Garden thieves keep stealing my plants but National Trust for Scotland has come to my rescue – Hayley Matthews

I've been discovering lots of different flowers recently after wanting to spruce up the garden which has been looking a bit wilted.

Hayley Matthews is planning to plant some bluebells from the National Trust for Scotland, which as the picture above shows are truly beautiful (Picture: John Walton/PA Wire)

I'm going to be growing more from seed instead of being tempted to buy a beautiful big pot of pansies to brighten up the garden because people keep pinching my flower pots and I'm getting a bit sick of giving out free flowers!

It's now becoming a bit of a joke and I will find who it is or maybe I'll be putting some itching powder on the base of the plant pots to teach the sticky-fingered plant pot pincher a thing or two!

Last year I had a beautiful big bucket filled with pansies and sweet-peas that I'd grown to take in to hospital for my mum, and someone pinched it.

Then I had an orchid wrapped around a cherry tree and someone peeled it off and pinched it. And then, I had laid a small clematis bush and jasmine plant in a big tree barrel that I was letting rest before planting to swirl around my railings, and yep – the plant pincher has taken that one too!

Arghh – why? I'm getting really hacked off so I'm changing my tactics and going for huge planters that I can pot seeds in – and hopefully they'll stay there this time.

So on my seed research mission I was delighted to discover that the National Trust for Scotland is launching a brand new gardening subscription, offering up a monthly delivery of gardening seeds.

It's called Roots and includes some very special selections of Scottish seeds that you can plant at home to make your garden a little eco-system.

From what I've read, it seems very inclusive and everyone can enjoy the Roots subscription. If you're a green-fingered gardener or more like me and are just beginning the gardening journey, the subscription seems a great idea to get people green-fingered and celebrate Scotland’s wide range of flowers.

I especially love how in these hard times it gives those who love nature a chance to reconnect with the birds and the bees whilst boosting your mental health.

Subscribers receive 10 gardening packs every year which include stories about Scotland’s plant-life and expert tips from Trust gardeners. My first pack had some violet which I'm excited to see flourish. Six of the packs will also contain seeds like bluebells and heather – how lovely!

Even better, the Roots subscriptions will support the charity’s work to protect and care for 38 gardens and designed landscapes across Scotland, ensuring that they can continue to flourish for people to enjoy for future generations.

Most of us have been spending more time at home over the last year, so it's no surprise that gardening has become a lockdown hobby for many, or if you're like my plant-pincher – and like to reap what others have literally been sowing, you're also enjoying the garden, just not growing it yourself – tut tut!

So when I find out who's been pinching my flowers, I'll be pointing them in the direction to signing up so they can plant their own instead of pulling mine out at the roots!

And in the meantime, I'm off to plant some foxglove and sweet peas in my barrel.

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