This week’s session was a visit to the Curator’s House Garden in the Botanic Gardens.

Skirting a bay hedge, we entered the garden and were delighted by the arches of pear trees full of fruit.

Then we were drawn into this abundantly productive place which is full of all manner of edible and companion plants everywhere you look. We swapped stories about our own gardens as we identified fruit, vegetables and herbs.

I was so intrigued by it all, and drinking it all in, that I forgot to take photos, so these images were found online – as close as I could get to what it was like – although the plants seemed more abundant and taller than they appear in the next image.

There were beehives full of activity. I liked other structural elements too, such as the cold frames, the little glasshouse, raised planters and edging, the massive worm farm, the compost bins, and the rock edging along the riverside path. It all looks expensive and competently engineered.

There is lots of inspiration here, however – that magic that good gardens have. On reflection, one of the most inspiring gardens I have been to is one developed by a friend using whatever materials could be found, so there’s hope for us all yet!