"The radical design of Air-Pot containers eliminates root circling and actively enhances the development of healthy roots. Healthy roots means healthy plants, faster growth and bigger yields."

We have often used air-pots to propagate the National Collection of Thalictrum. Whilst the plants prefer moist, well drained soil, the shape of the pots not only promotes strong root growth before planting, it also encourages adventitious stem formation. When un-doing the airpot, you often get many smaller plants for free.

Use the link above to purchase air-pots and learn more about them for yourself

A Sustainable Alternative for Tapeners: Why Florist Paper Tape Is the Solution We’ve Been Waiting For

If you’ve spent any time staking perennials, training young shrubs, or managing rows of soft fruit, you’ll know the tapener is one of the most efficient tools in horticulture. A quick squeeze, a clean tie, and you’re on to the next plant. It’s fast, reliable, and widely used across nurseries, vineyards, and gardens.

But there’s one persistent complaint: the tape.

Most tapeners rely on PVC or polypropylene tape. It’s cheap, strong, and readily available — but it comes with drawbacks:

• It’s not biodegradable.

• It accumulates in soil, hedgerows, and compost heaps.

• It’s visually intrusive, especially in naturalistic plantings.

• It creates unnecessary plastic waste in systems that otherwise strive for sustainability.

Gardeners and growers have been asking for a better option for years. Some have tried jute, raffia, or paper twine, but none feed through a tapener smoothly or consistently.

The Novel Solution: Florist Paper Tape

Florist paper tape — the same lightweight, biodegradable tape used for wrapping bouquets and securing stems — turns out to be remarkably compatible with tapeners.

After extensive testing in real horticultural conditions, it performs far better than expected.

Why It Works

Florist paper tape has three key properties that make it ideal:

Flexibility  

1. It bends and feeds through the tapener mechanism without tearing or jamming.

Tensile strength  

2. Strong enough to secure stems to canes, but not so strong that it constricts growth.

Biodegradability  

3. It breaks down naturally in soil and compost, leaving no plastic residue. It will comfortably last a growing season, when tape would normal be taken off to allow for further expansion.

In practice, it behaves almost identically to standard tapener tape — but with none of the environmental guilt.

Field Performance: What Happens in Real Use?

In trials across herbaceous borders, nursery beds, and soft-fruit rows, florist paper tape showed:

• Clean, reliable ties

• No feed issues in the tapener

• No tearing during application

• Natural degradation after a season

• No harm to stems, even on delicate species like Thalictrum, Anemone, and young Clematis

It’s especially effective for plants with fine or brittle stems, where heavy plastic tape can be too rigid. The plant can break through the tape with ease when it becomes too tight.

Why This Matters for Sustainable Horticulture

The horticultural industry is moving steadily toward lower‑impact materials. Compostable pots, peat‑free substrates, biodegradable twines — and now, finally, a realistic alternative for tapeners.

Switching to florist paper tape:

• Reduces plastic waste

• Improves compost hygiene

• Supports circular growing systems

• Aligns with ecological gardening principles

• Offers a practical, immediate change with no compromise in performance

It’s a small adjustment that adds up across hundreds or thousands of ties per season.

Where to get it

Use the link beneath this story to try it for yourself