On 14th October 2025, we welcomed Adam Frost back to Ticknall with a packed hall. He began by saying that it was never his ambition to be on TV.
Adam grew up in Essex with very busy parents. As a result, he spent much of his childhood with his grandparents.
He told us how he had a hard time as a boy from his dad. His grandparents were both loving and excellent mentors for him. Tidy Nan had a very neat house and garden where she was in charge. Daffodil leaves were closely knotted after flowering! Weeds were strictly controlled.
Scruffy Nan had a wild garden where he could roam free. She had two greenhouses where she grew cacti and Coleus. He learned how to propagate both, and soon had a sideline selling plants at the gate.
His grandad had an allotment where they talked football and ate spam sandwich picnic lunches delivered by Tidy Nan. Adam also was taught to grow gorgeous vegetables. Tidy Nan then boiled them to a mush while Granada checked his pools coupon before Sunday lunch!
Adam was happy at school in Harlow. Adam’s father then decided to move the family to Ilfracombe. Adam was 15 and found the local accent difficult to understand. The school fashions were also rather provincial. He played truant a lot and soon left school. He had not realised at that time that he was dyslexic.
Another shock followed when his parents both found new partners. He moved into a bedsit at 16. His careers options were very limited. Cooking, gardening or joining the Army. Thank goodness that a helpful army recruiter suggested he took an apprenticeship before he joined up.
Adam found his niche at the North Devon Parks Department. They taught him an enormous number of practical skills. These ranged from digging graves (not too fast because of time and motion regulations) to growing thousands of bedding plants. His supervisor also showed him how and where to get offered free pasties and crab sandwiches from local pubs and hotels! This was another happy and safe place to grow up in.
He made his way to London, where he was working as a landscape gardener by the age of 21.
Adam’s life changed when he saw a position advertised at Barnsdale Gardens. The job was given to a more qualified candidate. This didn’t work out well. A couple of weeks later, he had a call offering him the job. His pride didn’t want to take it. His girlfriend rang his mum and he was told to accept it. Yet more benefit from strong women in his life!
This proved to be the start of a few lovely years working for Geoff Hamilton. He was an inspiration to Adam. He even sent him away on a course to learn to be a designer.
A massive heart attack killed Geoff and ended Adam’s job at Barnsdale. He returned to London and set up a design and build company.
Adam was hugely experienced at building show gardens by the time he received £18k in profit. After discussion with his wife, he built his own Chelsea Garden and got a gold medal.
He felt that he would not be accepted as a designer by the well-heeled RHS people whose work he admired (and had so often helped build). He did eventually develop a much happier relationship with his dad.
2012 was a sad year for him. His nan and his father both died. Mrs Frost fell into severe depression.
He designed and built another show garden at Chelsea in 2014. This was made to be full of memories for him. It was a nightmarish build. He met the Queen and had a nice chat with someone else’s nan for a change!
Adam became friends with Nick Knowles and worked on an episode of DIY SOS. He also did two parts for Gardeners World. A TV newcomer award followed. We liked his down-to-earth persona on screen.
During this time, he moved to a large property and generally worked too hard. He ended up burnt out, seeing a psychiatrist and sorting himself and his marriage out. Fibromyalgia probably made this time even more difficult to bear.
He is now moving house again. I hope we continue to see him sometimes on Gardeners World. I also hope that he has time to follow his passion and be a happy and fulfilled designer. His gardens give pleasure to so many people.
It was a really brilliant night. He’s a nice bloke!
Leave a Reply