Clippings

Gardening still struggling to improve ethnic diversity

Eighteen months after Black Lives Matter protests shone a light on the lack of diversity in gardening, campaigners say there’s still not enough evidence of genuine change.

Designer Juliet Sargeant, who in 2016 became the first black designer to create a show garden at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, says there’s “an emphasis on doing surveys and getting reports written” rather than taking action. “There’s a sense of impatience from people of colour,” she says. “It has felt as if there is not a lot of urgency.”

Tayshan Hayden-Smith, who runs community gardening project Grow2Know in London, says there’s a feeling that