I could never picture myself inside. The outdoors felt right. I've always felt restricted indoors. I suffer from dyslexia, so maybe I associate being inside with the academic side of life.

In gardening nothing is static. Nature is continually trying to revert to what it wants to be. You might have a rose grafted on to wild rose stock. The stock starts throwing up its own growth. It takes over the hybrid. You have to guide it back. Gardeners are able to harness this force of nature. Where else could we do that? You couldn't jump off a cliff and defy something like gravity.

I've got a strong faith and a good family. I feel very happy at the moment. Gardening has a calming influence. I had a bit of a rough patch, a moment when I re-evaluated things. Gardening helps with a lot of day-to-day anxieties, puts them in perspective. There's nothing simpler and more beautiful than the unassuming seed.

All gardeners love spring, but winter's got its own beauty. On a subconscious level perhaps we learn from plants. Plants drop to nothing in the winter and can grow back eight or nine feet by summer. If plants have managed that regrowth, so can we.

Gardening highlights the perfect moments - the beauty of a day lily or roses that might be gone after a rainfall. It teaches you to be happy with these moments as they come.