BBC | Gardeners' World

Penpont walled garden

Tue, 25 Aug 2009 16:21:43 +0000

I managed to bolt out of Birmingham for the shortest of short breaks, one night camping at Penpont, next to the river Usk in Wales. The weather was good, a little drizzle but good bursts of sun and the water was cold but the swimming good. The best bit though was the walled vegetable and cut flower garden on the farm where we were staying.

]]>All the produce is sold in the farm shop and to local restaurants. The head gardener, James, was busy harvesting the last of the broad beans, but I managed to drag him away to explain his use of green manures. He was mainly using clovers (a mixture that include Kent white) under the tomatoes, under leeks, under squashes and between the corn. Once the crops are finished he takes a flail mower over the clover, gives the patch a good soak and then leaves it fallow for winter. No watering, no feeding just lots and lots of clover. He said at certain point he looked like a mad man as he painstakingly sowed between baby leeks, bent double and tip toeing between rows.

The soil is lovely there; a good red sandy soil that is enough to be jealous of in its own right, but the harvests were really good. Fat heads of Arno garlic (hard to get hold of, so order soon it's the best garlic I've ever grown - milder in flavour than some with good sized cloves), beautiful beetroots, multi-coloured chards, celery, celeriac and sun-warmed peaches in the old lean-to greenhouse. The potatoes had been hit by blight, but you could barely tell from the tubers. Oh and rows and rows of tomatoes in polytunnels that were painful to see, as all mine had gone down with blight at home.

James said that I was not to be swayed by the good weather as temperatures on some days had dropped as low as 11 degrees Celsius. The garden however is surrounded by a huge brick wall, his corn is taller than me and I haven't seen such good winter squash in a while, so I'm assuming those cold days weren't inside the walled garden.

Every bed was flanked by a band of cut flowers, also sold at the farm shop. The walled garden was neglected for years and was filled with Sitka spruces until about five years ago when it was turned back to vegetables. Although there is quite some way to go before it is back to its prime, on that bright day it was quite an edible picture.

Cottage garden inspiration

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 17:54:13 +0000

On tonight's show we'll be following the breathtaking transformation of the Jessamine Cottage garden, a hidden gem nestling in the heart of the Berkshire countryside. I hope it inspires you to get out in the garden this weekend, so here are some of the GW production team's top seasonal tips:

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Take cuttings of tender perennials to make new plants and ensure you have stock to survive through until next summer.

Continue watering pots and hanging baskets - they will need extra watering as they tend to dry out easily and rain showers never quite get enough moisture to the roots.

Keep deadheading, harvesting, saving seeds, and continuing to remove diseased foliage, to encourage steady growth and keep your garden blooming through the next month.

And if you have a quiet moment, start planning your winter bedding schemes.

August is one of those months where you can get ahead of yourself and this weekend you can get first pickings of all the spring bulbs at local garden centres. See our gardening guide for the best advice on planting your spring display.

Enjoy your gardening weekend.

Battle to the tilth

Fri, 28 Nov 2008 13:29:40 +0000

Winter approaches with an icy blast, and, for me that always signals a time to sit back and be inspired by other people and their gardening genius. This year, in between half heartedly raking the leaves and smothering my allotment in a black plastic overcoat, I've been soaking up the sights of some awe inspiring gardens - thanks to some very kind, well known gardeners who have opened their gates to allow in the cameras.

]]>Tonight there's a chance to revisit those gardens - from the evergreen football posts of James Alexander-Sinclair to the haven of tranquillity at the back of Cleve's West's home.
It is not just professional designers that can inspire, however. On December 5th there is an invitation to see gardens owned by five of the previous winners of BBC Gardener of the Year. All agreed this year to go head to head in a champion of champions contest; Gardener of the Decade, down at the Eden Project. That competition is on BBC2 on December 12th but before then there is a chance to meet the competitors again and see how they earned their titles.
I've been lucky enough to visit some of the winners in the past. Katherine Crouch - the 1999 winner has a wonderful cottage garden down in Somerset which she is lovingly restoring since moving there a few years ago. I remember visiting in a torrential rain storm when she was first excavating it. We tied plastic bags around our legs and ventured out. Today you wouldn't recognise it as the same garden and she says there's still more she wants to do. I also adored Edwin Rye's Buckinghamshire garden. Edwin won in 2002 and his home is a chocolate box of planting which filled me with great excitement. It was Edwin that introduced me to cerinthe for the first time - something for which I am eternally grateful. Diana Guy (2004 winner) has moved from her magnificent garden in Dorset to a new home, but has wasted no time in creating a plant lover's paradise in the space of a few short months. I take off my hat to her.
Finally I've never been lucky enough yet to visit Sue Beesley's (winner 2006) nursery or Bob Tridgett's (winner 2007) gorgeous garden in County Durham but the films I have seen make me jealous of both - they're stunning. All five are worthy adversaries and I'm definitely sitting on the fence here - they all deserve to win!

The listeners

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 13:27:18 +0000

I read the message board religiously, as do my colleagues, and often, when I do, I think of

]]>"The Listeners" - a poem by Walter de la Mare. The relevant lines go as follows:

'Is there anybody there?' said the Traveller,
Knocking on the moonlit door;
And his horse in the silence champ'd the grasses
Of the forest's ferny floor:
And a bird flew up out of the turret,
Above the Traveller's head:
And he smote upon the door again a second time;
'Is there anybody there?' he said.
But no one descended to the Traveller;
No head from the leaf-fringed sill
Lean'd over and look'd into his grey eyes,
Where he stood perplex'd and still.
But only a host of phantom listeners
That dwelt in the lone house then
Stood listening in the quiet of the moonlight
To that voice from the world of men....."

If our viewers are the traveller I realise, with guilt, we must seem like the host of phantom listeners with two deaf ears. So this week I wanted to offer reassurance: - we do listen; we do read; we do celebrate when we get it right; we do worry if we feel we've got it wrong. We're not perfect but we are as passionate as our viewers about the gardening programme we make.
With that in mind we do try to react if we feel the majority of viewers have the same concern. We have upgraded our cameras to high definition to improve the quality of our pictures; we have reduced music on our Berryfields items; we have started to film more detailed close ups after comments that it was sometimes hard to follow what the presenters were doing.
Sometimes in television, production techniques are necessary. Believe me, there are junctions and sequences that are improved by background music; there are times when a moving camera will capture far more than a static; there are people who adore Joe's allotment; there are people who want us to cover vegetable growing. We know everyone is different and we can't please everybody all of the time. But rest assured - however silent we seem, we are listening and we'll keep on doing so because at the end of the day we absolutely appreciate the importance of "that voice from the world of men."

Cosmic Rain

Fri, 26 Sep 2008 09:17:26 +0000

To dead-head or not to dead-head? That was the question. Whether it was nobler to brave the summer wind and rain; to snip the heads of Candy Stripe, Gazebo mixed, Purity, Sea Shell Mix and Sensation Mixed. Or, whether it was time better spent in doors with a warming brew watching the raindrops pour down the windowsill and fill the pond.

]]>It seemed so simple when we first launched the trial on the programme in April. All we wanted to find out was whether cosmos plants benefit from being deadheaded. Previous research, we had heard, had shown that removing a spent flower-head on a regular basis could prolong the length of the flowering display by a considerable amount. But did that apply to all varieties of cosmos? Were some varieties better than others? We just didn't know.

We still don't and we're blaming the weather.

Alys meticulously sowed and pricked out and planted out five different varieties of cosmos bipinnatus. Then she meticulously deadheaded three plants from each variety whilst leaving an equal number from each variety full of faded blooms. Then the rains came, the plants sulked and to be honest our hopes began to fade.

Let's face it the weather has not been kind to us. When Alys was away on holiday we lost some plants and now - although we are seeing some results - we're not confident we've got results for all our varieties. So can you help? You snapped up the 5,000 packets of free seeds back in the spring. Now we want to hear from you. Have you fared better? Have you enjoyed a sun pocket and got a great results from your deadheading. If so please leave a message below and tell us what you have found. Fingers crossed your blooms still have their heads held high...

It only rains on the righteous

Mon, 08 Sep 2008 12:24:17 +0000

The rains came - and came and came. Toby's first days at Berryfields were met with a torrent of water and a sea of mud. "It's normally not as bad as this," I kept hearing myself saying, as Sharon, our director tried to engage him in a couple of Dolly Parton classics in order to keep spirits high.

]]>But we needn't have worried - Toy had come to garden and garden he did: dead-heading, digging up and dividing, edging lawns; the list goes on. As the rest of us cowered under the cover of a small tarpaulin gazebo, Toby just kept on going. He was unstoppable. By the end of the day my head was awash with tips and facts about gardening I had never heard before. The only problem Sharon has now is to try and fit it all into a 30 minute programme.

We've started to plan ahead for the rest of the gardening year and there's some very exciting projects on the cards that Toby wants to do. The mantra is maximum yields from a small space - whether vegetables or flowers. That means new ways of extending the growing season, new trials on overwintering tender plants and hot tips on how to pack as much into a small garden as possible. And if there is one thing I've learnt from last week - our new presenter is certainly not just a fair weather gardener!

You can see Toby's first week at Berryfields this Friday at 8.30pm, BBC 2.

New beginnings

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 14:35:39 +0000

It's a funny old world. One door closes, another one opens. As we wistfully say goodbye to one gardening era we're suddenly turning to see the dawn of an exciting new season. Finally, after months of speculation, the news is out that Toby Buckland is to step into Monty's shoes and lead the Gardeners' World team through a whole new set of garden challenges. Are we delighted? Yes, we are absolutely thrilled!

]]>I've known Toby for about seven years and in that time I've grown to admire and respect him as a gardener and presenter. His professional training is wide; from nursery jobs as a teenager to studies at Bicton, Hadlow and the Cambridge University Botanic Gardens; then years working both in England and abroad before returning to Cambridge as the Superintendent of their Woodland and Herbaceous sections. But it isn't just his training that has won my respect. It's because Toby's a real gardener too. I know it is not just a job, but a way of life for him and his wife Lisa and both garden just as passionately off camera as I've seen them do on camera. It's been a torturous few of weeks keeping the appointment under wraps when everyone has been asking who would be stepping up to the challenge this autumn. But now the news is out and there's a whole new buzz in the office as we start to plan the next gardening year. In Toby we've found a gardener with whom we can all share our gardening experiences, but ultimately someone from whom we can learn. In the past I think he may have been seen as the quiet man of gardening. Personally I'm over the moon that this quiet man has been given a new voice.

The scent of Monty lingers

Thu, 07 Aug 2008 13:17:46 +0000

The scent of Monty lingers in the garden - his Sweet Peas are in flower and they truly smell divine. In fact the formal garden has never been so packed with presenters - Alan Titchmarsh in one corner, Percy Thrower in another and Monty's brand new edition in the third. Alys has even managed to grow Geoff Hamilton's lovely mauve Sweet Pea in the fourth - despite the fact we had been warned it's become unstable. Personally I had never heard of an unstable sweet pea before until grower Roger Parsons' explained it meant the flower keeps reverting in colour to one of its parent plants - in Geoff's case pink. In truth there are various different shades of Geoff in our formal garden - but we don't care - we still love him.

]]>However, when it comes to scent, Monty certainly has the wow factor. We've been desperately trying to trace viewers who have been growing him along with us - but with no luck. We've found someone growing Percy and Alan - but all those Monty Sweet Pea growers where are you? We want to know how you got on so do let us know if you can!

In the meantime I'm already bemoaning the end of the summer series. Where did the time go? Suddenly this week we're filming our last programme at Berryfields before the summer break. This year we even extended filming into August and yet still the last programme seems to have come too soon. So what of our final halcyon filming days? Well Carol's had her hair cut; our sound man Simon's covered in rather nasty insect bites after a day's shoot on a peat bog; the director Sharon is singing Kenny Rogers greatest hits whenever there is a pause for a camera battery change and we're all marvelling at the Long Borders in all their glory. They do look amazing at the moment with the rudbeckia about to burst into flower and the tithonia glowing firework orange at the hot end. The rain's held off this week and we've all been enjoying jugs of rhubarb and ginger cordial as we film - we're very civilised in the gardening unit.

So our last visit to Berryfields before September will be on your screens on August 15th but some exciting special programmes will follow hot on its heels. Rachel de Thame is exploring the future of the Cottage Garden on August 22nd and Sarah Raven is creating her own rivers of wildflowers in a campaign to save our threatened native flora on August 29th. So ignore the weather and whatever's happening in Beijing - make a date with Gardeners' World.

A Series of Fortunate Events

Fri, 11 Jul 2008 12:32:20 +0000

This summer is the busiest we've ever had and that's not just down to the deadheading, staking and madness of the seasonal maintenance. No I'm talking Clapham Junction busy as a host of much appreciated guests have joined us, giving this summer a party atmosphere. First to arrive at Berryfields was Chelsea golden gardener Andy Sturgeon - taking up the gauntlet to plant up the garden for the senses which Monty started earlier in the year. His beautiful scheme is on the show tonight but keep it quiet because we haven't told Joe yet that his camomile lawn may soon be shaded by a new prunus serrula that Andy's put near to the fence!

]]>And if that visit wasn't inspiring enough, the next talented gardener to walk up the drive was Toby Buckland. He's created a woodland retreat garden behind the pond and meadow. That will be on the show on August 1st. Now we are waiting with baited breath for the arrival of a gardening legend - Joy Larkcom, who has accepted an invitation to visit Alys and see how our vegetable garden is faring. Everyone is thrilled - particularly Alys, for whom Joy is a heroine.

While Berryfields bursts with many welcome guests, we've also been visiting gardens on a huge scale. There were geraniums and clipped topiary at James Alexander Sinclair's; an exotic taste of Singapore at ethnobotanist James Wong's, perfection at the home of BBC Radio Northampton gardener Johnny Amos and a sanctuary complete with drying garlic garlands at Cleve West's. Truly I want all of their gardens in my own backyard - I'm just debating where I start.

There was just one day left over to visit Hampton Court with my horticultural producer Louise Hampden. It rained but not enough to dampen our spirits. What were my highlights? Ivan Tuckers' Forest2 - I want that in my own backyard too. On the flower front I found the beautiful geranium "Dusky Rose" to replace the one I managed to kill this winter and if I could ever grow Dahlias in my shaded garden then Twynings After Eight would be bought by the bucket load...Ahh well.

Sunshine, shopping and Monty Don

Fri, 13 Jun 2008 09:41:33 +0000

The second week in June and it's the maddest gardening week of the year....Gardeners' World Live! As I write we are all at Birmingham's National Exhinition Centre, rushing to put together tonight's show.

]]>The week started with towering temperatures and a united battle by the show garden designers to keep their plants from cooking.
It's ending with umbrellas and sharp showers but don't let that deter you from visiting - it's promising to be a great weekend here.

Understandably, the main topic on everyone's minds seems to be, who is going to take over from Monty? The rumours are rife and anyone seen standing next to our film crews is suddenly seen as a possible contender. I hate to quash rumours but, truthfully, no decision has been made and the hunt is still on. But while that decision is being made I personally want to celebrate the great job the existing presenters and production team are doing to ensure it is business as usual at Berryfields. Thank you to all.

As for a new presenter, it great to hear from the people that watch us every week so keep the suggestions coming and then watch this space!

We'll Miss You

Fri, 23 May 2008 10:49:51 +0000

Monty took the very hard decision this week to stand down as the main presenter of Gardeners' World. He has been our gardening leader for the past five years and while his decision to stand down is completely the right one, there is not one member of our team who will not miss him dreadfully.

]]>From day one Monty has always been the voice of the viewer, making no secret of the fact that his huge gardening knowledge is self-taught. And that has always made him a very special presenter because we all know he talks from the heart, having gardened for real for over 30 years. He has made Berryfields his own and throughout his time on Gardeners' World he has fired our enthusiasm and brought home to all who work with him the pure joy of gardening. It's hard to imagine anyone taking Monty's place and as we continue to make Gardeners' World each week we hope that, Monty, you'll watch and let us know if we're keeping Berryfields on the right track. For us - Monty is still with us at the top of every programme - washing spades and dividing geraniums in our new titles - and for us there can be no better start for the nation's favourite gardening programme.
Much love Monty. Keep in touch.

Heat, Hostas and a Hacking Cough

Fri, 16 May 2008 14:36:02 +0000

So, at last, the sun has begun to shine and the pallid sheen we've all enjoyed courtesy of the winter weather has now been replaced by the crimson hues of too much sun, too soon. Last week was the perfect week for the Malvern Spring Flower Show - hot weather and the bustle of happy visitors. Even the sauna environment of the editing suites we were working in at the Three Counties Showground was not enough to dampen enthusiasm.

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The highlight of my Malvern was meeting Una Dunnit from the Hosta and Hemerocallis Society whose slug deterring recipe has changed my life. I'd tried everything - from nematodes and shells to garlic powder and organic barriers. All to no avail. But Una's recipe really seems to be working - two garlic bulbs boiled up and strained into an evil smelling mixture that could really lose you friends. But do I care? Not if it means I don't have to dig up all my badly chewed hostas after all. Thank you Una! You can get the recipe here

I had inkling from the message boards that Joe's allotment had divided opinion but being with him at Malvern brought home how controversial his triangles are. Diamond Geezer - that's his new nickname. And if the triangle and diamond beds aren't bad enough, then there's the controversial Goji berries. Two weeks after filming them going into the ground, we're filming them coming right out again after Joe had a message on his blog telling him that DEFRA were advising all imported bushes to be destroyed as they may be susceptible to certain quarantine pests. You can see that in our programme on May 30th.......

In that programme we are linking up with Springwatch and that meant whilst most of us were at Malvern, Alys was hosting a wildlife gardening day with Springwatch's very own Simon King. Do read Alys' blog to find out more.

Malvern brought the sun and a chest infection. So this week has been spent annoying our director Oliver by ruining all his filming of Carol in the nectar border with a loud, irritating cough. So if there is background music over the final piece - that will be why - to cover the very unattractive hacking just off camera.

Still I'm off to Chelsea on Monday to see Rachel's courtyard garden. I've always loved her planting schemes so I'm keeping fingers crossed that she'll have a top medal in sight.

Blog one

Tue, 22 Apr 2008 11:54:54 +0000

It's been an amazing few weeks. Filming at Berryfields on high definition cameras seemed the same as any other day until we all saw the results on a high definition television when the first programme went out on April 4th. It reminded me of the wonder I had as a child when our old black and white television was replaced with glorious technicolour. Every line on Monty's hand; every seed to hit the soil - it all sprang out at me - larger than life. The magic of TV - almost on a par with the magic of gardening......but maybe not quite.

]]>If there's one thing I love more than savouring my own modest little garden than it's savouring the beauty of other people's, so I've been mesmerised by the brilliant photos posted on the flickr group of all your gardens at dawn and dusk. I do hope we can show some in the programme at certain points throughout the year. Shelley and Dave I love your artichokes at sunset. And the green gladiolus posted by Claire Openshaw is stunning. It makes me wish my own garden was not so shade loving. I've tried gladioli; I've tried lupins, I've tried delphiniums but all eventually assign themselves to a shadowy grave. This year I've got higher hopes for my Acanthus...if I can just get tall spires I'll be happy.

Monty's own tip about sowing carrots on April 11th got me thinking too. I'm in my second year as an allotment holder and it's time to branch out so I've copied Monty and not sown in rows. Now I just need to wait for a programme on thinning them out as I didn't get that right last year either.....

Planes, trains and garden mowers! It can be a funny old chestnut gardening on camera when every line our presenters' deliver ends up competing with the general background noises we all take for granted. This week Carol had a challenge and a half. She tried to talk about cacti only to be drowned out by a nearby garden strimmer; she tired to dig up hardy geraniums only to be stopped by the quaking of our local ducks and she tried to plant lily bulbs over the drone of a circling aircraft. If she firmed those bulbs in once she firmed a dozen times. Luckily, no one firms like Carol Klein. Those bulbs couldn't have got a better start.