Interview with Isabelle Palmer of The Balcony Gardener

With limited outdoor space at her London home and a time consuming job, coupled with the fact she didn't know very much about container gardening, Isabelle Palmer looked for a company that would provide a capsule container garden to get her going but couldn't find one. She wanted to create a garden in her small urban outdoor space, but realising that most garden centres didn't cater for this, especially balconies, she established there was a gap in the market. A year and a half later The Balcony Gardener was founded.

What do you love most about your job? The fact that no two days are the same and that there are new challenges every day. Also the interaction with our clients, it's a wonderful feeling to know you are making someone happy with their first garden experience.

When and how did you first get into gardening? When I was given a small plot in my father's kitchen garden when I was young and chose to grow strawberries, none of which ever left the plot as I ate them all!
 
What is your favourite plant and why? I don't think I could pick one but I do have a few long term favourites such as Wisteria as it always signifies to me the start of summer. It is always a never ending journey of discovering new plants and each one becomes my favourite every season. I always have lavender and Boxus as the core plants on my balconies as they are always there, summer to winter, in some form.

Whose garden do you admire and why? Rosie Person's garden at Asthall Manor Oxford, created by Julian and Isabel Bannerman who also design lots of wonderful gardens including the Stumpery at Highgrove. It is the most beautiful and tranquil space combining the modern with an imaginative take on a classic English garden. There are so many hidden nooks and crannies from the sweet pea enclosed swimming pool to the meadow,  lake and down to the river Windrush. They hold a wonderful sculpture exhibition every two years in the gardens, I would highly recommend it.

Where do you live and what is your garden like? I live in NW London in an apartment. I don't have a garden but two balconies. The upstairs one opens up onto the road but the one downstairs is quiet and secluded so this is where I spend most of my time. I have filled it with plants, herbs and a small willow tree to give it a sense of an oasis.

Describe your average day? Busy, Busy, Busy.

What couldn't you live without? My family, they are a constant source of support and strength and I would be lost without them.

What is your most treasured possession? My grandmother gave me a bracelet that was created out of silver annas (old Indian coins) that her uncle brought back from India during a tour of duty in 1912.  It was one of her most treasured possessions and now has become mine since she died last year.

What is the best advice you've ever been given and who gave it to you? Don't put off until tomorrow what you can do today, by my headmistress at school.

If you could be anywhere in the world right now, where would you be and why? Exactly where I am.

How difficult is to learn how to garden? It's not really difficult; it's just a case of trial, sometimes error and time. There are often things that don't go so well but the great thing about gardening is you can change it or replant if it doesn't work. I think even the most knowledgeable gardeners still learn something new all the time.

What advice do you have for winter gardeners? Don't feel that the garden or outdoor space needs to be put to bed in the winter. Try adding winter flowering plants such as camellias and hellebores to brighten it up. This is where containers are great as you can position them so they can be seen and appreciated. It is great to look out on a cold bleak day and see glimpses or an array of colour in the garden.

What is your favourite website and why? The design blog Remodelista, it has such a plethora of wonderful design ideas from all around the world. I love getting their newsletter which gives me inspiration every day.

11 November 2010