Louise Nicholls – Adventures in horticulture
"The love of gardening is a seed once sown never dies" – Gertrude Jekyll
A mini diary blog as promised about the challenges of organizing the present and future, from planting espaliers to managing stress, teaching new staff and trying to manage expectations in a walled garden. I find joy in sowing seeds and look forward to addressing soil issues.
The past months have been tumultuous, with travel, family discoveries, and personal loss. Despite all this I’ve found solace in gardening and the support of friends and volunteers.
The future is exciting and new gardening projects are on the horizon!
Time to sow the seeds!
On a cosy New Year’s day, amidst the rain, I reflect on the past year and plans for the year ahead. Feeling inspired to share thoughts and experiences, I dream of how we shall continue to improve on our success with new flowers. Can I commit to the challenge of a weekly diary?
ive offered to write for Garden Help, an online magazine featuring gardening information and competitions. id like to know what you guys would like to see in their articles, I worry about originality and avoiding mundane topics. let me know your thoughts…
Challenged with revitalizing an old estate area, shaded by mature trees & full of decaying wood, remnants of an old fence. Rather than impose modern designs, I chose to create a ‘stumpery’ – a Victorian garden feature using tree stumps, ferns, and other shade-loving plants, as was popular during the Picturesque movement of the 1800s. Inspired by the inventiveness of the Victorians, the team collected interesting pieces of wood and root systems to use as the basis of the stumpery, adding a diverse selection of plants and creating a space beneficial to local wildlife.
Some of you may already know this but I’ve been raising money for Marie Curie on a semi regular basis since 2016, I do this by taking on ridiculous challenges … Continue reading Apple Pruning Workshops 2024
It’s getting to the time of year when I start to review what has and hasn’t worked for us here in the walled garden and this time I’m looking at Dahlias.
I’ve got several criteria I need them to measure up to and I feel I’m quite a harsh judge…
The winner of Rose of the Year 2024 was announced last Tuesday and I was delighted to be invited to its launch at Waterperrys garden
I would like to introduce you to ‘Meteor’ a colour changing floribunda!
The Chelsea Flower Show is almost done for another year, did you go? Do you think it feels different and if so, how?
Heres a few of my thoughts…
Its that time of year again, it’s the Chelsea Flower Show and once more the great and good of Horticulture gather to see what exciting new plants and ideas the designers and growers have to offer!
It feels like the RHS are trying to make it more relevant, how do you feel about the changes?
It’s about time I told you all about my new adventure
Im going back to my roots, quite literally, growing Organic fruit & vegetables, & beautiful Ornamentals in a walled garden, plus gently bringing an exciting Victorian parkland back to life
Welcome to Hampton Manor!
Much like my obsession with Snowdrops and Iris has been growing exponentially so has my love of Daffodils, after all what would spring be without them! Join me for a quick look at historic Narcissus
Louise Nicholls - Adventures in horticulture 