“If you look the right way, you can see that the whole world is a garden.”
The words of Frances Hodgson Burnett (from The Secret Garden) ring very true. Even in the most human-orientated environments you will find plants surviving and thriving, the cliffs of their wild environments replaced by concrete megaliths and their valleys and gullies lined with tarmac. Nonetheless the plants cling on.
Gardens give us the chance to gather all our favourite plants into one place, into a specially managed environment that should, in principle, allow each plant to flourish. That said the selection of plants, both exotic and native, that could be used to embellish such a space is enormous. Some gardeners prefer to stick to tried and tested favourites, while others prefer to immerse themselves in the enormous possibilities of the plant world.
The purpose of Ben’t Botanics is to give me an opportunity to share information about plants that have caught my attention and that I am enthusiastic about, plus horticultural ideas that I find interesting. I’m not trying to influence people into following my lead; no, I would prefer to inspire others to go on their own ‘journeys of horticultural enlightenment’.
Obviously I hope people enjoy my observations and ideas, but I don’t expect everyone to like everything! We’re all different in our tastes, and I hope that this site (and @bensbotanics on Instagram) encourages others to show off their interests too.
Ben