Saturday 18 January 2 pm for a 2:30 pm start: Church Hall & Zoom

Samantha Hope

‘Spring Specialties in Ashwood’s Garden’

After working and studying at Birmingham Botanical Gardens, Pershore College, Wisley, Kew, and Great Dixter, Samantha went to work alongside John Massey at Ashwood Nurseries. At first, she looked after the Hepatica Collection, but breeding Roscoea has become another passion. Together with her husband Nigel, they manage John’s Garden at Ashwood, which is regarded as one of the finest private gardens in the UK. She and Nigel also propagate and grow an unusual range of plants in their own garden.

In this talk, Samantha will be looking at the springtime favourites: hellebores; hepaticas; primroses and auriculas

Saturday 15 February 2 pm for a 2:30 pm start: Church Hall & Zoom

Nick Bailey

'Revive Your Garden’ How to breathe life, style and good-health back into tired gardens'

Nick is a freelance horticulturist, best-selling author, award-winning TV presenter, garden designer and speaker. He has worked in many sectors of horticulture for 30 years. He was Head Gardener for the famous Chelsea Physic Garden, where he spent seven years redesigning the gardens and diversifying the plant collection. This was the subject of his first book. Nick began his broadcasting career in 1995, appearing on numerous local and national radio and TV programmes. He is currently a regular presenter on BBC Gardeners’ World. He also has regular columns in BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine.

 

Friday 21 March 7pm for a 7.30pm start in the Church Hall

‘Do your roots need doing’

Andrew Mikolajs

Good root growth is essential for healthy and productive plants. How can you be sure your plants perform well underground when you can't see them?  Andrew has over 20 years of experience as a garden writer, editing, lecturing and speaking. He has authored over 40 gardening titles, contributing to gardening magazines and the RHS website. He was a horticulture adviser on the new edition of the RHS Encyclopaedia of Garden Plants and, more recently, on the revision of the RHS Encyclopaedias of Plants and Flowers. Previously, he taught garden design and RHS Certificate at Warwickshire College and garden history at the English Gardening School.

 

Friday 25 April 7pm for a 7.30pm start in the Church Hall

David Jewell

‘Sir Harold Hillier Gardens Through the Year.’

David talked to the group six years ago. Since then, the gardens have undergone many changes and enhancements. The current talk reflects these developments. It includes a brief history of the gardens and covers a broad range of plants to suit all tastes. David is the Curator at Hillier Gardens and previously was the Floral Superintendent at RHS Wisley. He is a regular contributor to The R.H.S. Garden Journal.

 

Friday 16 May 7pm for a 7.30pm in the Church Hall.

Ben Pope

‘Treading Gently Through the Borders.’ A detailed look at the softer side of border management.'

Ben is currently a Head Gardener for a private garden in West Sussex. He has worked in and studied various aspects of horticulture for 21 years. He regularly writes for Gardens Illustrated and enjoys lecturing at the Chelsea Physic Garden for the English Gardening School and West Dean College. Ben is also a member of the RHS Herbaceous Plant Committee. He says, “I love the fact that in gardening, you never stop learning. There is always something new to discover and share with others”.

Friday 18 July 7pm for a 7.30pm in the Church Hall.

Geoff Hodge

‘Luscious Lawns’. Lawncare for Perfect Lawns.

Ben is currently a Head Gardener for a private garden in West Sussex. He has worked in and studied various aspects of horticulture for 21 years. He regularly writes for Gardens Illustrated and enjoys lecturing at the Chelsea Physic Garden for the English Gardening School and West Dean College. Ben is also a member of the RHS Herbaceous Plant Committee. He says, “I love the fact that in gardening, you never stop learning. There is always something new to discover and share with others”.

Friday 19 September. 7pm for a 7.30pm in the Church Hall.

Dr Andrew Ward

‘Shady Characters’.

Some of the most outstanding plants we can grow in our gardens are happy in the shade.  This talk illustrates the harbingers of spring with Erythroniums, Orchids, Meconopsis and Arisaemas. It shows that even autumn does not need to be bereft of flower colour and plant interest in the shady garden. It will also show an easy way to make a bed to make these plants accessible to all of us. It is a good talk for HPS members as it includes the rarer and more unusual shade-loving plants. Andrew trained as a Plant Breeder and started Norwell Nurseries and Gardens 29 years ago, specialising in choice and unusual herbaceous perennials. He has a 1 acre garden with over 2,500 different cultivars including many unusual plants. Many magazines have featured the garden, including Country Life and the RHS Garden. Norwell Nurseries has also been named among the top 50 nurseries by Gardens Illustrated and voted by the Hardy Plant Society as one of the top gardens to see herbaceous perennials.

Friday 17 October 7pm for a 7.30pm in the Church Hall & Zoom

Fergus Garrett

‘Succession Planting for a Long Season’

Fergus has been Head Gardener at Great Dixter House and Gardens since 1993. He became CEO of the Great Dixter Charitable Trust in 2006. He is an RHS Gardens Advisor and has participated in many RHS Trials. Learning is at the heart of the work at Great Dixter. As one of the most dynamic and complex flower gardens in the world, they feel they have the responsibility to pass on the skills needed to garden in the way they do. Fergus also runs the Adult Learning Department along with other tutors and lectures on some courses.

Saturday 15 November 2pm

AGM and Talk

Gillian Taylor

'More Colour, Less Work’ - Fact or Fiction.’

This is a guide to sustainable gardening. It is sustainable in terms of labour, water and nutrition while maintaining the beauty, colour, structure and provision of an insect-friendly environment that we are always trying to aim for.

Gillian is an enthusiastic plantswoman and gardener, learning mainly from personal experience but also from courses at RHS Wisley and Great Dixter. She has also developed a garden in France from a field, while here in Hampshire, she has a wooded garden managed sympathetically for wildlife.

She is a member of the Rose Society and Historic Rose Group and many other organisations, including our own HPS, where she has taken on responsibility for the Conservation work. She is a speaker for HPS, RHS and Perennial.