‘My garden’s a restaurant for insects!’
The first plant I ever grew
The first seeds I ever sowed were New Zealand tea tree, Leptospermum scoparium
and opium poppy, Papaver
somniferum. I’d no idea how they’d grow and was amazed at the colours of the poppy. There were so many that a neighbour jokingly said they might have to call the drug squad! They were very beautiful.
The plant that shaped the gardener I am today
Aged two, I watered the wallflowers in my parents’ garden to death. My watering can was a little enamel one, with the quotation ‘Mary, Mary, how does your garden grow?’ around the base, with Mary watering the plants. Even now, the scent of them takes me back to those times.
My favourite plant in the world
I do love sweet peas, but also climbers and tall plants, such as lovage, bronze fennel or echinacea. Violet-flowered
Verbena bonariensis will always find a place, too. Lately, I’ve succumbed to the charms of some of the taller grasses, such as miscanthus ‘Red Cloud’ or Chinese fountain grass ‘Black Beauty’.
The plant that made me work hardest
A tricky one. I’ve a talent for germinating seeds and, ever one for a challenge, I find them irresistible. Our annual seed exchange in the Cottage Garden Society provides an amazing choice, so there’s always something new to try.
The plant I’d like to grow more of
I’d love more lupins, sweet peas and astrantias – in fact, anything that would bring more bees and butterflies into my garden. As an amateur entomologist, I find it fascinating to observe insects in the garden. I often say my garden is a restaurant for all my winged friends!
The plant I am in human form
I’d like to imagine I’m tall, stately and elegant like an iris, but sadly it’s an illusion!
The plants that shape my life
I’ve become more interested in growing edibles, and with that goes ‘companion’ planting. I like Heritage tomatoes and, in 2018, I’m going to try some American varieties. Sweet peas, however, are a favourite – from wedding corsages to my first ever prize-winning blooms at a show at the horticultural college Capel Manor in North London.
The plant I’d always give as a gift
Something with a scent perhaps but, more importantly, one that’ll survive!
If you’re interested in plants, or enjoy exchanging gardening ideas and experiences, why not join The Cottage Garden Society? Contact Clive Lane, ‘Brandon’, Ravenshall, Betley, Cheshire, CW3 9BH, tel: 01270 820940 or visit www.thecgs.org.uk.