Our Experts

National media personality Sophie Thomson‘s career in TV, radio and print media work focuses on the gardening arena. She is a popular gardening author and her latest book Sophie’s Patch is a best-seller. The avid horticulturist’s enduring love affair with gardening stems from growing up in the family nursery in the Adelaide Hills.

Jac is a respected horticulturalist and director of Super Bloom, a creative plant practice. As a regular contributor to podcasts and publications, Jac is known for innovation in dry summer dynamic planting design and Australian naturalistic practice. Author to two books, 'Super Bloom: A field guide of flowers for every gardener, and 'The Super Bloom Handbook' are published internationally by Thames and Hudson.

Celebrity gardener Simon is one of Botanica’s most experienced Botanical Guides. As former head gardener for The Diggers Club, Simon has an incredible knowledge of plants and gardens around the world which he loves to share with Botanica guests on tour.

Judy is an awarded horticulturist who has been a radio garden adviser for more than 25 years. She gives talks, writes gardening books, and has been responsible for six updates of the Yates Garden Guide. She is the current editor for the Garden Clubs of Australia magazine, Our Gardens.

Dr Toby Musgrave has a passion for horticulture and garden history, which began at a very early age. Toby is an authority on garden history and design, and shares his enthusiasm and knowledge as an author and lecturer on television and radio.

Winner of five RHS gold medals, and many accolades, Anthea is a garden designer and teacher who has exhibited at Chelsea, Gardeners’ World Live, Cardiff and Hampton Court Palace RHS shows. She has travelled all over the world as a speaker on gardens and gardening. She has a special interest in garden history and medicinal plants.

Teena studied horticulture at Burnley in Melbourne. She is the manager of Smith & Gordon in Melbourne, who are suppliers to the retail and landscape industries throughout Australia. Teena is also a gardening journalist and a co-presenter of a radio program.

Since a young age, Talei has had the opportunity to live in parts of Asia and the Pacific, enjoying an introduction to exotic landscapes. She has enjoyed leading a number of international tours with Botanica, sharing her knowledge about plants and garden history.

Julie has a Diploma of Horticultural Science from Burnley in Melbourne and has been involved in horticultural education for the last decade. She and her husband have a garden design business and have also grown plants for the nursery and florist industry.

Based in the UK, Chelsea gold medal winning garden designer Tracy has experience as show garden judge, garden design mentor, author and RHS tutor. Passionate about gardening since childhood, Tracy has a degree in Plant Biology and has been producing award winning gardens  for over 20 years, for both private clients and at RHS shows.

Arno King is a landscape architect and horticulturist based in Brisbane, where he works on a varied range of projects, including home gardens, parks and streetscapes. He is a regular speaker at conferences and teaches horticulture and landscape design. Arno’s passion is planting design and the innovative use of plants in the subtropical climate. He is currently developing an acreage garden where he can experiment with these ideas.

The Diggers Club is Australia’s largest garden club. They are passionate about preserving the best traditions and nurture three historic gardens, all of which we visit on many of our tours. Many of their head gardeners are especially chosen as our Botanical Guides, so you can enjoy their expertise.

Sarah is a passionate gardener and professional gardening writer, award winning blogger and speaker, with her columns a regular feature in the NZ Herald and Kiwi Gardener magazine. A Yates and Gardena brand ambassador, she has also featured on various TV shows including Seven Sharp, Get Growing and Cook the Books.

Naturalist, author and photographer Ian Hutton has lived on Lord Howe Island for more than 40 years and has written 12 books, including a field guide to the plants of the island and a fern guide. Ian has also worked on a number of research projects on plants, birds, geology and climate change and has published numerous scientific papers.

Sophie is a florist and keen gardener with has a strong interest in art. Constance Spry trained, she has worked with Kevin O’Neil Florist and was a member of the management team at the Mandarin Oriental HK, overseeing the flowers and seasonal decorations. After returning to Melbourne Sophie established her own flower business, returning to further study garden design at Burnley.