Episode Summary:

In the Season 4 premiere of Gardens, Weeds & Words, Andrew Timothy O'Brien explores the fluid boundaries where gardens refuse to stay contained – bleeding into thoughts, literature, and everyday conversation.

Featuring a reading by Milli Proust from May Morris's 1893 work Decorative Needlework, Andrew discusses the "witchy," free-flowing arts-and-crafts legacy of May Morris before diving into a captivating conversation with French illustrator Margot Reverdy (co-founder of the illustration studio, Swindler & Swindler).

Margot opens up about her mental space Le Jardin Merveilleux, how gardening helped her transition into adulthood and heal from an eating disorder, the mechanics of drawing hundreds of thousands of digital lines, building a straw-and-wood house in the Drôme Valley, and why pink is officially her new black.

In this episode:

00:00 - Intro: The uncontained garden

02:05 - May Morris, George Bernard Shaw, and natural dyes (Reading by Milli Proust)

06:30 - Meeting Margot Réverdy & the story behind her name

10:24- Arts & Crafts in daily life: From Wordsworth covers to Sainsbury's salad dressing

12:22 - Inheriting irises and a love of seasonal blooms from a grandmother

17:50 - Working as a botanical maximalist in a line-driven world

21:58 - How gardens offer sanctuary, grounding, and an escape from urban asphalt

28:55 - Gardening on chalk and gravel in the south of France

32:14 - Being self-taught and leaning into the joy of applied art

**

49:35 - Andrew's garden coaching programme, with a discount code GWW15 for listeners to the podcast

Links & References:

Margot Reverdy / Swindler & Swindler: web: https://swindlerandswindler.com social: @swindlerandswindler

May Morris Archive: V&A Museum / Ashmolean Museum

Milli Proust: web: https://www.milliproust.com social: @milliproust

Garden coaching, with Andrew Timothy O'Brien: click here for more information, or to book a free discover call.

Andrew's book, To Stand and Stare. How to garden while doing next to nothing is now out in paperback.

Gardens, weeds and words podcast, S03.5 E04 show notes

A blend of slow radio, gardening advice and conversation, and readings from the best garden and wildlife writing.

These notes may contain affiliate links.

Garden soundtrack

00:40 spring settling in, and it's been a warm, dry start

02:34 what your garden wants from you, the last in my series of readings on how to find yourself in a state of harmony with your garden

reading

08:00 'Cow Parsley' from Jack Wallington's Wild About Weeds, read by Milli Proust

interview

10:52 Jack joins us to talk about the impact of his book five (now six!) years on, how practical it really is to incorporate weeds purposefully into our gardens, and whether a gentler, more natural approach to planting has any cut through beyond the garden media.

12:08 Did Jack's pro-weed stance feel like a lonely position to be adopting back in 2019?

13:28 The effect on Jack's garden design practice

13:54 The manifesto approach to writing your first book

14:42 Has there been a noticeable change in the attitude of gardeners towards weeds since the publication of the book?

17:50 Has there been any trickle down to the general public from a wilder look embraced by top garden designers at shows like Chelsea?

22:54 A plant in the wrong place? Weren't they here first? But gardening is largely about declaring what we want to grow and where. How does Jack find a middle ground?

25:25 Managing a weedy population – regular culling

26:22 Jack's wildflower meadow and help with weeding

27:15 Practical steps with embracing weeds – where do you start with becoming wild about weeds?

29:22 A weedy through-line – how weeds flow through all of Jack's work

***

Thank you to Milli Proust for her delightful reading from Jack's book, Wild About Weeds, published by Lawrence King in 2019.

My own book, To Stand and Stare; how to garden by doing next to nothing, is published by DK Life, and is available here

I'm ever appreciative of all my listeners for your continued support and reviews, I really do appreciate them. You can support the podcast by buying its producer a virtual cup of coffee for three quid, at https://ko-fi.com/andrewtimothyOB. Proceeds will go towards equipment, software and the monthly podcast hosting fees.

substack: Bramble & Briar
website: www.andrewtimothyobrien.com
email: gardensweedsandwords@gmail.com
instagram: instagram.com/AndrewTimothyOB

Gardens, weeds and words podcast, S03.5 E03 show notes

A blend of slow radio, gardening advice and conversation, and readings from the best garden and wildlife writing.

These notes may contain affiliate links.

Garden soundtrack

Winter conditions in the garden.

01:17 A weed for every situation

reading
02:18 from Jack Wallington's Wild About Weeds, read by Andy Wain

04:15 When to start sowing seeds – a flurry of mild debate

05:28 What instinctively feels right for us in the garden?

06:09 How do you want your garden to look and feel? The third instalment of my series on easing into harmony with your garden.

Q1. How do you want to feel when you're in your garden?

Q2. ...and what's getting in the way of this right now?

Q3. What do you like about you garden?

Q4. What do you dislike about your garden?

Q5. What aspects of gardens and gardening do you find visually appealing?

Q6. ...and how do you think you might incorporate these into your garden?

Q7. What stories do you want your garden to tell?

***

Thank you to Andy Wain for his spirited reading from Jack's book, Wild About Weeds, published by Lawrence King in 2019.

My own book, To Stand and Stare; how to garden by doing next to nothing, is published by DK Life, and is available here

I'm ever appreciative of all my listeners for your continued support and reviews, I really do appreciate them. You can support the podcast by buying its producer a virtual cup of coffee for three quid, at https://ko-fi.com/andrewtimothyOB. Proceeds will go towards equipment, software and the monthly podcast hosting fees.

substack: Bramble & Briar
website: www.andrewtimothyobrien.com
email: gardensweedsandwords@gmail.com
instagram: instagram.com/AndrewTimothyOB