New Year, New Hobby

While 2020 has made clear to us the value of our gardens and the fact that we need not fear missing out on things, 2021 offers a chance to pick up a new pastime. Happily, gardening has such breadth, that there are many subjects to explore. From galanthophilia and garden history to botanical art, wood carving, hurdling, stonewalling and foraging: let this year be the year you jump right in.

TRY YOUR HAND AT TOPIARY

“Topiary always brings a smile to people’s faces and it’s quite fun to do,” says Caroline Foley, editor of , the journal of the European Boxwood and Topiary Society (). The good news is that it is easy to pick up and you need nothing more than a pair of kitchen scissors to begin with. Box and yew are the standard topiary plants, but Caroline points to English holly) as an alternative. “Although any small-leaved plant will do,” she adds.