Parliamentary Reception of the All-Party Parliamentary Gardening and Horticulture Group

On Tuesday evening 25 November 2025 in the Cholmondley Room, there was a gathering of the interest groups and people from the Gardening and Horticultural world.

The event was opened by the Co chair Baroness Janet Fookes and we heard from Boyd Douglas Davies Chair of the Environmental Group. 

The Minister Emma Hardy gave a speech on Water resiliance and the audience were delighted to hear from her. 

Adam Frost, from BBC Gardeners World told us about his background and his hopes for the future of gardening. 

I gave the vote of thanks and here is my speech:    

Thank you to Minister Emma Hardy who had kindly responded to a late text and agreed to speak at our event.  

Thank you also to Adam Frost- I note that he didn’t bring his special spade, which a member of the audience quipped was taken off him by security.   

We are in the middle of votes and I thank all colleagues who were here and also former Minister Daniel Zeichner, the industry appreciated engagement with him. 

I want to give a round up of the APPG meetings:

We visited RHS Wisley and there was a Parliamentary Garden tour which was conducted by Annabelle. 

Unlike Elvis Costello we did want to go to Chelsea and a fantastic surprise: Richard Evison with 30 gold medals produced a Clematis which flowers in May to July and then again in late summer and it is : 

Clematis Baroness FOOKES; a gorgeous purple clematis. We are so proud of you Janet.

The RHS  said they would not include any exhibitors who use peat compost next year -so we are making progress. 

We visited Provender: a fantastic company who also face challenges.

And as we have the Minister here, this environmental horticultural company cannot capture and store their own water, but a soft drinks company 2 miles away can.

Thanks to Max Wilson and Tim Moxham for sorting out today and their support for the APPG. They make sure all goes well in all our meetings as we glide like swans on the surface. 

I want to thank our sponsors for this evening Westland, The RHS Horticultural Trade Association and British Association of Landscape Industries thank you for your support today.

We start and enjoy The Secret Garden and then on to the poetry of John Clare.

Marianne North Paintings in Kew to Beatrix Potters work on fungi

we will see drifts of snowdrops but I encourage you to lift the heads and look at the beauty inside, and the blowsy rhododendrons in Isabella Plantation, in Richmond Park 

Especially the Readers Digest Encyclopaedia of Garden Plants and flowers, what an amazing publication. 

I want to say to every part of the industry those who pot on; stack the shelves of our garden centres; run the garden centres, breed new plants; this is worth £38 billion and over 700,000 jobs so thank you. 

You bring us joy, beauty and humanity.