FROM shopping malls to garden walls.

Sir John Hall has instilled a passion in his numerous ventures over the years, from the creation of the Metro Centre, owning Newcastle United and with his latest, the Gardens at Wynyard Hall.

I was fortunate enough to be there last week for the Brewin Dolphin Summer Garden Party.

In this instance, ignorance was bliss.

Having never been before, on the other side of the 19th Century walls is a garden that is staggering.

3,000 roses intricately placed between other flowers, shrubs and gently babbling water features offer an oasis of tranquillity to potter around and enjoy.

Now I am in no way a horticulturist.

My experience of garden maintenance stretches to trying to hide my dad’s prized flowers that had been decapitated by a wayward football when I was young.

But you can feel the effort and love that had gone into the garden as you look around.

Sir John took to the bandstand to welcome those gathered, telling us how he had gone about realising a life-long dream seeded in his mind from watching his father tend roses at their home in Ashington as a teenager.

Speaking with energy which belies his 83 years, we heard about the journey the garden has been through and how it has been carefully constructed and cultivated.

It is no coincidence that as wealth managers, Brewin Dolphin would choose a venue like this.

Gardening is an important hobby for many of our clients and one we believe shares many similarities with investing.

The process starts with an initial vision, involves patience and nurturing through both times of sun and storm, and requires a long-term approach to reap the rewards.

The Gardens at Wynyard cost £1.6m, an investment that, thanks to a visitor centre, café and plant sales will generate a return on his investment for Sir John for years to come, as well as being his legacy to a region that has given him so much.

Investing any sizeable sum can be a daunting task.

It may be to realise a lifetime goal like this but it could also be for more practical reasons.

As we all know, leaving money in the bank offers little in the way of a return.

Inflation may be low – the consumer Price Index stood at 0.3 per cent for April – but it is expected to rise in coming months and into 2017, chipping away at the value at any cash sitting in your account.

With the income yield of the FTSE 100 Index, the UK’s main stock market of blue chip companies typically around three to four per cent, even without the potential increase in value that you have from shares, it’s certainly better than the Bank of England’s 0.5 per cent.

Of course, stock markets can go down as well as up and we have had some volatile times so far this year.

January saw a sharp dip in the markets over fear of a stuttering global economy amongst other things.

Recovering commodity prices, particularly oil, alongside improving US economic data and additional quantitative easing in Europe has seen an improvement since then, albeit one that has seen a pause of late as investors seemingly wait for the EU referendum result.

The danger is to look too closely at these movements for too short a time.

Like when creating your garden, you cannot plant something and expect instant results.

Nor should you plant one type of flower and expect different colours to emerge.

The Gardens at Wynyard have been filled with roses that flower at different times of the year to ensure a bountiful variety for the eye through every season.

Much like with an investment portfolio, time and diversification is the way to ensure that when even the worst of storms roll in there are still green shoots visible when it clears.

The Brewin Dolphin Gardening Club is an online platform to celebrate all things garden related.

To find out more, visit gardening.brewin.co.uk

Jeffrey Ball is a chartered wealth manager and assistant director at Brewin Dolphin

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily the views held throughout Brewin Dolphin. No director, representative or employee of Brewin Dolphin accepts liability for any direct or consequential loss arising from the use of this document or its contents. Any tax allowances or thresholds mentioned are based on personal circumstances and current legislation which is subject to change.