Wealden Times | WT182 | April 2017 | Gardens supplement inside

WT Garden Supplement
The Instant
Gardener
BBC presenter Danny Clarke explains what drew
him into the world of horticulture
Why gardening? I think the bug
for gardening was as a result of my
parents asking me as a child to tidy
their outside space. I remember toiling
for what seemed like ages cutting the
grass with a pair of shears and a push
mower. I can’t say that I enjoyed it
because it seemed like a chore. But years
later when I owned my first property
I found that working on my patch of
land evoked childhood memories of
the scent of roses, the beauty of the
nodding daffodils in the wind, and
the smell of the grass during its first
cut after its winter dormancy. Before
I knew it I was hooked and the seeds
for my future career were sown.
What was your favourite part
about being on BBC One’s The
Instant Gardener? For me the best
part about being on The Instant
Gardener was the camaraderie among
everyone on the show, from the
bosses at 12 Yard who produced the
show right through to the runners.
I have forged some great friendships
which I’m sure will last a lifetime.
What’s your favourite local garden?
Great Dixter in Sussex which used to be
owned by the late Christopher Lloyd has
given me so much inspiration. I just love
his relaxed style of planting as well as the
man’s willingness to push boundaries.
Out of all the great gardens this is the
one I probably visit the most. There is
certainly a little bit of Great Dixter in
many of The Instant Gardener projects.
What’s the most valuable piece of
gardening advice you’ve ever been
given? My very first client was a lady
called Jo Bryant. She had the most
amazing larger than life personality
along with the most beautiful garden
which was the love of her life. What she
didn’t know about gardening you could
write on the back of a postage stamp. A
fantastic teacher, I knew her for three
years until her untimely death. I suppose
it wasn’t the advice she gave me that
was so valuable but the way she would
alter my state of mind. For example, if
I arrived at her property and it was a
cold rainy day, she would greet me with
that booming smile of hers and the first
thing she would say is “Danny, how
lovely to see you, what a dramatic day.”
What she was saying is there is no such
thing as a bad day and there’s a beauty in
everything if you choose to look for it.
What’s your biggest
gardening challenge
to date? That’s an easy
one. The first garden
I ever designed and built. It could
have been an absolute nightmare
because the client was very testing. I
remember thinking. “If this is what
this job’s all about then I’m going to
find an office job.” I’m glad I didn’t!
What are you working on at the
moment? I’ve been spending my time
adjusting a friend’s garden in Romney
Marsh. It’s a lovely property which
doesn’t really need my input. The job
has involved opening up the views
into the surrounding countryside by
cutting back shrubs and re shaping
trees on its boundaries, installing raised
beds in the vegetable garden, returfing
some areas and doing a general tidy.
There’s been lots of clearing and
burning which I really enjoy. You just
can’t beat the smell of wood smoke.
Danny Clarke will be talking in
The Garden Hub at Wealden
Times Midsummer Fair on Friday
9 June 2017. For more information
see wealdentimes.co.uk/events
17 wealdentimes.co.uk