#bbcgardenersworld

Inspiring People. Becky Williams

/ karen / 10 Comments

This blog is dedicated to sharing the work of inspiring people in the gardening world. This week the focus is on Becky Williams.

Amateur Essex gardener Becky Williams is creating a Showcase Garden at BBC Gardener’s World Live this month, highlighting the work of local charity Support 4 Sight. The charity provides support for the visually impaired community in the region, including her father, who was registered blind.

 

Becky’s dream of creating the garden is rooted in her own family experience. Having grown up with a visually impaired father she understands first-hand how isolating gardening spaces can sometimes feel, and how powerful an inclusive design can be.

The idea for the garden was inspired by her father David’s own experiences. He was extremely excited to follow Becky’s journey to the show. However, David died earlier this year after a life-long battle with health complications related to Type 1 Diabetes.

Devastated, Becky decided to continue with the project and create the garden in her father’s honour and for the whole visually impaired community.

 

The garden entitled “Sensed, Not Seen,” is designed to be experienced beyond sight, celebrating the other senses of smell, touch, sound and taste. The garden highlights how thoughtful garden design can make nature and green space accessible to everyone. 

 

Nepeta Neptune

Becky is hoping the 90,000 visitors to the show will take a moment to pause, imagine, and step into the world of someone living with visual impairment. The design includes vibrant flowers bursting with contrasting colours while water features and wind chimes create a soothing soundscape. 

Every element has been carefully designed so that blind and visually impaired visitors can connect deeply with nature.

Becky has been overwhelmed with the incredible support she has received from her family, friends and local businesses, who raised £10,000 to help make this garden possible.

As an amateur gardener, stepping into one of the UK’s flagship horticultural shows, Becky says she feels extremely lucky to have the support and advice of award-winning Birmingham landscaper Ned Harvey. Ned is undertaking all the hard landscaping elements of the garden build.

Becky and Dahlia Lavender Perfection

Becky says, “This garden is about starting conversations about visual impairment and showing that gardens are for everyone. I want people to step into this space and experience nature differently – to realise how a garden can be felt, heard and shared.”

 

“I was so excited that dad was going to come to Gardener’s World Live and be able to experience this special sensory space. It is extremely hard to now know he will not be there with me in person at the show. But I know he was proud that I was taking on this enormous challenge and delighted that I am highlighting the work of this amazing local charity which has supported him, our family and so many other blind and visually impaired people in the region.”

 

Becky added, “This project would not have been possible without kindness and support of so many, so I’d like to say a massive thank you to every single person who donated and has offered help. I just hope I can repay their kindness through this special garden, when it comes to life in June.”

You can follow Rebecca’s Gardener’s World Live Journey on Instagram,@itsbeckysgarden. 

 

A Flower Garden for Pollinators by Rachel de Thame

/ karen / 25 Comments

Books for Christmas and New Year reading

Published by Greenfinch

Hardback. 208 pages. £25

Update: The prize draw copy has been won by Natalia at Lucky Bees. Thank you for leaving a comment and entering the draw. And thanks to the publishers for sending a copy for the draw.

If there was a vote for the most beautiful book produced in 2024, Rachel de Thame would win it. Rachel, best known for her newspaper column, magazine writing and appearances on BBC Gardeners World, joined forces with her daughter Lauren Lusk to produce a book which is joyful on every page. Lauren, a talented illustrator, hand painted many of the flower pictures featured in the book, and added a myriad of bees, moths and butterflies dancing across the page. To open the book is to step inside Rachel’s garden and walk alongside her as she meanders through the colourful wildflowers, cottage garden plants and herbs. We feel as if we are there, with her, seeing and hearing everything she describes. She writes: “I stopped deadheading, stood still in the middle of the space and was amazed by the number of butterflies darting across the garden. Bees, hoverflies and other small flies zipped from flower to flower. I closed my eyes and listened to the various hummings and buzzings. The garden was fizzing with insect activity, and as I resumed snipping faded dahlias and cosmos, I felt the air stir against my cheek as if whipped up by a tiny fan, and was astonished to realise it was the backdraft of rapidly beating bee wings, centimetres from my face.”

The book is split into seasons with Rachel’s selection of favourite plants each given a page of description.

Crocus tommasinianus.

Lauren’s illustrations are beautifully-detailed. It’s not possible to capture their beauty accurately with my camera phone pictures. they are much brighter and clearer in the book.

Muscari armeniacum
Cosmos ‘Purity’
Autumn in Rachel’s cut flower walled garden
Anemone ‘Hadspen Abundance’
Commonly called Japanese anemone
Winter features snowdops, winter flowering shrubs and clematis
Lauren’s bees and butterflies dance across the page

This is a book I’ve found invaluable this year in particular as we have had a crash in numbers for both bees and butterflies. We had no butterflies at all on the buddleja when it flowered. Summer didn’t really start until mid July. What I learned is that we have to plant a succession of plants all year round, so there’s always something for pollinators to feed on. Our climate is so unpredictable we can have all four seasons in one day! As I write this, a bumble bee is drunkenly buzzing about the garden- no doubt enticed out of hibernation by the unusually high December temperatures. It’s due to be 12C tomorrow. And we had snow, followed by flooding just two weeks ago.

Back cover of the book

I think you’ll find Rachel’s book a mine of information if, like me, you want to help the pollinators that make our gardens such a thriving and ‘alive’ place to be. I have no hesitation in recommending A Flower Garden for Pollinators. It’s a delight from start to finish.

Rachel de Thame is a television presenter and writes for The Sunday Times, The Daily Telegraph and top homes and gardens magazines. She hosts courses at Broadwell Manor with guests Arit Anderson, Arthur Parkinson, Hazel Gardiner, and Butter Wakefield. More information below:

https://broadwellmanor.com/

Please leave a comment and your name below to be included in the prize draw. One name will be randomly selected on Tuesday 17th December at 6pm. There’s no cash alternative and the editor’s decision is final. Sorry, uk entries only. Thank you for reading my blog.