Although neither my husband or I have any formal training, gardening has long been a passion for both of us.

We started creating the garden at The Coach House in 1988, having bought a house that was in the process of being converted from stables, with half an acre of rough ground. We were subsequently able to buy an additional acre in 1993 and extend the garden to the boundaries that exist today.

Over the years I extended my plant knowledge and understanding of garden design by attending short courses at Waterperry and Pershore and visiting as many gardens as time allowed.

I was also a Garden Guide at Highgrove for 8 years and organised Garden Tours as a means of raising money for a charity for 15 years.

We started to open the garden for the NGS in 2012 and in the same year began to run Specialist Plant Sales in the garden, to raise money for a local charity, with some of the leading nurseries in the country, coming to sell their unusual and expertly grown plants.

In 2013 the house and garden became home to a Garden School, under the name of The Generous Gardener.

This offered full Lecture Days, with horticultural luminaries, such as Fergus Garrett, Robin Lane Fox, Roy Lancaster and Chris Beardshaw, providing expertise and entertainment, as well as a series of highly informative evening lectures and practical workshops.

In September 2022, The Generous Gardener passed into new ownership and will continue from Rodmarton Manor and Charlton Farm, near Malmesbury, with Sarah Biddulph and Sarah Rivett-Carnac at the helm. For more details see:  www.thegenerousgardener.co.uk