Meet Simon Wilkinson...

I have worked for Wilkinsons Landscapes since 2003, starting work as a nurseryman, I am now the assistant manager. I have greatly enjoyed my career so far, in particular the wide range of jobs and challenges I have faced.

I most enjoy working with sloping sites to form terraced gardens. The impact on how much more usable the space becomes is immense and the view from the top of a terraced garden can be idyllic.

My favourite gardening tool is an excavator; they have become an almost essential part in any hard landscaping project.

When designing a scheme for a client I try to take inspiration from their surroundings and properties style of architecture, I feel that it is in most cases best to try and work with these features to achieve the best result.

My top gardening tip would be that when choosing plants for your garden make sure they like your garden’s climate, the best looking gardens always contain the healthiest plants.

My favourite plant is Trachycarpus fortunei, they are a reasonably large palm when mature but can easily handle the harsh english winter weather.

Do you have a gardening question you’d like answering? Why not ask our staff a question on Twitter? Talk to us at @Wilks_Gardening