THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY
“Gardening can improve lives”
SUE BIGGS CBE, 60, IS DIRECTORGENERAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. FOUNDED IN 1804, THE RHS IS THE WORLD’S LARGEST GARDENING CHARITY. SUE LIVES IN COBHAM, SURREY.
I REMEMBER MY EARLIEST GARDENING MEMORY. MY MUM BOUGHT ME A PACKET OF SEEDS FOR MY SEVENTH BIRTHDAY AND SQUARED OFF A BIT OF OUR YARD. SHE TOLD ME THAT BY JUNE, THE AREA WOULD BE
FULL OF “AMAZING JEWELS”. I WAS INITIALLY DISAPPOINTED – BUT SHE WAS RIGHT; THEY WERE BEAUTIFUL. WE HAD PLANTED VIRGINIAN STOCKS – AND FROM THEN, I WAS HOOKED.
I’VE BEEN AT THE RHS FOR SEVEN YEARS NOW, AND IT’S AMAZING THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE I’VE SPOKEN TO WHO HAVE SAID THAT THEY STARTED GETTING INTERESTED IN GARDENING WHEN THEY WERE SIX OR SEVEN.
I WANTED TO DO ESTATE MANAGEMENT AT UNIVERSITY, BUT MY HEADMISTRESS DISSUADED MY PARENTS – IT WAS NOT THE PROPER THING FOR A YOUNG LADY! IN THE
END, THOUGH, YOU GET BACK TO WHERE YOUR PASSION LIES. I MIGHT HAVE READ ENGLISH, BUT I’VE ALWAYS WORKED OUTDOORS – BEFORE THE RHS, I SPENT 30 YEARS IN THE TRAVEL INDUSTRY, PRIMARILY AT TOUR OPERATOR KUONI.
WHEN THE RHS POSITION CAME UP, EVEN THOUGH IT WAS MY DREAM JOB, I WASN’T LOOKING. MY THEN HUSBAND SPOTTED THE ADVERT AND I SAID, “THERE’S NO WAY I’LL GET IT!” HE PERSUADED ME TO APPLY. THE ROLE REQUIRES SOMEONE WHO LOVES GARDENING BUT I’M NOT AN EXPERT AND I DON’T HAVE TO BE. INSTEAD, THE RHS NEEDED TLC AND TEAM BUILDING. THEY ALSO WANTED SOMEONE WITH COMMERCIAL EXPERIENCE – THAT’S WHY
THEY HIRED ME!
DURING MY CAREER,
I HAVE EXPERIENCED COMMENTS DIRECTED AT ME BECAUSE I’M A WOMAN – BUT I HAVEN’T NECESSARILY SEEN THEM AS OBSTACLES. MAYBE IT’S BECAUSE I HAVE THREE BROTHERS THAT I’VE NEVER TAKEN OFFENCE – IT’S BETTER TO RISE ABOVE IT. WHEN I WAS WORKING FOR KUONI, WE CHARTERED CONCORDE LOTS OF TIMES, BUT ONCE I WAS TRAVELLING ON IT AS A SCHEDULED FLIGHT. I WAS NEXT TO THE MOST DREADFUL WALL STREET CLICHÉ OF A MAN – RED BRACES, A BRICK OF A MOBILE PHONE – AND HE SPENT HALF AN HOUR EXPLAINING HOW THE PROCESS OF FLYING ON CONCORDE WORKS AS IF I KNEW NOTHING. THEN AN AIR HOSTESS CAME OVER AND SAID TO ME, “CAPTAIN JOHN SENDS HIS REGARDS, AND WAS WONDERING IF YOU’D LIKE TO JOIN HIM IN THE FLIGHT DECK.” YOU SHOULD HAVE SEEN THAT MAN’S FACE!
MY OWN GARDEN IS SLIGHTLY SCRUFFY, A
BIT LIKE ME! I HAVE LOTS OF GRASSES, ROSES, LAVENDER, SOME BEAUTIFUL TREES. IT’S A >>
SMALL VICTORIAN COTTAGE GARDEN. MY FORMER HUSBAND AND I ALSO OWNED A HOUSE IN UMBRIA FOR SEVERAL YEARS WITH THREE ACRES. IT CONTAINED A LOT OF LAVENDER, ROSEMARY AND GRASSES.
I HAD BOWEL CANCER IN 2008 AND BREAST CANCER IN 2014, AND GARDENS HELPED IN MY RECOVERY. IN 2008, AFTER I’D HAD MY CHEMO, I HEADED TO ITALY AND OUR GARDEN THERE. AND IN 2014, I HAD JUST MOVED INTO THE COTTAGE. I HADN’T SEEN THE NEWLY PLANTED GARDEN FLOWER, SO MY DETERMINATION TO SEE IT IN FULL BLOOM KEPT ME GOING.
THE RHS IS AN AMAZING ORGANISATION – IT REALLY HELPS PEOPLE AND IMPROVES LIVES. MY AMBITION IS FOR US TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE TO AS MANY LIVES AS POSSIBLE. HORTICULTURE IS SUCH A STRONG ANTIDOTE TO THE PRESSURES OF MODERN LIVING. WHETHER YOU NEED RESPITE FROM YOUR COMMUTE OR YOU’RE FED UP IN GENERAL, IF YOU SEEK OUT SOME GREEN SPACE, I PROMISE YOU’LL FEEL INSTANTLY BETTER.
MY MOTTO IS “DARE TO DREAM”. IF YOU KEEP YOUR HEAD DOWN, WORK HARD AND DO A GOOD JOB, YOU WILL DO WELL – AND PEOPLE WILL APPRECIATE WHAT YOU DO. IT’S ALL ABOUT HAVING THE RIGHT KIND OF ATTITUDE. AS A BOSS, I CAN BE QUITE DEMANDING – BUT I HOPE MY TEAM ALSO SEES ME AS PASSIONATE, ENERGETIC AND ENCOURAGING. WHENEVER WE CAN, WE HAVE FUN. LIFE IS TOO SHORT FOR IT NOT TO BE FILLED WITH HAPPINESS AND LAUGHTER.
I RELAX BY GARDENING – WHAT ELSE! I CAN LOSE TWO, THREE, FOUR HOURS IN MY GARDEN. I BECOME SO FOCUSED THAT I DON’T THINK ABOUT ANYTHING ELSE – IT COMPLETELY CLEARS MY HEAD. I’M NOT PATIENT ENOUGH FOR MEDITATION BUT GARDENING HAS THE SAME EFFECT ON ME.