A life long interest and wonder in the natural world lead me to start a career in horticulture in 2007. Since then I've had the pleasure of working with/in a myriad of inspiring and influential people/places.
I grew up in Devon and trained at Bristol College and Botanic Garden before embarking on a professional career. My roles have included head gardener for private estates and gardens, where I implemented projects by leading designers, planting/garden design. I’ve also taught horticulture and worked in organic market gardening and community-focused projects.
This varied and rich experience has given me an invaluable hands-on experience and a deep understanding of how plants grow, behave, thrive, fail and tolerate. Joyfully, they still continue to surprise.
My approach to each project is always site and client-specific
Always the right plant in the right place. I’m particularly interested in implementing designs that are species-rich and utilise resilient plants. Encouraging biodiversity is a key focus of my work— maximum flowering time, taxonomic and spatial complexity bring this, all the while enhancing the aesthetic value of the project.
I draw great inspiration from our wild plant communities and regularly document and emulate the sublime textural combinations I find, whether it’s rich woodland swathes, salt-encrusted coastal meadows, or our breathtaking hedgerows.
Wild plant communities
Ragged robin (Lychnis flos-cuculi) mingling with the strappy rushes and fresh lime green of young hemlock leaves.
Wild garlic, meadowsweet, vinca minor, bluebells, anthriscus - all bar the vinca in only leaf and offering a luxuriant balance of leaf textures in a tiny area of woodland.
Hedgerow Cranesbill (Geranium pyrenaicum), the natural form of Geranium ‘Bill Wallis’, dancing with buttercups on the side of a Devon lane. A simple and elegant colour pairing.
This incredible plant community is thriving in the pebbles at Cuckmere Haven, East Sussex. Viper’s Bugloss (Echium vulgare), Dyer’s Rocket (Reseda luteola) and teasel (Dipsacus fullonum)
Some further detail
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