Responsible for Belmont Estate’s organic fruit and vegetables, Anna is part of the team working to promote a wider and wilder connection with nature
PORTRAIT JUSTIN FOULKES
If gardening is a career change, what did you do before?
I worked as a project co-ordinator for a charity focusing on international voluntary youth projects. I took a career break to take part in one of these projects and spent six months in Chiapas, Mexico, helping to set up a centre for permaculture and environmental education. Being in close contact with the natural world made me realise I wanted to work outside. That was the start of my journey into horticulture.
Horticultural heroes Some of the people I admire most are those who have either brought about a shift in attitudes or have excelled in their field, be that plantsmanship, design or the craft of gardening. Some names that spring to mind are visionary 19th-century gardener William Robinson; the late Christopher Lloyd and Great Dixter’s head gardener Fergus Garrett; the late plantswoman Beth Chatto; Gravetye Manor’s Tom Coward; no-dig pioneer Charles Dowding; horticultural ecologist James Hitchmough; designer Dan Pearson; and planting-design expert Nigel Dunnett.
Favourite landscape I visited the Dolomites in Italy last summer and the diversity of the flowers on the high alpine pastures was like nothing I’ve seen before. It really brought home to me that we need to do more to preserve and restore our biodiversity here in the UK.
Three most worthwhile tips for every gardener
Experiment, try new things, make mistakes; it’s a great way to learn. Garden from the soil up – get to know your soil and what its limitations are, then work with plants that thrive under those conditions; it will save you a lot of work. Find a balance
