Neville Stein Horticultural Business Consultant

06/07/2026

Read my next 'Whatever happened to' feature in Hort Week where I profile Hopleys Nursery,

Whatever happened to… Hopleys - from HortWeek

04/07/2026

This is a superb opportunity to network with other like minded horticulturists. It’s a free event … come along to learn more about Perennial and visit a fantastic garden.

Networking Event for Self-employed and Solo Workers in Horticulture 🌿

Working alone has its benefits, but it can also mean missing out on the day-to-day conversations, support and connections that come from being part of a team.

We're hosting a friendly networking event at Helmingham Hall Gardens on Thursday 23 July. It's an opportunity to meet others working across horticulture, share experiences of working independently and learn more about the support available from Perennial.

There will be talks from our Director of Services Helen Waddington and we'll also be joined by Head Gardener Brendan Arundel for a tour of the gardens.

If you work in Horticulture and are self-employed, work independently or spend much of your working day on your own, we'd love to welcome you. Places are limited, so please book ahead: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/perennials-networking-event-for-solo-workers-in-horticulture-tickets-1991684890121

27/06/2026

I recently spent some time at the Red House Museum and Gardens in Christchurch, Hampshire and it got me thinking about the relationship between gardens and the creative mind.

This charming Georgian building, originally built as a workhouse in 1764, is now a wonderful local history museum. But it was Poets' Corner that got me thinking about how gardens have always been places of inspiration. Think about it. Some of our greatest works of literature and art were born in gardens or were directly inspired by them. The Red House itself has literary connections—it was visited by Charlotte Brontë and is even said to have inspired the home 'Briarmains' in her novel Shirley. The museum has also displayed work by the poet Elizabeth Mary Dobell and hosted exhibitions celebrating artists and letter cutters like John Andrew, who collaborated with the renowned poet Ian Hamilton Finlay.

So why are gardens such fertile ground for creativity? I believe it's because they engage all the senses. A garden is a living composition, constantly changing with the seasons, offering endless variations on themes of form, colour, and texture.

For anyone working in a creative field—whether you're a garden designer, a writer, an artist, or a business consultant like myself—spending time in a well-designed garden is never wasted time. It's an investment in your creative well-being. It reminds us that the best designs, whether on paper or in the ground, have a sense of rhythm, balance, and harmony that speaks to something deep within us.

If you're in the area, I'd highly recommend a visit to Red House Museum and Gardens. Take a moment in Poets' Corner and see what inspiration strikes.

15/06/2026

The next Perennial event for solo workers on horticulture is on July 23rd at Helmingham Hall, Suffolk. This is an excellent opportunity to meet with like minded horticulturists, share your stores and concerns and gain support. The event is free but do please reserve your spot.

Perennial’s Networking Event for Solo Workers and Self-Employed in Horticulture.

15/03/2026

15/03/2026

A Year in the Cottage Garden is the story of a Gloucestershire garden's rebirth, co-authored by the woman who envisioned it, Sue O'Neil, and the head gardener who helped it flourish, Joff Elphick.

A neglected acre in an isolated Cotswolds spot, a self-confessed non-gardener with an iPad, and a professional gardener with an eye for rare snails. The story behind A Year in the Cottage Garden could begin like a country house mystery. Instead, it forms the foundation of a thoroughly modern and deeply personal book charting the evolution of a very special garden.

The book is available on the Genus gardenwear website. https://www.genus.gs/collections/tools-accessories/products/a-year-in-a-cottage-garden

Created by owner Sue O’Neil, and head gardener and garden writer Joff Elphick, Field Cottage has grown into a garden shaped by skill, patience and curiosity. A Year in a Cottage Garden gathers twelve months of Joff's weekly blogs, entitled In the Genus Garden, revealing the work, discoveries and s...

03/03/2026

Alden and Patterson, coming to Waldringfield, 21 March.

10/02/2026

I wrote this blog almost three years ago and somehow, it seems even more relevant now than it did then.

Profit margins - it's what we're all in business for - not necessarily to get filthy rich, but to be able to hire the best staff, keep machinery in good nick and just feel proud of what we've achieved.

Apparently there's even more rain on the way this week, so why not have a read of this blog and see if there are any ways that you could tweak your work habits in order improve your profit margin.

My top two recommendations would be to outsource garden design (to free up some mental bandwidth as well as some time). And invest in the services of someone like Neville Stein Horticultural Business Consultant who has this incredible ability to identify opportunities for you to improve your profit margins in the short, mid and long term.

https://mygardendesign.co.uk/are-you-missing-opportunities-to-make-your-business-more-profitable

24/01/2026

ALDEN & PATTERSON, LIVE, WALDRINGFIELD VILLAGE HALL, NEAR WOODBRIDGE 21ST MARCH. BROUGHT TO YOU BY WALDRINGFIELD SESSIONS. THIS WILL BE A SELL OUT GIG - TICKETS LIMITED. LINK HERE.
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/christina-alden-and-alex-patterson-tickets-1979882747595

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfTBQ9X_vk8&list=RDlfTBQ9X_vk8&start_radio=1

The Starless Sea is a contemporary folk tale exploring love and companionship and inspired by the beautiful novel by Erin MorgensternFilmed by Charlie Patter...