Charlotte ‘Charli’ Gale

2018 – Horticulture

My journey into Horticulture began in 2015 when I was offered 1 day a week position in a retail nursery. This soon became 2 days, then 3 and then suddenly 5-6. I was obsessed with how much there was to learn, and in love with the idea that I could never learn everything about plants. This led me to where I am today, from a retail nursery assistant, to wholesale nursery manager to now Landscape maintenance.

Planning my trip to the UK sounded like it was going to be a lot easier than it was. I was surprised how hard it was to get someone to want to have an extra helping hand for free.

Nevertheless I was still able to send 100 ignored emails before finally securing some placements.

After landing in England safe and sound, I spent the week fighting jet lag through visiting the local gardens and tourist points like the Maidstone Museum. They had a recycled materials display on, where artists used “rubbish” to create figures of endangered or extinct animals. This was important for me to see as I am hoping to try and make an impact on the world, and the ways we as humans are affecting it negatively.

At a private garden I was able to learn from its 90 year-old owner, John, whose garden has been based off of letting plants grow naturally and without chemicals. He uses compost to feed his plants or cow/horse manure and he would “rather have a few weeds than spray poison”. He also turned an existing pool into a pond which is now a beautiful habitat for the native wildlife. He created a floating plant display out of old car roof racks, with ropes attached so they can be pulled in for maintenance. It was so refreshing to be able to speak to someone from an older generation who lets the garden grow on the wilder side to encourage native wildlife.

Among many gardens I visited, East Lambroke Manor Garden, was a wonderful learning opportunity. On a private tour I was able to learn about the history of the garden and about the amazing woman, Margery Fish, who started it in the 1940's.

It was here that she developed her own style of gardening, combining old-fashioned and contemporary plants in a relaxed and informal manner to create a garden of immense beauty and charm. She used low maintenance plants to make this possible and strove to make things grow in cracks and crevices to add features. She planted things in areas they would thrive, working with the natural landscape such as the stream that ran along the back of the property. She also used plants that would self-seed and spread. It was a fascinating day to see her now Heritage Listed garden still thriving and based off her important concepts of which I hope to implement into my designs.

In Gloucester I participated in a community gardening project, learning how to make seed bombs to spread wild flowers. They are used in a local school to help educate children about plants and pollinators.

I also spent a day with past scholar Grace Scott in Nottingham helping her with her cotton experiment. I got to measure the chlorophyll content, height and leaf quantity on her plants and ask a million questions about the experiment. It was insightful to see how this award has positively affected her life after her trip and has enabled her to achieve everything she has.

Next, I spent two weeks at the Royal Botanical Garden of Wales, replenishing the soil in sections of their great glass house, pruning and planting new specimens into the gardens. The work I undertook here really showed how much time and energy goes into maintaining such a huge garden that is nearly 20 years old now.

They also gave me the opportunity to shadow one of their Botany students. Her work was in DNA, bar-coding honey and wildflowers to decipher which plants their native bees actually prefer.

Through work like this performed by scientists, I can use research to better design gardens that help our native pollinators. Without this experience I wouldn't have known work like this was being done, and now I can use it to bring our industry a better understanding on which plants we should stock in our nurseries and place into gardens.

After several weeks away exploring the UK and experiencing horticulture, I was keen to get into the John Innes Research Unit to get a firsthand look into plant science. I was hosted by Simon Orford who went above and beyond for me, making sure that I got to see every aspect of their institute as well as giving great tips on places to visit in Norwich. I began my placement in their tunnel houses helping their seasonal workers to harvest barley, wheat and oat seeds. I learnt how to differentiate between variations in each individual plant's seed head and learnt how those variations came about through selective breeding and different locations.

Towards the end I was able to do my own data recording, ask questions and add my own theories contributing to the genetic work they are doing of adding DNA from the original wheat species, into the current wheat crops we have today. The Designing Future Wheat (DFW) Programme hopes to create better yields off of plants that require less fertiliser and watering.

Overall, my placement at the John Innes Centre was by far my favourite as it really got me thinking how science can be applied effectively to industries such as agriculture to help improve outcomes with minimal environmental impacts.

It has helped to confirm in my mind that plant science is 100% the path I wish to go down once completing my landscape design course. I am yet to decide exactly which field I am interested in pursuing, but I know I want to make a big impact.

Since returning to Australia I have felt like I have a much clearer mind for my future. I feel more confident in my abilities and inspired to make change. I feel honoured and am still in disbelief that I was given an opportunity such as this, and I will treasure the memories forever. I hope to ignite passion and knowledge in others the way that my hosts were able to in me. I am so appreciative of my scholarship and my hosts and I thank you all for allowing me to undertake such a life changing journey.