GARDENING
Growino wiser
If your garden is becoming more of a chore than a pleasure, you’re not alone. But you can make it easier on yourself. Here, the former head gardener to the Prince of Wales, now King Charles, has top tips for editing your plot
by DEBS GOODENOUGH
By royal appointment
I 've spent 40 exciting and enjoyable years working in horticulture, culminating in my latter role of caring for the gardens of Prince Charles, primarily based at Highgrove. Each position has required a juggling act of managing time, labour and resources. But now, aged 62, with a relatively small personal garden that my husband and I have been developing over 20 years, I've been taking a good look at how to make it more low-maintenance and enjoyable.
Once I started calling our garden the 'wonderful monster' I realised we needed to do something before I disappeared for ever into the undergrowth. We are both in the gardening profession and felt that if we couldn't make our outdoor space easier for ourselves, who could? We've got enthused by our 'editing', so here are my tips to change and enjoy your garden more, with less effort.