindows&gardens December 15, 2011 at 7:34pm

I have found it very useful to tour round the higher end garden centres and memorise herbaceous plants and shrubs. I've found this really has helped my knowledge. I then tend to check the internet for pruning regimes.

I don't think there are many people on here who would claim to know every plant and every pruning regime. I always say if asked by a customer and I don't know the answer, I say so but will find out, most customers respect that.

Constant reading, internet and visiting higher end garden centres and nurseries is my method.

Hope this helps
PRO

Nick @ NM Garden Services Ltd December 15, 2011 at 9:40pm

agree, please post and I will do my best to answer! I have been in business for over 10 years, ND qualified, RBG Kew trained and happy to help!
Nick.

dimitri said:
take photo's of the shrub you cannot identify .... and post them on this forum .... difficult to identify if all the leaves are missing, but many will give their opinions and may help
Paul McNulty December 15, 2011 at 9:55pm

I was lucky, my first job after school was in a proper garden centre (1980s, so no computers). I spent 6 months writing out the plant lables, with info about conditions they liked. You learn a whole lot by the old-fashioned method of constant practice!

I've found that over 25 years I've rarely seen more than the most basic range of plants in most gardens. Once you can tell a Choysia from a Clematis you'll be fine. Gardens with very complicated planting either have an owner who will be wanting to follow you around and tell you exactly what to do, or they'll not have a clue, but should have a planting plan from the designer and you can study it at your leisure.

The key is to be confident when you know what you're talking about; don't let the client bully you in to pruning at the wrong time of year as they'll moan like mad when the plant dies or fails to flower. If you aren't sure, be honest and say you'll go home and double-check your reference books. So long as you never say "i'll look it up on the internet" you'll find the clients respect this.