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Gardener & Garden Designer in East Devon
What I can help with
Thoughtful gardening & garden design
I’m a gardener and garden designer based in East Devon, helping people make more of their gardens through thoughtful, hands-on gardening and garden design.
Whether you have an overgrown space that needs bringing back to life, an established garden that needs fresh ideas, borders you’d like to rethink, or a garden you want to redesign more completely, I can help.
My approach begins with understanding what is already special about a garden — its plants, character, atmosphere, setting and the way it is used — before considering what could be nurtured, changed or introduced to help it reach its full potential.
Having worked alongside some of the country’s leading gardeners and designers, I bring together practical horticultural knowledge and professional garden design experience.
Garden Design
From rethinking an existing garden to developing a more complete design, I can help create a clear direction for the space while working with what already makes it special.
Garden Rejuvenation
For gardens that feel tired, overgrown or have lost their way. I can help uncover what is worth keeping, what needs changing and how to bring the garden back to life.
Every garden has more to give
I don’t believe every garden needs to be completely redesigned.
Often, the most interesting gardens already contain the beginnings of what they could become — an established tree, a beautiful view, a much-loved plant, an unusual corner, or simply a particular atmosphere that makes the place distinctive.
My approach is to understand those qualities first, then work with them.
Sometimes that means making small, thoughtful changes over time. Sometimes it means introducing new planting, rethinking a border, or developing a more complete design.
The aim is always the same: to help the garden become more beautiful, more considered, and more connected to the place it belongs.
About me
Hello! I’m Hetty
I’m a gardener and garden designer with a practical, plant-led approach to creating beautiful and meaningful gardens.
I began my gardening career working alongside Scott Melville before working for award-winning landscape designer Sarah Eberle. I now work with Butter Wakefield, one of House & Garden’s Top 50 Garden Designers.
Those experiences have shaped the way I work today: combining hands-on horticultural knowledge with a designer’s eye, and always beginning with the character of the garden already there.
I love gardens that feel natural, generous and lived in — places that become richer and more beautiful over time.
Based in East Devon
I’m based in the East Devon countryside and work with gardens across East Devon and the surrounding area.
I regularly work around Honiton, Axminster, Seaton and the villages between them, as well as towards Lyme Regis and the East Devon–West Dorset border.
The gardens here vary enormously — from sheltered village gardens and larger country gardens to exposed coastal plots and older, established spaces that have evolved over many years. I enjoy working with that existing character and responding to the particular conditions, setting and history of each garden.
If you’re based elsewhere in East Devon or nearby and would like help with your garden, please get in touch. I’m always happy to talk through the project and see whether I can help.
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A collection of letters about gardens, the seasons, and what tending the natural world is teaching me about living well. Browse the archive below, or subscribe to receive the newsletter.
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Still Growing
Thoughts from readers of Still Growing
“Hetty you start my day off so positively 🥹🥰”
Becci
@sow.with.seed
“I love your content. I’m reposting in Norway. I manage a huge farm/garden store, your content is great 😊”.
Arne Nordhagen
@arnenordhagen
“Thank you SO much for the meaningful reminders”
Gina Wilkes
@helloginawilkes
“Inspired by your content. My favorite Instagram I follow. 😊”
Pamela S-A
@pam.s_gram
“I love seeing this affirming content, thank you so much 💚🙏🏻”
Rae
@raes.raised.beds
“I feel very peaceful reading your thoughts. It’s so true that we as gardeners get something meaningful out of each season! ❤️”
Mary-Ann
@mad_about_the_garden
“Beautiful ….reminding us of the power of nature ☀️💗🍃”
Marianne Ellman
@marianneellman
“So true – most things that are worthwhile take time. I love your content!”
Camille Dromey
@ajourneysewreal
“Dear Hetty, can you imagine that I even breathe more calmly just by looking at this ❤️”
Anja Salewsky
@wilde_freude_muenchen
“Hetty my type of therapy is very much the same as yours. Happy gardening 💚❤️”
Jane Thompson
@janethompson5267
“Oh Hetty you have pulled at my heart strings 😢 absolutely beautiful, thank you”
Lisa Jones
@alexander_hill_gardens
“I can completely relate to this 🙌”
Dee Phenna
@maric_living
“This is so unbelievably poignant and resonates for me so much currently ❤️ thank you”
Kelly Rimmer
@growslow_iow
“Wow… that is beautiful! Thank you for teaching me this. I’ll pass it onto my children”
Jayanti Noömi
@trulynoomi
“This is the first time I’ve seen my thoughts on mental health. Love your content ❤️”
Saryn Muldrow
@flowers_by_muldrow
“I am so glad I just found you. I love your positive thinking. Thanks for passing it along. 💗🍃”
Jill
@thefluffyswan
“Makes me stop and think, Hetty, and that’s good. For me it’s often too much time doing and not enough being; your content is excellent for giving me some perspective! 💕🤗”
Marian
@marians_flower_garden
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