My Life In Plants | The Garden Designer | Sarah Morgan - The Garden Creative

My Life In Plants - Sarah Morgan

The Garden Designer

From garments to gardens, meet garden designer Sarah Morgan

Welcome to the spring issue of My Life In Plants, with the award winning garden designer Sarah Morgan. Formerly a fashion designer, Sarah now runs The Garden Creative in Whitstable, Kent, creating the most beautiful multi layered gardens using her design knowledge. Combining form, colour, texture & flow with seasonal & native species planting. As a real lover of beautiful & functional design I particularly like her approach. She treads the tricky path of navigating the diverse needs of modern urban gardens - seasonal, stylised, wildlife & family friendly spaces and like any true expert, the results always feel natural and not at all contrived. At the bottom of this article there's links to see her Chelsea garden and her award winning RHS Hampton court show garden too.

On beginnings

Tell us a little about yourself - who you are, what you do, and how plants became part of your life

I grew up in Somerset and have strong memories of oxeye daisies as tall as me, bluebells pushing through brown earth and the scent of crabapples fermenting in the grass. Having left all that behind in my late teens for a life in big cities, chasing excitement, art, and fashion; I have in the last 15 years returned to the outdoor life, swapping fashion design for garden design and embracing the natural world as opposed to the architectural one.

What’s one thing plants have taught you that you try to carry into everyday life?

Everything is cyclical - the good and the bad. A caterpillar infestation will soon become a kaleidoscope of butterflies! A perennial quietly gathers its strength below ground before exploding into a hurricane of life. The same applies to us.

On rituals

Do you have an everyday plant care or self-care ritual that you’d like to share?

My own plant self-care ritual is drinking dried flowers as herbal tea. I have lots of little jars in my cupboard of plants I have dried from the garden, Olive, Eucalyptus, Lemon Verbena, my favourite Lavender and Camomile that I buy in big bags, I get through a lot of it. I find it so refreshing and comforting. If I’m at home I will be mainlining it for most of the day!

On plants & the future

If you could save just one plant in an ark for the future, what would it be and why?

It would have to be a scented one, I love fragrance! My absolute favourite scent is Orange Blossom, the kind that travels on the warm air in the South of France and Spain. I had to look up the name of the plant and I found out that it’s the Seville Orange tree Citrus aurantium. This would definitely be worth saving as not only does it have delicious smelling flowers that transport you to holidays and sunshine, the fruit is edible, naturally antibacterial and antiseptic. A useful plant to save for the future!

"Feeling so connected with nature is the most fulfilling part of my job. Mindfully noting the changes that plants and weeds make through the seasons."

On noticing

Can you share a recent moment that reminded you why you love what you do?

Feeling so connected with nature is the most fulfilling part of my job. Mindfully noting the changes that plants and weeds make through the seasons. The emergence of dandelion flowers in my garden this week made me smile. A completely edible plant loved by early foraging bees and insects, its bright yellow petals like the sunshine. I love that being rebellious means NOT pulling them out! I will let the insects feed on them and then pick most of them before they set seed. This year I’m drying them out to make dandelion tea!

On starting out

Any advice for someone just beginning their own life in plants?

Just spend some time watching what’s close to your feet in a wood, garden or green place. Note the textures, the colours, the way things smell, the sounds of insects and birds. Get to know a certain place in detail and it will really teach you what it’s all about.

You can find Sarah on Instagram @thegardencreate

Online at her website thegardencreative.com

Information about her award winning RHS Hampton court show garden is here and her Chelsea collaborative show garden is here

Photo credits; Fran Harper & Sarah Morgan

There's so much wisdom to be found in plants & plants people, so I hope these conversations bring you something positive, perhaps an idea to reflect on. The one major lesson I draw from all My Life In Plants Q&A's is how important it is in life to follow the things that you find interesting, worthwhile & bring you a simple connection to nature. More interviews and stories can be found here. And to receive future issues of 'My Life In Plants' direct to your inbox simply click here. And for soap bars designed specially for gardeners see our gently exfoliating Garden soap, with pink clay and poppy seeds, or for a more robust scrub try the Gardeners Soap, with nettle, pumice and lavender.

— The Flower Press, by Bohemia & Flower