Australia has so many great gardening treasures. This talk features two great gardens, one steeped in history and one, an exciting 'newcomer' - the late Dame Elisabeth Murdoch's Cruden Farm and the nearby, Australian Garden at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Cranbourne.
A look at some of the amazing characters that collected and introduced so many exotic plants into Europe, plants that eventually made their way out to the colonies. From the Hookers, the Tradescants and Dr. Nathaniel Bagshaw Ward to floriography, Pteridomania, Kew and the barometz, this talk has it all!
Great gardeners use their skill to create art while being conscious of the science behind gardening - this talk looks at the correct way to prune trees and hedges as well as fun shapes; espalier, pollarding and pleaching.
Probably our most 'famous' talk given at the Royal Botanic Gardens in both Melbourne and Sydney. This presentation discusses the French tradition of ornamental vegetable gardening or 'le potager' where vegetables, herbs, fruit and flowers are all grown gloriously together. We look at the history as well as present day examples of both Romantic and Formal Potagers, including the King's vegetable garden at Versailles and Chateau Villandry in the Loire Valley.
Le Potager - Encore!
The second talk in this series crosses the channel to look at English Walled Kitchen Gardens which reached their best during the Industrial Revolution. Vegetable gardening as industry yet can't there be beauty in industry - almost an Industrial Perfection? This presentation includes the gardens at Kew and Stourhead as well as featuring the 'Lost Gardens of Heligan' in Cornwall.