What kind of gardener am I?

Gardening is something that's always been available to me.

Comforting, rewarding and freeing. The pure delight on my two-

year-old's face at pulling her first carrot said it all to me, really.

Making the garden safe and exciting for the children has been a

priority.

I've had the same rhubarb plant for around ten years, taking bits

of it wherever I go, and hacking bits off for friends and relatives

gardens along the way. Var. Timperly Early, by the way. It even

survived a few summer months water-logged in a sack when I

was pregnant and between houses - completely forgot about it,

as you do. Soon burst back into life when I realised what the

smelly mess was in the old compost bag, and put it in a pot!

I can't sit for long in the garden. Always seeing something to do.

Occasionally sit to be sociable or more usually due to exhaustion (parenthood!).

Fruit and vegetables are a priority. I always have rhubarb, blackcurrants and redcurrants as a bare minimum.

Present garden is the third we've started from scratch, a challenge in itself. Each one has its own story. Best thing I

did with this one was to buy fantastic topsoil from Lymefield Garden Centre. Has made the shrubs big enough to play

hide-and-seek behind now, so that's and achievement considering we started with turf.

I have no patience with plants that need cossetting. The hardier and more slug resistant the better. I battled with

slugs in Cheshire for ten years, then found the ones in South Wales not so bad for some reason. Having moved back

to the High Peak I had forgotten how truly unforgiving the slugs of the north really are. However, having discovered

this year a variety of child-safe, organic slug pellets that actually work I'll be a lot braver with annual colour in future.

I usually don't cut my shrubs back till the spring as I like to leave some structure over the winter. Good for the bugs,

too. Of course there is the risk that they won't get cut back at the right time but I generally manage not to make too

much of a mess of it. (Note to myself - got it right in 2009!).