BOSSES at a world-famous garden have beefed up security in a bid to nip plant pilfering in the bud.

A new high wire boundary fence has been put up at the Sir Harold Hiller Gardens in Ampfield and motion cameras installed in newly-planted areas. It follows a growing number of rare plant thefts from the Hampshire County Council gardens.

Botanist Barry Clarke believes professional plant collectors could be behind the thefts at the 72 hectare site off Jermyns Lane which is home to the largest collection of hardy trees and shrubs in the world.

One of the stolen plants was a rare illicium henryi Star of Anise bush which originates from western China.

“It was a small newly-planted shrub. A lot of the plants that we have here were donated to us because we are a conservation garden,” said Mr Clarke.

Plants are sporadically stolen and it is often after they have just been planted. It’s mainly small trees and shrubs that go missing during the planting season. The Star of Anise bush was rare.”

Mr Clarke said that at least half a dozen peonies that were planted near the Centenary Border were stolen one night.

Rare evergreen mahonias shrubs native to eastern Asia, the Himalayas, North and Central America donated by the gardens former curator Roy Lancaster have also been taken in overnight raids.

Snowdrops which are protected in the wild have also been dug up by plant pilferers and some of the stolen varieties are rare.

Mr Clarke, who has worked at the gardens for 12 years said that the new security fencing also helps stop deer foraging in the garden.

He also said that TV gardening programmes have resulted in people becoming more interested in gardening and this could be one reason why thefts from gardens are increasing.

He told the Advertiser: “The thefts seem to happen early in the year but not always. There has been a slow rise in this sort of thing and it has got worse as more people have become interested in horticulture.

“It was expensive to put the fence up but if it helps deter deer and people from getting into the gardens at night and stealing plants it will be worth it.”

He added that motion cameras have been installed amongst beds where plants are growing.

“They record whatever goes onto the borders. We’ve got about a dozen of them in the planting areas around the gardens,” said Mr Clarke.