After being a course leader and lecturer in Horticulture at Nottingham Trent University for nearly 20 years I am now working on a new venture in Limousin, France. In our plant nursery and garden school we aim to carry on sharing our passion for horticulture and natural crafts.
Specialist subjects include plant science, propagation, plant identification, specialist traditional and modern pruning and maintenance techniques. We also teach greenwood crafts, weaving, stained glass art and other crafts using natural materials.
Create a willow lantern for your garden
Learn basic willow weaving techniques and create a stunning ‘acorn’ lantern for your garden, summer house or home by adding some fairy lights.
This half day course runs from 1.00-5.00 with a short break for refreshments (included)
You will create your own lantern to take home with you (all materials for the willow lantern are included in the cost) Add your own battery powered or solar lights to create a unique and subtle outdoor light.
This is a good beginners piece for anyone who wants to learn willow weaving or willow sculpture. More advanced courses will be running later in the year.
You will need to wear comfortable ‘work’ clothes and bring a pair of light gardening gloves. Willow is a flexible material but moderate strength and dexterity in your hands and wrists are beneficial. We can help you if necessary.
14th April 1.00-5.00pm 35€ per person
Please use the buy now button below for booking onto the course and the enquiry form if you have any questions:
If you have any questions or comments please use the contact form below:
of flowers that promise the start of spring. Some of them like the beautiful witch hazel Hamamelis ‘Diane’ are highly scented and fill he air with spicy perfumes to attract any pollinating insects that might also have woken from hibernation early to make the most of a little winter sunshine. These winter flowering plants provide vital pollen and nectar for the overwintering insects that will be getting low on energy by now.
Another shrub with a powerful fragrance is the winter honeysuckle Lonicera x fragrantissima one of the shrubby honeysuckles that bears pairs of fragrant flowers all along its arching stems from January through till April will be covered in bees on a sunny winters day. Spot the pollen sacks on the bee in the photograph taken 24/01/18
separate male and female floral structures. The male flowers are usually catkins, releasing pollen when they mature. At the moment the hazel trees are in full flower, their make catkins having elongated over the last week or so waving away in the hedgerows distributing their pollen in the wind. Harder to spot are the female flowers that look like miniature sea anemones emerging from small plump buds along the stems. Hazel trees need a period of mildly windy weather without too much rain for the pollen to spread effectively and be caught up on the sticky 
female floral parts. Unfortunately high winds and heavy rain at this time of the year can lead to a bad crop of nuts.
Graft your own fruit tree: learn the skill of grafting and have a go at grafting your own apple tree to take home with you. Half day course either Thursday 1st February or Saturday 3rd February. 35 Euros per person (includes light refreshments and materials) see post: 
ebruary or Saturday 10th February. 25 Euros per person (includes all materials and light refreshments) See post for more details and booking: 
ourse either Thursday 22nd February or Saturday 24th Feb. 35 Euros per person (including light lunch and all materials). See post for more details and booking: 
Fruit tree pruning: learn the skill of pruning your fruit trees for best results, the course will cover the theory and practice of pruning and training young trees as well as renovating and caring for mature trees. Full day course either Thursday 1st March or Saturday 3rd March. 35 Euros per person including light lunch. See post for more details and booking: 
Winter tree identification: learn the basics of plant identification with an emphasis on identifying common trees in winter. Half day course on 17th March 20 euros per person. See post for more details and booking: See Post: 
identification of common trees. On this course you will cover some basic botany and discover the secrets to identifying plants and deciduous trees during the winter when they have no leaves present. You will be able to put these skills into practice in your own garden and while out enjoying the countryside enabling you to engage with the natural flora of the region.
Have a go at woodturning using traditional tools for greenwood crafting. You will create a ‘blank’ from a log section and turn it down into a garden dibber or sting line.
grafting your own fruit tree. We will provide you with a dwarfing rootstock and an apple variety to graft but if you have your own tree that you would like to propagate then please bring some along, use the contact form below to contact us to find out how to harvest grafting material from your tree.
If you enjoy this beginners course we will be offering intermediate courses later this spring to make chicken, cockerel or duck sculptures for the garden.
