King Charles III's former senior gardener has disclosed an unusual routine involving houseplants at Highgrove House, the monarch's countryside estate in Gloucestershire. Jack Stooks, who spent more than 20 years tending the gardens, shared the insider detail during an appearance on ITV's This Morning.
Asked by presenter Ben Shephard about the King's preferred houseplants, Mr Stooks revealed that scented geraniums and pelargoniums were among the key choices during his tenure. He explained that the plants were kept in a glasshouse whenever the King was away, then moved back into the main house ahead of his arrival.
Mr Stooks said: "When he wasn't there, they were in the glasshouse, and then when he was there, they would get taken back up to the house. We cared for them when they were out of the house, and then once they went in, the housekeepers had the joy of looking after them in there." The relocation is thought to allow the garden team to tend the plants in one place rather than having them scattered around the nine-bedroom residence.
Highgrove has been owned by the King since 1980 and serves as a regular retreat for him and Queen Camilla. The estate's grounds feature a series of individual 'outdoor rooms' open to the public each summer. Among these is the Carpet Garden, which won a silver-gilt medal at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show in 2001. It was based on a sketch drawn by King Charles, inspired by a Turkish carpet inside his home.
The monarch, a long-standing environmental advocate, recently highlighted his dedication in the documentary Finding Harmony: A King's Vision. In a statement, he said: "This film will, I hope, demonstrate just some of the remarkable work being done around the world to put Harmony into practice... Never has it been more important for the world to make a concerted effort to protect and prioritise our planet, and to restore our relationship with it."
