A deadly rose virus which wipes out entire flower populations and is impossible to get rid of is likely to come to Britain, the RHS has warned after sponsoring a study into the disease.
Scientists sponsored by the Royal Horticultural Society will sequence the genetic code of flowers impacted by the virus in a bid to find a cure and ensure it does not spread to the UK.
Recent advances in scientific techniques, such as next-generation sequencing – a high-throughput approach to DNA sequencing – provide new opportunities to improve understanding and future proof against the notorious disease.