BBC Gardeners' World's Monty Don makes personal life decision with wife Sarah

Monty Don, the presenter of BBC's Gardeners' World, says he prefers solitary gardening at the Longmeadow garden he shares with his wife Sarah. The 69 year old horticulturalist revealed that while he values the shared experience of gardening, he finds "peace and solace" in tending to the garden alone.

"It's the peace and solace, actually, that helps quiet my mind," Monty said. Battling seasonal affective disorder (SAD), which affects one in 20 people in the UK, Monty described how the shorter winter days can be particularly hard for him.

On the Gardeners' World podcast, he detailed his approach to managing the condition: "I now have a pattern whereby I try and spend one day a week on my own in the garden, which is obviously usually a weekend, one of the two weekend days." You can keep up to date with the latest TV and showbiz news by signing up to the newsletter here .

He views this time as a personal treat, adding, "But when I say share, I don't necessarily mean gardening with other people, which actually, personally, I don't like very much."

Despite having gardened with his wife throughout their life together, Monty noted, "Even my wife and I, who have always gardened together, we hardly ever physically garden together, we just were in the garden at the same time.", reports the Liverpool Echo.

He said: "I was thinking more in terms of if you had to garden, no one saw what you did, no one shared the fruits or whether they were literal fruits, or a few flowers, or whatever."

Monty has been married to wife Sarah since 1983. The couple have three grown-up children: Adam, Tom, and Freya.

Monty has been refreshingly open about his battles with mental health, highlighting how Sarah played an instrumental role in nudging him toward getting support for his depression. Sharing his experience on the White Wine Question Time podcast with Kate Thornton, Monty revealed: "It's a lot to do with the greyness, the lack of light and the general sense of the world just pressing in on you and no energy."

He also shared a time when Sarah took a stand on his mental health, stating: "Sarah said to me, 'Look, I just can't take any longer your moods and your black depression, you've got to do something about it because if you don't, I can't live with you – I'll take the children and I'll go'."

This turning point led Monty to seek professional guidance and commence treatment with anti-depressants. Eventually, he stopped using medication and found comfort in a light box to better manage the seasonal change.

Join the WalesOnline WhatsApp community

WalesOnline has launched a new breaking news and top stories WhatsApp community. From the biggest court stories to the latest traffic updates, weather warnings and breaking news, it's a simple way to stay up to date with what's happening in Wales.

Want to join? All you have to do is click on this link, select 'Join Community' and you're in. We will not spam your feed with constant messages, but you will receive updates from us daily.

If for some reason you decide you no longer want to be in our community, you can leave by clicking on the name at the top of your screen and clicking 'Exit Group'. We occasionally treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. You can read our Privacy Notice here.

Join our WhatsApp community here