Author and leading garden designer Jo Thompson has achieved high recognition from her peers and the public alike. This includes regular listing by 'House & Garden' as a top designer, four Gold and five Silver Gilt Medals for garden design from the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Chelsea Flower Show, London and a People's Choice award from the RHS Flower Show, Chatsworth. 

Inspiration for Jo initially came from the beautiful Corpus Christi, Leckhampton garden, the residential postgraduate site for Corpus Christi College at Cambridge University. Jo was there studying for a PhD in Modern Languages, Italian, in 1990, and her formal landscape training was yet to come. Hence her other main inspiration has been Italian art and architecture. However, Leckhampton with its combination of formal gardens, mature trees and wild parkland must have been a welcome sanctuary. Jo has kept the connection and returned more recently to contribute to its future design. She designed the garden at Mogford Lodge; creating a space for students to 'wander, meet and study'.

Since these student days, Jo has trained in garden design and now has thirty years of experience, and in the new book, 'The New Romantic Garden', thirty gardens are featured sharing this knowledge and the result is magical. 

The book is a perfect combination of visual inspiration and practical advice on designing with nature in mind. Rewilding, a popular design trend has encouraged the restoration of outside spaces to return to nature and support wildlife. Although this is sometimes difficult to achieve in a garden used for many social and family activities, especially in a small garden. However, Jo's design ideas are a useful guide on how to embrace nature, support biodiversity and create eco beauty in all sorts of private and public spaces.

Jo explained her thinking for the book on her substack,  'The Gardening Mind, The New Romantic Garden, Jo Thompson', 

'The New Romantic Garden follows the cycle of the year with its solstices and equinoxes - we're never in complete charge of how our gardens grow; other forces are always at work, as they should be when we allow sustainable practices to help us guide rather than try to dominate nature's own efforts.'

The book's images include calming water trickling on crazy paving, an Armillary sphere hugged by roses, soft curves with drystone walls, brick steps, oak wood posts and paths, salvaged elements hidden in foliage, old garden furniture, trailing flowers over modern gabion stone walls, retreats for people and even a green plant covered retreat for a dog.

It's hard to pick, but my own top three designs are the writer's country house, a classic hidden city garden and a modern seaside retreat.

The first is a wild garden in Norfolk designed for a writer. The house is surrounded by nature, including many varieties of trees and plants and wild birds of all kinds, including ravens, owls and swans on a nearby river. There is a wild flowermeadow with flowers of all colours such as wild purple orchids. 

Then Jo goes on to describe,

'Eostre's hares are seen in this garden: associated with magic, shape-shifting, intuition and rebirth, hares were once thought to lay eggs. They appear here around the time of the spring equinox, boxing in the fields and acting as a sign of a fruitful year ahead.'

Soft planting borders a flagstone patio with old wooden furniture to relax on contribute to this natural environment. The garden near the house's side door is filled with the scent of roses, bringing back memories of people loved but not forgotten. This is truly a garden designed for inspiration. 

The second is a modern beach house with a stunning sea view and the garden is a green 'foreground to this vista' providing both wind shelter and hidden spaces. Planting includes local plants loving the fresh salty sea air with some gorgeous red poppies, 'capturing the vibrancy and movement of nature.' 

Simple features are key to the design, including natural materials able to withstand the marine climate, such as wooden posts with maritime rope. Curves of wooden posts and paths feature, leading to different garden areas, such as the fire pit and seating. The garden has naturally become 'part of its landscape.'

The third is a sanctuary from the busy streets of London, perhaps a 'Narnia' style hidden garden. The design is describedas soft and wild but it is also magical. A rose and clematis covered wooden pergola with plants chosen for both pops of colour and height difference. 

Iris flowers, with their link to Greek mythology, as the goddess of the rainbow, are a strong feature of the garden's design. These include Benton irises, bred by Cedric Morris in the 1940s, used for their 'intoxicating shades' and height,' standing proud and gracefully elegant in their delicacy.'  

Antique and reclaimed weathered elements blend well with nature, and a garden ornament can make an amazing focal feature in any garden. This one has an iconic sundial. In her design, Jo beautifully surrounds the room with scented roses and perennials. A reliable source for antique and reclaimed materials such as garden ornaments or statuary would be Salvo member dealers, following the Salvo Code of good practice in buying and selling. (Get your Salvo Pocket Guide when you susbscribe to SalvoNEWS). It is reassuring to know that items have not been stolen or removed from protected historic buildings without permission. Remember to look for the crane logo on member websites, SalvoWEB directory entries, and adverts. The crane was chosen because it is an ancient Chinese and European symbol for vigilance. The Chinese legend says the crane sleeps with one eye open and holds a stone which, on falling asleep with both eyes closed, it drops and wakes up.

People love a story behind a garden feature too. This sundial was designed by early twentieth-century artist Archibald Knox. He was best known for his Liberty designs, especially in metal, such as pewter ware for the iconic store in London's Regent Street. 

Interestingly, this connection made me love Jo's 'City Jewel' garden design even more. Salvo has recently been working with Liberty, and this reminded me of the natural beauty of Knox's designs. Then, thanks to Jo mentioning Knox, I discovered an exhibition of his work is opening in April 2025. Much like Jo, his work was inspired by the beauty of nature. His birthplace, The Isle of Man, with its stunning natural beauty, had inspired his designs. In fact, Knox even gave this advice to his own students: 'Aim at order, hope for beauty', which could just as easily be applied to gardens. Discover more at 'The Archibald Knox Forum.'

In 2025 Jo Thompson Landscape & Garden Design will design another garden, for the RHS Chelsea Flower Show. This year, Jo has connected with a social enterprise, The Glasshouse, providing training, work and support to women in prison. It has a zero re-offending rate, so it must work too. This garden, designed in collaboration with architects, Holloway Studio, will include a space made from recycled acrylic where women can meet. The aim is to reuse it after the Show in a prison. This will definitely be a garden design to watch out for at the Chelsea Show in May. The garden is funded by Project Giving Back.

Meanwhile, it is the best time of year to plan your own new garden design and be ready to put everything into action this Spring. Then, there will be time to relax and admire the results of your hard work over the summer months. This makes Jo's New Romantic Garden book a great investment, not just because of its inspiring images but its guidance too. 

The New Romantic Garden by Jo Thompson. Publisher: Rizzoli. Published February 2025.