Modern heroes of horticulture - Mike Palmer

Mike Palmer has become a familiar face to keen gardeners in recent years.  His live ‘Sunday Morning Stroll’, something he started on Instagram during lockdown, has garnered a loyal following of regular viewers with thousands more catching up to the later recordings.  Taking place in his beautiful Bournemouth garden Mike discusses all aspects of horticulture including progress within the borders, what’s growing well, and ‘What to do this month’.

Chairman of the Garden Media Guild, Mike’s three year tenure is soon to end but, not a man to rest on his laurels (well, he is a gardener), he’s looking forward to his other projects to keep him busy.  His weekly podcast ‘Mike the Gardener’ is now in its 7th season and he’s particularly excited about sharing his knowledge in his new fortnightly column of Amateur Gardening magazine.  His recent articles have included Scintillating Shrubs, Gardening for Wellbeing, Ornamental Grasses, Colour in the Garden, and Designing a Border.

His artistic background as a qualified illustrator combined with a Level 3 Horticulture gained at Kingston Maurward College in Dorset, qualifies him perfectly for his chosen profession.  Fans of his writing style can also visit his online Substack account Mike the Gardener - Rambling Prose.  His Instagram account is Mike_thegardener.

Favourite gardening tools?  When in the garden, like many gardeners he’ll have his trusty Felco secateurs at his side and he particularly loves a small ladies spade "They’re great for  getting in the border and amongst the plants to squeeze in just one more plant".  We’ve all been there Mike!