Every Plant. One Supplier.
Case Study
Ross-Lee Garden Design
Tranquil Village Garden
An oasis of calm and peace, created with the help of YouTube
From a single rose to a career in gardening
Ross Lee’s journey into gardening began almost by accident. When he moved into his home in Gislingham, Suffolk, the garden was little more than a blank canvas of grass and a shed and Ross freely admits that, at the time, he knew very little about plants.
It was a small rose bought from a pound shop that changed things. Planted at the back of the garden, it flourished, producing hundreds of blooms and sparking a curiosity about how plants grow. From there, Ross began teaching himself, turning to YouTube, online gardening communities, garden centres and car boot sales for inspiration and advice. Gradually, the empty lawn began to disappear and an extraordinarily lush garden took its place.
What started as a hobby quickly became a passion. Despite its relatively small footprint, Ross transformed the garden into an abundant, immersive space filled with everything from hydrangeas and hostas to tree ferns, bananas and other tropical-style planting. Creating the garden also taught him about the realities of gardening on heavy Suffolk clay, improving the soil with compost, manure and grit and learning through hands-on experience what different plants need to thrive.
As the garden developed, so did Ross’s confidence. He began sharing his progress online, attracting a growing audience, and eventually opened his garden to visitors through the National Garden Scheme. What had begun with no gardening experience at all had become a garden that other people were visiting for ideas and inspiration.
Today, Ross has turned that enthusiasm and self-taught knowledge into a professional career in gardening and garden design. His story is a brilliant reminder that great gardeners don’t necessarily begin with years of training or acres of land. Sometimes it starts with curiosity, a willingness to learn…and one very successful little rose.