The Simon Scott Landscaping Garden WOW list

Plant of the month, Gardens to visit, Shows, Books and introducing the all new ‘Garden WOW Dates for your Diary!’

This month’s WOW list celebrates Pulsatilla vulgaris, our plant of the month. We also highlight the wonderful Garden Show at Firle, get excited about discovering ‘One Garden’ in Brighton and look forward to reading recently published inspirational and important garden books. We are delighted to have added an all new ‘WOW dates for your diary’ section to make sure you don’t miss out of any future Garden WOW opportunities we have spotted along the way. We hope you enjoy!

Plant of the Month -Pulsatilla vulgaris

We were delighted to discover Pulsatilla vulgaris, commonly know as the pasqueflower in the walled herb garden at Firle Place when we visited a few years ago. It is a prominent feature plant there forming part of the medicinal planting scheme where it springs into life in April.  A perennial with the RHS Award of Garden Merit. It sits holding the memory of our discovery in a lone terracota pot on our sun terrace where the light catches it’s silvery silken hairs, it’s really rather lovely. When planted on mass, as they are at Firle you get a mixture of plants at different stages of their life cycle. Some plants showing off their bell shaped violet/lavender blue flowers with orange centres which tend to nod gently in the breeze. Some plants are half in flower and half already at seed head stage. The seed heads seem perfectly designed to catch the light and last well into the Summer months. A must for a Spring garden and a perfect addition to an alpine planting scheme. The plant likes a sunny well drained position. Great in gravel and rock gardens and happy in raised beds. A wonderful addition for Spring seasonal interest.

The Garden Show at Firle – 15-17 April 2022

The Garden Show at Firle this year is over Easter weekend 15-17 April 2022.

It features specialist growers, garden related goods and lots of umptious food. We are hoping that the Firle walled herb garden will also be open this year (as it has been in past visits to the show) see our previous blog about this special place. The show is a lovely English country garden day out. There are also some great talks and advice clinic events at the show covering a range of topics from pruning, pests and environmentally safe ways of keeping them at bay as well as a celebration of British flowers. See full details of what’s on and when here.

We are particularly excited about Jules Simmons ‘walk and talk’ all about the secret life of trees. Happening everyday at 2.30pm. Previous readers of our blog will know how blown away we are by recent discoveries of how trees communicate with each other, explored in our Forests, Woods and Fantastic Fungi blog.

One Garden, Brighton

We are looking forward to discovering One Garden Brighton over the next few weeks. A walled garden which aims to celebrate heritage and innovation, designed by landscape architect Dominic Cole. There are a series of contemporary show gardens within the space which have a particular focus on providing inspiration and ideas. Top on our list of the show gardens to visit are the all seasons garden, the urban shade garden and the hot and dry garden. It will also be interesting to compare and contrast the medicinal garden there with the herb garden at Firle. Watch this space for further news and sharing of ideas once we’ve been! There are some wonderful Easter family activities happening for children this month, including Easter Egg hunts and seed pot planting, check out the One Garden website directly for details of these. One Garden are also holding  an Easter Monday Day full of free music entertainment, Easter craft activity and egg hunts and pop up food and drink stalls. Enjoy!

Garden books and Chiddingstone Castle Literary Festival 2022

Sustainable Garden: Projects, insights and advice for the eco-conscious gardener by Marian Boswell and Grounding: Finding a Home in a Garden by Lulah Ellender

We were particularly excited to discover that on 2nd May, East Sussex based writer Lulah Ellender and Kent based Landscape Architect, horticulturist and writer Marian Boswell will be sharing the same stage at Chiddingstone Castle’s Literary Festival this year. Lulah’s book Grounding: Finding a Home in a Garden explores and reflects on the many ways growing plants and working in harmony with nature can help us feel grounded in an uncertain world. It sounds like such a poignant, moving and important story and is inspired in part by the many beautiful gardens local to us in Lewes. Do check out the fantastic Guardian Review of the book, in which the reviewer Alex Preston writes I’ve read a lot of gardening books ……but I’ve read very few as moving and literary as Grounding. We really look forward to reading it. Marian’s book Sustainable Garden: Projects, insights and advice for the eco-conscious gardener, we know, will be a beautiful and influential book and a practical guide full of top tips to help people who want to make a difference by gardening in more sustainable ways. Marian’s article Plants with medicinal qualities: how to create an apothecary garden published in Gardens Illustrated is a great read full of wonderful ideas, which I’m sure gives a flavour of how inspirational Sustainable Garden will be. Marian and Lulah will be in conversation with poet and writer Sarah Salway at the Chiddingstone Literary Festival where they will look at what gardens really mean to us. Please check out the website for timings and details of how to book tickets.

Garden WOW Dates for your Diary!

In this new section of our blog we include Garden WOW Dates for your diary where we list events that we have highlighted above as well as upcoming ‘WOWs’  that are of interest to us this month and beyond, which we hope might be useful to you too, our lovely readers. Enjoy!

24th March – 29th August 2022, London  – Wellcome Collection, Rooted Beings ‘Rooted Beings’ invites you to embark on a meditative reflection on the world of plants and fungi. The exhibition considers what we might learn from plant behaviour, and the impacts of colonial expeditions on the exploitation of natural resources and indigenous knowledges.  

1st April – 30th October, Ockley, Surrey – The Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden These absolutely beautiful gardens are open for the season, with contemporary sculpture, see our blog about this beautiful place.

8th April – 24th April 2022, Brighton, East Sussex – One Garden, Brighton -Easter Family Activities

See information in blog above.

15-17 April 2022, Firle, East Sussex – The Garden Show at Firle 

See information in blog above.

20th April – 4th May, Pashley Manor Gardens, Wadhurst, East Sussex – The Tulip Festival, In late April/early May Pashley Manor’s spectacular Tulip Festival sees this garden carpeted with over 48, 000 tulips

30th April -2nd May 2022, Chiddingstone Castle, Kent – Chiddingstone Castle’s Literary Festival

See information in blog above.

21st to 29th May – Chelsea Fringe 2022, London (and beyond) Brilliant event that happens at the same time as The Chelsea Flower Show The Chelsea Fringe invites community gardeners, artists, activists and anyone with an interest in gardens, plants and outdoor space to do something fun and positive. We are looking forward to checking out the programme as it is confirmed.

1st June – 16th October 2022, Sussex Prairies Gardens are open, Henfield, East Sussex – One of our favourite gardens is open for the season see previous blogs  about this beautiful garden and specific opening details (days of week and times) here. Take note that the Early Summer Plant Fair at Sussex Prairies takes place on Sunday 5th June and is a ticketed event, see more information here.

1st June – 18th September 2022 Tower of London Superbloom, London As part of the celebrations of the Platinum Jubilee The Tower of London will be encircled by millions of flowers for a stunning new ‘Superbloom’ display.  See further information about how to book tickets here.

The Simon Scott Landscaping Garden WOW list, Art, Inspiration and Lewes Artwave Festival

Jilly Sutton – The Hannah Peschar sculpture garden

Our lovely family friend is the uber talented sculptor Jilly Sutton, who always WOW’s us with her beautiful work. It was great to see so many of her pieces at the always inspiring Hannah Peschar Sculpture garden when we visited a few years back. We highlight the sculpture garden and some of the artists that inspired us.

Jilly Sutton Sculpture-The Hannah Peshar Sculpture garden

Jilly Sutton Sculpture-The Hannah Peshar Sculpture Garden

Jilly Sutton Sculpture-The Hannah Peshar Sculpture Garden

We are so lucky to be based in Lewes, which is bursting at the seams with creative artists and makers. We shine a spotlight on the brilliant Barcombe based artist Michelle Dufaur with her sculptures inspired by the local wildlife and highlight The Artwave festival which runs from 11th September to 26th September. We particularly feel in love with ‘Come, see real
flowers of this painful world’ by photographer Kathyrn Martin, go and see them if you can, they are really exquisite.

The Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden

Neil Wilkin -The Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden

Autumn is now upon us and the garden now starts to shift into wonderful foliage colour WOW’s of the seasons change alongwith the long flowering perennials and grasses taking their turn in the limelight. Evergreen structural planting which has provided form and backdrop to Summer wonder now sits steady and patiently waiting for it’s time to shine during the winter months, where it will take centre stage.

Neil Wilkin -The Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden

Neil Wilkin -The Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden

Neil Wilkin -The Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden

Of course sculpture is also a brilliant additional to any garden large or small providing focal points all year round and crucial winter structure when most of the perennials are by then under the soil. What we love about the Hannan Peschar Sculpture Garden, based in Surrey is the range of sculpture on show catering for many varied tastes, but also highlighting how placing a sculpture ‘well’ can provoke a series of responses and emotions. A tour of the garden exemplifies what sculpture can do to a space, it includes examples of playfullness, movement, direction, framing as well as visual trickery.  So many to choose from, but we include images here of some of our favourites.

Ronald Van Der Meus – The Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden

Ronald Van Der Meus – The Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden

Ronald Van Der Meus – The Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden

Hannah Bennett – The Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden.

Hannah Bennett – The Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden.

Hannah Bennett – The Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden.

Clinton Smith Sculpture – Hannah Pechar Sculpture Garden.

Clinton Smith Sculpture – Hannah Pechar Sculpture Garden.

Clinton Smith Sculpture – Hannah Pechar Sculpture Garden.

David Begbie Sculpture – Hannah Pechar Sculpture Garden.

David Begbie Sculpture – Hannah Pechar Sculpture Garden.

David Begbie Sculpture – Hannah Pechar Sculpture Garden.

The garden is open from April to the end of October so do book a slot and see which sculptures inspire you. The sculptures are situated in the most magical woodland gardens which are not to be missed. In this space beautiful lush plants with bold foliage and mature trees support, frame and enhance this changing curated collection of artists work.

Art, Inspiration and Lewes Artwave Festival

Michelle Dufaur Sculpture

Back in June, we had a wonderful time at the ‘Beyond Brighton festival’, exploring some of the artists open houses. We were particularly excited to be seeing the work of Barcombe based artist Michelle Dufaur, whose wonderful outdoor venue ‘Field’ was the perfect location to show off her talent. Her work is currently inspired by the richness of local wildlife. We are in love with the hares, beautifully located on a mown pathway in a wildflower lawn and we had much fun spotting the other sculptures on show. Do check out her website in the links section below where you can see the breadth of her currect collection.

Michelle Dufaur Sculpture

Michelle Dufaur Sculpture

Michelle Dufaur Sculpture

From 11th to 26th September, The Artwave Festival in Lewes and the surrounding areas will be offering many opportunities to be inspired by the creative talent of the people based in and around the area. Artwave gives you the chance to discover new work, meet artists and makers, and buy directly from them. There are many ‘art’ trails around Lewes, Seaford and Newhaven as well as lots of the villages surrounding them. There is also an ‘outdoor venue’ trail, which we feel sure will have the work of many artists who work in sculpture on show and perhaps a great opportunity to invest in a sculpture for your own garden.   Check out the links section below for The Artwave Festival website which holds comprehensive information of whats on and where.

We particularly fell in love with ‘Come, see real flowers of this painful world’ by photographer Kathyrn Martin, the Hawthorn print featured below is simply stunning. Do go and see them if you can, they are all fragile and exquisite in their own right and wonderul to see on mass. The exhibition, which is displayed in the very lovely Edwardian school hall at Hilcrest, Newhaven shows Kathyrn’s series of wildflowers, which were captured on a repeated walk on the South Downs Way from early spring to summer, in 2019 and 2020 . We will be featuring this in a further blog as we feel it deserves it’s very own ‘WOW’ moment. Check out the links section below for Kathryn’s website to find out more. On until September 26th at Venue 075, Art at the Hillcrest, as part of the Artwave Newhaven trail.

Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna), Kathryn Martin

Wishing you a September full of WOW moments and inspiration!

Links:

Kathyrn Martin

Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden

Jilly Sutton Sculpture

Michelle Dufaur

Artwave Festival

Forests, Woods and Fantastic Fungi

Welcome to the new Simon Scott Landscaping GARDEN WOW list. This one has a particular focus on the beautiful landscapes and ‘natural gardens’ that are the woods and forests around us in Lewes, East Sussex. These places have become even more cherished as spaces of retreat and comfort in 2020 and we have certainly loved soaking up their wonder on long walks this year. In this month’s GARDEN WOW list we highlight the incredible WOW of woods, forests, their systems of communication and their fantastic fungi. We provide links to an amazing film about fungi and to animations explaining the ‘wood wide web’ and the ‘story of flowers’ in all their wonder. The animations are a lovely way to introduce children to the magic of nature. We get excited about the lost woods of the low weald and downs project which will have a huge impact on Sussex and which will restore a whole 400 square km of woods around us. We will look at the meditative practice of Shinrin-Yoku, otherwise known as ‘forest bathing’ and link to a lovely guide to get you started. We are excited to discover and share with you the storytelling ‘walk in the wild’ project. We will also be highlighting the brilliant National Tree week with links to some great recordings of their online events. This one’s Full of WOW’S! We do hope you enjoy.

Forest bathing and a walk in the wild WOW:

We have both always loved walking in the woods and have both done so since we we were both children. It has now become a regular activity we do with our own family. On woodland walks, we are always looking up and being mesmerised by the towering trees above, the sound of the wind through the rustling leaves, the dance of light peeping through the canopy and the brilliant hide and seek opportunities provided by the trunks and the shadows they produce. The woods are both calming and invigorating at the same time, after a walk you always somehow breathe more steadily and feel revived. It wasn’t until recently that there has been a real focus on the health benefits that the very act of being ‘present’ in the woods induces. The art of forest bathing (Shinrin-Yoku) has had much press in recent years, developed by the Japanese in the 1980’s and proven to positively effect the response of our nervous systems and reduce the levels of the stress hormone cortisol. It has now become an important part of preventative healthcare and healing in Japanese medicine. Forestry England have a wonderful simple introduction to forest bathing and have created a lovely FREE forests for well being booklet which gives a simple step by step guide to forest bathing and also includes other great ideas for adventuring. We were also delighted to find and to share with you their incredible Autumn walks in the South-East link. The closest of their recommended walks is Friston Forest, Sussex, which we highly recommend. New Tier restrictions mean that some of these will be out of bounds for now but of course there are many lovely walks in much more local woods near us in Lewes, East Sussex still full of Autumn/Winter delight and colour.

We were really excited to discover November’s Guardian article  ‘Once upon a time…there was a magical storytelling walk in a Sussex forest’ written by Jane Dunford  and of course had to include it here for those of you who like a forest adventures. It highlights the work of Nana Tomova, based in Sussex and who as well as being a mental health pharmacist is also a nature guide and story teller.  Do check out her website where you too can have a ‘walk in the wild’ experience guided by Nana in the woods. Nana has also set up a new podcast full of wonderful stories. Do listen if you get the chance. At the end of the story of ‘The Willow Wife’, Nano reads out the beautiful poem by Mary Oliver ‘When I am among the trees’, it feels very poignant, do search it out if you can.

National Tree Week and the Lost Wood Project WOW:

The Tree Council ran National Tree Week from 28th November to 6th December 2020. Since 1975 the organisation has planted millions of trees across the UK, by gathering together people at the start of every tree planting season to care for existing and to plant new trees. This year planting together in groups couldn’t happen, however not to be defeated they instead curated a free online programme of events, including talks, art and music, all of these talks have been recorded and can now be accessed from their website. Check out their programme of events.

We have recently found out about The Lost Woods of the Low Weald and Downs Project which aims to restore areas of woods from Pulborough to the fringes of Lewes, in fact a whole 400 square km of them. It’s a multi partnered project and we are so pleased that this is happening around us. Without intervention there was a real risk that these woods would have been lost altogether and amongst many aims, one of them is a focus on working with schools to get more children learning in a woodland environment and also ensuring that local people have access to the woods. To find out more about this and see developments check out the projects dedicated facebook page.

Wood Wide Web and Fungi WOW:

Developments in science means that we now know so much more about not just what’s above ground but also about what goes on under our feet in woods and forests.  We absolutely love this short child friendly film called ‘How Trees secretly talk to each other’ made for the BBC, which explores the intricate workings of the world beneath us called the wood wide web for good reason.

We also recommend watching the documentary film Fantastic Fungi  directed by Louie Schwartzberg which includes very spectacular footage of growth and decay of Fungi and explores the potential of using Fungi for medicine and healing. This film is not for children because of, amongst other things it’s focus on Fungi’s mind altering potentials, but we thought it was a fascinating watch. We also are very much looking forward to listening to Entangled Life by Merlin Sheldrake, which is currently an audio book available on bbc sounds. Entangled life is a book about ‘how fungi make our worlds, change our minds and shape our futures.’

If you are based in East Sussex and would like to buy some locally sourced mushrooms do follow the instagram profile of @sussexmushrooms who provide local gourmet mushrooms and are based in Lewes.

The Story of Flowers WOW:

Do also check out Japanese artist Azuma Makoto’s wonderful artwork ‘Story of Flowers’ which is a  botanical animation developed for children to show the lifecycle of flowers. Four minutes of real wonder.

We hope you’ve enjoyed these WOW’s as much as we have. Wishing you lots of wonderful woodland adventures in 2021.

Sophie and Simon

September ‘GARDEN WOW’ list

Firstly and most importantly we hope you and your loved ones are all keeping well and safe. We have continued to find much solice in the stopping and looking at nature in all it’s glory during these very uncertain times. This little ‘drunk on pollen’ bee was a wonderful WOW stop and look moment captured at Sussex Prairie Garden earlier this Summer, a real WOW GARDEN featured below. We are really delighted to welcome you again to our‘GARDEN WOW’ list – a curated list of all the things we find fascinating, helpful and which make us go WOW from the Garden Design and Landscaping Industries. This list also features our very own local Lewes and Sussex Landscape, which we are constantly in awe of. Hands up, this list aims to be monthly, but a little thing called home schooling might just have got in the way! So really this is the June, July, August and September list, so it’s full of WOW’S! We hope you enjoy.

Things that made us go ‘WOW’ in June, July, August and September

Rewilding WOW:

We were incredibly lucky to be invited to go and stay at Knepp Wildland on the Knepp Estate in August. Knepp is a 3,500 acre estate situated in West Sussex. It went through a radical shift in the 90’s where the owners made the decision to undertake a rewilding of the landscape, having spent years unsucessfully intensively farming it. The results are astounding and the impact on nature huge. The book Wilding by Isabella Tree documents the project and this film really highlights how incredibly successful it has been. The film shows what can happen when you let nature take the driving seat, do have a watch if you can. This was an amazing opportunity post lockdown to wild swim in the campsite lake and take long walks in scrub and woodland where we delighted in seeing a family of Tamworth pigs, large herds of fallow deer, long horned cattle and a huge variety of birds and butterflies. We had a real WOW moment when we spotted a number of white storks introduced to Knepp as part of the White Stork Project, and it was rather lovely to take part in a staring competition with a red deer stag. Knepp’s approach is really different to normal nature conservation and the results are fascinating. It has a range of opportunities for relaxed camping, glamping and safaris, but you can also access the 16 miles of public and permissive footpaths. We will definitely be going back for long walks to see this beautiful nature filled landscape again.

Hubbery Cafe WOW:

We were really happy to recently discover a new cafe in Barcombe, East Sussex. It is currently open on Saturdays and Sundays from 10am-5pm and provides delicious Swedish fika and Autumnal lunches. Fika is a Swedish tradition which is about pausing and having coffee and cake with friends and family. The Hubbery Cafe provides a lovely space with outdoor seating and stunning WOW factor planting with a wild garden area simply teeming with wildlife. A great stopping point for cyclists too. This Saturday 12th September there will be kids’ art activities provided by the So Sussex Team and The Spithurst Hub’s resident artists are having their studios open, so a good weekend to go.

Lewes Landscape WOW:

When our children were smaller, we came across the most stunning field full of poppies with a path running straight through the middle, they preceded to run and hide and have a magical time. This Summer, although no poppies were found, the landscape around Lewes definitely provided a WOW.  We have explored it’s beauty on lovely long walks on The South Downs and discovered new pathways and places to be. We’ve loved the wild flowers and slowly changing colours as they develop. Our favourire flower is the beautiful Wild carrot (Daucus carota), unlike the carrot we eat, this wild versions root is not edible. Many of you will know this plant as Queen Anne’s lace, the origin of which is said to be when Queen Anne (married to James I) pricked her finger and stained some lace with her blood. Thanks to the brilliant organisation Plantlife for that fun fact. Do check out their great  seasonal spotter sheets, which you can download every month to help you identify the wild flowers in bloom near you. Now the season is starting to change we’re looking forward to the dance of The South Downs grasses in the wind and the changing leaves on the Trees.

Barbican WOW:

And now for something a little different. We had a lovely few days in London last month and discovered the WOW of the Barbican conservatory. What a lovely place. Having both lived in London for years, we have no idea why we’d never been before! It’s free to go if you book a slot, but be quick as it closes for this year on 20th September 2020. Fantastic inspiration if you have a conservatory and of course a great place to see what house plants you might like to try.

If you are based in the South East why not check out the amazing From Victoria a most beautiful shop in Lewes, it has a lovely selection of house plants and many other very beautiful things. Keeping it local is more important then ever these days.

This was also an opportunity to see the work of Nigel Dunnett at The Barbican. Do check out his website page ‘The Barbican – A public realm transformation’  as it describes the project in detail and has some great images that capture the changing look of the space through the seasons. We love it and whenever we are near we go and see how it has developed. A real garden design inspiration. We are really pleased  to discover that Nigel Dunnett is involved in the Valley Gardens project in Brighton as the specialist planting lead. We are looking forward to seeing the project when it fully opens. Watch this space for news on this.

Sussex Prairies Garden WOW:

Back to a much more local garden WOW. Sussex Prairie Garden based in Henfield, is a real favourite of ours. It’s open until 11th October when it closes for the year, so do try and check it out. No need to book. It’s closed on Tuesdays and open Mon, Weds, Thurs, Fri and Sat from 1pm-5pm and Sunday 11am-5pm. Serving drinks and delicious home made cakes from a kiosk, with plenty of chairs outside, it’s a very lovely day out and also great for children because of the hide and seek paths in the large deep borders. Dogs are welcome too. If you are an RHS Member you get in free as part of the excellent RHS Partner Garden Scheme.

Sowing Seeds WOW:

One of the heartwarming things about lockdown was the strengthening of the community in Lewes where we live. Whats app groups were set up and they were a real source of support for many people. They also became a place where people offered thing they didn’t need. We jumped at the chance to get some Sunflower seedlings from our friend Jason Mosseri of Hope Spring Chairs

The sunflowers that developed were really beautiful, big bold, defiant and definitely had the WOW factor. They were also a source of wonderful nourishment for the buzzing bees in our garden. Seeing them grow and open as the weeks past became a lovely daily ritual. This year we sowed more seeds in our garden then ever before. Some survived and flourished and others got swept away by the heavy rain. it’s definately a journey mixed with failure and success for us! We are planning to continue sowing seeds and are going to try growing some hardy annuals this month. If you too are interested in sowing hardy annuals then check out the RHS guide about what seeds to sow in September and the best way to do it. We are going to try out one of our favourite plants, the beautiful Ammi majus. A lovely annual plant which is a fantastic addition to a perennial border.

We just want to highlight that Jason (giver of Sunflowers) is a maker of the MOST lovely hand made chairs and stools. Check out the six day chair making course he runs located in an ancient Sussex Woodland. They are all sold out for this year, but worth asking about next!

Butterfly WOW:

White Admiral catepillar, Photograph by Michael Blencoe

And finally to end this with a flutter! Apparently 2020 was the best Summer for butterflies for 25 years.  Many of the white butterfly species are still really enjoying our garden. Our butterfly WOW was discovering A Beginners Guide to Sussex Butterlies created by butterfly expert Michael Blencoe of the Sussex Wildlife Trust. Love this picture taken by him! This free online 8 part course not only helps with butterfly identification, but also gives absolutely brilliant facts and insights into their lifestyles. Do check it out, we have learned so much already and still have more episodes to watch! Who knew that when you see woodland butterflies ‘dancing’ they are actually battling and sparing and that butterflies make hissing noises by rubbing their wings together. Some fascinating and funny facts to be learned (and those are just in part 1!). It has made us look even more closely at the butterflies around us. Michael highlights the incredible painted lady butterfly invasion of 2009, where an army of 8 million painted lady butterfles invaded Sussex. This was something that the Knepp estate was particularly thankful for as they dessimated the creeping thistle in what was called a buttefly blizzard, an example of nature being in the driving seat. This kind of mass invasion happens every decade, so we are due another one soon! Watch out!

May your September be a safe one.

Sophie and Simon

May ‘GARDEN WOW’ list

Firstly and most importantly we are really hoping that you and your loved ones are keeping well. We hope that whatever green space you have available to you is bringing you solace in these uncertain times. Whether it’s a garden, a balcony, a rural landscape or a city park, it certainly feels that connection to and re-discovery of nature is taking a central role in many people’s coping strategies.  We wanted to do something proactive and positive for our lovely followers and those new to this blog. We’ve developed a monthly ‘GARDEN WOW’ list – a curated list of all the things we find fascinating, helpful and which make us go WOW from the Garden Design and Landscaping Industries. We hope you enjoy.

Things that made us go ‘WOW’ this month

Instagram WOW:

We are landscapers who work with Garden Designers to build their gardens. Our Instagram account @gardentastic is certainly eclectic! It jumps from garden focused shots, to family snaps and most recently has had a few broken spoon shots, casualties of vigorous support of the Thursday clap for our carers.

What we find Instagram particularly brilliant for is the community it has developed amongst Landscapers, Garden Designers and Plant nurseries. The Instagram accounts of Designers are full of new design ideas, interesting materials and beautiful plants. During lockdown restrictions some Garden Designers have been using Instagram as a tool to share some brilliant garden top tips. We are definitely WOWED by the effort and generosity of people who take the time to share their expertise and knowledge in this way.

@myrealgarden instagram account

Ann-Marie Powell, a Garden Designer who runs Ann-Marie Powell Gardens has set up the fantastic Instagram account @myrealgarden. Everyday at 12.30 Ann-Marie does a garden ‘LIVE’. If you can’t get to the ‘LIVE’, there is often a video sum up of what has been discussed. Highlights for us have been top tips relating to planting choices for shady borders, a video tutorial on how to take soft cuttings and get plants for free and planting with grasses. An informative, supportive and supremely positive Instagram feed that will make you smile and want to get gardening immediately.

@sprout.up instagram account

Sprout up is a garden design practice based in South London. Their project Believe in Tomorrow is all about getting school children to connect with nature. Their Instagram feed @sprout.up reflects this and has, during lockdown focused on posting little videos which give gardening tips that are really accessible and encourage more children to get planting. Do also check out their Believe in Tomorrow film if you can, it’s beautiful.

@mattiechilds instagram account

Matthew Childs, a Garden Designer who runs Matthew Childs Design has also been out in his garden, his hash tag #sharingthegardenlove sums up his approach. Check out his lovely Instagram feed @mattiechilds where he shares some great ideas and top tips, often accompanied by his dog Syd, sometimes with a pop song and always with a smile. Lots of videos for you to check out, including a run through of some rabbit resistant plants. I know some of our clients will be very interested in this post.

If you are inspired by these lovely instagram accounts to start growing, remember there are still lots of plants  you can grow by seed in May. Amongst others you can plant Sunflower, Cosmos, Cornflowers, Calendula and French marigold seeds and so much more. All are great to grow with children too. The RHS has also provided a fantastic veg planner pdf for everyone to download to use, this highlights vegetables you can start growing in May.

No Mow May WOW:

This month we were introduced to the organisation Plant life. WOW! What they do is definitely a force for good. As they state, every flower counts when it comes to providing vital nectar for bees and butterflies and many other pollinating insects. It is encouraging people not to mow their lawns during May and let the flowers grow!

I’ve seen the hashtag #nomowmay everywhere already so looks like their No Mow May awareness campaign is working well. Check out their lovely video which explains how you can find out your personal nectar score at the end of this month.  Check out ‘Every Flower Counts’ to find out how you too can take part in a brand new citizen science action from 23^rd-31^st May.  The film taught us how much nectar five daisies, two dandelions and six buttercups provide for a very important insect over a very short amount of time. Certainly makes the point that wild flowers play such as vital role in the eco system process.

Many of you would have noticed the beautiful road verges blossoming during lockdown full of flora and fauna. They have been able to flourish because they have been without the interference of mowers. Plantlife have been running a road verge campaign since 2013 to nurture and protect these incredible wild flower spaces.  There campaign focuses on getting those who make the decisions to ‘cut less, cut later’ and they encouraging everyone to sign a letter in support of this here.

Low Mow Lawn WOW

We regularly build gardens for lovely Bo from Bo Cook Garden and Landscape Design. Bo has been experimenting with a low mow lawn mix (perennials only) in her own garden in Lewes. Rather than just embracing  #nomowmay you could go one step further and invest in a low mow lawn. Bo’s low mow lawn is soft under foot, has a lovely variety of textures and shades of green and is full of beautiful small perennial flowers. In our opinion it is a beautiful addition to any garden and you will be providing such a rich source of nectar to your very grateful insect guests. You will also of course be dramatically reducing the amount of times you need to mow the lawn. Check out Bo’s Blog where she talks you through her low mow lawn experiment and also recommends and links to a local Sussex based supplier of her low mow lawn seed mix.

Corona Wildlife Diary from The Sussex Wildlife Trust WOW:

This diary written by Michael Blencowe from The Sussex Wildlife Trust is really wonderful, do take time to read it and to dip in and out of the archived daily entries. It is funny, quirky and informative and full of nature’s secrets. We are in awe of Michael’s incredible knowledge, this is a definite WOW for us. Michael highlights the uplifting role that wildlife plays in our lives (especially in these unusual times). We hope you enjoy, this was a gift of a discovery for us.

We particularly loved discovering day forty five, where we learn all about Hawthorn and the real significance of the May-Tree which at the moment it is blooming all over Lewes in East Sussex where we live. We had no idea about the superstitions relating to misfortune if you bring Hawthorn inside the house and why the flowers have such an unpleasant smell, we know much more about it now! Day forty four celebrates the Earthworm, so much great information here, amongst others the fact that Cleopatra declared them to be sacred (we love this!). Day fifty nine celebrates May Bugs, so we couldn’t resist sharing Michael’s brilliant image of a May Bug above. Do check out the May Bug Movie he created of them taking flight, it certainly lifted our spirits.

May your May be a safe one.

Sophie and Simon

The Winter Garden at Wakehurst Place is at it’s peak seasonal interest at the moment. Bursting with 33,000 plants, it has some really beautiful areas to inspire those who love gardens and gardening. Beautifully designed, accessible and with some great landscaping this is a perfect place for a weekend trip. Bold curved benches provide a great place to pause and reflect, gravel pathways lead you to the different areas while the heady smell of Daphne fills the air. One year on from our last visit, the garden has filled out very nicely and we highly recommend a visit while it’s looking so great.

Other Sussex Winter Gardens to explore:

There are many wonderful Sussex Winter gardens and landscapes to inspire you and get you out and about on these beautiful bracing cold days. See below some other lovely Winter Gardens to visit in Sussex. You can also link to our blog here which talks in more depth about Nyman’s and Batemans, both listed below.

Nymans Gardens, East Sussex

Nyman’s offer lovely guided Winter walks around the garden and also around their surrounding woodland. You can also, of course discover it all by yourselves. See details here.

They also offer top tips about where to spot their beautiful snow drops (Catch them while you can!)

A National Trust Garden and an RHS partner garden.

Batemans Gardens, East Sussex

This garden is full of gorgeous structural interest and a great location from which to go on some lovely Winter walks. It was also the home of Rudyard Kipling.

A National Trust Garden

Sheffield Park and Garden , East Sussex

We love Sheffield park with it’s beautiful water, epic and huge trees. A real family favourite when our little ones were smaller.

They have a great link for their wintery walks. The garden has so much to explore and discover.

A National Trust Garden and an RHS partner garden.

Winter Gardens further afield:

To explore other gardens in Sussex and of course further a field there are some fantastic ways to discover gardens local to you. Try searching National Trust Gardens to find some incredibly diverse gardens all over the country. Find where the beautiful RHS Gardens are as they have gardens designed for all the seasons, packed full of horticultural inspiration. They also run the wonderful RHS Partner Gardens scheme which if you are already an RHS member means you can often get in for free during certain periods of the year.

There are also some brilliant gardens listed on the National Open Garden Scheme. I love that there is a whole section dedicated to Snowdrop gardens. Check out their snowdrop garden link here.

Spring is in the air and a local Spring Garden Show not to miss:

Spring is nearly upon us and I can’t wait to start seeing the Spring bulbs bursting into life, a time of hope and new beginnings. I am signing off with a date for your diary:

The Garden Show at Firle is on from the 17th-19th April this year. A really wonderful Spring Garden Show and a rare opportunity to see one of my favourite gardens, The Firle Place Herb Garden. See my blog about this show and the garden here.

While I’m planning what I’m going to blog about next, the Landscaper in this duo is already very busy building beautiful gardens for the Garden Designers and clients we work with. Please do get in touch if you would like to discuss your garden with us.

So for the past few weeks it hasn’t stopped raining and as the team go out everyday, whatever the weather to build what will be a beautiful garden, I sit somewhat guiltily in the warmth and safety of the office. It’s given me some time to reflect on what a busy few months it’s been. We were delighted to have been invited once again to take part in The Landscape Show in London and we were very pleased to have been featured once again in their preview magazine.

I was honoured to chair a discussion with some really talented Garden Designers whose generosity and honesty during the discussion was really affirming. Our panel title was ‘Staying in Love with our Industry: Celebrating the Highs and Surviving the Lows’ and as you can imagine discussion covered a real range of topics. A highlight for us was hearing about and contributing to positive models of how Landscapers and Garden Designers can work together to support each other to create beautiful projects that clients love. The discussion also shone a light of the incredible work of Perennial an amazing organisation and the only UK charity dedicated to helping people who work in horticulture when times get tough. Do check them out if you think they might be able to help and do support them if you can. My fantastic panel were the hugely talented Bo Cook of Bo Cook Landscape and Garden Design, Karen McClure of Karen McClure Garden and Landscape Design and Rachel Reynolds of Reynolds Design. Do check out their beautiful work. The Landscape show was once again a brilliant event and an opportunity to gain knowledge, new insights, meet up with the great suppliers we work with and discover new materials on the market. Going to events such as these build the wonderful support network that exists in our industry. Check out my blog on 2018’s show to see why these events are so important.

Talking of vital networks, I was so delighted when I was asked by wonderful photographer Carlotta Luke of Carlotta Luke Photography to be on her monthly Viva Lewes page which in July focused on Lewes Women in Business (LWB), a friendly not-for-profit networking group. This group brings together independent business women at monthly meetings in order to share resources, ideas, for mutual support, mentoring, networking and collaboration. It has been going for five years and it has been such a great resource for me and our business. I highly recommend you check it out if you can. In the spirit of celebrating networks and the people in them I wanted to share the work of the really talented women who I feature with in Carlotta’s Viva Lewes page. Cammie Toloui offers intuitive, deep, massage therapy in Lewes. Check out the different types of massage she does and read the fantastic testimonials on her website, I have heard so many people raving about her amazing massage, so hoping my time will come soon. Chloe Therese is the founder of LWB and is truly an inspiration as a person and as a maker of delicious-ness! I defy you not to drool as you check out the beautiful images of her produce on her website Seven Sisters’ Spices. Chloe combines the work of a catering & teaching kitchen with the artisanal small batch production of spice blends, dukkahs, curry kits & seasonal pickles, chutneys & ready meals. Buy them all up as soon as you get the chance because they are sooooo good! I want to do every single one of her workshops please! Oh and she is also brilliant at growing beautiful bright Dahlia’s – not jealous at all! Nicola Furner of Nicola Furner Architects works on really interesting projects in Lewes and the surrounding areas, creating innovative, beautiful and affordable designs. She is also a passionate advocate of sustainability and a supporter of local suppliers and craftspeople, so we have been lucky enough to have had many meetings to discuss possibilities of one day working together. Katie Vandyck is a website maker and photographer, check out her beautiful work at 100Designs Websites. Katie specialises in websites for small businesses and independent traders and is a great person to work with so do take a look and see what she can do for you. Finally I had to highlight (amongst lots of her brilliant projects) the particular strand of work Carlotta does in architectural documentary. Carlotta has recently worked with the Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust, where she spent a year documenting the transformation of its centre into a coworking hub that now supports up and coming architects and she was shortlisted and came second for a photography award with one of my favourite images of hers. Do check it out and find out more information about the project here. Other developments captured by Carlotta and a bit closer to Lewes are the development of The Brighton Dome Corn Exchange (watch out for the skeletons) and of course The Depot. There are many more women who are part of this networking group and they all deserve a big shout out, so please do check out their work on The LWB Directory on the website. For any Brighton and Lewes locals a date for you diaries is the Lewes Women in Business Pop Up Christmas Emporium returning for its 5th year. This year sharing the day with Made in Brighton’s Art Fair up at the Lewes Town Hall, the Emporium will run on Saturday 30th November from 10.30am to 5pm at the All Saints Centre, Friars Walk. Entry is free, Caccia & Tails are running the café (delicious delicious delicious!) and there will be over 20 local female run independent businesses selling their wares, from jewellery to spices, ceramics to art prints and much more besides. A delightful way to start your present buying while supporting the local Lewes economy.

Lastly to what we got up to this Summer…….him indoors (whose always outdoors) only had a week off the tools, so we walked, swam, surfed, ate delicious food and had some special time together as a family in deepest beautiful West Wales – It was lovely. In the extra week I had, I decided my children and I needed some more gardens in our lives (much to their delight!) so I managed to see two gardens I have been wanting to see for ages. Garden Designer Jo Thompson has designed the most beautiful new Cool Garden at RHS Rosemoor in Devon, see some really stunning images of it at Jo Thompson Landscape and Garden Design. It was simply breathtaking and I want to return year after year. Beautiful hard landscape bespoke details with a curved waterway and stunning planting with such a lovely palette of colours and range of textures. I really loved it.

And I finally managed to see The Lost Gardens of Heligan in Cornwall. These beautiful gardens and their story deserve a whole blog to themselves but to summarise Heligan’s historic gardens were unknown and unseen only 29 years ago; lost to nature since the outbreak of WW1. It was a chance discovery of a door in the ruins that led to the garden’s restoration. Imagine being the first person to open that door! I feel I only really had the chance to see the very tip of it’s magic so I will definitely return to this lovely place.

And as a final goodbye to the streaming light of summer and blissful warm breezy evenings, I only just managed to catch one of my favourite East Sussex gardens Sussex Prairies on a day in early October and nearly it’s last open day of the season. This place has such magic for me, I always return every year. See my blog on Textured Landscapes to see why I love it so much.

Next year, I have promised myself I will go at least four times to Sussex Prairies to see it in all its glorious seasonal change. Now onwards to Autumn adventures and please (especially for him outdoors) let there be an end to the continuing pitter patter of heavy rain on my window.