Critically Acclaimed Writer and Pembroke Alumnus Tim Richardson Publishes 'Oxford College Gardens'

Tim Richardson (English, 1986), author, garden expert and Telegraph columnist, has teamed up with renowned photographer and fellow alumnus Andrew Lawson (Physiological Sciences, 1963), for his latest publication Oxford College Gardens (Frances Lincoln, 2015).

The following review is by Timothy Walker, Tutor in Biology at Pembroke and former Director of the Oxford University Botanic Garden.

'Any book illustrated with Andrew Lawson’s photographs will be beautiful. Andrew has the ability to see pictures in gardens that the owners and gardeners had not seen. As a result he has been an influence on 20th & 21st century gardening that is every bit as important as the Reverend Gilpin’s influence on the picturesque landscape movement 200 years ago. One anticipates an Andrew Lawson book with the same excitement that was reserved for the release of the next Genesis or Led Zep album in the 70s. This book is a classic because Andrew has captured to the soul of many of the colleges (including the fact that my room’s left hand window is always open). The pictures are accompanied by a text that is a clever mix of history, architecture and horticulture.

A garden can be defined as a place where plants and people meet. The diversity of Oxford Colleges is reflected in the diversity of their gardens, but there is another layer of complexity and that is derived from the diversity of the people who meet the plants. For about half of the year the undergraduates are the people who meet each other and the plants. This may be just to sit on the grass, or play croquet, but occasionally they will meet their tutor on the same lawns for tutorials when the sun is shinning in the Trinity Term. During the vacations, the gardens are for conference-goers and summer schools. Across both of these are the omnipresent members of the Senior Common Room and the College Staff. For some colleges there is even the financial consideration of paying visitors. 

However, there is another major influence on the College Garden and that is the College Gardeners. For example only at Lady Margaret Hall would you get circular patterns in the autumn leaves on the lawn (page 103) and the greenhouse at Corpus (page 69) is another lovely piece of individualism. A small number of head gardeners are mentioned in Tim Richardson’s text, though they do all get a mention in Appendix 2. More important however is the small print at the bottom of this list, because there is an acknowledgement of the most important Oxford Gardener of our time – Walter Sawyer. 

Walter arrived in Oxford in 1980 as a trainee at the botanic garden. After completing his diploma in horticulture he was snapped up by Wolfson whose garden he transformed before becoming superintendent to the University Parks. Do not be misled by the janitorial overturns of the job title. Walter has developed The Parks into an essential all year round refuge for the occupants of the Science Area. He also maintains hundreds of other University sites plus 13 Colleges. These are listed on page 315 and you will be surprised by at least one of the colleges in the list. The quality of the plantings in those colleges, and the scores of borders around Oxford, are testament to Walter’s plantsmanship and his dedication to the Collegiate University.

I am often asked by gardeners around the country which are the best colleges to visit. The photographs in this beautiful book are a very good place to start planning a garden-based visit to Oxford.'