Seven fabulous gardeners to follow online for lockdown inspiration

Get your plant fix from your living room…

Anyone who enjoys gardening will tell you it’s always good for the soul. At Platinum Skies, many of our locations have outdoor garden spaces and balconies for our homeowners to get green-fingered.

Tending to plants whether indoor or outside has been a lifeline during the lockdown for many, with the fresh air and a sense of routine.

Gardening initiative Garden Day collaborated with app Candide, and found 96% of people said they felt happier when spending downtime in their gardens.

While 85% of those polled said they felt gardening was more important to their mental health than their physical health.

Whether you have a window box or acres of land, you’ll likely be looking for inspiration for your gardening exploits right now – and if you don’t have a garden, you might find solace in these gardeners and their plots during isolation.

1. Piet Oudolf @pietoudolf

Netherlands-based Oudolf is sharing some fantastic shots of his own garden and visiting others where he can – for example, the tulip fields in his native country.

2. Peter Dowdall @the_irish_gardener

Expect lots of flower close-ups from Cork-based Dowdall, who also appears on RTE and is a gardening columnist for the Irish Examiner.

3. Alice Vincent @Noughticulture

Inspiring us all from her balcony garden, Vincent has been sharing videos on how to ‘garden up’, using the most of the space you have, as well as houseplant care and maintenance.

4. Charlie Hart @hartgardener

Hart’s recent book No Fear Gardening is a great tome for anyone still wondering whether to get their hands dirty in either a plant pot, or a large flower beds.

5. Timothy Hammond @bigcitygardener

Houston, Texas-based Hammond has plenty of advice, including handy wallchart-style posts to help you identify plants that’ll grow in different conditions.

6. Tom Hart Dyke @lullingstonecastle

Hart Dyke’s story is astounding – he was searching for plants in the Colombian jungle when he was kidnapped. Thankfully he returned home safe, and now opens his ‘world garden’ to the public. For now, see it online – including an impressive array of cacti.

7. Diarmuid Gavin @diarmuidgavin

Offering live Q&A sessions on his Instagram stories every week, TV favourite Gavin offers a warts-and-all feed, including mulching!