Nicola Macnaughton On Using The Principles Of Permaculture In Garden Design Projects
Contributions From NICOLA MACNAUGHTON
Nicola Macnaughton is a Professional Horticulturist and Writer. Nicola has completed a two year diploma in Herbology with the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh and obtained her Permaculture Design Certificate in Glasgow. She is also a member of the Chartered Institute of Horticulture. Since 2022, Nicola has worked as a Horticultural Consultant for the charity Bearsden in Bloom.
Known to her followers as The Bonnie Gardener, Nicola Macnaughton is a Professional Horticulturist who completed her RHS qualifications at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.
Nicola now works as a Freelance Garden Writer and is also volunteering at Bearsden in Bloom as a Horticultural Consultant, a role she has held since 2022.
I spoke with Bonnie about her journey into the world of horticulture and her golden rule for garden design.
How Did You First Get Into Gardening?
“When my sisters and I were little, my parents gave each of us our own section of the garden to look after,” she shares. “We always spent time in the garden at weekends.
“In my early 20s, I rediscovered my love of gardening when I got an allotment. It was very overgrown and full of horsetail, but I spent all of my spare time there and learned how to propagate seeds and grow my own fruit and vegetables.”
How Did This Then Lead To A Career In Horticulture?
“When I got my first allotment, my mum taught me everything she knew about how to grow vegetables from seed,” explains Nicola.
“The allotment sparked such a huge passion in me for plants and I developed this insatiable desire to learn everything I could.
“I was working in a corporate job at the time, but I decided to [complete] my Level 2 in Horticulture at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh. I studied in the evenings and at weekends.
“After I completed the course, I plucked up the courage to leave my corporate job and got a job with a commercial gardening company. That was the beginning of my career in gardening – strimming, mowing and weeding!
“I worked for that company for a year before starting up my own garden maintenance business. Over the years, that has evolved very organically from maintenance into planting and garden design, which are the two services I offer now.”
What Is Your Process For Designing?
“It’s a mixture of the practical client Q&As, site assessments and surveys, with the creative – which involves getting a feel for the space and its surroundings.
“Every garden is unique and each client has their own set of requirements. It is my job to get curious about all of these things and bring everything together to create a design that suits the individuals who will be using the garden.”
What Inspires Your Practice?
“I am inspired more and more by nature and the surroundings of the garden that I am designing,” says Nicola.
“I live in the countryside, so the gardens I am designing locally will draw inspiration from the granite of the rock and the naturalistic plantings of the hills, including lots of grasses and heathers.
“I need to spend time in the space alone and get a feel for the environment and what it is asking me to do before I start work on a new design.”
Do You Have Any Golden Rules For Garden Design?
“Ask the garden what it would like you to do to it, rather than asking yourself what you would like to impose on it. I am really inspired by Permaculture principles such as observing and interacting and producing no waste.”
What Does A Working Day Usually Look Like For You?
“I’m always aspiring to have more structure in my working days, but no two are the same,” she states.
“I consider myself to be a gardener who designs rather than a garden designer, so it is vital for me to keep my hands in the soil and to have a regular practice of gardening.
“I spend at least two working days a week maintaining gardens that I have worked in for years and have an ongoing relationship with. On other days I visit new sites, meet new clients, measure up gardens and go home to create scaled drawings and undertake designs.
“I do my best work early in the morning when all is quiet and still – that is when my brain is at its best and I can think clearly.
“I also come up with my best ideas when I am out walking my dogs, so I often come home and scribble them down after a long walk.”
What’s Next For You?
“I became a mother 6 months ago, so my priority is on how I can develop a business that works around me and my baby’s needs.
“I am looking to develop an online course to help people get into growing their own herbs and gardening – watch this space!”
What Advice Do You Have For Those Thinking Of Giving A Career In Horticulture A Go?
“It will feel very scary initially but just do it,” Nicola advises.
“Once you have entered into the world of gardening for a living you will never look back – gardening isn’t work, it’s play!”
