Blackdown Horticultural Consultants Limited was formed in 1999 by John Williams and Alun Rhys Tarr and is based in Somerset's beautiful Blackdown Hills. John has many years experience in commercial horticulture and at the Royal Horticultural Society working with temperate and tropical plants. Alun has a PhD in Plant Physiology and experience in the fields of product development, horticultural trials and landscape design. Both are passionate about plants and the vital role they will play in our increasingly urbanised environment.
Our main area of expertise is in the design, supply, installation and maintenance of lightweight roof planting systems. As well as being visually attractive, these systems have numerous environmental advantages. We are unique in this country with regard to roof planting in that:
- All our components are sourced in the UK.
- We grow all our own plant material including our exclusive NatureMat® instant greening system.
- Our schemes are tailored to the UK climate.
- We offer a complete service from design to maintenance, nationwide.
In addition to roof planting systems we can also offer low maintenance ground sited 'greening' solutions based upon our Nature Mat® system. These are ideal for roundabouts, steep banks, sound barriers and tramway beds for example. With the correct installation techniques many areas considered difficult to plant and maintain can be 'greened' successfully.
We also provide the following technical services:
- Horticultural consultancy.
- Design and implementation of landscaping schemes.
- Research and development.
We hope that the information here gives you an indication of the enthusiasm we have for the use of plants for both aesthetic and functional purposes. We also hope that you will agree with us that plants are the solution to many of the environmental questions posed by the built environment now and in the future.
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We also offer a similar consultative design process to meet your other landscaping needs, whether interior or exterior.
Our roof planting systems already perform very well both visually and environmentally; however, we do not underestimate the value of constant assessment and have an active research and development programme. In addition to our trials base in Somerset, we have used roof trials sited the length and breadth of the country to fine tune our systems for anywhere in the UK. We have also set up roof planting trials abroad. At present, areas of research include:
- Substrate composition with particular regard to weight, sustainability and plant performance.
- Dynamic analysis of rainwater management by various planted systems and the effect of roof pitch on this.
- Drainage layer construction with regard to water retention characteristics.
- High pitch and ground level greening applications.
- Total system composition with particular regard to wildlife habitat creation.
- Extending the range of suitable plant species and determining their requirements for optimal performance.
We believe attention to detail is important whether this is driven by our own monitoring or by input from potential customers. We welcome open discussion as to your requirements.
- Cuttings and seeds. These are spread on the prepared roof. The cuttings root and seeds germinate to establish the plant layer on the roof.
- Plug plants.These are young plants that are manually installed into the prepared roof soil or substrate. The plug plants establish to produce the mature plant layer.
- Nature MatŪ. Our own exclusively developed system, Nature MatŪ is pre-grown to maturity in our fields. Nature MatŪ can then be rolled up, transported to the roof and unrolled to give an instant green roof. For more information, see the main menu.
Street Ash Nursery, Combe St. Nicholas, Chard, Somerset, TA20 3HZ, UK.
Tel. +44 (0)1460 234582
Business hours 9.00 a.m.- 5.30 p.m. Monday to Friday.
Visits by appointment only.
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