Every garden has a story to tell. Here, I am sharing the parts of the process that don’t always make it into a polished book chapter or magazine. This is a space for the digging in—the literal mud on my boots, and the honest mistakes made along the way. It’s for the growing—the big visions of blooming borders and quiet corners that keep us planting season after season. And most importantly, it’s for the sharing—those “Aha!” moments of passing on a shortcut or celebrating a small success.
Whether you are here to find a path to a greener thumb or just to see what’s currently pushing its way through the topsoil, I’m glad you’ve joined me. Let’s see what comes up next
Enjoy the blog
The misunderstood dandelion
To many, the dandelion Taraxacum officinale is nothing more than a stubborn, yellow-headed weed, a relentless invader of manicured lawns, and ...
I think I’ve nearly killed a plant that was supposed to love shade
There are few things more humbling than buying a plant perfectly suited to the damp, gloomy corners of Britain, only ...
The curious case of the lime-green Buddleja blotches
It's a sight that can puzzle even the most experienced gardener: your beautiful Buddleja, the undisputed butterfly magnet of the ...
Did you know about this watering can feature
I’ve had a proper epiphany today. For years, I have been using a watering can like an absolute lunatic. I ...
After the Chelsea chop
There I was, standing in some glorious sunshine in late May, staring down a Purple Loosestrife that had developed ideas ...
Time to be garden brave
The art of aggressive vegetation management is rarely about delicate snips; it is about having the backbone to tell a ...
Late to the cut
In the red corner, we have the "Gardeners' World" approach: a serene, linen-clad Monty Don whispering sweet nothings to a ...
The temptation of a special offer
There is a specific kind of madness that descends upon a gardener when they see the words "Special Offer." It’s ...
Pond-ering over a siphoning disaster
On Good Friday, the start of the Easter gardening weekend, I walked out into the garden to a scene of ...
First tidy up of the season
It’s the middle of March, and the relentless downpour of the very British weather has finally ceased and actually provided ...
The flamingo incident
My 'Flamingo' Willow is, quite frankly, a piece of horticultural flamboyance that has simply run out of the jazz. For ...