A SEARCH by the mother of missing botanist Jamie Taggart in Vietnam has resumed under improved conditions.

The third day of the search set up by Jill Mary for Mr Taggart, who was last seen at the end of October 2013, got under way with a guide who knows Mr Taggart.

Mr Taggart's mother said she hiked through the national park.

She said: "He (the local guide) said he will never stop looking for his friend.

"He will pass new posters among the local people to see if anyone knows anything."

A reward is also offered for information.

The new search was set up near Sa Pa after details of Mr Taggart's route were discovered among his belongings.

Mr Taggart, 42, who runs the world-renowned Linn Botanic Gardens at Cove, Argyll and Bute. was seeking to document undiscovered species of orchid and rhododendron.

His mother broke through red tape to arrange the new search this week.

The family's ongoing push for information has gained the support of Greens co-convenor Patrick Harvie and then First Minister Alex Salmond who repeatedly pressed for diplomatic intervention.

His mother said funding for the planned search of three days by at least 15 people including food and overnight camping is partly being funded by donations by family and friends and the remainder by the Vietnamese Police Department.

Mr Taggart went missing two days into his trip.

The official search was called off in March last year but Mr Taggart's family and friends have raised thousands of pounds to fund continued searches and local investigations.

Actor Hugh Grant, who has close connections to the area, is among those to have offered support.

Mr Taggart's father, Jim Taggart, one of the most prominent botanists in Scotland who founded the gardens, said last October: "Someone, somewhere must know something."