Lee Burkhill - Shaping Up Garden Design In the North

Award-winner, garden blogger, and TV presenter - all just a few ways of describing garden designer Lee Burkhill! You may have seen him vlogging on his YouTube channel (Garden Ninja) where he gives his viewers top gardening tips, or on the popular BBC1 show 'Garden Rescue'. 

With all that and more under his belt, we're excited to have had the opportunity to talk with Lee and chat all things plants, gardening, and his love for it all. 

What was your motivation to quit your 9-5 and become a gardening guru?

I’ve always loved to garden and found it really good for keeping my mental health on a level playing field. In my previous job as a Project Manager at a large bank, I found myself feeling more and more stressed. I was that busy I’d even run out of time some weeks to even sit in the garden let alone do much work in it!

My husband encouraged me to look at doing a garden design course to help address the balance mainly as a hobby, but in true Garden Ninja style it just escalated and a year or two after that I’d quit my job to design full time. The rest as they say is history!

What do you consider to be your biggest achievement in your career so far?

My biggest achievement to date is giving the very first expert lecture at RHS Bridgewater when it first opened. I gave my ‘Garden Like A Ninja’ master class for beginners to get them to design with confidence.

It was a huge honour to be the very first designer/horticulturalists asked to speak and the fact I’d grown up in the local area. I’ve always targeted my content at helping beginners and the next generation of gardeners.



Image: Hand-drawn watercolour render of Lee's 2019 RHS Tatton Garden Design

What would you say is your signature style?

My signature style very much focuses on the garden's function. I make my garden designs work hard as a room you want to be in and interact with. You’ll rarely see me push low-maintenance gardens which are often very sterile. I want my clients to get involved so they too can experience the mental health benefits of gardening

Do you have a favourite part of your own garden?

My favourite part of my garden is the centre of the Exploding Atom Garden. A concept garden based on my late Grandads works as a draftsman for Nuclear energy. It features all native plants, mostly grown from seed by me and uses a red hot colour palette. The colours change throughout the year as I’ve used succession planting to make it as long-lasting for wildlife as possible. It’s a real riot of colour.

What are your favourite flowers for each season?

I love UK native wildflowers. So you’ll often see me enthusing about Jacobs Ladder (Polemonium caeruleum), Inula Helenium (Elecampane) or Wood anemone (Anemone nemorosa). However, I’m a little bit obsessed with the Asteraceae (daisy) genus for the late-season in-your-face colour!

Image: A townhouse makeover in Manchester, designed by Lee Burkhill

What advice would you give to gardeners that are attempting to grow their first display?

Be kind to yourself and start small. Don’t try and tackle your entire garden at once. Pick one border and focus on a few plants that like the conditions such as the amount of sunlight and soil type. Pick plants that love these conditions and then try and use similar colours for a calming harmonious scheme.

Don’t forget to pick different heights with plants so they add interest and texture.

Where do you draw inspiration for your projects (for clients or personal)?

I take a lot of inspiration from my travels. When I’m not working I love to travel visiting new places in my motorhome and obviously gardens! I love visiting coastlines and woodlands where I get to see new native plants in situ as most of my planting is very naturalistic. Exploring cities often gives me inspiration for urban space gardens in particular new materials.

What’s the most requested garden theme or trend you get asked for by clients?

The most requested theme at the moment is wildlife-friendly garden designs. Which I’m really pleased about given how long I’ve been promoting using more native plant species. These natives adapt better to our climate and offer insects and birds a real haven and sustenance during the year compared to sterile annuals or imported plants.

Image: Lee's Display at Hampton Court Flower Show in 2019

Do you find it challenging to encourage new generations to pick up gardening?

It’s challenging changing the gardening establishment which tends to lend itself to horticulturalists or experienced gardeners. I find creating beginner gardening content on my YouTube channel offers beginners and uncertain gardeners a safe haven to learn and ask anything! My online forum on my website has thousands of beginner gardener questions which I and the Ninja army help answer.

We love your work on BBC’s Garden Rescue! If you could appear on any other gardening show, which would it be?

I’d love to have my own gardening show ‘Gardening with the Ninja’ where I could really help delve further into garden design styles, plant species and how beginners can apply this knowledge to urban spaces. I feel like the gardening media still avoids explaining the basics properly. This is something I’ve been passionate about bringing into Garden Rescue and my popular YouTube channel.

Finally, do you have any big projects coming up that we should keep an eye out for?

Ooh, I do but I’m going to have to keep you guessing on that one! A Ninja needs to have some secrets! In the meantime make sure you subscribe to my YouTube channel to be the first to find out!

To keep up with what Lee has planned next, you can visit his YouTube channel, follow him on Instagram, or head over to his website. Check out his blog while you're there to read about all things gardening!