Acer Corner in September

This is a garden with a distinct Japanese flavour. ‘I’d been interested in Japanese embroidery and ceramics long before discovering the Japanese Garden Society at Tatton Park Flower Show,’ she explains. ‘I fell in love with the style, so that was that!’ However, whilst following certain principles of Japanese garden design — such as using curved as opposed to straight lines — she is no slave to the style. ‘I would find the planting too restrictive.’ Instead, curving borders are filled with a large number of plants that are regularly pruned, but not at the expense of their natural shapes. ‘I don’t subscribe to the current fashion of letting plants do their thing,’ she says. ‘It’s completely unworkable in a small garden.’