THIS summer's wretched weather has hardly been a bed of roses for anyone.

But for the green-fingered among us, the seemingly endless wind and rain has been a particularly thorny issue.

Gardeners left withered with frustration as their plants take a battering have now been diagnosed as suffering from an official affliction - plant bereavement.

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) has been deluged with calls from emotional enthusiasts trying to deal with the trauma of losing their carefully nurtured companions.

"Gardeners can be an eccentric lot and quite often they see their plants as extended members of the family," said Leigh Hunt, principal horticultural adviser at the RHS's Wisley garden.

"They often go through the same stages of grief - shock, denial, anger, depression and acceptance."

Mr Hunt has been reassuring gloomy gardeners they are not alone in their problems and advising them to replace their beloved plant with "something new, something exciting". David Bassil, manager for flower shows across Bournemouth and Poole, including this weekend's Poole Flower Show, said this summer has been the most difficult he can remember.

He said: "It's been cool and on top of that we have had the wind, which has bustled plants about.

"They have never been still and that is particularly bad for flowers."

But while Mr Bassil admits all gardeners strive for the perfect plants, he believes grieving over them may be taking things a bit far.

He said: "We are all disappointed if the wind or rain spoils things, but if you are beaten one year, there is always next year."

Peter Thoday, one of the country's leading horticulturist and part of the gardening team at Compton Acres in Poole, said there were steps gardeners could take to try and rescue their plants.

He said: "If your plants are exposed to the prevailing wind, think about introducing shrubs in front of them as a barrier.

"And don't plant tall flowers - if your garden is exposed there are plenty of low-growing varieties to choose from."