'Gardening for the Terrified' short course with Shelagh Todd - lecturer, garden designer & plantswoman.

 

9.30am to 12.30am or 1.30pm to 4.30pm 

£40 inc. fresh coffee/ home made biscuits inc

 

 'Gardening for the Terrified'  with Cumbrian Based lecturer, garden designer & plantswoman, Shelagh Todd.

 This gardening course is designed for absolute beginners and you will find out all you ever wanted to know about gardening - but were perhaps too embarrassed or afraid to ask.

Shelagh will  cover a range of gardening topics to allow you to leave the course feeling confident & inspired to work in your own outdoor space.

Topics covered will include

• Getting to know your space. Every space is different and needs to be treated differently
• Selecting plants for your garden. Commonly referred to by gardeners as “the right plant for the right place”
• The practicalities of creating & maintaining your outdoor space

 We will explore the garden created over 20 years at Poplin Dub to gather ideas on successful planting combinations, practical layouts, how you use the garden to fulfil your individual needs and ultimately allow you to take away practical & creative ideas to use in your garden.

And finally you will leave the course discovering gardening is fun & rewarding.

Bring along on the day

• A few photos of your outdoor space
• A small bag or jar of your garden soil
• Please bring along photos or live specimens of ornamental plants in your garden to allow Shelagh to help you identify them
• If you have a weed problem in garden please bring a sample along & Shelagh will give you tips on how to control them

 Shelagh is widely known and highly respected throughout Cumbria's gardening fraternity. She has been both the familiar face, and  'lead' of Horticulture at Newton Rigg for well over 30 years, and we are thrilled to welcome her to our 2025 Quirky programme. She brings a wealth of gardening expertise and teaching experience, which over the years, will have gently inspired (literally) thousands of 'would-be gardeners’ to create and nurture their own individual outdoor spaces.

 

Dates for this course - see the table below to book:

Saturday 7th March 2026     morning or afternoon session    

Please bring: Footwear and suitable clothes for our walk around the garden, plus a phone or camera for taking photographs and some paper/ pen for taking notes.  Typically this course runs with approx 10-12 students. About the Artist Shelagh has over 40 years experience in the horticultural industry. Her most recent role was as Head of Horticulture and Garden Design at the School of Horticulture based at Lowther Castle and Gardens (established July 2021). Prior to this she was Head of Horticulture, Forestry & Floristry and a horticultural & garden design lecturer at Newton Rigg College, Penrith, Cumbria. Her career has seen her working in gardens all over the UK from Achamore Gardens on the Isle of Gigha in Argyllshire, Scotland to Merrist Wood College in Surrey. A highlight in her career was being a member of the teams that won gold and silver medals at the Chelsea Flower Show. She also won the ‘Cumbrian Lecturer of the Year’ in the Golden Apple Awards in 2010. Shelagh had the great honour of being The President of the Lakeland Horticultural Society based at Holehird Gardens near Windermere.

Shelagh feels her greatest achievement and inspiration has always been to teach people of all ages and abilities to learn practical skills and grow a knowledge and love of plants.

Some informal 'post -it' notes feedback from one of Shelagh's previous courses

 What did you enjoy most?

• Everything was wonderful !
• Fantastic!
• Inspirational!
• Passionately taught by Shelagh
• Excellent, Inspirational & Therapeutic
• Built my confidence to design my own garden borders
• The structure of the 2 day course, the location & of course Shelagh!
• Engaging with the gardens around the Quirky Workshop Barn especially the wildlife pond & wildflower meadow
• A wonderful, in depth, thought provoking course and perfectly delivered by Shelagh
• Guided walks around Annies Garden
• Learning about my soil & how to improve it
• Building my confidence on how to select & use plants in my own Cumbrian garden
• Shelagh’s vast wealth of knowledge & experience
• Meeting like-minded people who enjoy talking about gardens & plants & sharing their own experiences
• Annie's quirky & creative garden
• Gathering inspirational ideas & now having the confidence to implement the ideas in my own garden