Prince Charles

Today is the birthday of Prince Charles, who was born on this day in 1948.

Recently, Prince Charles was asked how he came to love gardening.
It turns out, as a little boy, he was given a small hidden plot at Buckingham Palace where he could grow vegetables. Prince Charles and his sister, Princess Anne, had to cultivate their own plan for the garden.  
Gardening was a passion that Prince Charles shared with his grandmother, who had a beautiful garden at  Royal Lodge in Windsor Great Park. Prince Charles recently recalled,

“It was a wonderful woodland garden with masses of azaleas and rhododendrons. The smell and everything had a profound effect on me."

To this day, the Prince is a big believer in the therapeutic benefits of gardening.
As an adult, Prince Charles was an early practitioner of the organic gardening movement. His Highgrove farm was one of the first farms in England to be certified as fully organic. 
Today, nearly 40,000 people visit @HighgroveGarden every single year. Garden guides explain how Prince Charles transformed the land adjoining the house into a series of outdoor rooms that embody his gardening ideals and organic principles. 
In May of this year, Google Arts and Culture made it possible for people to take a virtual tour of the gardens at Highgrove. One of the most notable aspects of the garden is the Stumpery - a treehouse built for William and Harry in a Holly Tree.
The virtual tour also included a glimpse of the Cottage Garden, the Sundial Garden, the Thyme Walk, the Sunflower Meadow, the Rose Pergola that commemorated Prince Charles’ 50th birthday, as well as a memorial to his beloved Jack Russell Terrier, Tigga.