Book a Pennard Plants Gardening Course

The garden at the Old Vicarage, Leigh on Mendip, is the flourishing spirit of Asterion & Co.

We run fruit and vegetable growing courses from our garden

See all our gardening courses with Pennard Plants

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Asterion & Co. is proud to be the kitchen show garden for Pennard Plants

See dates for upcoming Kitchen Garden Open Days

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We publish articles on fruit and vegetable growing and the heritage of plants and horticultural practice in the Asterion Journal

Read latest Gardening Club articles

Since 2021, the garden has been restructured around principles of regeneration and abundance:

  • A soil-first approach, built on compost, organic matter, and minimal disturbance

  • Continuous growing through succession sowing and season extension

  • Crop rotation alongside a strong perennial framework

  • Dense, polyculture planting that balances productivity with resilience

  • Vegetables, herbs and edimentals grown together in a unified scheme

  • Habitats designed to support pollinators and natural predators

  • A working garden guided by observation as much as intervention

  • The guiding principle: bare soil is dead soil

A wooden potting shed surrounded by a lush garden with colorful flowers and greenery, with large trees in the background.
Plan of the kitchen garden at The Old Vicarage, Leigh-on- Mendip by designer Christine Whatley
A variety of vintage gardening tools hanging on a wooden wall, including trowels, scrapers, and hoes with wooden handles.
Close-up of red and brown leaves on a branch with a bright sun in the background against a clear blue sky.
A glass greenhouse with a metal frame in a garden, surrounded by green trees and plants, with a paved stone patio area and outdoor furniture.
A glass greenhouse with a brick base, situated on a stone patio, surrounded by potted plants and green trees against a bright blue sky.
A garden with a plant support structure over a bed of flowers, surrounded by a wooden border, with other plants, a greenhouse, and trees in the background under a cloudy sky.
A garden with blooming pink and red roses under a blue sky with purple clouds, framed by a black metal gate and an archway, leading to a pathway with a stone obelisk monument in the distance.
A workshop wall with gardening tools hanging and a whiteboard with notes. Two wicker baskets hang from the ceiling, and a clock shows the time. Various gardening tools like shovels, rakes, and hoes are organized along the wall.
A lush vegetable garden on a bright, sunny day with a blue sky and wispy white clouds, featuring tall plants supported by sticks and abundant greenery.
A rustic wooden garden shed surrounded by colorful flowering plants and greenery, with tall trees in the background.
A garden scene with a metal arch trellis, a stone obelisk monument on a brick base, and lush green trees under a clear blue sky.
A branch of an apple tree with green and slightly red apples growing against a weathered stone wall.
A large purple flower with spiky petals surrounded by green leaves, with two bees collecting nectar.
Close-up of a grapevine with purple grapes and green leaves.
Green pumpkin with yellow flowers and large green leaves growing on a vine in a garden.
Yellow rattle in our wild flower meadow
A row of vintage gardening tools hanging on a wooden wall, including trowels, a hand fork, and a weeder with wooden handles.
Three apples growing on a tree branch among green leaves, partially sunlit.
A garden bed with various young vegetables, including squash, with small black labels on stakes. The soil is dark and freshly tilled, with some larger leafy greens on the left side. The garden appears organized and well-maintained.
Potted tomato plants growing on a patio, supported by wooden stakes, with orange marigold flowers planted in some pots. Sunlight casts shadows on the tiled floor and surrounding furniture.
A garden table with various small pots and trays of seedlings and young plants in a greenhouse or garden shed.
Unripe pears growing on a tree with green leaves
Ripe red and green cherries hanging on tree branches surrounded by green leaves.
Peach tree with ripening peaches surrounded by green leaves.
An outdoor garden patio with a round wooden table, six wooden chairs, a stone birdbath on the table, a closed gray patio umbrella, lush green plants, trees, a stone house with ivy, and a partly cloudy sky.
A lush garden filled with various green plants and pink foxglove flowers.
Close-up of orange and yellow flowers in a garden with purple flowers and green foliage in the background.
Three potted succulents on a concrete ledge with a brick wall in the background. A black model of a lizard is on the ledge next to the pots.
A tall, flowering orange lily plant with buds and blossoms in a garden with trees and bushes in the background.
A peaceful outdoor garden area with wooden benches on a sandy ground, surrounded by lush green bushes and trees, under a blue sky with some wispy clouds.
An antique sundial in a garden with blooming flowers, an apple tree with unripe and ripening apples, and a house with stone walls in the background.
Sunflowers in a white and brown vase on a wooden table in a green garden.
A backyard patio with black metal chairs, a rectangular stone on a low table, and rusty metal furniture with a high back, surrounded by lush green bushes and trees.

Join the
Asterion Circle

Gardening Courses

Pennard’s horticultural expertise meets Asterion & Co.’s heritage-inspired learning.

Together, we offer a programme of practical gardening courses led by Pennard plantsman Chris Smith.

These cover vegetable growing, fruit cultivation, pruning of all categories of fruiting trees and protected cropping.

See all Chris's upcoming gardening courses

Explore Chris’s Gardening Club courses by season…

Where Our Gardening Courses Unfold…