Design Tips

When I was recently invited to Loseley Park for a special tour I met Rebecca Younger, Features Editor for the Surrey Advertiser.  We got talking about the Chelsea Flower Show and she asked me if I would like to contribute to the next House and Garden Supplement with my views about Chelsea and how the readers might be able to recreate some of the design ideas in their own gardens.

The House and Garden supplement is a quartlerly publication which offers the reader “Fresh ideas and new looks for your home and garden”.  The June/July edition includes articles about finding the right craftsmen, interior design tips, garden craftsman and of course the Chelsea Flower Show.

Excitingly all the photos published, except one, were taken by me…the photography course is obviously paying off!  Here is the article in full with all the pictures – please excuse the photographs, I was technologically challenged this morning and the scanner was not playing ball!

Very excitingly, Rebecca is interested in working with me for future editions of the House and Garden supplement so do let me know if there is anything in particular that you, as a potential reader, would like to hear about.

I spent last week in Brittany with my partner, Phil, getting the family house ready for rental over the next few weeks of the Summer.  We were very fortunate to be able to see one of the stages of the Tour de France which went through the local town, Mur de Bretagne….but that’s another story for another time, and not very garden design related! Read more

I coordinate a local Society of Garden Designers’ cluster group and last week we visited the Maundy Todd Sculpture Garden and gallery in New Malden.  Set in Maundy’s own beautiful house and garden she exhibits the work of contemporary British sculptors who make limited editions or unique pieces for the garden and home. Read more

I took a day out last week and went on a fabulous cliff-top walk with a friend of mine from Dover to Deal in Kent.  We were SO lucky with the weather, just a few spots of rain here and there, but look at the view – it more than made up for that!  To be honest, I love to be by the sea when it’s windy and a bit bracing…really does blow away the cobwebs! Read more

I blogged a month ago about my visit to Wild Flower Turf near Overton in Hampshire and this week I went to visit my friend and fellow garden designer, Helen, who had used the turf in her own garden.  Although she already had a wild area in the garden, last year she decided to introduce a pond so, rather than seeding the areas around the pond in order to link them to the existing wild flower meadow, she decided to use the turf instead.  This is how it looks just 7 months on… Read more

So you’ve been to the show and taken lots of pictures of the things that excited and inspired you, and then you returned home ready to tackle your own garden only to find yourself in a dilemma about where to start! How will you ever recreate some of the show garden magic in your own garden? Read more

Whether I’m visiting gardens, flower shows or simply walking around the countryside, I’m always looking for new planting combinations that work really well together.  Because of the challenging growing conditions this year (i.e. a hot, dry Spring) we saw different combinations of plants at Chelsea Flower Show this year. Read more

As some of you might be aware, I coordinate a local cluster group of Garden Designers, the purpose of which is to keep our design ideas fresh and to share our knowledge and expertise.  On Thursday we were very fortunate to be able to visit Wild Flower Turf in Overton, Hampshire, to see their production site and learn more about the development of their wildflower turf. Read more

This month’s post from the Flowers In Pots series is all about hostas and planting them in pots is ideal as you’ll find out later in this post. Read more

Rona and I hope you’re enjoying our Flowers In Pots series.  Perhaps you’ve potted up your primula plants and agapanthus bulbs. Read more