GARDENING:FANCY SPENDING a day with the world's most famous head gardener? Then make for Huntingbrook Gardens, near Blessington in Co Wicklow tomorrow or Sunday (www.huntingbrook.com).
There, Fergus Garrett, who is in charge of the historic five-acre plot at Great Dixter in East Sussex, will be sharing his abundant knowledge with Irish enthusiasts. Garrett is hosting two one-day courses, entitled Good Planting: Designing with Plants and Planting for a Longer Season.
Great Dixter was the home of writer and gardener Christopher Lloyd until his death in 2006. Christopher Lloyd was admired on both sides of the Atlantic for his opinionated and effortless writing, and for his distinctive and independent garden style (he was one of those responsible for bringing the dahlia back in from the cold, and into "hot-coloured" borders in fashionable gardens).
Fergus Garrett worked with Lloyd from 1991, and became head gardener in 1993. In latter years, the two worked closely together, making one of the most creative gardening partnerships of modern times.
The Great Dixter way of gardening is innovative, experimental and plant-centred: with new plant varieties and combinations being continually trialled and honed. It is also very high maintenance: bulbs and annuals are hoisted in and out of the soil continually, in order to keep a lively display going for months on end.
Garrett is an accomplished lecturer and educator (he was recently awarded an Associateship of Honour by the Royal Horticultural Society for his writing and teaching), but he also remains a boots-and-spade gardener, with his hands in the soil, or wielding a critical pruning shears.
There are still some places left on each of this weekend's courses, which are priced at €200 per day (this includes refreshments and lunch). It's an expensive day out (especially in our current economic climate), but one that a few lucky gardeners are not likely to forget.
To book contact: 087-2856601