We had a chat with Chris Wardle, the National Trust for Scotland’s Gardens and Designed Landscape Manager for Aberdeenshire and Angus, who offered his top tips for gardening in Scotland.

“There’s lots of advice that can be given, but I think the main one is don’t give up. What have you got to lose? Everything is an experiment. Even as professional gardeners, we make mistakes and the beauty about plants is there’s always another season, there’s always another year, and there are always more seeds. It’s amazing what you can achieve so don’t give up and keep trying.

“Start off with simple things and get your confidence. Sew some tomato plants: the first time that you taste your own tomatoes is a real joy. You can say I did that. You looked after it, nurtured it, fed it, and then suddenly you have a crop and it makes you feel that you have achieved something.

“Listen to people. Listen to the people who ask questions of people who have gardens because there’s as many people who will tell you that there’s 100 different ways to do things, and they are all right. They’re right in their eyes and their experiences.

“And if you manage to start gardening, find your tribe. If you can find your tribe, you’ll never pay for a plant ever again because we swap, we dig them out the ground, and we give things away. Plants grow, they get bigger, and you tend to find that they always outgrow their space and you have to dig them up, divide them, and then with the bit you’ve got you can swap it.”

Listen to our full chat with Chris on the Scotland Grows Show.