Newsletter WFGA
Summer 2024
NEW GARDENS
Welcome to the following new training gardens:
Southfield Lodge
The Old Barn
Logie House
Bruckhills Croft
Tufton Place
Old Inzievar House
2 Church Lane
Stagshaw House
Falcutt House
Standfield Hall Farm
Fingask Castle
Wickhurst Manor
Hill House
News, workshops, plants
Dear Members,
As we head into summer, the garden is in full bloom. The roses seem to have thrived with the wet spring and are putting on a fabulous display. Dead heading, one of my favourite tasks, is very much the order of the day!
I’m already starting to think about what to plant next year so I’m really delighted that members can now enjoy a discount from Bulbs.co.uk, along with existing discounts from Kings Seeds and Fargro. More details are available on the Member Benefits page on the website.
You may have noticed that our Instagram presence is gaining momentum and we are using it to showcase some of our many good news stories. Please do follow us if you can. The story about former WRAGS trainee, Simone who has gone on to become the Head Gardener at Brantwood in the Lake District is truly inspiring. So too is the news that Jonathan Zerr, WRAGS trainee at Benton End, took first place in the Horticulturalist of the Year competition, more details inside.
When you read this we will have finished an exciting week at BBC Gardeners World Live in Birmingham, where we had eight medalwinning WRAGS trainees in the Beautiful Borders competition - more information about these entrants and their experiences in the newsletter.
Finally, we have some great events coming up with a chance to visit some beautiful gardens or join us online for some fantastic speakers.
Best wishes, Sue Reed, Chair
Some of our WFGA entrants at BBC Gardeners World Live
Awards at Harrogate Spring Flower Show
It was an epic year for our WRAG scheme alumni who worked hard on the show gardens at the Harrogate Spring Flower Show in April
The Harrogate Spring Flower Show took place this year in mixed weather of icy winds, sideways rain, and rare glimpses of sun.
This show is the first major event in the national gardening calendar, attracting thousands of visitors each year. This year saw the return of the show gardens alongside specialist nurseries, talks, and the biggest exhibition by florists and flower arrangers in the country.
Helmsley Walled Garden won Silver-Gilt for their garden encapsulating the essence of their therapeutic garden, the build being manned by WRAG trainees now employed in the garden.
The War Graves Commission (WGC) won Gold for their atmospheric garden. Nicola, who trained at Mount St John Estates in Yorkshire, now works for the Commission and was hands-on throughout the build – and there talking to the public over the weekend about horticulture and the WGC.
Kate Smithson trained at the internationally acclaimed Rudding Park Hotel and Spa in Harrogate. Kate went on to train in garden design at Harewood House under Alistair Baldwin of the Yorkshire School of Garden Design.
Graduating last year, Kate now has her own business and won Gold and Best Show Garden for her design for Yorkshire Air Ambulance, which will be moved to feature in Roundhay Park in Leeds.
An amazing achievement, all of you!
Rebecca Moore-Yelland Regional Manager North: covering Yorkshire, Cumbria & North Lancashire
NicolaLeesandhergarden
KateSmithson’sgarden
KateSmithson
CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR LATEST WRAGS GRADUATES
Sally Stone
Penny Coombes
Simon Joynes
Jamie Boyle (NGS funding)
Carla Danson
Amy Dann
Samantha Kelley
Sharon Maddern
Tom Derbyshire (NGS funding)
Lorna Spence
Ruth Lewis
Molly Parkin
Harriet McLeish
Alison Monk
Helen Clews
Victoria Benjamin
Kate Rae
Charlotte Clark
Clare Campbell
Patricia Szorad
Young Horticulturist Of The Year Award
Our WRAG trainee at Benton End, Jonathan Zerr, takes first place at the YHOTY Finals at Hestercombe House and Gardens
Jonathan holds an RHS Level 4 Diploma and is currently splitting his time between Helmingham Hall and Benton End in Suffolk where he is working towards his aspiration of managing historic plant collections and fostering cultural heritage and biodiversity within a historic garden setting.
“As a WRAGS trainee, I have had the incredible opportunity to represent my place of study, Benton End, at the National Final of this year’s Young Horticulturist of the Year competition. On May 9th, I travelled to Hestercombe House and Gardens in Somerset, where I was able to win a hard fought quiz for the title of YHOTY.
After winning the Eastern Regional Final, I was thrilled to meet and compete with inspiring regional representatives from across the country. The final consisted of twelve challenging rounds, covering a wide range of topics, from pest and disease management and ecologically sound
cultivation methods to knowledge of historic parks, gardens, and notable horticultural figures.
A year ago, whilst studying at RHS Garden Wisley, I have been able to write my final year dissertation exploring possible approaches to the conservation of Cedric Morris’ Garden at Benton End. I am deeply grateful for the chance to now train at Benton End and further hone my understanding of conservation practices that honour the heritage and spirit of historic gardens. The lessons learned at Benton End have undoubtedly contributed to my success in this competition. I am excited to continue being a part of the effort to revive Benton End as a hub for gardening, education, and art.”
As the winner of this year’s competition, Jonathan Zerr receives the £2,500 Percy Thrower Travel Bursary provided by the Percy Thrower Trust, which he will be able to use to fund a horticultural venture anywhere in the world.
JonathanZerr
Christine Ladley Fund
The Christine Ladley Fund Trustees are pleased to announce the recipients of the 2024 awards
To commemorate the life of Christine Ladley, a funding initiative in education, travel and work experience has been established by the Trustees of the WFGA and her partner Lars-Olav Nicolls.
The Fund provides financial support of projects in both horticulture and agriculture and supports WFGA member who seek training to reach and fulfil their goals. This funding is open to all WFGA members of 12 months’ standing.
Applicants are invited to present a strong case to receive funding for an activity in pursuit of a new career within the areas of horticulture and agriculture, which they would not otherwise be able to undertake.
In 2024, the Christine Ladley Fund kindly donated a total of £7,300 to the following awardees, for their advancement in the horticultural field -
Rebecca Hall
Two 1-day courses and gardening equipment
Louisa Hart Pest and Disease Certification
Wendy Jenkinson Norfolk School of Gardening Day courses x 3
Eizabeth Moth-Jones Garden Design Diploma
Joanne Nice
RHS 3 in Practical Horticulture
anonymous RHS 2 in Plant Growth & Development
Holly Porter Gardening Equipment
Ruth Stanhope
RHS 2 in Practical Horticulture
Patricia Szorad
Workshops and courses in biodynamic agriculture
BBC Gardeners World Live 2024
A huge congratulations to our WRAG trainees who entered this year’s ‘Beautiful Borders’ show garden competition at Birmingham NEC in June
No fewer than eight of our WRAG trainees entered the competition this year, and we are honoured to report that each one achieved a medal for their hard work - well done all of you!
The winner of Best WFGA Border was JodieLouise Miller for her border, ‘I Will Wait’ . Designed for her autistic son, the garden recognises the anxiety and overwhelm that he experiences when visiting new places, and provides a safe space to experience nature.
children face in unfamiliar places and how we can best support them.
Designing and building a beautiful border for gardeners world live was such a positive experience. Everyone who took part was so friendly and helpful it was like we had known each other for years. I was so please with how the border looked and was astonished to have been awarded platinum and best WRAGS border. I would encourage anyone to have a go and believe there experience will be a positive and rewarding one.”
Jodie
“I’m overwhelmed to have won. My Border demonstrates the overlooked challenges autistic
“Designing my Beautiful Border 'Eat the City' for BBC Gardener's World Live was an experience that I will never forget! I designed a Border that I would personally love to gardenthis was so important to me, living and gardening in a city - and to show that urban gardening can be beautiful and productive. The people that I met during this process and the connections I made with local nurseries, the knowledge that I was able to glean and meeting the other WRAGS trainees, as well as WFGA staff was just so great. The whole experience totally pushed me out of my comfort zone and now I just can't wait for next year!
Jodiereceivingheraward
Jodie-LouiseMiller -PLATINUMAND BESTWFGABORDER
PhoebeWalsh-Gamgee– SILVER
The garden is going to Clean and Green Castlefield, a voluntary organisation in Manchester, who 'exist to rejuvenate, beautify, re-wild, cleanse, greenify and ultimately appreciate & enjoy our wonderful community of Castlefield'. I will be hopefully be working with them across 2-3 volunteering sessions to plant the garden up in Manchester.” Phoebe.
“The Beautiful Borders project was an excellent opportunity to get stuck into a creative project in horticulture. At every stage there was so much to learn. Presenting the design to Bob and the team was the first hurdle having never drawn a plan or perspective drawing before! I tried to get ahead with the plants, choosing to grow on most of my plants. This was incredibly difficult as plants were slow to grow or flowering too early. I was keen to use natural materials and enjoyed working with willow for the structural elements of the border.
The build on site was more difficult and time consuming than I had envisaged and I’m glad I had help from friends and family, I couldn't have done it without them. My neighbours on site were very encouraging and it did feel that we were in it together, which was uplifting. Whilst at the show I had opportunities to speak to a variety of people working in horticulture and this was really useful. Having the WFGA representatives on site helped to cement that little group and was much appreciated. I very much enjoyed the project and have already thought of another design idea for next year!” Sarah.
EmmaLindsay– SILVER
NerysVizard -SILVERMERIT
SarahDalby– SILVER
ElleHepburn– SILVER
“Prepping for my beautiful border 'Little Library' has been ongoing since January this year. With under one month to go I am getting through my to-do list! I am caring for some plants which I have grown from seed. I will also be taking plants from a nursery I work at. My little library (which will be full of gardening books) still needs a paint on the main stand. I have some logs from my friend who is a tree surgeon - I will be sawing these to create a log pathway and with be drilling holes in the ends to create miniature bug hotels. I have created a mock border in my garden, to get familiar with the dimensions - I will do this again closer to the day, including all my plants and props. I like to talk to my plants everyday to encourage them to grow quicker and flower in time for the show! I am making sure to enjoy the whole process even though it can feel daunting at times. I am ready for the challenge!” Elle.
“I was busy stressing over flowering times and trying to get everything done as time kept slipping away. I realised quite a big rookie error recently – I’d forgot that my main plants, the buddleias, won’t actually be in flower until July, neither will the echinacea or dahlia, and some others that should be are nearly finished or didn't grow sufficiently. I had started researching stuff like that, but in the end I rushed to finalise the design and I see now that I was far too specific in my submitted plans to allow for much flexibility. I learnt on-the-hoof and I definitely think for any WRAG trainees who haven't got professional gardening experience, like me, a year’s notice is minimum notice needed to do this endeavour smoothly, but it is a challenge that will end up enjoyable and rewarding and I will certainly have learnt a lot.” Jemma
LorneHewitt -BRONZE
JemmaElcock -SILVERMERIT
What happens after my WRAG Placement ends?
This is a question that is so often asked, even before a placement starts... It’s good to plan!
When I received texts from some of my previous trainees, I was thrilled to find they had met each other at RHS Bridgewater and were working in RHS Partner Gardens.
SarahMakinandSimoneDaye
Sarah trained in a private garden in Yorkshire and on completion of her placement, went straight to Scampston Hall, Yorkshire. In this glorious garden, some of which was designed by Piet Oudolf, she can satisfy her passion for hedges and topiary.
Robin trained at Helmsley Walled Garden, Yorkshire – a wonderful productive therapeutic garden with fantastic herbaceous borders. This is a garden whose aim is to engage its local community in gardening for their health and wellbeing. With an interest in therapeutic horticulture, Robin now works there alongside volunteers.
Kate trained in the private garden at Thimbleby Hall in Yorkshire. With a background in caring and a passion for horticulture, she now works alongside Robin and has brought her previous experience and enthusiasm to Helmsley Walled Garden.
Helmsley Walled Garden featured on BBC
Gardeners World Episode 3, 2024. If you look closely, you will also see Debs who trained there and is now indulging her passion for propagation.
Simone trained at Ness Hall in Yorkshire. After further work in gardens in Yorkshire and Cumbria, she is now Head Gardener at The Brantwood Estate, Lake Coniston – the magical garden developed by John Ruskin, philanthropist, social reformer and gardener. Simone now has her own WRAG Scheme trainees to nurture, and can be seen on Channel 5 programme “Cumbria: The Lakes and The Coast” coming on screen in 2024!
So, in answer to the ‘what happens?’ question –amazing things!
Congratulations all of you!
Rebecca Moore-Yelland Regional Manager North: covering Yorkshire, Cumbria & North Lancashire
SimoneDaye,RobinHancockand KateMetcalfe
WFGA Workshops and Practical Skills Days
Just what is the difference between a WFGA workshop and a WFGA practical skills day? How can I book onto an event that I would like to join?
WFGA have various events that are organised across the year and across the country, some events are online, others are in-person.
A Practical Skills Day is an opportunity for trainees to gain hands-on experience and for a garden owner to get a large job done by enthusiastic participants. The event will usually include an introduction to the technique and supervision whilst the task is completed.
Only open to members.
Usual cost is £30 (as at 2024)
A Workshop is more theory-based and might include a hand-out, slides or written instruction.
It would perhaps include a demonstration, but does not have to include practical work, although that can be part of it. Open to member and non-members. Can be online, to enable everyone to attend no matter whereabouts you are located. Average cost can vary, but members cost is usually at a reduced price to a non-members cost.
The WFGA also organise visits and talks to gardens, which sometimes are not open to the general public, so it is a great opportunity to view new places, gain plant inspiration and meet similar-minded gardeners and owners.
On the following page is a list of the events that WFGA has organised for 2024, to give you a flavour of what we can provide – some workshops and visits are still available to book (highlighted in orange) so if you are interested in an event, please visit our website www.wfga.org.uk or alternatively contact the office at admin@wfga.org.uk to book your place.
This year the WFGA will be celebrating 125 years!
Over the years we have run countless courses and workshops and, since the inception of WRAGS, trained over 1600 people enabling them to go on to establish careers in horticulture.
To celebrate, we'd like to hear your stories! We're compiling a special edition of the newsletter that will feature some of those (we'd love to have 125) who have been affected by the WFGA. Whether you came along to one of our Practical Skills Days or if you're a former WRAG, we'd like you to send us a few words (with ideally a picture) telling us your story and how it has changed your life. Contact us at admin@wfga.org.uk
REGIONAL MANAGER VACANCIES
The WFGA are looking to recruit a Regional Manager to develop and support our Work & Retrain as a Gardener Scheme (WRAGS). We are looking to appoint an enthusiastic, selfmotivated individual to act as a regional presence for the WFGA.
We currently have two vacancies, one for the region of the East Midlands (Leics, Lincs, Notts, Northants & Rutland) and one for Bristol West (Bristol/Somerset/S Glos & Monmouthshire).
Applicants need to live within the area to enable the Scheme to run smoothly, with a focus on widening the number of placement gardens, working with members and trainees, as well as creating workshops and skills days within gardens.
The Regional Manager position requires marketing, organisational & people skills as well as a good knowledge of horticulture with IT literacy. The role has its challenges & rewards but offers the opportunity to operate on a flexible level with other aspects of employment and life, whilst networking with some excellent garden owners and experienced head gardeners. Guidance is given to new managers by a mentor, who will explain the scheme’s procedures and will continue to give help and guidance until the new manager is settled in. There are various sources internally where help and advice can be shared, as well as a bi-annual RM meeting.
Please apply with CV to admin@wfga.org.uk
RHS STUDENT MEMBERSHIP
All WRAGS trainees are entitled to Student Membership of the RHS. The details are contained in the WRAGS Trainee pack. Please use the information there to contact membership@rhs.org.uk
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