The Exotic Garden
By tommymoo
25 comments
We visited Will Giles yesterday and chatted away about this and that over a cuppa. He’s got a magnificent exotic garden and 4 distinctive cats with extremely short hair (they look almost naked)! All the cats are very quiet but friendly. One of them was very sneaky; I found him curling up and sleeping on the chair which I was sitting on, when I came back from the short break to the loo. Cats are just impossible to hate :)
Will showed us unique plants, he’s going to source from Hawaii and mainland US, on his big computer screen. Not so many garden centres in the UK, and even in Holland, satisfies his special demands, so he goes on to the internet to look for special nurseries.
I have permission to upload photos of his garden, so here we go!!!
(My photos, summer 2007):
Lush tree ferns. Stunning.
The tree house he built
Steps up to his front door
Desert plants (now covered with plastic over winter)
Traditional Norfolk flint wall with a beautiful stone motif/niche he installed
Beautiful agaves and succulents
Some lovely little plants
Nice jungle feeling
Last Sunday we bought his first book the new EXOTIC GARDEN and forgot to get it dedicated, so we did this yesterday! The book is full of beautiful photos and includes a practical illustrated guide of how to plant and keep exotic plants. Very useful for a novice gardener like me.
That’s about it today. Aloha everybody!!
His website:
http://www.exoticgarden.com/
- 3 Apr, 2010
- 17 likes
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Comments
Wow! What a wonderful place tommymoo and i must agree it IS impossible to hate cats! lol.
3 Apr, 2010
Superb garden..... I like the walls too !
3 Apr, 2010
Will's garden must be a full-time occupation. It is fantastic and amazing I know, and I admire his skill in creating it with its own mini climate.
However I have to say that personally I much prefer to see and be in a traditional English garden, a cottagey one, in which flowers seed themselves and don't need to be wrapped in plastic. Just my own preference.
3 Apr, 2010
Beautiful, beautiful garden. :o)))
3 Apr, 2010
Absolutely beautiful garden, enjoyed looking at the photos.
3 Apr, 2010
Will Giles is one of my favourites, I had his book Encyclopaedia of Exotic Plants for Temperate Climates, it is a joy, I read it most days, as we are trying to create a jungle area this year. I love his cats too.
3 Apr, 2010
It is a very Beautiful Garden....Its as if you are looking at Pics. from.Hot
Climates. These Plants are very tender, need lots of TLC..It is
wonderful what he has achieved...Has his Garden been on a Garden
Programme? I am sure i have seen a garden like this on GW...
3 Apr, 2010
Thanks for showing these photos . I really enjoyed them. Especially the ones of cacti. I love cacti - my favourite plants.
The tree house reminded me of Swiss Familly Robinson lol :o)
4 Apr, 2010
Thanks Tommymoo for your wonderful comments and pictures. I also write regularly about life here at the garden and of course the cats as well!
www.exoticgarden.com/blog
Kindest regards to all –Will Giles
4 Apr, 2010
Thank you everybody for all the comments! Freesiaperson, his garden has been featured on several TV programmes. You can view some video clips if you go on to his website and click on "Videos and media".
5 Apr, 2010
What an amazing garden, I love the wall and the tree house :-)))
19 Jul, 2010
Isn't it just! :-o
19 Jul, 2010
Is Will a personal friend Tommy?
19 Jul, 2010
He's an acquaintance. My husband is an old friend of Will's, and has always been a great fan of Will's amazing exotic garden.
19 Jul, 2010
:-))
19 Jul, 2010
Will's off to BBC Radio Norfolk studio this morning. He's on the radio every Wednesday :)
21 Jul, 2010
wow what a great garden.....realy warmed me up on a cold day..;-)
12 Jan, 2011
Hi Sandra, thank you for your comment :-) I'm pleasantly surprised that we are having rather mild weather these days after the heavy snow falls at the end of 2010. It's a bit like spring. Nice ;-)
18 Jan, 2011
we have had two spring like days on the trot here in Pembrokeshire..its so nice to be back outside again...and i spotted daffodils today...:-)
20 Jan, 2011
Lovely!! I also spotted daffodils, snowdrops, hyacinths, crocuses. I love spring. Can't wait to see the flowers :-)
21 Jan, 2011
What a fantastic garden, I love everything about it. The structures have been beautifully done and the choice of plants is superb. This is my kind of garden.
It is an absolute delight to look at the blog, thanks for posting it.
22 Nov, 2011
Thank YOU Mossy for reading my blog!
The Exotic Garden always fascinates me all through the year, not to mention summer. I love his cats too; they are incredibly friendly and cute.
23 Nov, 2011
It is soon spectacular, what more can I say??? Since it is 15o here. The pics took me to a wonderfully beautiful and warm place which I will cary around all day. Thanks for posting them.
28 Nov, 2017
Sadly, Will Giles passed away back in 2015 and the place is not open to public any more... RIP Will Giles, you were one of a kind!!
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/11891579/Will-Giles-horticulturalist-obituary.html
13 Jan, 2018
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what beautiful plants. lets hope he hasnt had too many casualties this winter.
3 Apr, 2010