My Life in Plants
The first plant I ever grew
Aged about seven, I wanted my bedroom to look like a jungle. I was in a garden centre with my mum and mother-in-law’s tongue, Sansevieria trifasciata, was the first plant I’d seen that looked exotic. I brought it home and added Swiss cheese plants, Monstera deliciosa, and rubber plants, Ficus elastica, until she got cross because I wasn’t dusting them!
The plant that shaped the gardener I am today
I’ve been hybridising North American pitcher plants, sarracenia, for a few years now and they’ve become a firm favourite. We’re just about to complete a successful two-year trial growing them outdoors for the RHS.
My favourite plant in the world
Rafflesia arnoldii, a fantastic tropical parasitic plant with an orangey-red flower that grows to around 3ft across. I was lucky enough to see it in bloom in Sumatra, Indonesia.
The plant that made me work hardest
It has taken me years to get hold of fresh, viable seed of the pitcher plant Nepenthes lowii, lowii let alone germinate or grow them! One plant of this slowgrowing species from Borneo has taken me 14 years to produce pitchers, but it’s worth it!
The plant of which I’d like to grow more
This would probably be Disa orchids from South Africa – they’re an absolute favourite of mine. Because they seem to like the same conditions as a lot of my temperate carnivorous plants, I grow them alongside these to brighten up the greenhouses with their absolutely stunning, brilliant orange flowers.
The plant I am in human form
If I had to choose, I suppose I would be a conifer, such as the Scots pine. It’s evergreen and I work all year round, it’s native to this country and I’m a proud Englishman. Even though I love to travel I’m always happy to see them.
The plant that helped shape my life
A Venus fly trap, Dionaea
muscipula, really did change my life. As a child I was captivated after seeing one on a natural history programme. My neighbour heard about this and found one for me. I remember being a little disappointed at how small the plant was as they’d obviously zoomed in on the programme! I killed the first one by feeding it cheese, and the second by feeding it chocolate. I’m a bit better at growing them today!
The plant I’d always give as a gift
This would have to be one of my sarracenia hybrids, namely ‘Juthatip Soper’, named after my wife. It has got bright, long-lasting pink foliage and beautiful red flowers in spring. For a youngster, it would be a Venus fly trap to try to encourage and inspire them to learn more about plants.