THE MODERN MINT BLOG
Mess
“What people somehow forgot to mention when we were children was that we need to make messes in order to find out who we are and why we are here.”
Anne Lamott, Bird by Bird
This is the best advice we can give to anyone starting there first garden – don’t worry if it is a mess.
It is so easy, when you move into a new house and suddenly have all this space to deal with (space that doesn’t stand still and let you catch up with it!) to begin planning for beautiful lawns, lots of roses, or a style that is easy to maintain.
Don’t move too fast. Don’t seek the ultimate perfection on day one.
Your job is to watch this landscape, let it exist with you and find out if you are going to be suited… and if you aren’t, if you have taken the time and found out a little more of who you are and why you are here… you may be better prepared in finding a way to get by together.
It may look a mess to begin with, but with time and a more relaxed attitude to the garden, you will learn a lot about yourself in the process.
Clipsham Yew Tree Avenue
With Chris Poole of the European Boxwood and Topiary Society we visited Clipsham Yew Tree Avenue in Rutland. Do you know it? Amazing place! Chris and I were teaching a topiary workshop in order to give local people the skills and technique, and tenacity! to help with the pruning of the avenue and elevate it to something even more special than it already is. Read more about the workshops here. We hope to run a further workshop in September 2026, as well as teach an advanced course too. Check the teaching page through the year as it will be updated …
Aesthetic Pruners Association – New Talk In December
An organisation I love and have been learning lots from in the last two years is the Aesthetic Pruners Association based in the USA. Sharing knowledge with them about clipping and the overlap – and differences! – in style is something worth exploring, so I recommend a visit to their website and to join onto their events and talks, which are all on Zoom meaning you can access them from anywhere in the world. No excuse not to learn! The next event will be led by Jocelyn Cohen and be about ancient trees in the British Landscape. This is such …
The Amelia Project – Episode 88: Didius Julianus
Friends of mine write a sitcom podcast called The Amelia Project (I wrote about this years ago, when they started it….!) December 2024 I had some fun playing the tiny part of Fornio in episode 88 – Didius Julianus. I have not listened to the episode yet, as I am clearly not an actor… and the thought of listening to my dulcet tones for the few minutes I’m in it just… makes me feel ill. But the recording and being in the studio was great fun, the real actors were hilarious and the script is brilliant – not just funny, …