Several species of gardeners and garden writers (not to mention a family of Rocks) briefly found themselves in the same bed, so to speak, at the launch of journalist Helen Rock's Irish gardening book in Waterstone's on Tuesday.
Gardening writer and presenter Helen Dillon professed herself a little gloomy at the prospect of "putting her garden to bed" for the winter, after a dazzling trip to the Denver Botanic Garden in Colorado, for discussions with its new horticultural director. But Frances MacDonald, of The Bay gardens in Wexford, arriving with Irish Garden co-editor Mary Davis, was cheerily looking forward to next year's line-up of four-day garden tours to the likes of the Chelsea Flower Show and Bodnant in North Wales, which she's running in conjunction with Irish Garden. Clematis aficionado Dr Mary Toomey (she reckons she has hundreds of the climbers in her garden), was equally upbeat about her own recently published book, Clematis: A Hamlyn Care Manual.
But you don't even have to own a garden to be a keen gardener these days, it seems. Antony Farrell of Lilliput, publisher of Helen Rock's Irish Gardening, hasn't a garden of his own, but it doesn't deter him from being a keen armchair gardener. Plant photographer Diane Tomlinson, who took the book cover photograph and is similarly garden-less, has a novel arrangement with a friend, whose garden she has adopted. Farrell was, meanwhile, thinking ahead to Lilliput's next major fiction publication, Ronan Sheehan's novel, Foley's Asia, about the Irish in India. And, fresh from her first Frankfurt (book fair), Pauline McLynn's literary agent, Faith O'Grady, of Lisa Richards agency, was looking forward to the launch of the comedian's novel in February.
Also dropping in to Waterstone's in Dawson Street were designer Richard Lewis, Liveline producer Kate Shanahan, Finola Reid, manager of the Great Gardens of Ireland Restoration Programme, and garden designer Arthur Shackleton. While he is busy working with Helen Dillon designing a new terrace at the US ambassador's residence these days, he has still found time to enjoy a few visits back to Beech Park since his family sold the gardens.
On the family side, Helen Rock's mother, Mary, and two of her sisters - Patricia McAuley and Kathleen Haughton - were at the reception, along with her brother, jeweller Dermot Rock, who is hoping to open a new fine art gallery and antique shop in the new year. Helen's partner, artist and Irish Times art critic Aidan Dunne, meanwhile, is off to Macroom for the opening of an exhibition of his paintings at the Vanguard Gallery on November 4th. But not before the couple celebrate their wedding in Dublin next week.
F.M.