In Understorey, artist and writer Anna Chapman Parker records in prose and line drawings a year spent looking closely at weeds, ours most ubiquitous and accessible plants. Meditating too on other artists and writers who have depicted them, she explores the value of these often overlooked species, both for the environment and our own wellbeing.

In The Kindest Garden, leading landscape architect and horticulturalist Marian Boswall shows how to create a garden that is both a beautiful sanctuary for yourself and a place where nature can thrive. Taking lessons from landscape regeneration at all scales, she demonstrates how to enrich biodiversity and make an active impact on the health of our planet and ourselves.

Both books emphasise the insights to be gained from looking closely at local wild plants or weeds – for what they can tell us about our soil and wider environment, and as a means of finding connection and stillness in uncertain times.

In this conversation, Anna and Marian will share their own experiences of observing these plants, offering practical suggestions and inspirations from art, nature and horticulture.

Author Bios

MARIAN BOSWALL

Founder of multi award winning Marian Boswall Landscape Architects, Marian specialises in creating beautiful, biodiverse and ecologically responsible gardens that focus on the long-term regeneration of the land. She is a Fellow of both the Landscape Institute and the Society of Garden Designers, and a co-founder of the Sustainable Landscape Foundation. Her first book Sustainable Garden was shortlisted for Garden Book of the Year.

Marian’s latest book, The Kindest Garden, explores the importance of designing gardens that work in harmony with nature. She believes that a kind garden listens to the land and responds with care, creating spaces that nourish the soil, welcome pollinators, and embrace biodiversity. Her approach to regenerative gardening goes beyond sustainability—it actively restores soil health, supports pollinators, and enhances biodiversity.

Her work exemplifies how thoughtful gardening can build deep connections between people, land, and wildlife to heal us from the soil to the gut to the spirit.

Through her designs, Marian continues to lead the way in transforming gardens into spaces that actively restore and enrich the natural world.

ANNA CHAPMAN PARKER

Anna Chapman Parker is a writer, teacher and artist specialising in drawing. She trained at the University of Edinburgh and Wimbledon College of Art. Recent exhibitions and teaching collaborations include Edinburgh Festival of Art, National Galleries of Scotland and the National Trust. Her writing has appeared in Rake’s Progress and Happy Hypocrite. She lives in Berwick-on-Tweed. Understorey is her first book. Visit her website to learn more: www.annachapman.co.uk

Event Details 

• Date & Time: Doors open at 5:30pm; the talk begins at 6pm/
• Location: First-floor Gallery at Chelsea Physic Garden (please note, this space is not wheelchair accessible).
• Tickets: £8 per person