2002 to 2025
This was and still is enormously intense period in me and my wife’s life. From 2002 to 2004 i was working self employed as MaxMaintenence on high end properties in Bishops Avenue/Totteridge Lane/Hadley Green/Hendon Wood Lane etc, and also did a spell with TVs. “The Curious Gardeners” - Guy Cooper and Gordon Taylor on several of their projects. This work brought me into contact with a property company / family who i did a lot of work for and decide to work for them direct on their commercial and residential properties portfolio. A great family to work for and an arrangement that is ongoing. When i reached retirement age in 2014 they asked me to stay on for a couple of days a week and then rethink stopping when i am 90 !. So sounded good to me as it keeps my mind active and up to date. Here’s some events by date…
2005.. We began….. Trialling Plants and producing a Blog for Thompson and Morgan a relationship that lasted 12 years. / Writing a monthly article called ”Over The Fence” in Garden News magazine and we are still doing it today.
2007.. We built the Catio and i made my 1st “Magic Tap“ (Tap got copied and sold on line, but they didn’t us right Perspex tubing and it got affected by suns UV and went milky).
2010.. We opened our garden for The National Garden Scheme for the first time and caried on doing so for the next 10 years as well as also opening for RSPCA and Red Cross. The Garden Shed got its 1st major refurb. I went to Grand Prix de Monaco Historique with Phil Reilly’s American Race Team(a great time and got my hands dirty..Great team including Phil Reilly, Neil Trundle, Chalkie Fullalove, Brian Maddern and John Anderson. Neil and i also got a special tour of Riva Boat workshop there. We were asked to join the Hampstead Garden Suburb Horticultural Society. I was sked to temporarily take over their membership (Temp lasted 14 Years).
2011.. We were on Alan Titchmarsh’s “Love you Garden” tv show Series 1 Episode 1 , which featured my cats “Bugger”(very aptly named and liked walking on a lead) and “Radar” (he was blind). It was about things to prevent cats being in your garden.. none worked and Bugger nearly got a bird ,but they didn’t show that.
2013..We were doing an NGS Garden opening of our garden and BBC’S ONE SHOW turned up and filmed and we were on next evening. / The November Storm took out part of next doors tree that caused some damage to the garden.
2014.. Goodbye lawn. Footfall during garden openings proved too much ,so we replaced with mini-Indian sett stones. It was a very good move for maintenance.
2015.. Joined The London Gardens Society.
2016..Won the London Gardens Society award for “The Best Small Back Garden in London”. I went to The 100th running of The Indianapolis 500 car race on a guest team showing historic race cars from each year of the Indianapolis 500. Each team was made up of 3 with a famous Indy driver. I was with Phil Reilly and Lance..I was on Starter, we were all liveried up in our Pit crew shirts ,specific to our team and car and date. It was a fabulous week, starting off with a private dinner with guests Bobby Unser / Parnelli Jones /Robin Miller and several ex MacLaren F1 Mechanics. Staying in The Marriot Hotel alongside all the racing teams . Full pass to track - pits and a tour of Museum archives not open to public. Race day . attendance 350,000 started with us and classic Indy car display then main race. Then we were guests at the presentation evening event, where everyone who is anyone in Indy racing was there ……Unbeleivable week.
2017.. Won the London Gardens Society award for “The Best Small Back Garden in London”.
2018.. Won the London Gardens Society award for “The Best Small Back Garden in London”.
2019.. We were on Alan Titchmarsh’s “Love you Garden” tv show Series 9 Episode 6 with the Catio and David Domoney as host. Great fun.. We had to deconstruct inside of Catio and rebuild for effect. I called it a “Catatorium” on TV and Caroline argued it was a “Catio”. I note in 2011 TV show she called it a “Catatorium”. We converted the conservatory to have built in seating and storage for us, but the cats took it over as theirs. For our 25th wedding anniversary we went to he Salutation Hotel in Sandwich, designed by Lutyens and famous for its award winning gardens. there we were at dinner one evening and who walked in but Rod Stewart and Penny his wife. He had just been attending The 75th anniversary of The D-Day landings. Really was the cherry on the cake for us and wonderful photo of him and Caroline.
2020.. COVID..Luckily we never got it , but Caroline’s stepmother died from it and her father was lucky to survive his bout of it after a long time in hospital. Everyone was frightened to mix and it looked like our Horticultural Society would suffer..so we organised a weekly blog and we did a virtual Flower Show. It kept everyone’s interest in a very unstable climate and we got very god feedback until we all found our feet again. We were awarded The Banksian Medal by Hampstead Garden Horticultural Society for our work during Covid. Very proud of that.
2021..Won the London Gardens Society award for “The Best Small Back Garden in London, With Professional Help”. We purchased a projector- Laptop and some equipment and started doing some talks on Gardening and related subjects to Horticultural Societies / U3A / WI , etc……very much ongoing and popular with us and them.
2022..Won The London Gardens Society award Perpetual Challenge Cup for the “Best Affiliated Society in London” with Hampstead Garden Suburb. We were presented cup and award by TV Gardener Adam Frost at The Guildhall in London.
2023.. My 1st time judging for The London Gardens Society.. I went with and was showed the ropes by Senior Judge Jim Buttress, Former Royal Parks Superintendent and 8 times Chelsea Gold Medal winner and we did the Public Squares / Whitehall - Embankment - St Johns Wood - Rembrandt -Mount Street Gardens. We were part of the group to take The London Gardens Society patron HRH the Duke of Edinburgh around several gardens in North London and walk with him round as an individual with the garden owner of an amazing garden in Hamilton Terrace.
2024..We won The London Gardens Society Banksian Medal for most amount of points awarded in private gardens. We were part of the group to take The London Gardens Society patron HRH the Duke of Edinburgh around several gardens in London and also amazing The Museum of Brands in Notting Hill. Judging for The London Gardens Society.. I went with Senior Judge Alan Harvey, Head Gardener of Morden College and did the Public Squares / Whitehall - Embankment - St Johns Wood - Berkley Square -Mount Street-Paddington Street and Porchester Square. I also did judging on Hospitals with Lady Lenzie and The Garden Girl -Caroline Broome on Princess Grace Hospital -Lister Hospital - London Bridge Hospital -Capio Nightingale Hospital and The Wellington Hospital North and South.
2025..Judging for The London Gardens Society.. I judged with The Garden Girl -Caroline Broome and did the Public Squares / Whitehall - Embankment - St Johns Wood - Norfolk Square -Mount Street and Rembrandt Gardens. Judging for The London Gardens Society.. I judged with Sam Simper, Tottenham Hotspurs Training Ground Landscape Manager and did Hospitals and Hospices , St Georges Hospital - Lister - St Lukes Hospice and Royal Trinity Hospice. Started ShedArt-79 as a Business and Website as a continuation of my hobby. You need insurance etc to show at shows-exhibitions or online, so If it self funds , i’m happy. If it doesn’t , i’m still happy.
