Maggy Howarth Remembered

25/9/2024

Maggy in her workshop

Maggy Howarth has played an important part in my gardening life and so it was with great sadness that I learnt of her death. She designed the pebble mosaics for my first show garden, The Beekeeper’s Garden at Hampton Court (video) in 2009 and in the following year, the magnificent peacock mosaic for my garden at Chelsea, The Victorian Aviary Garden.

She collected the pebbles from a beach in Anglesey, with permission from its aristocratic owner and enhanced the design with pottery figures and with glass. Her obituaries in the Guardian and the Telegraph amply describe her achievements and so, apart from saying how delightful she was, I will only add a couple of personal anecdotes. The RHS show at Hampton Court was opened by Princess Alexandra, who was enthused by Maggy’s mosaics. The following year the Princess paid a visit to my garden at Chelsea and again expressed her delight at Maggy’s design and asked for her contact details. This led, I believe, to her commissioning a mosaic for her own garden, which led in turn to a commission from her cousin, the Queen. The obituaries refer to current commissions from King Charles at Balmoral and Sandringham so it is possible that she received several royal commissions.

Secondly, I have always felt a little guilty and perhaps responsible for the death of her husband Boris (Guardian obituary). Boris was a folk singer, artist, stone carver, friend of Adrian Mitchell and founder of the Lancaster Street theatre. He was also a keen gardener creating, with Maggy, a hilltop farm garden at their home at Wennington, on the edge of the Bowland Valley. Maggy’s workshop was at their home and Boris was mowing the lawn one day when I was indoors with Maggy discussing our plans for the bee mosaic. Our meeting over-ran and Boris came in looking rather irritated and asking when he would get his lunch. Maggy sent him back to the garden. The following day I learnt that he had died of a heart attack that afternoon in the garden and realised with a pang of guilt that the irritation caused by his missed lunch may have been a contributing factor.

Maggy’s mosaics are now installed in my garden. She cleverly designed the mosaics in sections, putting the pebbles onto concrete slabs, which fit together seamlessly, but can be easily detached and re-assembled. Once together they are indestructible. The peacock mosaic is in its third home, on a new terrace set high in the garden which looks, fittingly, towards Maggy’s hilltop home and workshop at Wennington, where her son George is carrying on her work.