Pollyanna Wilkinson is not only one of the UK's leading garden designers - she's also pretty fabulous, funny and generous with her time. LAMP LDN were lucky enough to sit down with her earlier this year and chat about her Sunday summer rituals, and get some top tips on how to design a beautiful and brilliant garden that's sustainable, and perfect for hosting.
At LAMP LDN we know the value of time spent at home – creating memories with family and loved ones, or enjoying quiet moments alone. Our Easy Like Sunday Lunch series gives us five minutes to share a cup of tea on a Sunday morning with someone we admire, as they talk us through their rituals for a Sunday at home.
So, get ready to meet Pollyanna Wilkinson, award winning garden designer, author and founder and leader of the Pollyanna Studio.
Tell us about your love for gardening - when did you realise that creative gardening would play such a huge part in your life?
I hated everything to do with gardening as a child, which doesn’t make for the most romantic story. My parents would drag me and my brother around garden centres and I found it excruciatingly boring. It wasn’t until I had my own tiny rental balcony in London after uni that I took any notice of growing things at all – I started with tomatoes, which thrived – and from there I was hooked. I think, as with many people, my love of gardening grew with my access to gardening spaces.
It wasn’t until I had my kids, and I realised that I wanted to work in a career that I actually loved, rather than felt the Sunday dreads from, that I left my city marketing job and retrained as a garden designer. I haven’t looked back and I love Mondays now!
Pollyanna and her chicken, Gertrude
Talk us through your ideal Sunday at home?
It wont surprise you to hear it hinges around gardening…and food. Ideally it’s sunny, and I’ll have a cup of tea in the garden and wander down to the greenhouse to check in on everything. I love it when it’s quiet. Then maybe a walk in my local woods, followed by gardening in the sun, listening to a podcast. Possibly a nap if I’m feeling extravagant. In the late afternoon I love to fire up my beloved Big Green Egg and cook a roast chicken on it, to be enjoyed with my family with a very nice bottle of Chablis.
We’re sure your own garden must be fabulous - do you have a favourite are that you’ve created, that you’re the most proud of?
Well, currently its more of a building site as it’s being built as we speak! But I hope it will soon be fabulous! One area that is complete is my gravel garden which adjoins my design studio. It’s full of resilient and drought tolerant planting and is a little bit of a testbed too – I like to grow new things before I use them elsewhere. I love it because it has winding pathways and soft curves and the focus is very much on plants.
What’s on the menu for Sunday lunch at your place?
In winter - Roast chicken, vichy carrots, roast potatoes. In summer - the same, but swapped for new potatoes and salad. I like to keep it simple.
The RHS Rose Meadow at Hampton Court 2022
It’s been pretty warm outside and it’s the perfect time for hosting in the garden - do you have any tips for someone entertaining outdoors?
Absolutely. If you’re designing your garden, position your seating area in the afternoon sun – it’s more common to entertain in the afternoon/evening so you want it to be in a prime spot. Meanwhile, you might want your dining table to be in wither sun or shade, so think about that when positioning it all. Be sure also not to position an outdoor kitchen away from the action, which means it can feel a bit lonely cooking whilst others enjoy themselves elsewhere! Be sure it’s somewhere convenient too – if it’s too far from the house then it becomes more of a chore than a pleasure.
With any garden you want to be sure there is comfy seating – you don’t always want to sit around a dining table. So, think about sofas and arm chairs, or benches too! Wrap the areas in aromatic plants like Jasmine, Lavenders, and Rosemary for an extra sensory experience.
Do you have a favourite Sunday lunch memory from your childhood?
My favourite memory of Sunday lunch is very much linked to gardening. My grandmother would often visit for lunch and the first thing to be done would be a tour of the garden with my father before we all sat down to see what was doing well and what wasn’t – I didn’t join in at the time, but it’s something I now do with my father.
You’re really into sustainability - do you have any tips for approaching gardening in a sustainable way?
Absolutely. Try and harvest as much rainwater as you can – this could be from water butts through to large tanks (if doing build works). This can then be used for irrigation. You can also look to plant resilient planting that needs less water once established. If you’re doing build work, then consider what you can reuse or could be re-homed, rather than it going in a skip, and be sure and add as much planting as possible to help improve and support biodiversity.
Godalming Family Garden Project
Sunday Lunch Quick Fire Round
Best place for a Sunday roast (pub or restaurant?)
Home. I am permenantly disappointed by pub roast potatoes! But I love Joe Pizarro The Swan in Claygate for tapas.
Best time to buy plants!
September to April – ironically when less people are thinking about their garden - is the best time to actually do anything about it.
Favourite Sunday afternoon movie
Forrest Gump
Favourite vintage market or shop
Kempton Market
Your washing up playlist
A mix of Taylor Swift, Kacey Musgraves and anything country. I LOVE country music.
The last book you devoured
Let Them by Mel Robbins. A game changer.
Your favourite item from our current collection at LAMP LDN:
Its got to be the Marionette Embroidered Stripe Tablecloth
You can follow Pollyanna Wilkinson on Instagram and her book 'How to Design a Garden : Create and Maintain Your Dream Garden' is available here.
Marionette Embroidered Stripe Tablecloth from Projektityyny