Our glorious gardens

Carol Klein tells us about the many benefits of exploring some of Britain’s beautiful green spaces...

- TESS LAMACRAFT

Carol Klein’s enthusiasm is contagious. As the horticulturist and presenter chats to us about the pale apricot rose that caught her attention or the cloud-shaped topiary she thinks children would love, TV Times is transported into a world bursting with blooms and colour.

With her eight-part series, Great British Gardens with Carol Klein currently on our screens, we caught up with Carol to hear about some of the magical places she visits for the show throughout the four seasons...

Did you first visit a formal garden when you were a child?

It would have been much later in life. The first big garden I went to was probably Kew Gardens. Over the years I’ve visited all the gardens we feature in this series apart from Llanover which is one of our Welsh gardens in Monmouthshire.

We’ve tried to include lots of take-home ideas from each place. We don’t just want the show to be a garden tour with ‘Oh isn’t this pretty, and isn’t that pretty’ I think it’s quite an involving programme. It makes you feel like you’re there.

What are some of the most inspiring things you’ve come across in this series?

I love all the experimental things. For example at Arundel Castle Gardens, which is the first place we explore, you might think, ‘Oh it’s going to be a big traditional garden’ but not a bit of it! I loved their stumpery area where they were planting tulip bulbs inside old tree stumps.