After a scenic drive into Royal Deeside I arrived at this charming Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Partner Garden. Across the season, the 10-strong gardening team grows more than 80 varieties of vegetables, fruit and herbs in the walled kitchen garden, polytunnels and glasshouse. Crops include ‘Crosby Egyptian’ golden beetroot, ‘Black Tuscan’ kale, kohl rabi and scorzonera. The gardens also include 17 acres of lawn, an arboretum, terraced, pool and stream-side gardens. So what, or who, is the secret weapon?
Douneside’s gardens are managed by Stephen McCallum, the former head gardener of the feted Beechgrove Garden, popular for its down-to-earth gardening approach seen by TV viewers across the UK. Douneside also became an RHS Approved Qualifications Centre in Scotland thanks to the MacRobert Trust Horticultural Training Scheme, which employs trainee gardeners…
