This week Chelsea designer Jilayne Rickards and agricultural entrepreneur Beauty Gombana share the stories behind Jilayne's Zimbabwean-themed garden 'Giving Girls a Space to Grow', created for female education charity CAMFED. The advice team answers listeners' questions on subjects including taking cuttings, growing rubber plants and how to improve soil without buying compost. Plus designer Sarah Eberle's ode to the hawthorn tree.
May 14, 2020•26 min•Ep. 213
Lots of us are drawing on creative pastimes as a way of getting through the current situation. This week we speak to artist, scientist, author and Deputy Director of the Oxford Botanic Garden, Dr Chris Thorogood. Chris shares his fascination with weird and wonderful plants and offers some expert tips on how to paint and draw them. Fiona Davison explores the history of botanical art at what is generally considered the world's biggest collection of plant paintings, the RHS Lindley Library. Young R...
May 07, 2020•25 min•Ep. 212
As we approach International Dawn Chorus Day this Sunday (3rd May), we've decided to dedicate an entire episode of the podcast to our feathered friends. We meet the RSPB's Adrian Thomas, who orchestrated a top 40-charting single composed entirely of birdsong; RHS wildlife guru Helen Bostock offers advice on how to make your garden bird-friendly, and Dr John Grimshaw of The Yorkshire Arboretum shares his love of peafowl. Plus an unforgettable rook impression from RHS Chief Horticulturist Guy Bart...
Apr 30, 2020•25 min•Ep. 211
Anna Greenland, former Head Vegetable Gardener at Raymond Blanc's renowned restaurant Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons shares experiences gained from years of growing veg and herbs for use in Michelin-star meals. Meanwhile Wisley Curator Matthew Pottage muses on monkey puzzles and RHS Gardening Advisor Rebekah Mealey heads into the garden with her daughter Faye to get growing too.
Apr 23, 2020•25 min•Ep. 210
This week we've got seasonal lawncare tips galore, RHS entomologist Andy Salisbury shares his love of beetles, and award-winning designer Lee Burkhill explains how to use gardening to promote mental wellbeing. Plus design duo Charlotte Harris and Hugo Bugg discuss multi-dimensional design inspirations and storytelling in their creations both at RHS Garden Bridgewater and their garden that would have been at this year's Chelsea Flower Show.
Apr 16, 2020•25 min•Ep. 209
Award-winning designer Sarah Eberle gives us a virtual tour of the garden she designed for this year's Chelsea Flower Show. Plus we're feeling the love for allotments and sharing advice on quick-growing vegetables to provide speedy harvests during lockdown. RHS water scientist Janet Manning explores the results of an experiment to find out how much water hanging baskets really need.
Apr 09, 2020•27 min•Ep. 208
April is always a busy month in the plant world, and despite lockdown, this year is no exception. So this week's show is full of ideas of how to grow when you've nowhere to go. Lee Burkhill, winner of an RHS Feel Good Garden competition, shares his personal guide on how to keep on gardening during lockdown. Plus we're talking houseplants: Wisley Curator Matt Pottage shares one of his all-time favourite plants, and gardening advisor Jenny Bowden offers seasonal care tips. Nikki Barker has some ex...
Apr 02, 2020•30 min•Ep. 207
Our human world might've changed completely in the past few weeks but the joyful beauty of plants and flowers shines brighter than ever. This week, Rob Evans of Pheasant Acre Plants shares his love for one of the brightest stars of flower gardens everywhere, the dahlia. RHS Gardening Advisor Becky Mealey brings us back to earth with some timely advice on how to get the best from peat-free compost, and Jenny Bowden encourages us all to make the most of our front gardens, sharing design tips and p...
Mar 26, 2020•23 min•Ep. 206
This week's show is a bulging barrowful of edible gardening advice. RHS Horticulturists Guy Barter and Lenka Cooke discuss how to grow tomatoes, recommended tomato varieties and ways to beat blight. The Gardening Advice team gather to debate the best strawberries to grow on a patio and how to get rid of scale insects on a lemon tree. Plus seasonal gardening jobs to do in March.
Mar 12, 2020•19 min•Ep. 205
How do you make your garden wildlife friendly? What are the star plants for helping out the birds and the bees? Horticultural Advisors Jenny Bowden and James Lawrence discuss top tips for bringing nature to your plot. Meanwhile Guy Barter and entomologist Andy Salisbury discuss the results of a pioneering RHS research project to discover whether native plants are better for bugs and Hayley Jones shares advice on what's hot and what's not when it comes to insect hotels. Plus an allotmenteer share...
Feb 27, 2020•27 min•Ep. 204
What flowers can you grow for a September wedding? How do you tame a wisteria that's got a bit too involved with an apple tree? What's the best way to propagate snowdrops? Can you save climbers when replacing a rotten fence? Our team of experts gathers together to solve your gardening questions. Plus, advice on xylella, a major new plant disease; and we continue our mini-series on houseplants as Jane Perrone, Matthew Pottage and Anne Swithinbank share their personal favourites and offer tips on ...
Feb 13, 2020•28 min•Ep. 203
Wake up and smell the chlorophyll! In a special collaborative edition we're simulcasting with On The Ledge podcast, panelists Jane Perrone, Anne Swithinbank and Matthew Pottage discuss all things houseplant. From their first ever plants that sparked a love of greenery, to what they're growing now, to fantasy houseplants for a fantasy house. Weird, wild and wonderful – full of interesting plant suggestions and practical tips on how to grow them. See our programme page at rhs.org.uk/podcast for a ...
Jan 30, 2020•49 min•Ep. 202
This week our resident gardening guru Guy Barter gazes into his crystal ball to make some predictions for the year ahead in horticulture, before heading to the Glasshouse at RHS Garden Wisley to come face to face with some very naughty houseplants. So naughty in fact that they've taken over an entire Victorian house, elbowing the human occupants aside in a verdant invasion that's sure to delight visitors. Garden Manager Emma Allen braves the bristling bromeliads and chess-playing cacti to take G...
Jan 16, 2020•29 min•Ep. 201
A look back over the past year to some of the best bits of our gardening podcasts. In March we met the staff and inmates at HMP Hull to find out how an award-winning prison garden has helped transform lives behind bars. Plus garden writer Sally Nex charts her quest for a plastic-free plot, and we discover what curators, editors and other RHS staff members are most looking forward to horticulturally in 2020.
Jan 02, 2020•23 min•Ep. 200
This week we head to Reading to discover how gardening can bring positive life changes to people living with disabilities or ill health, thanks to the work of the charity Thrive. Plus RHS staff share their tips for homegrown Christmas decorations and Wisley's Curator Matthew Pottage shares some seasonal highlights to look out for and tips on houseplants.
Dec 20, 2019•24 min•Ep. 199
Free yourself from everyday mundanities and dive into other worlds from the comfort of your own home... yes it's our annual books special! This year our literary committee share a huge range of favourites, including unusual and delightful books for gifts this Christmas, books to excite children and stimulate the minds of adults too. This year's panel comprises Fiona Davison (Head of Libraries and Exhibitions), Chris Young (Head of RHS Editorial), James Armitage, (Editor of The Plant Review) and ...
Dec 05, 2019•36 min•Ep. 198
With flooding, climate change and wellbeing becoming ever more important topics, planting trees has become a call to arms to anyone interested in making the future a brighter place. We talk to Carol Honeybun-Kelly from the Woodland Trust about a nationwide tree-planting campaign, The Big Climate Fightback. Dr Andrew Hirons, Senior Lecturer in Arboriculture at University Centre Myerscough offers advice on the best trees for challenging urban situations, making some personal selections that should...
Nov 21, 2019•24 min•Ep. 197
What type of hedge is best for trapping pollution? Which hedging plants help mitigate flooding risks? Can you grow roses and clematis together to make a flowering hedge? We went to a recent 'Hedging Your Bets' event at RHS Garden Wisley to find out more. Plus the Gardening Advice team gathers to answer queries on houseplants for a shady bathroom, growing houseleeks and aeoniums, the secrets of making great compost – and whether you can grow your own wasabi peas?!
Nov 07, 2019•24 min•Ep. 196
This week the Wisley teams share their wisdom on growing great veg and dealing with the sweet-sounding but deadly bane of many gardens: honey fungus. Pathologist Matthew Cromey shares the results of recent RHS research which shines new light on which plants are most resistant. Plus the heartwarming story of an unused church plot that was transformed with help from the RHS's Greening Grey Britain campaign into a garden to soothe and feed the mind, body and soul.
Oct 24, 2019•28 min•Ep. 188
Horticulturists Joe Olds and Bernard Boardman are in the orchard at Wisley, discussing how to get the best from apples and grapevines. Alex Hankey talks plant trials and Sabatino Urzo shares the results of a recent People's Choice vote to discover the favourite clematis from a trial of 28 varieties at RHS Garden Harlow Carr. Meanwhile, our gardening advice team gather to answer questions on growing British native trees from seed, making gardens hedgehog-friendly and pruning lavender and rosemary...
Oct 10, 2019•29 min•Ep. 187
As autumn hits its stride we're at RHS Garden Hyde Hall in Essex to sample the exotic yet seasonal delights of the Global Growth Vegetable Garden with Matthew Oliver and Head Chef James Curtis. Meanwhile back at Wisley, Team Leader Verity Bradbury shares her favourite autumnal plants from the Equinox Borders and entomologist Imogen Cavadino has a call for gardeners to help research into a new(ish) slug on the block which seems to be elbowing out its relatives. (If a slug could elbow!)
Sep 26, 2019•21 min•Ep. 186
This week we return to Wisley for a very special event as HRH The Duchess of Cambridge opens the new Back to Nature Garden, which was inspired by show gardens co-designed by HRH alongside landscape architects Andrée Davies and Adam White at the Chelsea and Hampton Court Palace flower shows. It's a place for families and friends to have fun in nature, while hopefully igniting a love for gardening and growing plants. Plus seasonal gardening advice from entomologist Hayley Jones who offers timely t...
Sep 12, 2019•26 min•Ep. 185
As autumn approaches and a new generation of gardeners re-discovers the late-season charms of chrysanthemums, we get expert advice on how to grow them from RHS Master Grower Martyn Fish of Chrysanthemums Direct. We talk to James Armitage, editor of The Plantsman, who shares some exciting news about this magazine for plant lovers ahead of its September re-launch. Plus seasonal lawn-care advice from David Hedges-Gower and joyful garden memories from Chelsea gold medal-winning designers Jilayne Ric...
Aug 29, 2019•19 min•Ep. 184
This week we discover two fantastic new gardens - RHS Bridgewater near Manchester, which is gearing up to open its doors in 2020; and the Cool Garden which is already becoming a horticultural highlight at RHS Rosemoor in Devon. As peak hedge-cutting season approaches, hand surgeon Professor Grey Giddins gives some timely advice on gardening health and safety. Plus joyful garden memories from Chelsea designers Andy Sturgeon and Taina Suonio.
Aug 15, 2019•23 min•Ep. 183
This week we're at RHS Wisley where we meet garden managers Peter Jones and Emma Allen who share seasonal horticultural highlights and tips on what to do now. The Gardening Advice team deal with a bulging post bag of queries on a range of topics including lining hanging baskets, feeding tomatoes, summer lawn care, growing plants in pots and more. Plus we have joyful garden memories from designers Sarah Eberle and Chris Beardshaw.
Aug 01, 2019•29 min•Ep. 182
At the last major RHS flower show of the year we're talking bugs, slugs and lawns and visiting the show's Bridgewater garden, which is inspired by the new RHS site that will open in Salford next year. Plus we meet the winner of the Young Designer competition, whose garden aims to raise awareness of some important plant health issues that gardeners need to be aware of this summer.
Jul 18, 2019•22 min•Ep. 181
This week we're going back to nature at the world's biggest annual flower show. Designer Jo Thompson explains how she's gone wild with the BBC Springwatch Garden, Dave Green shares his meditative spaces in the Stop and Pause Garden and Matthew Childs contemplates new approaches to energy use in the Smart Meter Garden. Plus we visit the RHS Back to Nature Garden (co-designed by HRH The Duchess of Cambridge, Andrée Davies and Adam White), discover a drought-tolerant garden in memory of horticultur...
Jul 04, 2019•26 min•Ep. 180
This week we uncover untold histories of 19th-century gardeners with Fiona Davison, author and Head of Libraries and Collections at the RHS. Then we head out into the Chelsea crowds to meet Sue and Steve Hall who are part of our purple-clad cadre of volunteers; un-sung modern day gardening heroes who help run the RHS Flower Shows – they share what volunteering means to them. Plus a look at the incredible floral art from the National Association of Flower Arranging Societies (NAFAS) as the organi...
Jun 20, 2019•17 min•Ep. 179
In this edition we're at the newest RHS Flower Show on the block in the stunning estate of Chatsworth House in Derbyshire. We explore the power of trees, get dazzled by dahlias and inspired by the innovative gardens and plants galore. Plus a live recording of a question and answer session where an expert panel helps showgoers with their thorny gardening questions
Jun 06, 2019•32 min•Ep. 195
This week we're at the world's premier floral extravaganza in the grounds of the Royal Hospital in Chelsea. We meet garden designers, celebrities and plantspeople to discover the stories behind the gardens and plants that make the show so special.
May 23, 2019•23 min•Ep. 194
