[3] Wheeler was born in the Cotswolds and lived there until the age of 11, when the family moved to his mother's home town on the Hampshire coast.

[7] Marking its 25 years in 2012, the Washington Post wrote, "Hortus is the size of a slim paperback but printed on heavy, ivory colored stock and illustrated with line drawings and wood engravings...

[9] In 1993, Wheeler founded the quarterly Convivium: The Journal of Good Eating (dedicated to the memory of his friend the food writer Elizabeth David CBE), sharing the same production values as Hortus.

[10][11] Wheeler and his partner, Simon Dorrell, moved to Bryan's Ground, an Arts and Crafts house near Presteigne, Powys, where they created an extensive garden featuring yew and box topiary, formal parterres, canals, wisteria-garlanded terraces and several buildings and follies created by Simon.

[19] He now lives and gardens near the sea in Carmarthenshire and takes a special interest in hydrangeas, Iris sibirica, Japanese maples, auriculas and clematis.