This meeting was arranged in order to discuss and formulate co-ordinated action in response to the number of new pests and diseases and the effects of climate change on the alarming increase in their rate of arrival and spread.

Nine talks were given by staff from the Food and Environment Research Agency (Fera) who kindly organised the day for PlantNetwork.

In the afternoon an open disussion took place to consider ways to develop a cross-industry collaboration on best practice, to avoid introducing, or spreading, new pests and diseases.

Fera staff spoke about recognising and identifying diseases new to the UK, and the problems of diagnosing, and understanding the pathways for their arrival and spread; the history of emergence in Europe and the USA of various strains of Phytophthora ramorum and P. kernoviae, and the spread of the disease into Vaccinium heath in Cornwall; a range of recently encountered Hemipteran pests (bugs and scale insects) – these account for almost half the newly arriving invertebrate pests in the UK; caterpillar pests that are now starting to breed in the UK – or might arrive soon – and how to recognise them; beetles and gall wasps attacking tree species; the threat of citrus longhorn beetle and emerald ash borer to the UK; the value of amenity trees to inform risk management and decision making, using the example of the citrus longhorn beetle; and a new invasive thrip, Scirtothrips dorsalis. Sara Redstone told us about the occurrence of oak processionary moth at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and the attempts to control and eradicate it.

David Slawson, Head of the Pest & Disease Identification Programme at Fera, spoke on biosecurity for gardens and parks. He explained how we can protect ourselves by reviewing basic hygiene and quarantine measures and garden management practices. He emphasised the importance of training and monitoring in gardens – prevention is better than cure. Working with Ian Wright at the National Trust (NT), David has developed a set of Plant Quarantine & Biosecurity Guidance Notes for the Trust, which Mike Calnan has kindly shared with us by allowing us to post them on our website. They also produced a poster for NT staff, Turning over a clean leaf, on how to protect their gardens from pest and disease invaders.

In a tour of the research facilities at Sand Hutton, we were shown jewel beetles and other insects – damaging to plants, but beautiful close up. We are grateful to the staff at Fera for an interesting day packed, full of information