Garden bloggers: braggarts? by Jane Scorer
As someone who has been damned for being a self promoter, I must definitely come in the ‘braggart’ category. (see Veddw blog…)(see what I mean?) And you? Why do you blog? Here’s Jane Scorer’s opinion. Anne Wareham, editor Jane Scorer...
Worthy but wasted? by Jill Sinclair
Here we are again, after a short break which had you all hammering my door down, demanding a new post. So here it is. Sustainability is good, yes? And parks are great places to play, sunbathe, take the kids, walk the dog and play football – right? Well,...
Gardening in the Wilderness: do we need a revolution in the garden? by Lucy Masters
Suppers are back! Well – one is, thanks to the effort and initiative of Lucy Masters, who wrote this piece to introduce the debate. And Chris Young, editor of RHS The Garden, who will be chairing it for us! Thanks Chris. This time we will not only have the...
Clump or Mingle? by Noel Kingsbury
Now, after all that discussion and noise in response to Thomas Rainer’s piece about intermingling planting, here is Noel’s reply to Thomas. (and sorry, he hadn’t read all your comments before writing it..) I must apologise to all those who...
James van Sweden – a memoir by Noel Kingsbury
A short time ago James van Sweden died. I vividly remember the excitement I felt when I first came across the book ‘Bold Romantic Gardens’ which he wrote with Wolfgang Oehme. (It seems my copy is now worth £60.10) Noel Kingsbury wrote a memoir on his...
Blooming Britain by Christine Dakin
Well, what do you think? Do you enjoy seeing our towns adorned like this? Or should we scrap it and find some better way to display our horticultural expertise? Anne Wareham, editor Christine Dakin: BRITAIN IN BLOOM You’ll remember the time when towns and...
We should find out what people think by Anne Wareham
Mary Keen recently came across a blog post which was frank about the writer’s opinion of her garden. It was clear from her response both in her comments and a subsequent article that she was genuinely shocked and surprised to discover what they thought. It was what a...
Go it alone? by Rory Stuart
It’s an odd way to approach something which should be such a total, immersive, absorbing experience: to go round a garden with a guide or with the proud owner wittering at you. (sorry, Rory – would love to have you wittering at me anywhere…) Why not...
Slow Gardening by Sally Gregson
Do you have the patience? Here is Sally Gregson, shooting herself in the foot: a nurserywoman encouraging us to think (and look and think some more?) before we buy… Anne Wareham, Editor Sally Gregson: Several years ago in Italy Carlo Petrini started the Slow...
Conspicuous Design by Tim Richardson
I am very grateful for the generosity of Tim Richardson and the editor, Sarah Giles, of the Garden Design Journal for permitting me to use this piece, which I think raises an issue, as Tim says, of special importance to designers of small gardens. (as opposed to small...
Will they get it? A review of the Native Plant Garden at NYBG by Susan Cohan
This is an interesting review of a garden – and, as all good reviews do – it raises an interesting question. You don’t need a postcard to let us know what your answer is….. but you do need to view the post in your browser rather than in your...
Just a gardener – Just? by Stephen Hackett
We’ve had a lot of responses to Nick Turrell’s piece, ‘Would you be a Gardener?’. Including what amounts to a whole new article, which I am publishing below. Keep up the comment – but more, perhaps, let your views be known and the pieces...
Would you be a gardener? by Nick Turrell
I hate the image of gardeners that we are routinely presented with in the media. We are all middle aged, cheerful and smiley. If you are a woman you are inevitably as ‘lovely’ as your garden and had better be as sweet natured and lovable as Beth Chatto or...
Recent Posts from: Veddw
Ambivalence about Snowdrops
Well, I’m sorry, but I didn’t have a happy Christmas. We were both full of cough and were quite unwell. I have not recovered, and I find myself quite unable to write anything new. So I dipped into The Bad Tempered Gardener to offer you a piece on those plants which gardeners obsess about at this time […]
I’ve fallen in love with these.
I love my garden, I do. It’s at the heart of my life. But just recently I’ve been drawn back and back to a windowsill with some sweet dwarf pelargoniums.
Favour the Ferns
Many years ago The Financial Times sent me to do a feature on the RHS ‘Flower Show’ at Tatton Park . I was totally naïve and had no idea what I was supposed to do or to write about. So my excitement was tempered by acute anxiety. The term ‘imposter syndrome’ could have been invented for me. […]
Snowdrop mania is coming…
In the UK, right now, the horticultural world is about to drive us all mad with snowdrops. Pictures of. Articles about. Gardens with them. Anything people can think of to bash us over the head with snowdrops.
Brilliant Brecon
Recently we made a visit to Brecon. This is not far from us, in case anyone was getting over excited about the possibility that I might have been travelling again. It’s in Wales, in the Brecon Beacons, recently re-christened Bannau Brycheiniog.
