Michael Klemperer has worked at English Heritage for nearly 11 years and is senior gardens curator for the North and Midlands. He has worked within horticulture for over 40 years researching at places such as Kew and Sheffield University, and working on projects at Wentworth Castle, Cusworth Hall and Brodsworth Hall.
He will be speaking on HortWeek’s Horticulture Question Time panel.
Join us on September 10 in the Landscape Zone in the HortWeek seminar area at GroundsFest at 11am.
This essential event is sponsored by Bourne Amenity and Hillier Nurseries.
You’re on the Horticulture Question Time panel at GroundsFest this year – why should visitors come along to listen?
GroundsFest is the largest, annual, free must-attend event for grounds staff, greenkeepers, landscapers, designers and architects, gardeners, local authorities, estate managers and contractors.The event combines indoor business and education opportunities with outdoor demonstrations: as such we at English Heritage feel that it provides an opportunity both to explain what we do, our role in education (horticultural and otherwise), conservation, and preservation of some of the great sites of this country from Stonehenge to Osborne House (the home of Queen Victoria).
We are the custodians of over 410 sites encompassing some of the Nations collection of great monuments from early prehistoric henges, castles, medieval monasteries, eighteenth and nineteenth century stately homes and even a Cold War Bunker. Visitors should come along because English Heritage are custodians of their history, their monuments and have an unparalleled visitor offer with some of the finest gardens and teams in the country; we are able to answer any difficult machinery, horticultural or even historical questions for our public; from stones circles to arts and crafts gardens I’m your person.
How long have you worked at English Heritage and what’s your role there?
I have worked for English Heritage for nearly 11 years, and am the senior gardens curator for the North and Midlands. I curate gardens, mentor head gardeners, look after garden teams, oversee machinery acquisition, garden health and safety, and project works with my colleagues in the gardens and landscape team.
What about your experience outside of English Heritage?
I have been a horticulturalist and archaeologist for over 40 years. I was on Welwyn Hatfield Parks, at Pershore College (NCH), Kew (Diploma Student), Archaeology and Landscape architecture at Sheffield University, then an MA, PhD then worked as an archaeologist and lecturer, primarily in post-industrial and gardens archaeology.
I then worked restoring a Richard Woods landscape, and starting a gardens team at Cusworth Hall near Doncaster, a 7 million pound NLHF project (2 years). I then moved to Wentworth Castle to restore the gardens and Conservatory (nearly 17 million) (8 years), then on to English Heritage.
What would you say are some of the most pressing challenges facing the parks and gardens sector currently?
All gardening enterprises whether historic or otherwise are stretched economically at the moment, we also face significant challenges from climate change, aggressive invasive weeds, plant pathogens including potentially Xylella, ecological pressure, and the reducing range of technical solutions to some of our problems. The horticulture sector has a skills shortage as well and retention and experience problems as a result.
Considering these, what are some of the things English Heritage is focussing on currently?
Working with The King and Plantlife on the Kings Meadows Project to create or restore and conserve 100 meadows on our sites; working with RBG Kew and other scientific organisations to map climate change and its effect on plants, devising new strategies for planting heat and drought resistant plants (particularly trees) to allow the fabric of our landscapes to remain.
We are also focussing more on composting, integrated pest and weed management, plant recording and mapping, training of staff and apprentices. Working with the National Garden Scheme on our own Historic & Botanic Garden Training Programme (HBGTP) which has put over 350 trainees through horticultural training programmes.
We are also developing our garden sites to attract visitors and accurately tell the story of English Garden History from C.14th Monks cells to early C.20th arts and Crafts Gardens.
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