Officials have forked out an extra £10,000 to support wonky fig trees in Portcullis House. Here are some lower-maintenance specimens they could cultivate in their place
Parliament’s figs trees are flopping about, it seems, and it is costing the government £10,000 to stand them up straight (they already cost £20,000 a year to maintain.)
Any plant grown indoors is going to suffer to some extent from leaning; light issues, warm conditions and plenty of water mean you’ll get lush, but often weak growth. Still, we have got plenty of expertise in this country in growing houseplants; we have been growing huge specimens indoors since the Victorian era, and anyone who has ever been to Kew knows it is entirely possible to have towering tropical trees that stand upright.