What’s your new book about?
It’s a memoir about my life from the word go, up to the present day and a bit into the future. I started writing it a few years ago and things have happened since then, especially this year [Carol was diagnosed with breast cancer, then had a double mastectomy in April; she has subsequently been given the all clear]. I’ve written about that too. It’s all very positive, of course. The title of the book came from my husband, Neil.
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What did you learn about yourself from writing the book?
That there was far too much to fit into one book. I also found I need a sense of priority. Whether I’m writing or doing TV, there’s always too much to say. Self-editing is a difficult thing to do.
‘If you emulate nature, you’re on to a winner’
If there’s one idea or piece of advice that you’d like to share from the book, what would it be?
Garden whenever you can. Encourage other people, especially children, to do the same. And grow your own plants – get to know them. And the biggest lesson of all: gardening is not nature, but if you emulate nature, you’re on to a winner.
I’ll read anything by or about…
Richard Mabey. I just love his writing. I’ve never read anything of his that wasn’t completely enthralling. I also love Christopher Lloyd, Margery Fish, Beth Chatto and Graham Greene. Also, the Inspector Montalbano books by Andrea Camilleri. They’re better than going on holiday, really.
Which book is currently on your night stand?
I’ve just started England’s Gardens: A Modern History by Stephen Parker. It’s fabulous, and has fantastic photographs too – you need good pictures if you’re talking about gardens.
What first sparked your interest in gardening?
As a child, I used to bring in soil from the garden, empty it on to the kitchen floor, then decorate it with flowers. My Mum had hardly any time for gardening, but she was mad keen on it. She started me off with big, fat nasturtium seeds and I remember pushing them into the soil, watching their progress and then actually collecting seed from those plants. I’ve been doing exactly the same thing ever since.
Have you made any changes to your own garden recently?
We’ve been here for 46 years and my major thing at the moment is trying to accommodate the mature trees. My Mum gave me a Cercis more than 40 years ago, which she grew from (and here’s a nice bit of alliteration for you) a pod that she picked up from the pavement in Portugal. And, of course, it’s grown bigger and bigger. While it’s still flowering well, it looks a little drawn. My biggest failure is not keeping up with the trees.
Do you have a guilty gardening secret?
Not pricking out seedlings promptly. This year I was out of action for a few weeks, but it’s something I always struggle with. The answer is to limit the number of things you grow from seed and then limit the number of seeds that you sow. Sow more sparsely!
Do you have a favourite garden or landscape to visit?
The garden at Ashwood Nurseries is wonderful and John Massey is a brilliant bloke. Great Dixter, naturally, but also Marchants Hardy Plants. I’ve known [founder] Graham Gough ever since he was working with Elizabeth Strangman, who is one of my all-time heroines. I love the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh – I love everything about it, but particularly its overall attitude. It’s incredibly welcoming and it involves not just visitors from elsewhere but everybody in the city. It has real energy.
What are you up to at the moment?
I’m going on a book tour and have recorded an audiobook too, and I’m filming for Gardeners’ World. We’ve got six and half acres next door and I’m going to slowly make a ‘nature reserve’. I’m going to plant a wood, make a pond, create a meadow and extend a bit of my garden to make a big bog garden… all sorts of things.
Hortobiography: A Gritty Woman’s Tale of People, Places and Plants by Carol Klein, Witness Books, £22 ISBN 978-1529144246
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