Twitter is a nightmare. We all know that. It was a nightmare before the 2016 election, in which a toxic avalanche of misinformation, bullying and racist memes shook America’s political foundations asunder. And it was a nightmare after. But there are still some good things on Twitter. Well, at least one. That one is Gerald Stratford.
Stratford is a 72-year-old man who lives to garden large vegetables in the garden outside his home in Milton-under-Wychwood in Oxfordshire. That is pretty much all there is to his Twitter account, which has garnered over 285,000 followers who can’t wait to see Stratford’s utterly delightful photos and videos of his latest harvest. Stratford captions most of his content with short, pithy pieces of gardening advice (“sometimes it’s the little things that work best”) and almost always punctuates every tweet with his chipper signoff: “cheers.” He is excellent in every way.
First of the year I can smell the crumble now pic.twitter.com/NAsygzwzbv
— gerald stratford (@geraldstratfor3) March 8, 2021
Now what shall I do with this big boy celery pic.twitter.com/OoZq2kkwVv
— gerald stratford (@geraldstratfor3) September 4, 2020
It won’t be long before we have these again I grew these for Christmas dinner cheers pic.twitter.com/F2D9fmDubs
— gerald stratford (@geraldstratfor3) February 19, 2021
This is one of my sweet candles freshly pulled from the barrels behind me I wish I could send the aroma it’s Devine cheers pic.twitter.com/jMnOh8TcAV
— gerald stratford (@geraldstratfor3) October 16, 2020
It’s not very nice out today so I thought this might cheer us up cheers now pic.twitter.com/w7KHIrChpj
— gerald stratford (@geraldstratfor3) January 25, 2021
Whether Stratford is showing off his latest gardening hack, doting on his wife Elizabeth or explaining his plans for his most recent harvest, his account is an oasis in a desert of bad takes, smarmy ratios and self-impressed blowhards. It’s like Stratford missed the memo that Twitter is about proving how much smarter you are than your enemies. Instead, he uses it to show people nice pictures of things that bring him joy, and that by itself seems to spread joy? Who would have thought.
Of course, a good brand will soar no matter how accidental, and Stratford is becoming a minor celebrity. He has a book coming out this year (we’ll be buying it) and has started popping up on podcasts that usually tend towards much more high-profile guests, but so much the better. He hasn’t forgotten his roots (so to speak). He’s very communicative on the platform and will usually take the time to respond to any gardening questions his many fans might have. The important thing is that Stratford is out there making sure his crops are watered, planning his next rhubarb pie and tending to his “little friend friends.” If you’re looking for something to ease the pain of Twitter, give Gerald Stratford a follow here.
