The start of a botanical adventure

My journey around some of the best gardens in the world - and how you can follow along

I am embarking on an adventure

I am taking a sabbatical from my normal day job in Manchester for the whole of 2023. I am initially embarking on a trip to South East Asia to visit the botanic gardens of the region. The plan is to tour, research, photograph and write about the gardens and plant collections in some of these countries. On my return to the UK I will continue to travel and write and photograph gardens here.

1. Firsts for me

Firsts for me are Asia, travelling solo, and going away for more than a few weeks at a time. At the age of 57, I am planning at last to do some of the things that I have thought about for years but just not had the opportunity to do. My trip begins next week (January 16th 2023).

2. What has brought me here

Over the past couple of years I’ve been airbnbing my sons’ bedrooms that have become free since they left home. As such I have met lots of really interesting people who have stayed with me from all over the world. My guests’ stories have inspired me to explore the world further. I have always loved travelling, but apart from a couple of month-long back-packing trips in the 1980’s, I have never been away for very long. Moreover, whilst I have been to some relatively unusual places, (Eastern Europe, Russia, and North Africa), the furthest I have ever travelled in terms of distance is New York.

On my holidays abroad and to different cities in the UK, I always try to visit the local botanic gardens. I have been doing this for many years, which was mainly inspired by my four years working in the Tropical Department at Kew Gardens in the 1980’s. Recently I have started writing about my visits to different botanic gardens, which you can read about here.

Recently I undertook an on-line part time course; a Post-graduate Diploma in Garden Design, with the British Academy of Garden Design. This course reignited my interest in the history of garden design and I also found I liked writing about gardens and plants. That sparked the idea behind this sabbatical. I was fortunate enough to be awarded some funding from the WFGA’s Christine Ladley Award, and from the Royal Horticultural Society, (RHS @The_RHS) to travel and write about the gardens of South East Asia. So a very big thank you to both of these organisations. And here we go!

3. The plan from now (or lack thereof)

The plan from here is to share my visits to as many gardens as I can get to, with you. I will also be sharing my thoughts on some plants, their uses, gardening, and anything else broadly horticultural related that I happen to be thinking about.