Gardeners' Spotlight: Anneke, Ornamental Gardener

Summer at Highgrove sees the delphiniums take pride of place on Garden Tours, so this month's gardener under the spotlight is Anneke, who is currently adding to the already expansive collection in the Sundial Garden and Cottage Garden.

His Majesty The King has a particular fondness for delphiniums and is the Patron of the Delphinium Society, so he was eager to add to the existing collection at Highgrove Gardens.

Meet Anneke

Anneke joined the Highgrove gardening team three years ago after moving from a career in local government. As part of the Ornamental Team at Highgrove Gardens, she looks after and plants beds and borders in the Cottage Garden, Sundial Garden, and Carpet Garden.

“Along with lots of weeding and mulching, I get to be a bit more creative with pot work displays, pruning, and poring over bulb catalogues,” says Anneke.

Anneke has been passionate about organic gardening since she can remember, and in 2015, after a long time on the waiting list, she finally got an allotment of her own.

“The more time I spent outside growing, the more I wanted to know about plants,” says Anneke.

“I then enrolled on an RHS Horticulture course and then another and then another, and that led me to where I am today at Highgrove.”

Working at Highgrove Gardens

“Working at Highgrove means you see the gardens change throughout the seasons,” says Anneke.

“From the earthy tones of the leaves in autumn to the explosion of colour and scent in the summer, there’s always something new to experience.”

She continues, “I love being part of a talented, knowledgeable team. The garden team ranges from trainees who have been here less than a year to experienced gardeners who have been here nearly twenty years.”

“I learn something new every week!”

A new approach to growing delphiniums

This year, the gardeners are trialling a new approach to training the delphiniums to grow.

Instead of using individual canes to support the flower stems, the gardeners are using netting for the plants to grow through.

“Delphiniums are tall and can be damaged easily by wind and rain, so the netting will ensure they are supported and grow upright,” explains Anneke.

“It should also be a lot less labour-intensive than staking each individual flower stem as, once the netting is in place, the plants should be supported without needing to be checked daily,” she continues.

Although the netting will be visible initially while the plants grow, it will soon disappear from view and is a quick and easy solution for large areas.

Adding to the expansive collection of delphiniums

Highgrove Gardens has recently taken delivery of a large number of delphiniums to add to the existing collection in the Sundial Garden and Cottage Garden, including the Elatum species.

These species of delphinium are reliable and hardy perennials and can withstand cold winter temperatures.

Available in shades of blue, pink, purple, white, and cream, the delphiniums will add an even more dramatic display to the Sundial Garden and Cottage Garden.

“Visitors to the gardens this summer will be able to enjoy the delphiniums more than last year as the newly added plants will create a real impact,” explains Anneke.

“My favourites are the deep blue delphinium 'Faust', which can reach nearly two metres tall!”

Re-usable netting

The gardening team at Highgrove avoid single-use plastic but have chosen re-usable plastic netting rather than jute netting for this project, as jute tends to break down in the sunlight and lose rigidity when it becomes wet.

“With careful use, we should be able to reuse the current netting for many years to come,” says Anneke.

The sale of highgrove products, garden tours and events support the charitable work of the kings foundation.