Garden Expert
Meet Des Cotton from Glamis Castle
October 7th 2020I do truly consider myself lucky to have a job in gardening. When I see how so many people choose to do gardening on their precious days off, or use it as a therapy to feel better and relieve stress, it reminds myself how fortunate I am. Ok! Before you career gardeners roll your eyes […]
Read more
Meet Donald MacIntosh from Loch Duich Plants
September 25th 2020It has been lovely to have some nice weather this month along with some very wet days here on the NW Coast of Scotland. It was the first frost of the autumn today with frozen car windscreens and lawns, seems to be earlier this year so it is now time to bring inside any tender […]
Read more
Meet Rona Dodds from Quercus Garden Plants
May 30th 2020Willow, a tree now mainly associated with scrubby margins of rivers and streams, was once one of the most useful plants of the countryside. Willow wattles have been woven and used by man for thousands of years. The ability of these materials to weave, twist, whilst being durable and pliable, has been employed for many […]
Read more
Meet Stuart Stockley from Fyvie Castle – NTS
May 6th 2020Originally from Essex, I moved to Scotland after meeting my wife. Although I’ve had a passion for gardens from a young age after helping to transform my parents garden as youngster, I didn’t take it up as profession until later in life. Before becoming the Gardener at Fyvie Castle I was a florist and, on many occasions, worked […]
Read more
Meet Melissa Simpson – Dumfries House
March 9th 2020Dumfries House, one of Scotland’s most beautiful stately homes, sits at the heart of a sprawling 2000-acre estate. Now a bustling tourist attraction that welcomes tens of thousands of visitors every year, it’s hard to believe that the fate of the house and estate hung in the balance not so long ago. Designed by 18th […]
Read more
Meet Helen Carmichael – Princeland House
February 5th 2020My love for gardening and the beginning of Princeland House I got the feel for gardening in my late thirties. That feel became an obsession, so much so that after attending a few short courses at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, I started a small but successful gardening and design business, which carried on […]
Read more
Meet Chris Harrison – Kelburn Castle
December 5th 2019Meet Chris Harrison, Head Gardener at Kelburn Castle. Chris has been a Gardener for 15 years and the Head Gardener at Kelburn since 2014. He previously worked as an Engineer, but his love of gardening, instilled in him from an early age, helping his mother in the garden, led him to change careers. Chris loves […]
Read more
A Plantswoman’s Guide to Gardening – Tessa Knott – Glenwhan
September 2nd 2019News from Galloway, South West Scotland When Mervyn Kessell was last here in the garden at Glenwhan he was very struck by the hydrangeas and how well they blended in with the rhododendrons. Not long after, he suggested I write an article to that effect. This must have been more than a few years ago […]
Read more
Meet Beki Marriott – Head Gardener from Mount Stuart
August 1st 2019A Journey through Mount Stuart Gardens Mount Stuart is home to over 300 acres of designed landscape and is located on the eastern shore of the Isle of Bute, on the West coast of Scotland. Mount Stuart’s gardens plays host to many spectacular features, including the opulent splendor of the Victorian gothic house built by […]
Read more
Meet Craig Cameron, Head Gardener at Teasses Estate
July 3rd 2019The gardens at Teasses house have undergone an enormous restoration project since the estate was purchased by the current owners back in the mid-90’s. As with much of the estate, the gardens had disappeared under pasture land for grazing livestock and little else. I like to think that the House and Gardens have saved from […]
Read more