Author Jo Thompson
Jo Thompson

Jo Thompson

Listed by House & Garden, Country & Town House and Country Life magazines as one of the country’s top ten garden designers and plantswomen, Jo has won multiple awards, including four Gold medals for RHS Chelsea Flower Show gardens. She sits on several RHS advisory committees, is an RHS judge, lectures in the UK and internationally and is a visiting tutor at the London College of Garden Design. Jo's approach to garden design is one of creating harmony within the landscape; colour, architecture and the surrounding landscape all working together. She is committed to working sustainably, favouring local, natural materials, and through her use of plants, she aims to improve and enhance the biodiversity of each project, and believes passionately in everyone’s right to the access to green space. She has written two books including The Gardener’s Palette, which celebrates her love of colour. Her third book, publishing in 2025, will look at the allure of romantic gardens. Her weekly Substack newsletter The Gardening Mind shares her insights about designing for all kinds of gardens.

Recent articles by Jo Thompson
Dahlia 'Honka Fragile'

Love dahlias? These are the 7 dahlias top designers would have in their own gardens

Three garden designers and landscape architects – Arabella Lennox-Boyd, Ula Maria and Jo Thompson – choose their favourite dahlias for late-season colour.
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Beautiful pot planted by Jo Thompson for late-summer to autumn

A meadow-inspired pot display from Jo Thompson for late-summer

From cool pastels and foliage to hot colours, designer Jo Thompson creates a stylish container combination
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Gladiolus papilio 'Ruby' and Lobelia 'Tania'

It's time to plant summer flowering bulbs - here's our guide on exactly when to plant them and which to grow

Spring is the ideal time to plant summer-flowering bulbs. We asked four experts to recommend their favourites
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Jo Thompson's early spring pot plant using narcissus and scilla

Spring beauty in a pot: a stunning plant pot design you can plant up at home from designer Jo Thompson

Award-winning designer Jo Thompson's container-planting series continues with this early spring flower combination using Narcissus and Scilla. Words Jo Thompson, photographs Jason Ingram
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An autumn container using hellebores and euonymous from Jo Thompson

Give your containers autumn style with the help of designer Jo Thompson's hellebore and euonymus designs

Designer Jo Thompson creates this stylish display using hellebores and euonymus to see you through the colder months
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Jo Thompson's pots of style using succulents

A great planted pot for winter and autumn using succulents with architectural texture

Designer Jo Thompson creates a stylish display to see you through the colder months using aloe and other succulents
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A warming winter pot using cornus alba and cotoneaster from Jo Thompson

A warming winter pot for wildlife using Cornus alba and cotoneaster

Designer Jo Thompson offers a stylish display to see you through the colder months. Photographs Jason Ingram
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A pot using heucheras, heucherellas and tiarellas

Discover how to make this beautiful autumnal pot design idea with tones and textures using Heucherella from expert Jo Thompson

A pot with autumn foliage and colours from designer Jo Thompson perfect for the season
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Jo Thompson's Pots of Style late summer

Pastels in the shade: a late summer pot with a soft colour combination through autumn

From cool pastels and foliage to hot colours, designer Jo Thompson creates three stylish container combinations for autumn. Words Jo Thompson, photographs Jason Ingram
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A container display in a steel bathtub using Hydrangea paniculata ‘Phantom’

An old steel bathtub planter sets out a pretty woodland display using Hydrangea paniculata 'Phantom'

Award-winning designer Jo Thompson offers container-planting inspiration with this idea for a pot display for high summer
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An indoor aromatic plant display using lavender, rosemary and lemon verbena

A graceful planter of purple hues using rosemary, lavender and lemon verbena

Award-winning designer Jo Thompson offers container-planting inspiration with this idea for a pot display for high summer
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Summer fireworks Pots of Style with Jo Thompson, using Rosa 'The Fairy', Hemerocallis 'Pink Damask' Hemerocallis 'Chicago Silver', Geranium 'Dreamland', Origanum 'Rosenkuppel'

A summer pot with bold orange and pinks using hemerocallis from Jo Thompson

Award-winning designer Jo Thompson offers new container-planting inspiration with an idea for flower combinations for high summer. Words Jo Thompson, photographs Jason Ingram
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