King Charles Likes to "Have a Strong Word" While Gardening

King Charles standing in a field of flowers wearing a suit

(Image credit: Getty Images)

King Charles might have an extensive team dedicated to keeping his royal homes running in perfect order, but when it comes to his beloved gardens (and chickens), he often takes things into his own hands. The King has been a passionate gardener since he was a young man, and it turns out some of his tactics are a bit out of the ordinary.

At the Windsor Castle premiere of the monarch's new documentary, Finding Harmony: A King's Vision, British gardening expert Alan Titchmarsh told Hello! that The King uses one of his own personal favorite tips in the royal gardens.

"His Majesty and I are both of the opinion that if a plant isn’t doing well, you have to have a strong word with it, threaten it with the compost heap, and generally what you find is that it will pick right up!" Titchmarsh told the media outlet.

King Charles bending down and weeding in his garden — The King is pictured weeding at his country retreat, Highgrove, in 1986.

King Charles standing in a garden — King Charles is known to "have a strong word" with his plants.

The new documentary explores The King's commitment to "the restoration of harmony between humanity, nature, and the environment" over the past five decades.

Titchmarsh says the Amazon Prime Video film is "very positive" and "shows what can be done" by the public to help the environment.

"He's done these huge projects and they're amazing, the one in India and in Guyana," the gardening pro says of King Charles. "But we can do our own things in our back gardens, and then the neighbors can do something, and before you know it we've made a difference."

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Kristin Contino is Marie Claire's Senior Royal and Celebrity editor. She's been covering royalty since 2018—including major moments such as the Platinum Jubilee, Queen Elizabeth II’s death and King Charles III's coronation—and places a particular focus on the British Royal Family's style and what it means.

Prior to working at Marie Claire, she wrote about celebrity and royal fashion at Page Six Style and covered royalty from around the world as chief reporter at Royal Central. Kristin has provided expert commentary for outlets including the BBC, Sky News, US Weekly, the Today Show and many others.

Kristin is also the published author of two novels, “The Legacy of Us” and “A House Full of Windsor.” She's passionate about travel, history, horses, and learning everything she can about her favorite city in the world, London.