MELLOW FRUITFULNESS

Garden designer, writer, musician, pub quiz addict, enthusiastic bird watcher, wildflower lover, keen conservationist and avid reader, Helen Hays has very little time to spare in her busy country life. A polymath indeed, she lives in a small Yorkshire village, but her horizons are wide, which is reflected in her plant-filled garden.

‘I started gardening as soon as I could walk,’ says Helen. ‘My love of wildflowers stems from my(cow parsley) that grew in the lane at the back of our home. When I began to garden more seriously as an adult, I developed a real love for the whole family of umbellifers. As I am a bit of a collector, I found myself searching out everything from the dark-leaved Ravenswing through to sea hollies.’