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Head Gardeners
This book explores the lives, vision, and achievements of 12 very special head gardeners, and, through a series of profiles, examines the various roles of the head gardener today—project manager, conservationist, artist, designer, engineer, historian, scientific investigator, social worker, and PR. Gardening is an art form the English have made their own, and which they have been exporting to the rest of the word for the last three centuries. It is also an important economic contributor to the British economy. Great gardens like Kew and Wisley attract more visitors every year than Stonehenge or the Houses of Parliament. Gardens are hugely important, yet by their very nature they are mutable. What makes them special is the input of the people who look after them—the head gardeners.
240 pages, Hardcover
Published November 1, 2017
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24 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
January 5, 2019
Loved the different perspectives of the gardeners. Totally inspiring.
November 11, 2018
I came across this book — Head Gardeners (from Pimpernel Press) — in the pages of Gardens Illustrated magazine and it piqued my curiosity enough to buy it. I didn't really know exactly who or what it might cover. I certainly never expected to discover a book that was fascinating, funny, moving and quite often brought tears to my eyes. Being a head gardener on the level of the men and women in this book is a back-breaking, endless job that gets little respect, offers low pay and challenges that seem insurmountable. Yet they all take it in stride and love what they do.
The book begins with a look at the subject of professional horticulture in the UK; but I think what author Ambra Edwards shares would be equally true here: Fewer and fewer educational institutions are offering programs in horticulture, meaning there is no next generation ready to fill the shoes of these head gardeners. And the people profiled here often said they only knew a fraction of what the gardeners, teachers and mentors in the generations before them knew.
Gardening — in terms of cultural heritage — is a big business in the UK: 33 million people visit UK gardens annually with 1/3 of them coming from abroad, while gardening in its many modes adds 9 billion BSP to their economy. (That's so much money I figured a pounds/dollars conversion is moot.) Many parts of the job have changed little in a hundred years. Others are completely new: multiple types of public relations efforts, money-making schemes, getting port-a-pots and designing car parks for the estate visitors — all related to the tourist aspect of the job. And in many historic gardens, the main task is to restore landscapes to their prime as it was a 100 years ago or more.
There are a few head gardeners covered here who are well-known like Fergus Garrett of Great Dixter (above with the late Christopher Lloyd) or Troy Scott-Smith at Sissinghurst. But often it is the garden designers who get all the press as opposed to this group who do the real work on every level. I discovered I knew the names and something about many of the gardens in this book but not the names of this group of men and women.
And it is a wildly diverse group of talents ranging from recovering heroin addict Paul Pulford at Queen Elizabeth Hall in London to Martin Ogle who — with no budget and a changing band of volunteers — is implementing Dan Pearson's design at Lowther Castle to Carol Sales of Headley Court who uses gardening as therapy for veterans badly injured during their time in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The back stories of every gardener profiled are as fascinating as the work they do today. Many of them did not have an easy life growing up and it was a love of nature that helped them through difficult times. It is worth noting that while photographer Charlie Hopkinson depicts the locations where these gardeners work, it is his portraits of these men and women that tell the story.
Given that I bought this book on impulse, I am more than glad I did. It is a small but meaningful volume that will have a permanent place on my bookshelf and will likely be taken down and delved into again and again. An absolutely invigorating and inspiring read.
The book begins with a look at the subject of professional horticulture in the UK; but I think what author Ambra Edwards shares would be equally true here: Fewer and fewer educational institutions are offering programs in horticulture, meaning there is no next generation ready to fill the shoes of these head gardeners. And the people profiled here often said they only knew a fraction of what the gardeners, teachers and mentors in the generations before them knew.
Gardening — in terms of cultural heritage — is a big business in the UK: 33 million people visit UK gardens annually with 1/3 of them coming from abroad, while gardening in its many modes adds 9 billion BSP to their economy. (That's so much money I figured a pounds/dollars conversion is moot.) Many parts of the job have changed little in a hundred years. Others are completely new: multiple types of public relations efforts, money-making schemes, getting port-a-pots and designing car parks for the estate visitors — all related to the tourist aspect of the job. And in many historic gardens, the main task is to restore landscapes to their prime as it was a 100 years ago or more.
There are a few head gardeners covered here who are well-known like Fergus Garrett of Great Dixter (above with the late Christopher Lloyd) or Troy Scott-Smith at Sissinghurst. But often it is the garden designers who get all the press as opposed to this group who do the real work on every level. I discovered I knew the names and something about many of the gardens in this book but not the names of this group of men and women.
And it is a wildly diverse group of talents ranging from recovering heroin addict Paul Pulford at Queen Elizabeth Hall in London to Martin Ogle who — with no budget and a changing band of volunteers — is implementing Dan Pearson's design at Lowther Castle to Carol Sales of Headley Court who uses gardening as therapy for veterans badly injured during their time in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The back stories of every gardener profiled are as fascinating as the work they do today. Many of them did not have an easy life growing up and it was a love of nature that helped them through difficult times. It is worth noting that while photographer Charlie Hopkinson depicts the locations where these gardeners work, it is his portraits of these men and women that tell the story.
Given that I bought this book on impulse, I am more than glad I did. It is a small but meaningful volume that will have a permanent place on my bookshelf and will likely be taken down and delved into again and again. An absolutely invigorating and inspiring read.
December 6, 2017
Excellent book by a talented writer and photographer. Great insights into the joys and challenges facing 14 head gardeners managing a diverse range of gardens. The central message in this book is a plea to invest in and value the skills of the gardeners who maintain the gardens we love and enjoy.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews