CELEBRATED potter and garden sculptor Jonathan Garratt is talking about his passion for pots as miniature gardens at Wimborne’s Knoll Gardens on Saturday June 18.

Jonathan, whose distinctive woodfired pottery features regularly in the national press and at garden and design shows, recently moved his studio to Shaftesbury.

His new kiln has just seen the first firing of his signature glazed terracotta pots and these will feature in his talk at Knoll as Jonathan looks at the whole concept of ‘container gardening – with a twist’.

“I grew up with containers,” said Jonathan. “My father collected Ming porcelain pots in China and my mother was an architect converting London mews buildings into new homes.

"Growing up, gardens provided me with an intoxicating mix of escape and creativity but in essence they are simply another form of container. On a smaller scale the pots and planters within them then contain their own portable miniature gardens.”

Jonathan believes that making things for gardeners is fun. From sculptures on rods, through to seed pans, orchid pots and pointy blue tit nest boxes he enjoys playing with colour, bringing the natural palette to life with coloured glazes, or choosing to work with black clay for the quality of natural shade it can add to garden greenery.

His talk, Container gardening with a twist starts at 11am on Saturday June 18 at Knoll Gardens. S

et under a marquee within Knoll’s naturalistic garden it costs £10 and ticket holders are welcome to spend time relaxing in the garden before or after the talk. A selection of Jonathan’s pots will be on sale on the day. Tickets are limited and can be booked online at www.knollgardens.co.uk, alternatively call the nursery at Knoll on 01202 873931.