AS SEEN ON TV
TV presenters are often warned about appearing live with children or animals - to which you can now add lawnmowers. This week, ITV decided to focus on lawnmowers during This Morning on a patch of grass near its Thameside studios where those well-known ‘moweristas’, Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby displayed their horticultural knowledge. Faced with a push mower, the fragrant Holly said “Does it actually cut grass?” and addressing an electric rotary from Bosch, Schofield said “Is it a pull-start?”. Turning to a Flymo robot mower which obviously not been set up right, they blamed its non-performance on everything except their incompetence. (Husqvarna should ask for the return of their appearance money). Finally, demonstrating a cordless hedgetrimmer against a corded model, Ms Willoughby asked innocently of the electric model “How long will it cut for?”. But the killer remark from Philip Schofield directed to the giggly Willoughby was “Have you got an unruly bush?”. “No mine are neatly shaped” said Ms W. 

BAGMA CHANGES
Changes afoot at BAGMA where the ag and garden dealer association is due to move from its rural idyll in the Oxfordshire countryside to the heart of Birmingham as parent body, bira seeks to centralise all of its operations. Meanwhile, it has been announced that long-serving Communications Director and deputy CEO of bira Michael Weedon is to leave next month. The association says that the change is "one part of a realignment of bira with a combined headquarters in Birmingham, a streamlined board and a simplified structure”.

CALLING TIM PEAKE
Scientists at Jodrell Bank, Britain’s most famous observatory, fear their place at the frontier of astrophysics could be jeopardised – by lawnmowers.
They say a proposed housing development less than two miles from the observatory will mean radio interference from household appliances including residents cutting the grass, using power tools, microwaving meals and even doing laundry could produce sufficient electromagnetic radiation to drown out faint signals from space. Just when Tim Peake thought he was getting away from the neighbours!

VIRTUAL HOLIDAYS?
The announcement of the formation of a National Landbased College kind of ‘snuck’ in on everyone. It sounds a splendid idea to coordinate messages of opportunities in the land-based sector, as I bet if you went out in the street and uttered the phrase ‘land-based industry’ you would be faced with blank stares.  It is intended as a ‘virtual’ college, so presumably students' periods of unapproved holidays during term-time might be regarded as ‘virtual absences’ – and not count? PS What has happened to our much acclaimed LTA initiative launched to a great fanfare almost a decade ago?

EXPENSIVE SHOWROOM
Chelsea Flower Show next week. A few mower makers like John Deere will be there, but not the representation of yesteryear from the garden machinery industry when Allen Power, and Lance Bassett in particular, held court on the prominent first stand in mower supplier Northern Avenue. Mind you, it’s much cheaper to nip down to the dealer. Yesterday, tickets worth £50 were selling on the online agency Seatwave for £1181.99!