About Us
Gardener’s Cottage Plants is a family run, organic and sustainable horticultural enterprise first established in 2008.
The business is centred around our home, 'Gardener's Cottage', located in the beauty and tranquility of the small hamlet of Bingfield situated in close proximity to the Northumberland National Park. From our home we run a Plant Nursery, Gardening Services business and 'QR' Composting business. We also open The Garden under the National Garden Scheme (NGS) and for two days a week spring 'til autumn.
It's origins began, literally in the soil, through the interest and passion developed by myself (Andrew Davenport) for composting, in particular for 'Quick Return' (QR) Composting.
This type of composting proved very successful - it radically improved the structure and health of the heavy clay soil and combined with an increase in the diversity of planting, subsequent improvement of the biodiversity and eco balance in the whole garden has been realised.
It also dramatically changed my life with the writing and publishing of the book 'Quick Return Compost Making' and my subsequent change of career from engineering into horticulture.
Following 25 years of gardening organically, a gardening design and maintenance service was established in 2010 employing organic and sustainable principles. Through our knowledge and experience gained of the soil, composting, growing plants, as well as practical skills and knowledge through an engineering background, we can provide a comprehensive garden development/design/construction and maintenance service.
A passion for propagating and nurturing plants developed into the establishment of a plant nursery in 2014. We offer a wide range of perennials, wildflowers and herbs all produced at the nursery using sustainable and organic principles.
The Garden at Gardener's Cottage has evolved and developed, side by side with the nursery and gardening business, first opening to the public under the National Garden Scheme from 2017 and also as a private garden from 2018.
We also offer Talks and Workshops related to 'QR' Composting and organic gardening.
In 2015, a nearby 5.5 acre field was purchased. This was named 'Buttercup Meadow' by my father due to the proliferation of golden buttercups throughout the summer. The field has been planted up with over 900 native trees to increase biodiversity and improve carbon capture. We also aim to introduce wildflower meadow areas, ponds and forest gardening which we commenced in 2019. The field is also used to grow fruit, vegetables and herbs for sale locally through the business. Local charity and community groups such as People's Kitchen and Living Woods North East visit us on a regular basis, helping with the growing. Everyone involved gets a good day out, stimulating the senses, gaining knowledge about growing/tree planting, improving health and well being and doing something good for the environment.
The business is centred around our home, 'Gardener's Cottage', located in the beauty and tranquility of the small hamlet of Bingfield situated in close proximity to the Northumberland National Park. From our home we run a Plant Nursery, Gardening Services business and 'QR' Composting business. We also open The Garden under the National Garden Scheme (NGS) and for two days a week spring 'til autumn.
It's origins began, literally in the soil, through the interest and passion developed by myself (Andrew Davenport) for composting, in particular for 'Quick Return' (QR) Composting.
This type of composting proved very successful - it radically improved the structure and health of the heavy clay soil and combined with an increase in the diversity of planting, subsequent improvement of the biodiversity and eco balance in the whole garden has been realised.
It also dramatically changed my life with the writing and publishing of the book 'Quick Return Compost Making' and my subsequent change of career from engineering into horticulture.
Following 25 years of gardening organically, a gardening design and maintenance service was established in 2010 employing organic and sustainable principles. Through our knowledge and experience gained of the soil, composting, growing plants, as well as practical skills and knowledge through an engineering background, we can provide a comprehensive garden development/design/construction and maintenance service.
A passion for propagating and nurturing plants developed into the establishment of a plant nursery in 2014. We offer a wide range of perennials, wildflowers and herbs all produced at the nursery using sustainable and organic principles.
The Garden at Gardener's Cottage has evolved and developed, side by side with the nursery and gardening business, first opening to the public under the National Garden Scheme from 2017 and also as a private garden from 2018.
We also offer Talks and Workshops related to 'QR' Composting and organic gardening.
In 2015, a nearby 5.5 acre field was purchased. This was named 'Buttercup Meadow' by my father due to the proliferation of golden buttercups throughout the summer. The field has been planted up with over 900 native trees to increase biodiversity and improve carbon capture. We also aim to introduce wildflower meadow areas, ponds and forest gardening which we commenced in 2019. The field is also used to grow fruit, vegetables and herbs for sale locally through the business. Local charity and community groups such as People's Kitchen and Living Woods North East visit us on a regular basis, helping with the growing. Everyone involved gets a good day out, stimulating the senses, gaining knowledge about growing/tree planting, improving health and well being and doing something good for the environment.
Our Environmental, Social, Health & Wellbeing Aims
We are not a charity, however we will gratefully accept donations which will allow us to keep on doing the good stuff (below) that we believe in.
Purchasing our products or services helps us to achieve the following:
Purchasing our products or services helps us to achieve the following:
Over 900 trees have been planted at Buttercup Meadow
Engineering and Sustaining a Carbon Negative Footprint through :
- Composting waste materials from local businesses including woodchip, horse manure, spent hops, coffee grinds, egg shells plus all vegetative wastes from our garden, nursery and home. These are applied to the land (garden and 5.5 acre field) that we own and used in the growing media we use in the nursery, helping to improve carbon capture.
- Educating gardeners, through workshops and talks, on how to make compost so they improve their own carbon footprints.
- Planting over 900 trees at Buttercup Meadow.
- Energy for the nursery and our home comes from solar photo voltaic panels on the roof of our home and from a 100% green energy supplier (Bulb) with zero dependence on fossil fuels.
- We grow a large portion of our own fruit, vegetables, herbs and salads.
A diverse range of plants in the garden creates habitat and food for wildlife
Increasing Biodiversity in The Garden and at Buttercup Meadow:
- Continually adding compost and natural mulches to our garden to increase soil biodiversity. We believe that biodiversity starts from soil upwards. Each year we bring in at least 30 tonnes of natural waste materials for composting and mulching purposes. The increase in bird visitors (and residents) to the garden since we started doing this is a good indicator of its success.
- Planting over 900 trees and creating wildflower meadows at Buttercup meadow.
- Planting a large range of perennials, herbs, trees, shrubs, grasses etc to create habitat and food for wildlife
- Leaving the garden untidy (not cutting back etc) over winter to provide food, habitat and shelter for wildlife
Chicken-assisted composting
Running our business as sustainably as possible through the following:
- Producing all our own potting media
- Reusing plastic pots, trays etc.
- Making our own plant labels from bamboo
- Growing our plants from seed or propagating from stock plants in our garden or at our field (Buttercup Meadow)
- Using our hens to assist in making compost and providing eggs to eat
- Collecting rainwater for watering and employing water capture irrigation techniques to minimise water usage.
Community groups involved with fruit and veg growing at Buttercup Meadow
Promoting health and well being in the community through the following:
- Providing a stimulating and relaxing green space experience for our visitors
- Involving community groups in tree planting and veg growing at Buttercup meadow.
- Educating gardeners on how to grow organically. Growing organically equates to - healthy soil=healthy plants= healthy animals and humans feeding on those plants. Maye Bruce (the inventor of QR) said 'Give back life to the soil and abolish disease in plant animal and man'. Words that can now be backed up by scientific fact i.e research carried out locally at Nafferton Farm by the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. Organic food has greater nutrient content, mineral and disease fighting properties and is grown without pesticides, herbicides, fungicides etc. which potentially harm our vital insect and wildlife populations and subsequent ecosystems.