The Gardening Year 2025
‘The Gardening Year’ with Laura and Jack Willgoss
This year we are offering a series of eight workshops that will provide you with an in-depth view on how we garden here at Wildegoose Nursery. From staking perennials with hazel, specialist propagation, pruning and maintenance techniques, to plant selection and border design. The eight workshops will take place over the course of this year and will be run by Jack and Laura Willgoss with a mix (where possible) of demonstrations and hands on practical experience. Workshops can be booked individually or there is a reduced rate for those wishing to book on to all eight courses.
Saturday 1st February: ‘Propagation 1- Getting Started’ – 10am-1pm. £60
This course will be an overview of the art of propagation. At this early point in the year, as the new propagation season is just getting underway, get yourself prepared and ready to go with this guide to techniques and timings, tools of the trade and growing mediums to successfully propagate your own plants. There will then be time to practice taking hardwood, stem and root cuttings from the borders here at Wildegoose to take home with you.
Saturday 15th February – ‘Winter Pruning Roses’ – 10am-1 pm. £60
This course will demonstrate how to prune shrub roses from the standard methods of pruning, to the more elaborate Sissinghurst techniques. We will also cover how to prune walled trained climbing and rambling roses and discuss what plants to combine with them. There will be an opportunity to have a go yourselves, so do bring your secateurs, gloves and probably a packet of plasters for all those thorns!
Saturday 1st March – ‘Managing the Naturalistic Garden’ – 10am-1pm £60
This course will go through how we manage the “wilder” borders here at Wildegoose. Much of the critical management and editing work is done at this time of year including : cutting back, staking with hazel, editing self seeders, general weeding, new planting and mulching. Come and join in maintaining the borders to gain confidence and understanding of how to garden in tune with nature. Bring your secateurs and handforks.
Saturday 12th April – ‘Propagation 2 – Prop til you Drop’ – 10am-1pm £60
With so much to propagate at this time of year this course will go through basal cuttings, spring divisions – (including ornamental grasses), an overview of seed sowing, pricking out and potting on to produce top notch plants. This is a hands on course so bring your secateurs and look forward to taking your newly propagated plants home with you.
Saturday 17th May – ‘A New Take on Bedding’ – 10am-12pm £40
Now the risk of frosts has passed this course will demonstrate the best tender perennials and annuals to grow and how to incorporate them into established borders and pot displays to add a riot of colour to your garden throughout Summer and Autumn. We will also demonstrate how easy they are to propagate and overwinter.
Saturday 7th June – ‘The Post Spring Tidy Up and How to Take Cuttings’ – 10am -1pm £60
This course looks back at Spring – its successes and failures and how to do better next year. Now is the time to tackle those gone over Spring flowering perennials to make more of a show for next year. Looking at which Spring and early Summer perennials to combine and how to weave them into an established border. We will also look at how to enhance their effect with biennials and bulbs for next year.
Saturday 20th September – ‘How to use Grasses in the Garden’ 10am – 12pm £40
Grasses are largely at their most glorious at this time of year. If you are a newcomer to grasses or are already a convert but just want to learn more we will be exploring a whole range of grasses at Wildegoose, which ones to select and how to use them in the garden.
Thursday 27th November – ‘The Garden in Winter’ 10am-11am £20
Looking at what to plant for Winter interest : the best seed heads, berries and hips, leaf and stem colour and not forgetting that all important structure to keep you and the wildlife enjoying your garden even through the harshest Winter months to come.
£20.00 – £360.00