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Earliest garden\/gardening memory:<\/strong> Not quite a garden memory but my earliest plant memories were raspberry<\/a> picking with my mother as she occasionally worked the fruit season. Turns out 1980s small farms in Kent had a more relaxed attitude for bringing your kids to work. My first memories were eating the berries, being chased by bees<\/a> and running around apple trees.<\/a><\/p>\n First plant love:<\/strong> From living in Fiordland national park, New Zealand, this was the turning point for me falling in love with plants. My first plant love remains the native Dicksonia antarctica<\/em> ferns<\/a> inhabiting the lush rainforests. The sheer age, size and number of these giants inspired me to find my way into horticulture.<\/p>\n What did you do before you became a gardener? <\/strong>I joined the workforce after university in the financial crisis, where working in local government in communications was enough to see life at a desk was not for me. I then left the country for five years, working in adventure tourism across Australasia and traveling. It was during this time I ended up knowing I wanted to work with plants<\/a> and the UK would be the best place to train to do this.<\/p>\n Favourite landscape and garden that has influenced you:<\/strong> Temperate rainforests and wetlands are my main inspiration, especially when nature begins to overtake human made structures. Angkor Wat remains a favourite landscape. Garden wise Inverewe is at the top of the list. It\u2019s an incredible garden on the edge of the North West Scotland combining human achievement and a jaw dropping natural environment. Due to its unique micro climate c<\/a>aused by the Gulf Stream hitting the highland coast, exotic plants have been able to flourish. It\u2019s a truly special place but keep moving in midge season!<\/p>\n Three most worthwhile tips for every gardener:<\/strong> Most valuable training:<\/strong> The MacRobert Trust, Aberdeenshire. Each year the estate takes on four trainees to go immerse themselves in learning the ins and outs of horticulture. Little did I know the full-on practical training would be the founding for building a garden from scratch like RHS Bridgewater. From heavy machine work like chainsawing and tractor driving, to finer work in glasshouse propagation and kitchen gardening, this traineeship gave me everything.<\/p>\n Dream plant destination:<\/strong> I once saw a picture of plants in Ethiopia\u2019s highlands and it looked like something out of a sci-fi film, it would be a real dream to see such a surreal landscape and plants. And I\u2019ve also never seen Sequoiadendron giganteum<\/em> in the wild, so seeing the redwood forests of California is on the list.<\/p>\n Favourite planting style:<\/strong> Lush, rainforest with wetlands with bodies of water. I love the \u2018lost city\u2019 feel and the feeling of security of a tree canopy<\/a> gives. I think the use of mosses<\/a> is highly underrated in this country and living in Manchester, a wetland area, it\u2019s an untapped resource.<\/p>\n Favourite \u2018weed\u2019 you\u2019re happy to have in your garden:<\/strong> Bramble. I know it\u2019s a beast but the flowers are gorgeous, the benefits to wildlife<\/a> are great and the berries are delicious.<\/p>\n Biggest challenge facing gardeners today:<\/strong> Hands down the climate crisis<\/a>. Most notably our use of water and its storage. The heatwave this summer was a taster of things to come and the infrastructure of UK horticulture<\/a> has a bumpy ride ahead. Waiting to see Gardens Illustrated<\/em> do a spread on aesthetically pleasing water butts<\/a> and irrigation<\/a> in the coming years!<\/p>\n One easy thing that every gardener can do to be more sustainable in their gardening:<\/strong> Don\u2019t mow your lawns.<\/a> We desperately need more wildflower meadows<\/a> to make a comeback. Even if it\u2019s just for No-Mow May,<\/a> the reduced carbon foot print of mowing and the flowering \u2018weeds\u2019 giving nectar to pollinators is the sustainable approach. You\u2019re being asked to put your feet up and do one less thing. A win all round I think.<\/p>\n What principles have guided your attitude to gardening\/horticulture:<\/strong> Be in it for the long haul. Development of areas take time and thoughtful planting. In lower middle wood, I\u2019ve planted shrubs and trees I\u2019ll never see mature in my life time but it\u2019s not all about instant gratification.<\/p>\n In what direction do you see horticulture heading in the next few years?<\/strong> The climate crisis takes centre stage. The optimist in me hopes we\u2019ll see an increase in green spacing in cities that promotes biodiversity and tackles climate heating up of our urban areas. People are becoming a lot more clued up on sustainable practices and I hope this keeps momentum.<\/p>\n Favourite gardening blogs\/instragram feed \u2013 or books?<\/strong> I find Instagram a great place to get information and inspiration. Standing out right now on my feed is @water_meadow_gardening<\/a> and @themoosegarden.<\/a><\/p>\n What\u2019s the next big project\/seasonal task you\u2019ll be tackling in the garden?<\/strong> The woodland is still ongoing with Chinese streamside continuing to expand. I\u2019ve taken on a lot of the aquatic planting over the last few years. It\u2019s a mammoth task but I love being on the water. I plan to keep improving habitat areas and stabilising the lake edges of Moon Bridge Water. Through increasing its oxygenators and marginal plants, the large bodies of water will stabilise and have less algae blooms, but it will take time. I\u2019m also really keen to get started on establishing the bog garden which is quite exciting.<\/p>\n How do you remind yourself what needs doing next?<\/strong> Keeping a diary<\/a>. Tonnes of photos. I\u2019m a visual person so I take a lot of photos and I\u2019m not above Outlook calendar invites for my future self. When there is more than one person involved, such as our team, we have a weekly whiteboard calendar showing all team members and a monthly whiteboard for big team jobs.<\/p>\n