I have been gardening professionally for a quarter of a century. That seems an unfeasibly long time and one would have thought that I should probably have learnt my lesson by now and founded an evangelical sect or become an Estate Agent. Something useful and profitable anyway. I wish I could say that I have always had the vocation and felt that all childhood moments spent away from plants were wasted moments but that would be stretching the truth much further than is decent. I have a valid theory that both gardening and sex are completely wasted on the young: I am the embodiment of that theory.

I spent my childhood being blonde and delightful, my adolescence being reluctantly educated and my youth loafing around trying out various jobs (including Father Christmas, washer-up, gossip columnist, Mr Whippy salesman, advertising and butterfingered waiter) before accidentally becoming a landscape contractor in London.

Surprisingly, I discovered that I not only rather enjoyed it but also was not totally incompetent. Thus I spent the next eight years turfing, laying slabs, erecting fences and doing lots and lots of digging. My training was mostly informal - although I did do a very short course at the Inchbald School in 1984 - and relied on bluff, endeavour and picking it up as I went along (ensuring that I was - usually - one step ahead of the client).

In 1992 I left London to build a new house and garden with my family in Northamptonshire. At that point I began to concentrate on the design side of things - having reached a age when my brain was worth more than my body.

Nowadays I am lucky enough to spend my days flitting around making delicious gardens, for some very charming people in some of the most beautiful corners of the country. Most of the time it as blissful a job as anybody could wish for - even though there are very, very few rich gardeners. So, rather than doing it for the money, I do it because I have an urge to leave the bits of the world upon which I am let loose a little more beautiful than they were before I arrived.

That and the biscuits......

For inspiration, drive, motivation, sanity, laughter and support my love and thanks go to Celestria, Archie, Stroma and Maxim.

If you don’t want to take my word for it then other, wiser, people have written these pieces:

Reckless Gardener - the designer beneath the hat

My hidden hero: Emma Townshend gets a tour of James Alexander-Sinclair's secret garden, The Independent, 27/7/08

Northamptonshire Chronicle - James is a luxury item (March 2007).

House & Garden - Forty Best Garden Designers (Jan 2007).

Observer feature on James (26/06/2005).

Horticulture Week feature on James (30/06/2005).

Article in Country Homes and Interiors.

Article in House and Gardens (Feb 2006).

This website has been listed as one of the Times Online’s 51 Glorious Garden Websites by the highly fragrant Jane Owen

Blogging From Blackpitts Garden won the inaugural Garden Media Guild Digital Media Blog Award 2008

Photo: Jenny Lewis http://www.jennylewis.net