March 2012

For years, we have simply enjoyed the yellow sea of Daffodils in the garden without knowing their true identities. Originally planted in the 1930′s, as part of major structural changes to both the house and garden (believed) by Clough William-Ellis, the daffodils are an important element of the garden. Since the purchase of the house in 1960′s, a minor few cultivars were added, but the daffodils have largely, been left [...]

Leading on from ‘Marathon Woman: An Interview with Jo Thompson‘, the third article in this Chelsea series, highlights Thompson’s inspiration for the design of her ‘A Celebration of Caravanning’, 2012 Chelsea Flower Show Garden. Diarmuid Gavin, once said that good garden design required finding ‘the secret of the location’. Though, what if the location is a flat, 10m by 10m section, along one of the busiest interim avenues in London, [...]

Meet our rather adventurous 2009 purchase, Rubus Nidigrolaria; the Jostaberry. Developed in Europe, the Jostaberry is a thornless cross between the Blackcurrant and the Gooseberry. Results to date have been poor to say the least. This, the Olympic year, is its last chance to determine its future; compost heap or eternal sorbet/crumble rich prospects. On the endless quest for tasty curiosities, the Jostaberry joined a whole crew of fruit bushes [...]

From drama teacher to ‘garden designer tipped to watch’, in just seven short years is quite remarkable. Garden designer, Jo Thompson, is in the midst of her preparations for that most famous of horticultural marathons, the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2012. Leading on from ‘Competition for Space: RHS Chelsea from Sketch to Show Garden‘, this is the second post in the Chelsea series; an interview with Jo Thompson, highlighting her [...]