Mrs Caroline Holmes

I am a garden historian, academic but not dry, informative and entertaining, as well as practical and engaging. I have run courses and lectured for Professional and Continuing Education (PACE) for over 30 years. My courses and lectures study centuries of gardens from the Ancient World to Royal domains, from vast formal designs and landscapes to domestic plots and kitchen gardens. I speak internationally, live and online, delving into the myriad ways people and plants have shaped our world.

Whether speaking or writing, a sense of humour is essential and makes for entertaining memories. I have spoken on every continent except Antarctica. I have written twelve books: 'Where the Wildness Pleases'; 'The English Garden Celebrated' was launched in June 2021. It explores 31 gardens on the High Weald. 'Water Lilies and Bory Latour-Marliac, the Genius Behind Monet’s Water Lilies' was published in November 2015. It received the Herb Society of America Elizabeth Crisp Rea Award.

I was keynote speaker at the International Water Garden Conference at Giverny and Le Temple-sur-Lot in 2019. 'RHS Herbs for the Gourmet Gardener' was a finalist in the Garden Media Guild 2014 Reference Book of the Year Award. 'The Not So Little Book of Dung' was listed as one of ten Christmas presents for gardeners by the Evening Standard in December 2016. I have also received the Herb Society of America Gertrude B. Foster Award for Excellence in Herbal Literature.