THE MODERN MINT BLOG
Secateurs & Marie Kondo
I was interviewed recently for an article in the Telegraph about the best secateurs for the garden. I let my mouth run away with me (as normal) and said that the Okatsune pruners with the red and white handles, that I use everyday in the garden, are the kind you don’t throw away when you Marie Kondo your possessions.
I mean that, because I do believe in buy once buy well.
But when it gets reported in the paper, I don’t half sound like a wally…!
“Lerigo devoutly describes his chosen make of Japanese secateurs, Okatsune, as a bit of kit that Marie Kondo would approve if: simple, effective, and capable of sparking joy, time and time again.”
Good old Lerigo… what a windbag!
Great to see my suggestion for best secateurs coming top of the list though. They are great to use and yes, they do spark joy, as silly as that sounds.
You can get them from us here – Japanese Secateurs.
Or with a whetstone to keep them sharp in this set here.
Box Hill – Novella by Adam Mars-Jones
I picked this book up back in 2020 because of the title – Box Hill – fabulous, I thought, a book about boxwood. I’ll peruse this for its respective thoughts on the plant I clip most when I make topiary. I didn’t read the blurb on the back. Didn’t know the author (although I knew the publisher, Fitzcarraldo Editions, as I love many of the essays they have published… so trusted the author would be worth spending time with.) By page 2 I realised this novel wasn’t quite what I had expected. I started the book at 10pm, after getting …
The Henderson, Topiary Art Interview on Instagram
In a suit… eek! View this post on Instagram A post shared by The Henderson (@thehenderson_hk)
Topiary, The Art Garden at The Henderson
The Art Garden at The Henderson in Hong-Kong has now opened to the public. I joined the project last March, to work with Gillespies Landscape Architects on the topiary that had been designed for the Art Garden, which gives a calm, green space below the extraordinary Henderson skyscraper designed by Zaha Hadid Architects. The garden has been designed with butterflies in mind, so lots of nectar plants, and has other art projects and installations within its footprint. The history of the site is interesting too – it was originally the first cricket ground in Hong-Kong! So still a green space….! …