The RHS has invited Anya (@anya_thegarden_fairy on Instagram) to join forces with RHS Ambassador and leading plantsman Jamie Butterworth to create a beautiful garden that will showcase how to grow plants for free, save money gardening and show how nurturing plants is good for your health, wellbeing and the planet.
With Anya’s immense expertise and passion for growing, propagating and gardening in harmony with nature, and Jamie’s award-winning garden design skills, the garden will be packed full of practical ideas, an abundance of plants, and many reused and recycled materials.
Anya believes that from a normal-sized, relatively mature garden, you could create more than 300 new plants a year, and claims: “If you have an existing, relatively mature garden you can create more than 300 plants a year through propagating. And that’s without a greenhouse or specialist equipment … it’s almost another whole garden for free!”
“From a mature lavender plant I can take cuttings in spring to get about 100 new plants. And don’t forget that lavender needs to be pruned anyway each year, so why not turn your waste into plants by pruning them and then growing those cuttings on. And if you don’t have a garden, but want to grow more lavenders on your windowsills or containers, the same principle applies – prune them and then grow the cuttings to create new plants.”
Anya has lots of other propagating ideas too - her spring pruning technique for hydrangeas means she can get up to 50 new plants a year. By cutting and dividing a mature hosta, people can get 10 new plants.
Anya continues: “As long as you invest in buying and growing healthy good varieties of plants in the beginning, there is so much you can do at little cost to keep your garden growing.”
With ever-growing research showing that gardening and growing plants helps make us healthier, happier and is good for the environment, the RHS wants to keep the nation growing during the cost of living crisis, for people and the planet.
Clare Matterson, RHS Director General, said: “We see every day how gardening and growing plants can provide much needed respite for people facing some of the toughest challenges and how it can bring joy in hard times. This makes us really want gardening to feel, and be, accessible and available to all. Through this garden, we want to share how gardening and growing plants at home doesn’t need to cost a fortune.
“Over the coming months, working with Anya who has gained huge popularity, we will show ways to get ‘free’ plants and garden on a budget with her wonderful money saving gardening tips. We’re very excited about this garden that Anya and Jamie are creating at RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival.”
Anya is also keen to promote reusing and recycling, from reusing old containers or pots, making your own plant supports or using paving slabs from online recycling groups. She believes there are loads of ways to save money by reusing existing materials.
Anya finishes: “Like so many people, my personal journey includes lots of dark and sad times, and of course happy times. But the constant has been the garden, of growing plants, and being me, outside. The future of the planet and wildlife is one of my priorities and is intrinsic to the videos I make and content I produce. I also have what I call my ‘superpower’ (diagnosed as ADHD a few years ago) so I’m really aware of what I need, as an individual, to keep me well – and that is gardening and nature.”
The Money Saving Garden will be at RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival (2-7 July 2024) and will be a breath-taking but achievable garden that will prove that a stunning garden doesn't have to cost the earth. The garden will show which hardworking plants, shrubs and trees will help give the best long-term value for money, while also supporting wildlife and helping the planet. How to repurpose and reuse items instead of spending money on new itesm. How to turn waste into precious materials. There will also be free tutorials and presentations during the show, looking at how to create a beautiful, but achievable garden; how to propagate plants; and how to create natural plant supports.
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For more information, interviews and images please contact the Hayley Monckton or the RHS Press Office,
[email protected]
