Roots and All - Gardening Podcast
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415 afleveringen, van nieuw naar oud
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Episode 309: The Seed Hunter
21 oktober 2024 · 25 min
Mitch McCulloch is redefining how we grow and cook with plants. He's is a former chef, turned seed hunter and gardener, who applies his culinary knowledge when choosing and cooking with the produce he grows. Not only does he select the most diverse and interesting varieties, he gets creative with how he serves up his produce. His new book The Seed Hunter is properly inspiring if you're both a cook and grower and you want to get the absolute most out of your edible plants. Lees meer
About Mitch McCulloch
Author, seed hunter, and gardener with a passion for promoting and preserving rare heirloom food crops. A former chef from London, Mitch has turned his culinary expertise toward a quest to safeguard the rich, diverse flavours our world has to offer. Currently, he explores the globe in search of unique fruit, vegetable and flower seeds, documenting and preserving them to ensure that future generations can experience the delicious heritage and beauty of our past. Through his work, Mitch aims to champion and protect the biodiversity of our food system, one seed at a time.
Links
The Seed Hunter: Discover the World's Most Unusual Heirloom Plants by Mitch McCulloch
Mitch on Instagram: @mitch_grows
Other episodes if you liked this one:
If you liked this week's episode with Mitch McCulloch, you might also enjoy this one from the archives:
287: Heirloom Vegetables - This episode my guest is former jewellery designer to the stars, turned social media veg grower, Lucy Hutchings. Along with music festival organiser, Kate Cotterill, Lucy set up SheGrowsVeg, an heirloom seed company which is bringing the most unusual veg, fruit, and edible flowers to veg patches and plates everywhere.
188: Huw Richards on Veg Growing - This week's guest is veg growing expert Huw Richards. Huw grows a vast range of plants in his garden in mid-West Wales and is always trialling and experimenting with new ways of growing. He has an enormously popular YouTube channel and has authored a number of books…
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Episode 308: Gardening for Recovery
14 oktober 2024 · 25 min
Andy Mitchell believes gardening has the power to be a uniquely beneficial arena for the addiction recovery journey. In this interview, we discover why he feels this is the case and why we have much more to learn about this particular aspect of horticulture. Lees meer
Andy is Professional Addiction Recovery Coach and has conducted research into gardening as a tool to help people overcome addictions. Alongside having lived experience, Andy has extensive professional training within the field of Addiction.
About Andy Mitchell
Andy Mitchell is a Social and Therapeutic Horticulturalist (STH) and addiction recovery coach. His interest in how people in addiction recovery were using gardening through his work within the homeless and mental health sectors led him to do an MSc in STH within the field of Occupational therapy. His particular interest is how non-traditional recovery interventions, such as gardening, are helping people to help themselves through their recovery journeys.
Links
Andy Mitchell - www.myrecovery.me
Veterans' Growth - if you're a veteran of the UK military or a family member/carer for a veteran and would like to speak to us about our courses or support services, please email hello@veteransgrowth.org
Making the hard work of recovery more attractive for those with substance use disorders -
PubMed (nih.gov)
Putting Down Roots | St Mungo's
To view the video filmed at Veterans' Growth to see how gardening can help with the recovery journey click here.
Samaritans 116 123
NHS call 111, or 999
Text the word SHOUT to 85258
Perennial helpline - 0800 0938543
Veterans' Growth hello@veteransgrowth.org
Forces Helpline - 0800 7314880
Other episodes if you liked this one:
If you liked this week's episode with Andy Mitchell, you might also enjoy this one from the archives:
A Therapist's Garden - This week I'm chatting with New England-based horticultural therapist and master gardener, Erik Keller, who is also the author of the book A Therapist's Garden: Using…
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Episode 307: Trees and Humans: Intertwined
7 oktober 2024 · 17 min
If you've ever been even a little curious about the magic of trees, you won't want to miss this conversation with the ultimate tree expert, Tony Kirkham. We're diving into Tree: Exploring the Arboreal World—a seriously stunning collection of art, history, and culture, centred around the human-tree connection. Lees meer
This book documents the historical significance of trees throughout human history, society and culture. This really is the coffee table book to end all coffee table books for anyone with even so much as a passing interest in trees.
About Tree: Exploring the Arboreal World
This exquisite survey presents a breathtaking sequence of full-page images – from landscape paintings and botanical drawings to ancient frescos, vintage book illustrations and contemporary photographs – revealing the tree as a source of inspiration throughout history. Spanning continents and cultures, Tree reflects the diversity of its subject, depicting giant sequoias, cherry blossoms, palms, poplars, ginkgoes and other species found across Earth's forest biomes, in a wide-ranging selection of visuals dating from Ancient Greece to the present day. More than 300 images include Roman stone mosaics, illustrated Norse myths, Edo-period woodblock prints and living tree installations, each lavishly reproduced. Curated by an international panel of botanists, naturalists, art historians and other experts, the images expand the definition of botanical art, together forming a vibrant, vital homage to the natural world.
About Tony Kirkham
Tony Kirkham is a renowned British arboriculturist and tree expert, best known for his lifelong dedication to the care, study, and preservation of trees. He served as the Head of Arboretum, Gardens, and Horticultural Services at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, where he played a pivotal role in maintaining one of the world's most diverse tree collections. Over his distinguished career, Kirkham became an authoritative figure in tree health, conservation, and educat…
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Episode 306: The Soil Habitat
30 september 2024 · 20 min
Want to know what the soil food web is, what inhabits the soil habitat, why soil health impacts on plant health and ultimately our health and what you can do to get the best out of your garden? Lees meer
Eddie Bailey is a geologist, organic no-dig gardener, and soil food web specialist who runs Rhizophyllia. Eddie is passionate about soil health and growing healthy plants that are good for you and good for the planet.
About Eddie Bailey
Eddie Bailey is a geologist, organic no-dig gardener, and soil food web specialist who runs soil health workshops through his company Rhizophyllia.
Links
www.rhyzophyllia.co.uk
Rhizophyllia workshops
Other episodes if you liked this one:
If you liked this week's episode with Eddie Bailey, you might also enjoy this one from the archives:
Growing Real Food for Nutrition - In this episode, I'm talking to Dr Elizabeth Westaway and Matthew Adams, founders of Growing Real Food for Nutrition, or Grffn for short. Grffn's vision is for a world where all food is grown for its nutritional qualities using regenerative practices, and made accessible to all. We talk about how the way food is grown can affect its nutritional value and how this can support environmentally sound growing practices.
Garden Amendments with Nigel Palmer - This week's guest is Nigel Palmer, an experimental gardener who brings to bear his experience as an aerospace engineer to analyse, identify and organise the various components that make plants grow well. From his research, he's compiled a recipe book of garden amendments, some easy to make and some involving more complex methods, but all of which you can recreate at home and use on your garden for better plant health and resilience.
Please support the podcast on Patreon
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Episode 305: Building on Nature
23 september 2024 · 24 min
What feature does a wildlife supporting landscaper refuse to install in a garden? What is the most beneficial addition for wildlife? And how can hard landscaping be compatible with wildlife and nature? Lees meer
This week my guest is former ecologist and founder of NatureScaping, Nick Townsend, who sheds light on building greener gardens. Nick uses his knowledge of ecology and the environment in his landscaping business in order to make better gardens and outdoor spaces for wildlife.
About Nick Townsend
Nick holds a masters in Environmental Management and is a former ecologist. After working with different organisations within the ecological, environmental sectors, and landscapers he is applying this knowledge in a unique way to make a genuine difference to our cherished native wildlife. He works closely with teams of trusted contractors during NatureScaping projects to bring each project to life.
Links
www.nature-scaping.com
NatureScaping on Facebook
Other episodes if you liked this one:
If you liked this week's episode with Nick Townsend, you might also enjoy this one from the archives:
Green at Heart - The episodes generating the most feedback recently have been those featuring other gardeners and business owners who are trying to run green businesses, so I called on former guest and supporter of the podcast, Dave Woolmer. Dave changed career from law to gardening and has been forging ahead creating a business based on sound principles and horticultural excellence.
Landscape Led - Alexandra Steed is a passionate landscape architect with a profound commitment to art, sustainability, and the transformative power of landscapes. Alexandra recently authored Portrait to Landscape and we talk about the possibility of and the necessity for shaping our landscapes so they may help to heal the earth.
Please support the podcast on Patreon
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Episode 304: One Garden Changing the World
16 september 2024 · 24 min
Hello and welcome to this week's episode which features garden writer , broadcaster and returning guest Kate Bradbury. Kate has a new book out One Garden Against the World: In Search of Hope in a Changing Climate. It's been a while since we last spoke about Kate's garden and with the opportune timing around the release of the book, I thought it would be the ideal time to catch up on what's changed for Kate, her garden and nature in general since 2019. Lees meer
Links
One Garden Against the World: In Search of Hope in a Changing Climate by Kate Bradbury
Other episodes if you liked this one:
If you liked this week's episode with Kate Bradbury, you might also enjoy this one from the archives:
Wildlife Gardening with Kate Bradbury - Following on from my episodes on native vs. non-native plants and gardening for wildlife, who better for me to interview than wildlife gardening guru Kate Bradbury?
We talk about the best ways to garden for wildlife, including what to put in to your wildlife garden and what to leave out. Kate champions some unusual species and our conversation touches upon aspects that may surprise even the most seasoned wildlife gardener.
The timing was perfect too, as Kate's new book Wildlife Gardening for Everyone and Everything hit the shelves 5 days ago. Once she's tempted you with snippets of wildlife gardening gold, you can go buy the book and find out everything you need to know about turning your own garden, whatever its size, into a haven for all creatures great and small.
The Biodiversity Gardener with Paul Sterry - My guest this week is wildlife author and photographer Paul Sterry. Paul has written many books on wildlife but his latest, The Biodiversity Gardener, pulls together his decades of knowledge and the result is a wildlife gardening manual with real-life examples taken from Paul's Hampshire wildlife friendly space.
Please support the podcast on Patreon
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Episode 303: Slugs and Snails
9 september 2024 · 26 min
Think you know what slugs eat? And what eats slugs? You might be surprised...This episode my guest is retired academic and lifelong gardener Jo Kirby. Jo has written The Good Slug Guide, the first-ever book on slugs and snails that explains why the usual controls often don`t work, what slugs and snails really get up to, what they really eat and – importantly – what eats them. Lees meer
About the Good Slug Guide
The Good Slug Guide is full of simple, practical advice on how to encourage your new-found friends and transform your garden into a beautiful, leafy and above all slug-resilient haven. It really is that easy, and The Good Slug Guide is all about the why and how.
Most scientists are not gardeners, and most gardeners are not scientists, and few scientist-gardeners have a background in the ecology of decomposition alongside a deep interest in environmental toxicology. This combination of skills and knowledge has prepared Jo Kirby uniquely to write a gardening book for the modern age.
About Jo Kirby
Jo Kirby is a retired academic and lifelong gardener who is passionate about the environment. His family were commercial growers who used pesticides and other grim methods of pest control routinely. By the 1990s it was clear that chemical pest control was causing a decline in flora and fauna, polluting the planet and harming a whole range of species, not just the intended victims. At college, Jo became interested in environmental toxicology and went on to do post-doctoral research in the ecology of decomposing plant matter before returning to the family business. Jo has undertaken a 30-year quest to understand the ecological processes at work in gardens, and how they might be adapted and used to help create beautiful places in which pests could never become a major issue.
Links
The Good Slug Guide: How to tackle the slugs and snails in your garden and help save the planet by Jo Kirby
Other episodes if you liked this one:
If you liked this week's episode with Dave Jo K…
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Episode 302: Green at Heart
2 september 2024 · 27 min
The episodes generating the most feedback recently have been those featuring other gardeners and business owners who are trying to run green businesses, so I called on former guest and supporter of the podcast, Dave Woolmer. Dave changed career from law to gardening and has been forging ahead creating a business based on sound principles and horticultural excellence. Lees meer
Links
The British Association for Supported Employment
Safe Opportunities are at safeopportunities.co.uk
Disability Confident Employment registration is at www.gov.uk/government/collections/disability-confident-campaign
And Green Heart is at facebook.com/greenhearthort
Other episodes if you liked this one:
If you liked this week's episode with Dave Woolmer, you might also enjoy this one from the archives:
Soil and Soul - This episode, my guest is Ella Malt. Ella runs an all female gardening team in Norfolk called Soul and Soul Norfolk Ltd. She is passionate about the intentional reimagining of existing spaces, and about renovation over replacement. Listen on to find out how Ella started her business and developed her team, whilst maintaining a focus on sustainability and nature.
Making Gardening Accessible - Hello and welcome to this week's episode of Roots and All, where my guest is garden designer, TV personality and Trustee of the Gardening with Disabilities Trust Mark Lane. Mark talks about the various types of challenges people can face that might impede their activity in the garden, and how gardens and gardening can be adapted to enable people to carry on with these activities. He gives some excellent, practical advice for anyone who may need to adapt horticulture to suit their own needs or those of others.
Please support the podcast on Patreon
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Episode 301: Gardening without Plastic
26 augustus 2024 · 23 min
My guest this episode is gardener and activist Ed Allnutt. Ed is part of Plastics Rebellion and the @plasticscrisis Instagram account and campaigns to reduce the use of plastics, particularly in a gardening context. We talk about the most common offending items in the gardening world and discuss possible solutions to the current accepted ways of gardening so we can make changes that better the environment. Lees meer
Links
Plastics Crisis on instagram
Other episodes if you liked this one:
If you liked this week's episode with the Ed Allnutt, you might also enjoy this one from the archives:
Waterwise Gardening - I'm talking water-wise gardening with Janet Manning. Janet undertook a three year project with the RHS and Cranfield University where she looked at strategies and techniques currently available to gardeners to help them both conserve and manage water in a way that reduces waste and protects the environment. We talk about why there's a need to be water-wise in wet countries like the UK, what we can do to help and why gardens are an important part of the bigger environmental picture.
Running a Green Nursery - This week I'm speaking to Chris Williams, co-founder of Edibleculture, an inspirational nursery based in Faversham in Kent. From the day the nursery was established 5 years ago, ethically and ecologically sounds principles have been employed to create the brilliant business that exists today. We talk about how the nursery succeeds where so many others are failing to make changes; using peat-free compost, gardening organically without chemicals, eliminating single use plastics from their sales output and many other initiatives that make this nursery truly revolutionary.
Please support the podcast on Patreon
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Episode 300: Best of the Best
16 augustus 2024 · 28 min
Welcome to the 300th episode! Join me as I take a look back at some of my favourite episodes, some of your favourites and take a bit of time to reflect on the sheer enormity and yeah, I'll say it, the sheer excellence of the back catalogue of the podcast! Lees meer
Find out;
The Top 3 episodes of all time as ranked by downloads
How I choose guests to be on the podcast
What guest had me in tears
The ones that got away…
The episode that was a load of shit
And listeners' pick their favourites
Links
Episode 168: Cottage Gardens with Andrew Sankey
Episode 204: No Dig with Charles Dowding
Episode 188: Huw Richards on Veg Growing
Episode 23: Esiah Levy's SeedsShare project
Episode 136: In Search of Mycotopia with Doug Bierend
Episode 44: Creating An Ark with Mary Reynolds
Episode 281: Shrouded in Light with Kevin Philip Williams and Michael Guidi
Episode 297: Soil and Soul with Ella Malt
Episode 294: Wood Meadows with Jake Rayson
Wildlife: Jeff Ollerton, Dave Goulson, Kate Bradbury, Terry Woods, Doug Tallamy, Richard Jones, Benjamin Vogt, Ian Bedford, Val Bourne, Paul Sterry, Hugh Warwick and Kate Risely
Q&A with Sarah Wilson
Episode 178: Feeding your Soil with Humanure
Episode 247: Botanical Education
Epsiode 66: Beth Chatto: A Life with Plants with Catherine Horwood
Please support the podcast on Patreon
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Episode 299: Sowing Seed, Growing Culture
12 augustus 2024 · 30 min
What if growing food was never meant to be about just the end product? What are we missing from conventional agriculture and gardening? Lees meer
Steven Martyn is an Ontario based teacher and practitioner of sacred agriculture and what he terms wildculturing. He focusses on the traditional living skills of growing food, building and healing and has a unique take on how we can live in the with the earth. Steven had me pondering how agriculture has been used to create culture historically, how we incorporate intentionality into horticulture, he even had me rethinking my morning beverage…
About Steven Martyn
Steven says "After passing from my body when I was 19 I saw what my life purpose was, and that I had fallen well short. I was given back my body to fulfill a very specific purpose in this life. Since that time forty some years ago I have spent my life spreading the green gospel and bringing people back to be healed by our Great Mother Earth. I spent many years teaching traditional plant use and many more de-programing colonial thinking, opening peoples minds and hearts to a sacred relationship with land, and specifically with the plant people. I practice and teach forms of sacred agriculture and "wildculturing" that our ancestors have practiced since the Paleocene, that generate such abundance the land easily feeds our family, school and friends."
Steven has more than thirty years experience living co-creatively with the Earth, practicing traditional living skills of growing food, building and healing. Steven created Livingstone & Greenbloom in 1986, Toronto's first green landscaping company.
In 1996, he created the Algonquin Tea Company, North America's premiere bioregional tea company. He has given talks and run workshops internationally for more than twenty years and taught plant identification and wilderness skills at Algonquin college for 11 years, and at the Orphan Wisdom School for eight years. In 2014, Megan and Steven started the Sacred Gardener Earth Wisdom S…
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Episode 298: Why not use the garden?
5 augustus 2024 · 31 min
Why have gardens been underused in care home settings in the past, even when they're designed to be used? Lees meer
This episode, my guest is Debbie Carroll. Debbie is a Southampton based garden designer with experience in designing for care homes and other health settings for residents with dementia. Her work in these surroundings prompted her to question why these gardens were not more actively used even when they were designed to the latest design guidance. Along with her fellow designer Mark Rendell they researched what hindered engagement with the garden, in particular for people living with dementia.
About Debbie Carroll
Debbie Carroll is a Southampton based garden designer celebrating 20 years as a designer. She is passionate about gardens being well used and well-loved long after she has left. Her experience in designing for care homes and other health settings for residents with dementia prompted the question of why gardens were not more actively used even when designed to the latest design guidance. Along with her fellow designer Mark Rendell they researched what hindered engagement with the garden, in particular for people living with dementia.
Step Change Design Ltd was formed 10 years ago to share the findings of this study and has since published their 'Why don't we go into the garden?' series of books and tools. These support both the care sector towards more person-centred care and designers in working effectively alongside them. Their ultimate aim is to enable residents to continue to step outside as and when they choose and for gardens to be well-used and much loved long after the designer has left.
Links
Summary of Step Change's research
Free resources – loads of articles on the Step Change download page
Books & tools – 'Why don't we go into the garden?' series of books and tools
Webinars:
Webinar Debbie did for Salford Age UK. YouTube
Panel webinar for the Dementia Housing group
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Sensory Gardens & Autism -…
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Episode 297: Soil and Soul
29 juli 2024 · 25 min
This episode, my guest is Ella Malt. Ella runs an all female gardening team in Norfolk called Soul and Soul Norfolk Ltd. She is passionate about the intentional reimagining of existing spaces, and about renovation over replacement. Listen on to find out how Ella started her business and developed her team, whilst maintaining a focus on sustainability and nature. Lees meer
About Ella Malt
Ella Malt runs an all female gardening team in Norfolk called Soul and Soul Norfolk Ltd. She is passionate about the intentional reimagining of existing spaces, renovation over replacement with a focus on sustainability and nature.
Links
www.soilandsoulnorfolk.co.uk
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Hiring a Gardener - Anyone with a modest or sizeable outdoor space will appreciate the time and effort that goes into maintaining it. So the question professionals in the industry are often asked is, how do I get a good gardener?
In the second episode of this series, Sarah Wilson finds out some answers as she interviews Claire Vokins a friend and fellow Horticulturist, who runs her own garden care business, Elizabeth Clare Gardening Ltd, in South West London. With a no-nonsense approach, Claire blows the lid off this topic and reveals a wealth of knowledge and practical advice.
Learn about the benefits and pitfalls of hiring a gardener, the many variables to consider and the most important factors when deciding on your choice, especially the ever grey area of how much you can expect to pay on an hourly rate. Adversely, pick up some helpful pointers on what to do if hiring a regular gardener is out of your budget.
So whether it's a 'jungle cut' or a more detailed maintenance and care plan you have in mind for your outdoor space, there is bound to be something that will grab your attention in this episode.
The Organic Nursery - This episode, my guest is Sam Frings who founded The Organic Plant Nursery. Sam explains in his own words how he got started and how things have been along the…
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Episode 296: Regenerative Design
22 juli 2024 · 29 min
This episode, my guest is Erik Ohlsen, a US based regenerative designer, permaculturist, landscape contractor, author, farmer, herbalist, storyteller and practitioner of Nordic folk traditions. His approach to regenerative landscaping is rooted in decades of practical experience and a humbleness that allows Erik to be led by what the land has to tell him. Lees meer
Links
www.erikohlsen.com
The Regenerative Landscaper: Design and Build Landscapes That Repair the Environment by Erik Ohlsen
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Ecological Gardens with Sid Hill - This week's guest is eco gardener, landscape designer, permaculturist, horticultural thinker and garden experimenter, Sid Hill.Sid is concerned with building gardens that can sustain people and wildlife and he's talking to me today about his particular brand of gardening, what we can do differently to improve our gardens and the whole discipline of horticulture in the UK.
Ecologically Integrated Gardens - My guest this week is Shawn Maestretti of Studio Petrichor, a design studio working out of California. Shawn's personal mission is to reconnect with the natural world, tread lightly on the land, nurture biodiversity, protect water, and bring people together. We speak about how Studio Petrichor designs with these values in mind and the systems and techniques that are used to achieve these goals. I as we wend our way through eco-gardening.
Please support the podcast on Patreon
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Episode 295: Picture Perfect Gardens
15 juli 2024 · 18 min
Hello and welcome to this week's episode where my guest is freelance photographer Mark Bolton. Mark photographs gardens and interiors for editorial and commercial clients and after purchasing a house in Devon, he decided to create his own picture perfect garden. He chose the cottage style of gardening to fit the bill, so listen on to find out how he created his perfect space and tips for how to create your own picturesque paradise. Lees meer
Links
A New Cottage Garden: A practical guide to creating a picture-perfect cottage garden by Mark Bolton
About Mark Bolton
Mark Bolton (@markboltonphoto) is a freelance photographer who photographs gardens and interiors for editorial and commercial clients throughout the UK and Europe. He lives in Devon.
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Cottage Gardens - This episode features garden designer, grower, speaker and writer Andrew Sankey. Andrew specialises in English cottage gardens and has meticulously researched the subject for decades, becoming an expert on this style of gardening. He's recently released a book called The English Cottage Garden and in the interview, we talk about what defines a cottage garden, both in the past and now, the plants and features most commonly found in one and tips if you're looking to create your own.
Wild Gardens with Jo McKerr - This week's episode features garden designer and horticulturist Jo McKerr, who runs Pratensis Gardens. Jo is particularly interested in designed spaces where soil health, biodiversity and wildlife are encouraged but which still look good to the human eye. I started with a list of questions for Jo but the interview became more of a fireside chat, so pull up a chair and join Jo and I as we wend our way through eco-gardening.
Please support the podcast on Patreon.
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Episode 294: Wood Meadows
8 juli 2024 · 25 min
Hello and welcome to this week's episode where I have a returning guest, Jake Rayson. We're talking about wood meadows, or rather we're talking around the periphery of wood meadows as a concept. We're talking about the use of land, gardens, humans and wildlife and generally getting a bit ranty about the absolute state of things. I realise that's not by much in the way of introduction, but the conversation twists and turns and the best thing to do is just take a listen… Lees meer
Links
When culture supports biodiversity: The case of the wooded meadow by Kull, Kukk & Lotman 2003
Three Hagges Wood Meadow, designed by Linden Hawthorne & managed by Plantlife
Tending The Wild by Kat Anderson
Readings on Land Ownership reading circle by Antonia Malchik
How Buildings Learn, TV series & book by Stuart Brand
The Real World of Technology lectures & book by Ursula Franklin
The Dawn of Everything by David Graeber & David Wengrow
Responsive Web Design by Ethan Marcotte
Less Is More by Jason Hickel
Meadows by George Peterken
Is fly-tipping good for biodiversity? by John Little
Other episodes if you liked this one:
No Mow May - This episode, my guest is Mark Schofield, Plantlife's Road Verge Advisor for the UK. Mark has a huge amount of experience when it comes to green space conservation and is currently involved in a number of projects across the country to manage road verges better for wildlife involving biomass harvesting trials and the use of AI in surveys.
He's also one of Plantlife's representatives for the #NoMowMay campaign, and in this interview, he talks about how we can maintain both private and public green spaces more sympathetically for wildflowers and the wildlife they support.Meadows with Keith Datchler - Join me for an interview with conservationist and wild meadows expert Keith Datchler. We talk about the state of our wildflower meadows, their importance for biodiversity and where we, as humans, fit as part of the biodiversity that feels at home in meadows…
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Episode 293: The Rewilding of Molly McFlynn
1 juli 2024 · 23 min
Hello and welcome to this week's episode where my guest is Sue Reed. Sue's background is varied and she's worn a variety of hats, including teacher, museum guide, upcycler of waste wool knitwear and published author. Her most recent creation is the fictional character Molly McFlynn, a quirky and courageous character who comes to terms with the concept of being an outsider against the backdrop of covid and a rugged Northern landscape. Listen on to find out how nature factors into the rewilding of Molly… Lees meer
About Sue Reed
Sue Reed lives in rural Northumberland with her husband, Tim where their love of wild places and nature can be realised. They have three grown-up children and two granddaughters who mean the world to them.
Born in Worthing, Sussex, Sue migrated steadily north and has worn a variety of hats in her professional life from teacher, museum guide, upcycler of waste wool knitwear as The Woolly Pedlar to published author. It was in 2019 that she decided to go to Newcastle University to do an MA in Creative Writing, which is where the idea for the Molly McFlynn books started.
When not writing, Sue divides her time with her husband in the garden, travelling in their converted campervan or looking after the grandchildren. They try to live as sustainably as possible, leading gentle lives in tune with the seasons, and growing their own fruit and vegetables. Sue also writes about organic gardening, seasonal eating and foraging at The Bridge Cottage Way.
Links
www.suereedwrites.co.uk
Sue on Facebook
On Instagram
Sue's Substack: Down Clarty Lonnen
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Can Women Save the Planet? - This week I'm speaking to Dr Anne Karpf. Anne is Professor of Life Writing and Culture at London Metropolitan University and is a writer, sociologist and award-winning journalist. In 2021 she released the book 'How Women Can Save the Planet', where she looks at how there is gender inequality across the board from how we experience the climate crisi…
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Episode 292: Spiders
24 juni 2024 · 21 min
This week, my guest is Meg Skinner. Meg works as an invertebrate ecologist, surveying sites for protected species and volunteers for the British Arachnological Society. We're talking today about spiders in your garden; how they go about their business, how you can encourage more, to visit your garden, oh and we talk about the much maligned false widow… Lees meer
About Meg Skinner
Meg Skinner works as an invertebrate ecologist, surveying sites for protected species. She volunteers for the British Arachnological Society as a Press Officer and recording scheme organiser for harvestmen. Meg grew up in the rural Cotswolds and has always had a fascination for the natural world.
Links
BAS website
BAS youtube channel
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Worms in Your Garden - Sarah interviews Paul Hetherington, Director of Fundraising and Communications at the Buglife Invertebrate Conservation Organisation, with a particular interest in discussing worms and depending on the type, their significance in the garden.
So dip into the world of our 2 enthusiasts for an insightful chat about the trials and tribulations of this common garden dweller and much understated invertebrate. Learn about the enormous impact they have on our ecosystems and how we can encourage and nurture these ultimate 'friends of the earth'. However it pays to be mindful that not all worms have a positive effect on our environment!
Bugs in Your Garden - I'm speaking to esteemed entomologist Dr Ian Bedford about accepting the insects in your garden and learning to accept their vital role in the wider ecosystem. We talk about the how gardens can work alongside public spaces to provide habitats for beleaguered bugs, how we can reconcile growing food with welcoming bugs and whether reports of Insectageddon are justified.
Support the podcast on Patreon
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Episode 291: Inspiration from Nature
17 juni 2024 · 24 min
This week, my guest is watercolour artist Lisa Gardner. Lisa is inspired by the natural world, the connection between breath and brushwork and rare wild plant species on the edge of extinction - seemingly far flung interests that come together in a beautifully natural and synergistic way in Lisa's work. Lees meer
About Lisa Gardener
Lisa Gardner is a watercolour artist inspired by the natural world, the connection between breath and brushwork and rare wild plant species on the edge of extinction.
Passionate about wild plants and the vital role they play in the health of our environment, Lisa's art strives to connect people to nature, to improve their wellbeing, and inspire action to save species and their habitats.
Links
Lisa has created 6 video workshops that share her journey with Plantlife, they can be found here.
Short film mentioned in the interview
Plantlife's important work can be found here.
Information on the Grassland Action Plan Lisa and Plantlife are campaigning for can be found here.
You can also get involved and volunteer for the National Plant Monitoring Scheme.
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Garden Sculpture - This episode I'm speaking to Victoria Leedham, Co-Curator and Gallery Manager of the Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden. I visited the garden earlier this month and even in winter garb, it was beautiful, set as it is in ancient woodland with streams running through it that pour down from Leith Hill in Surrey. The sculptures in the garden are diverse in character and look stunning within the location, each one fitting harmoniously into the backdrop of planting and landscape. Victoria is responsible for sourcing and placing sculpture in the garden, alongside owner garden designer Anthony Paul. We spoke about Victoria's work, about the sculpture garden and also how you can select and place sculptures in your own garden.
Plants as Art - Sarah chats to Alyson of Alyson Mowat Studio and author of Terrariums & Kokedama. Alyson Mowat runs her st…
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Episode 290: Saving Song Birds
10 juni 2024 · 25 min
Sue has been CEO at SongBird Survival for the last three years leading the charity
in its ambition to protect the amazingly diverse but sadly declining songbird
populations across the UK. With its growing body of scientific research which is
fuelling solutions, SongBird Survival is advocating that we can and should take
action to protect these ecologically threatened creatures. Campaigns including
Gardens for Birds provide accessible and rewarding opportunities to play a part in
much needed practical ways to reverse the drastic declines many species are facing. Lees meerCharlotte has been the research and engagement manager at SongBird Survival for
over two years, and her passion is in bringing science to the public. By overseeing
the research programme at SBS, she hopes to create the greatest impact on UK
songbirds possible. Prior to her role at SBS, she worked as a scientific researcher
and wanted to do more to connect scientific research and conservation.Links
SongBird Survival
www.songbird-survival.org.uk
Advice on the optimum methods for protecting birds in your garden
Downloads of plant lists and hints and tips to support birds through gardening
Whether you are a novice or an experienced gardener, see our tips for some ideas to
get gardening with wildlife in mind.Other episodes if you liked this one:
Britain's Birds with Benedict Macdonald - This episode, I'm talking BioChar with Craig Sams, the co-founder of Carbon Gold, a company that produces a range of BioChar products for the garden but also for agricultural use. I interviewed Craig in his beautiful garden in Hastings, so please excuse the cries of the seagulls who tried to get in on the act around halfway through the interview.…
Garden Birdwatch - This week I'm speaking to Sue Allen of Microbz, which produces and distributes probiotics for gardens. The concept of probiotics in gardens is new to me, but it dovetails nicely with previous episodes looking at soil health and mycorrhizal fungi so I was de…
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Episode 289: Animal Friendly Fertiliser
3 juni 2024 · 26 min
This week, my guest is Los Angeles-based landscaper and fertiliser guru Erin Riley. Erin specialises in organic vegetable gardens and native, drought-tolerant landscapes and we're talking today about her work to create fertilisers that are good for plants, people, animals and the planet. Lees meer
About Erin Riley
Erin is stewarding a gardening renaissance: elevating organic fertilizers past their dependance on animal byproducts by founding the vegan fertilizer company. Her mission: to grow plants without killing the planet.
Links
www.cabbagehillfertilizer.com
Erin's substack post "Does fertilizer matter?"
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Biochar - This episode, I'm talking BioChar with Craig Sams, the co-founder of Carbon Gold, a company that produces a range of BioChar products for the garden but also for agricultural use. I interviewed Craig in his beautiful garden in Hastings, so please excuse the cries of the seagulls who tried to get in on the act around halfway through the interview.…
Probiotics for your Garden - This week I'm speaking to Sue Allen of Microbz, which produces and distributes probiotics for gardens. The concept of probiotics in gardens is new to me, but it dovetails nicely with previous episodes looking at soil health and mycorrhizal fungi so I was delighted to speak to Sue and find out more about how probiotics work in gardens and what we can do to encourage them.
Support the podcast on Patreon
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Episode 288: Hosting Bees
27 mei 2024 · 26 min
This week, my guest is bee expert Kevin Hancock. Kevin has invented a honeybee nest box that's the only self-regulating honey harvesting system in the world, meaning the bees will dictate how much honey you can take dependent on the environment that year. It's a way of hosting rather than keeping bees and is an intriguing system. Lees meer
About the Eco Beehive
"ECO BEEHIVE is the only SELF REGULATING HONEY HARVESTING SYSTEM IN THE WORLD!
Wow that is so exciting!! But it is !! no really.. give me a chance and I'll explain.
I am on a mission to strengthen the honeybee network across Europe!!
You are automatically involved.
First. What is strengthening the honeybees network?
Honeybees don't live in isolation. They are all interconnected though a network of colonies. No beekeeper is in isolation. Whatever they do impacts on the greater network around them.
OK so why? To get more colony's in the environment. Not apiaries. More hives spread out creates a network of interconnected nests, results in stronger genetics. Faster response to problems like predation and sickness, across the network.
The problem is the network has collapsed.
You can affect change by installing honeybees nest boxes.
I recommend my nest box:
Where did it all start you ask? Well as a little boy helping with the bees on my Grandfather's farm in Africa, to catching my first swarm when I was about twelve years old. This then sparked the interest and evolved into my hobby of beelineing (tracking bees to find wild colonies).
My story makes me uniquely qualified to design and build the ECO- BEEHIVE. With an interest in bees ( Apis mellifera ) not beekeeping! My interest is mostly investigating bees in the wild. These little insects are under pressure from all sorts of thing. But simplest of these to fix and something we can all get involved in and help with is to simply give them a safe, natural home to live. Solving this simple but big problem, is my mission! After trying many different designs over …
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Episode 287: Heirloom Vegetables
20 mei 2024 · 23 min
This episode my guest is former jewellery designer to the stars, turned social media veg grower, Lucy Hutchings. Along with music festival organiser, Kate Cotterill, Lucy set up SheGrowsVeg, an heirloom seed company which is bringing the most unusual veg, fruit, and edible flowers to veg patches and plates everywhere. Lees meer
About SheGrowsVeg
Would you like to enliven your dishes with homegrown veg that looks and tastes incredible? Jet black tomatoes, stunning pale pink chicory that looks like a rose or salad leaves that taste like wasabi are just a few of the tasty veg that could grace your plate thanks to exciting new seed brand, SheGrowsVeg.
SheGrowsVeg is disrupting the seed market with its range of over 150 open pollinated heirloom seed varieties that promise the most beautiful, unique and delicious veg to give your dishes the wow factor.
Launched by former jewellery designer to the stars, turned social media veg grower, Lucy Hutchings (@shegrowsveg), along with top marketeer and music festival organiser, Kate Cotterill, SheGrowsVeg is set to bring the most unusual veg, fruit, and edible flowers to veg patches and plates everywhere.
SheGrowsVeg's range is entirely open pollinated seed from heirloom or rare origins, meaning they are packed full of nutrients, are outstanding in the looks department and taste phenomenal.
Explains Lucy, "We want to disrupt the seed market with varieties that, up until now, have largely been unavailable. We firmly believe that the only way to give yourself the most incredible range of ingredients, at a price that won't break the bank, is to grow it yourself. You don't have to be into gardening to grow food and we've created our range to give you beautiful open pollinated veg and the helping hand you need to get growing."
SheGrowsVeg wants to attract everyone from ardent growers, to kitchen garden novices, along with experimental cooks who are dreaming of using unique and delicious produce they simply can't buy in the shops. To help…
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Episode 286: Natural Happiness
13 mei 2024 · 25 min
This episode my guest is Alan Heeks, former corporate world inhabitant, organic farmer, coach and author of the book 'Natural Happiness'. After his transition into organic farming, Alan realised that "a cultivated organic ecosystem is a profound guide to tending human nature, and that organic growth methods have parallels for people: such as composting your stress, and using crop rotation to avoid burnout." We explore the idea further… Lees meer
About Alan Heeks
Alan Heeks had a baptism by mud at age 42, when he dropped out of a successful business career and followed a wild impulse to start an organic farm as an education centre where young people could find their roots and direction as they entered adult life.
Despite Alan's lack of any relevant experience, the project succeeded, and gave him a huge education too. He explains, "I realised that a cultivated organic ecosystem is a profound guide to tending human nature, and that organic growth methods have parallels for people: such as composting your stress, and using crop rotation to avoid burnout."
Alan's new book about this approach, Natural Happiness, also draws on the workshops he has led for hundreds of people sharing his insights, from troubled teenagers to super-stressed NHS doctors. Alan and his wife Linda live in Hay-on-Wye, and grow many of their own vegetables.
Links
www.naturalhappiness.net
Twitter
Facebook
LinkedIn
YouTubeOther episodes if you liked this one:
Forest Bathing - Forest Bathing, or Shinrin Yoku, is the practice of immersing yourself in nature as therapy. It's the perfect antidote for those who feel disconnected from the land and unattached from nature, which is increasingly likely to happen in a world where 55% of us live in urban areas. In this episode, I speak to Stefan Batorijs who founded Nature and Therapy UK in 2017, as a response to a growing need to foster a spiritual and psychological connection to the land. If you've always wondered what Forest Bathing, or Shinrin Yoku, entails,…
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Episode 285: No Mow May
6 mei 2024 · 27 min
Hello and welcome to this week's episode where my guest is Mark Schofield, Plantlife's Road Verge Advisor for the UK. Mark has a huge amount of experience when it comes to green space conservation and is currently involved in a number of projects across the country to manage road verges better for wildlife involving biomass harvesting trials and the use of AI in surveys. He's also one of Plantlife's representatives for the #NoMowMay campaign, and in this interview, he talks about how we can maintain both private and public green spaces more sympathetically for wildflowers and the wildlife they support. Lees meer
About Mark Schofield
Mark used to work for the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust before he joined Plantlife as their Road Verge Advisor for the UK. He has 15 years of experience of road verge and urban green space conservation and has organised extensive citizen science surveys. He is currently involved in a number of projects across the country to manage road verges better for wildlife involving biomass harvesting trials and the use of AI in surveys.
Mark is also one of Plantlife's representatives for the #NoMowMay campaign, and has written much of the guidance on the Plantlife website for how we can maintain our lawns and public green spaces more sympathetically for wildflowers and the wildlife they support.
Links
No Mow May and lawn management guidance:
https://www.plantlife.org.uk/campaigns/nomowmay/
https://www.plantlife.org.uk/advice-learning/managing-grassland/Trends in green space management:
Report from APSE with good news from local authorities for meadows and biodiversity priorities
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Tapestry Lawns - This episode, I'm talking to Dr Lionel Smith, horticulture lecturer and author of the book Tapestry Lawns: Freed from Grass and Full of Flowers. As the title suggests, a tapestry lawn replaces grass with flowering dicots, increasing biodiversity, lowering maintenance needs and seriously upping the aesthetic value of a l…
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Episode 284: The Organic Nursery
29 april 2024 · 21 min
This episode, my guest is Sam Frings who founded The Organic Plant Nursery. Sam explains in his own words how he got started and how things have been along the way. It's not easy being a pioneer, but listen on to find out how Sam and his family have battled against the odds to do it right. Lees meer
Links
www.organicplantnursery.co.uk
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Running a Green Nursery with Chris Williams of Edible Culture - This week I'm speaking to Chris Williams, co-founder of Edibleculture, an inspirational nursery based in Faversham in Kent. From the day the nursery was established 5 years ago, ethically and ecologically sounds principles have been employed to create the brilliant business that exists today. We talk about how the nursery succeeds where so many others are failing to make changes; using peat-free compost, gardening organically without chemicals, eliminating single use plastics from their sales output and many other initiatives that make this nursery truly revolutionary.
School Gardening - This episode I'm joined by 3 guests; Louise Moreton who heads up the horticultural programme at Wicor Primary School and 2 of the MiniHorts themselves, Rebecca and Kieran. Louise set up a horticultural programme at the school 11 years ago, initially in a voluntary capacity. The programme became such a success she's now employed by the school and works 4 days a week to deliver what has become a vital part of the curriculum. Rebecca and Kieran are Year 6 pupils who are members of the after school gardening club and leads in the MiniHorts programme, passing on their knowledge and enthusiasm to younger pupils. The MiniHorts have been in the media quite a bit, including featuring in an episode of Gardeners' World in 2017, so they're seasoned pros at this sort of thing! If you don't have children or children of school age, I think you'll still find this episode interesting and inspiring, it's well worth a listen.
Support the podcast on Patreon
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Episode 283: The Tree Hugging Lawyer
22 april 2024 · 25 min
This episode, my guest is Sarah Dodd AKA the Tree Hugging Lawyer and founder of law firm Tree Law. Sarah specialises in civil and criminal claims arising from disputes with trees, in particular trees causing damage to properties. She's also the host of Tree Law TV channel on YouTube and today, we find out all about her background, her work and the law as it relates to trees. Lees meer
What We Talk About
Common neighbour disputes when it comes to trees
Subsidence
Cutting trees that overhang your property
Is there such a thing as a right to light or a right to privacy?
How TPOs work
Is enough done to protect trees through the law?
About Sarah Dodd
Sarah is the Tree Hugging Lawyer and founder of law firm Tree Law. Sarah specialises in civil and criminal claims arising from disputes with trees, in particular trees causing damage to properties. Sarah acts for various clients including homeowners, commercial properties owners, insurers, local authorities and developers. Sarah is a past chair of the Subsidence Forum and a member of the LTOA, MTAO and the Arboricultural Association. Sarah is the host of Tree Law TV channel on YouTube providing free contents answering some commonly asked questions about trees.
Sarah is hosting the Tree Law summer conference in London on 17 September. Tickets are on sale for that event at Lincoln's Inn via Eventbrite - Treelawconference
www.treelaw-ap.co.uk
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Trees with Peter Thurman - Selecting and planting trees can be a minefield. Never fear though, help is on hand as 'legend in the world of trees', Kew-trained, Peter Thurman is here to provide straight-forward advice about what to do and what not to do when buying a tree and planting it out. Discover how to select the right tree for your garden's soil type and which species of tree will help you create the effect you are targeting. Learn how pleached trees can become an attractive alternative to fencing, just beware of the High Hedges Act! Does it p…
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Episode 282: Song of the Garden
15 april 2024 · 28 min
This week my guests are Northern California based musical duo Misner & Smith. Sam, who is Misner, and Megan, who is Smith comprise one of the most acclaimed acts in the Americana world. Blending elements of that genre with bluegrass, traditional folk ballads, and more pop leaning ideas, they've been described as making music that is gloriously nonconforming. Aside from their musical chops, Sam & Megan are expert gardeners who focus on pollinators, sustainability and community gardening. Listen on to find out how their connection to nature feeds into their music. Lees meer
What We Talk About
Sam & Megan's gardening backgrounds
Gardening sustainably and for the community
Gardening as a creative outlet?
How gardening inspires when you are looking for creative promptsHow gardening factors into their music?
The garden soundscape
About Misner & Smith
Northern California based unclassifiable duo Misner & Smith treasure the unpredictability of
their band. Technically precise songwriting mirrored with an improvisatory spirit and soaring
harmonies have made the band consisting of Sam Misner and Megan Smith one of the most
acclaimed acts in the Americana world. Blending elements of that genre with bluegrass,
traditional folk ballads, and more pop leaning ideas, Misner & Smith makes music gloriously
nonconforming.The duo first met at a Shakespeare festival as professional actors in California in 2002 but began working as a musical duo two years later when Sam and Megan discovered a
mutual love of roots music, Woody Guthrie, and in particular, harmony singing. Before the
release of their career defining sixth LP ALL IS SONG, the duo had released five critically
acclaimed records, including Halfway Home (2004), Poor Player (2008), Live at the Freight & Salvage (2010), Seven Hour Storm (2013), and headwaters (2017). It was that 2017 release that found the group stripping their sound back down to where it began, two voices and two instruments. headwaters was recorded live in the … -
Episode 281: Shrouded in Light
8 april 2024 · 26 min
This week my guests are Kevin Philip Williams and Michael Guidi, authors of a new book 'Shrouded in Light: Naturalistic Planting Inspired by Wild Shrublands'. I'll let Kevin and Michael say more about the idea behind it but a book about horticulture that compares natural landscapes to graffiti and branch frameworks to sigils catches my attention immediately… Lees meer
What We Talk About
The premise behind the book
What is a shrub?
Why have shrubs fallen out of fashion?
Which of the global shrublands most inspires and informs their planting design at the garden level
Good examples of designed shrublands
The future of innovative garden design
Shrouded in Light: Naturalistic Planting Inspired by Wild Shrublands by Kevin Philip Williams and Michael Guidi
Other episodes if you liked this one:
The View From Federal Twist - This episode features James Golden, talking about the naturalistic garden he's built around his home in New Jersey. James's garden has been created intuitively over time and sits perfectly within the landscape, in fact is a landscape in its own right. Sometimes baffling, sometimes threatening and without utilitarian purpose, the garden is nonetheless life-affirming, vital and dramatically beautiful in different ways from one moment to the next.
Gardening in a Changing World - My guest this episode is garden and landscape designer and writer, Darryl Moore. Darryl is one of the most, if not in my opinion, the most informed voice on gardens and design in the UK and his new book Gardening in A Changing World: People, Plants and the Climate Crisis presents an overarching perspective of the complexity of plant life, and the ways that we can begin to appreciate and work together with plants, rather than against them, in addressing the rapidly changing conditions affecting the planet.
Support the podcast on Patreon
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Episode 280: A Floral Feast
1 april 2024 · 23 min
This week my guest is Carolyn Dunster. Carolyn is a planting designer, botanical stylist, garden writer and author of a book all about eating flowers entitled 'A Floral Feast: A Guide to Growing and Cooking with Edible Flowers, Foliage, Herbs and Seeds'. We discuss how to expand your culinary endeavours to encompass the ornamental parts of your garden. Lees meer
A Floral Feast: A Guide to Growing and Cooking with Edible Flowers, Foliage, Herbs and Seeds by Carolyn Dunster
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Edible Flowers with Jan Billington - In this episode, I'm speaking to Jan Billington of Maddocks Farm Organics, a flower farm in Devon growing and selling organic edible flowers. We talk about the easiest and tastiest flowers you can grow, colour trends, some more unusual edible flowers and how you can use edible flowers for your own special event. The episode starts with Jan telling us about her farm and why she feels her business needs to give something back.
Welcome to Mintopia - This week's guest is Dr Si Poole, founder of Mintopia, a website dedicated to mint featuring its own online reference library for the different types, the mintopaedia. Si holds one of the National Collections of mint and holds getting on for 200 different cultivars. From his plastic-free, organic nursery, he sells themed collections of mints and he's passionate and knowledgable about every aspect of the Mentha genera, impressive given that there's much more to this plant than mint sauce and mojitos.
Support the podcast on Patreon
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Episode 279: Garlic
25 maart 2024 · 19 min
My guest this week is Kumud Gandhi, a food scientist, author and founder of The Cooking Academy. Kumud has written a book called The Garlic Story, a look at the history of garlic and its culinary uses. We talk about how garlic has been celebrated and revered throughout history, the different types and uses and how you can incorporate more of it into your life. Lees meer
'The Garlic Story' is a celebration of all things garlic with over 50 delectable recipes, promising a flavourful journey that showcases the diverse and irresistible facets of this humble ingredient.
The Garlic Story by Kumud Gandhi
www.thecookingacademy.co.uk
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Unusual Edible Plants - This episode I'm speaking with Kevin Hobbs & Artur Cesar-Erlach, authors of EDIBLE: 70 Sustainable Plants That Are Changing How We Eat which looks at edible plants from around the world that are revolutionising how we grow, eat and appreciate food. It tackles important questions like what do we eat when our usual diets are no longer sustainable, how do we future proof food and how can we be more mindful about what we eat and considers what the future of global food production might look like.
Climate Cuisine with Clarissa Wei - this episode of the podcast, I'm speaking to journalist and host of the Climate Cuisine podcast, Clarissa Wei.
On her podcast, Clarissa shares the stories of the crops grown sustainably around the world. The goal is to highlight climate-centric conversations about crops and the food we eat as they become increasingly important to the resiliency and survival of our food systems.
Support the podcast on Patreon
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Episode 278: Sustainability Matters
18 maart 2024 · 24 min
My guest this week is Nadine Charlton. Through her business Home Spring Gardens, Nadine provides specialist services to the horticultural and landscape construction industry, advising on sustainable best practice and creating beautiful gardens and landscapes with an environmental conscience. We talk about the importance of sourcing sustainable garden products, how you can tell whether what you're buying is sustainable and whether enough is being done on this front. Lees meer
About Nadine Charlton & Home Spring Gardens
Nadine provides specialist services to the horticultural and landscape construction industry
with commitment to sustainable best practice and creating beautiful gardens and landscapes with an environmental conscience.She has exhibited personally at RHS shows, and has project managed and advised on multi award winning gardens at RHS Chelsea Flower Show.
Nadine has an ability to see a vision and make it happen, connecting people and bringing
teams, partners as well as commercial objectives together with demonstrable results. She
has a lifelong passion of historic landscapes and architecture and is an advocate for using
traditional methods with the benefit of modern insights and techniques.A passionate lover of outdoor living, Nadine is committed to innovation and education;
inspiring the next generation.www.homespringgardens.co.uk
Nadine is currently working with Landscape Architect Michael Lote on his debut show garden 'It doesn't have to cost the Earth' which will be featured at RHS Malvern Spring Festival 9-12 th May 2024 showcasing innovative sustainable construction products and methods.
The garden will be repurposed to Woodoaks Farm which is owned by the Soil Association Land Trust to create a permanent training and educational space to facilitate learning for school children and adults, growing together with the horticultural and agricultural industry.
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Historic Roses
Irises
Support the podcast on Patreon
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Episode 277: Historic Tulips
11 maart 2024 · 19 min
My guest this week is Polly Nicholson. Polly is the owner of Bayntun Flowers in Wiltshire, and holds the national collection of Tulipa (Historica) with Plant Heritage. Polly has also written a book called 'The Tulip Garden: Growing and Collecting Species, Rare and Annual Varieties' which is released on the 21st March and today she shares her knowledge of this complex and fascinating group of plants. Lees meer
About Polly Nicholson
Specialist flower grower and tulip expert Polly Nicholson is the owner of Bayntun Flowers in Wiltshire – growers of organic flowers cultivated in walled gardens and a one-acre field at the foot of the Marlborough Downs in Wiltshire. Nicholson holds the National Collection of Tulipa (Historic) with Plant Heritage, and has featured on BBC Gardener's World, Radio 4, in Gardens Illustrated, Country Life, T: The New York Times Style Magazine, The World of Interiors, and House & Garden.
Links
The Tulip Garden: Growing and Collecting Species, Rare and Annual Varieties by Polly Nicholson
www.bayntunflowers.co.uk
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Historic Roses
Irises
Support the podcast on Patreon
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Episode 276: Unearthing
4 maart 2024 · 25 min
Hello and welcome to this week's episode where my guest is Kyo Maclear. Kyo is an author and her latest book is centred around family secrets, her mother and how gardening shaped their relationship and helped her frame their mutual experiences. Lees meer
About Unearthing
Kyo Maclear's Unearthing: A Story of Tangled Love & Family Secrets is published on 7th March 2024. It's a gripping and emotionally eloquent memoir about a family secret revealed by a DNA test, the lessons learned in its aftermath, and the transformative possibilities of growing plants.
A memoir of inheritance that goes far beyond heredity, Unearthing is about what happens when we give up the watered, weeded, and pruned plots of our family histories and embrace a more expansive view of kinship. Told through the passage of seasons with exquisite illustrations by the author, it is a tender testimony to the ineradicable love between a mother and daughter for readers of Michelle Zauner's Crying in H Mart and Katherine May's Wintering.
When Kyo Maclear receives the result of a DNA test showing that she and the father who raised her, whose death she is grieving, are not biologically related, she is suddenly a detective in her own life, desperately seeking answers from her ailing mother whose memories and English are failing. Maclear no longer speaks Japanese, her mother's first language, so she turns to her mother's second fluent tongue: the wild and green language of gardening, to provide them with a way of connecting. This beautifully constructed, intricate memoir is a work as unique as its author, and yet, movingly, achingly relatable.
About Kyo Maclear
Kyo is an award-winning novelist, essayist, and children's author. Her books have been translated into eighteen languages and published in over twenty-five countries. She is the author of the hybrid memoir Birds Art Life (2017,) and winner of the Trillium Book Award. She holds a doctorate in environmental humanities and is on faculty at the University of Gu…
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Episode 275: Community Gardening
26 februari 2024 · 19 min
Vicky Chown is a Medical Herbalist, foraging instructor and self taught permaculturist. She's head gardener at Omved Gardens, a fascinating community garden in London which focuses on food, creativity and wellbeing. Lees meer
What we talk about
The idea behind Omved Gardens
How nature factors in to the garden
Where food and creativity fit in
The design of the site and how it feeds into the purpose and the overall experience for visitors
Who uses the site
The activities that take place
About Vicky Chown
Vicky Chown is a Medical Herbalist (BSc), foraging instructor and self taught permaculturist. She is head gardener at Omved Gardens and Coordinator of their Seed Saving Network.
Links
Vicky Chown on Instagram @handmade_apothecary
The Seed Saving Network @seedsavingnetwork
Omved Gardens @omvedgardens
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Gardening for your Senses
Permaculture
Support the podcast on Patreon
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Episode 274: Natural Swimming Ponds
19 februari 2024 · 24 min
Caroline & Jon have created the most amazing swimming pond in their back garden and have documented their journey on social media, posting videos of year-round swimming adventures and pond-life. If you need inspiration to tackle a garden project you've always thought was just a pipe-dream, listen in as Caroline & Jon offer their refreshingly optimistic and can-do approach. Lees meer
What we talk about
What made Caroline & Jon install a pool in their garden?
Planning permission
Filling the pond
Cleaning the pond
Swimming year round
Bringing in wildlife
The planting scheme - aesthetic or functional?
Build cost
Links
Caroline & Jon on TikTok
Caroline & Jon on Instagram
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Creating Wildlife Habitats
Bats
Support the podcast on Patreon
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Episode 273: Landscape Led
12 februari 2024 · 28 min
Alexandra Steed is a passionate landscape architect with a profound commitment to art, sustainability, and the transformative power of landscapes. Alexandra recently authored Portrait to Landscape and we talk about the possibility of and the necessity for shaping our landscapes so they may help to heal the earth. Lees meer
What we talk about
Why portrait to landscape?
The biosphere
An overview of Alexandra's ideas for better landscape design and management?
Urban vs rural landscaping
Can we rely on change that comes from the top down?
How individuals can make a difference
About Alexandra Steed
Alexandra Steed, a passionate landscape architect and Fellow of the Landscape Institute (FLI) and the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA), has a profound commitment to art, sustainability, and the transformative power of landscapes. In 2013, she founded URBAN to bring joy to people's daily lives through landscape design that enhances beauty and fosters well-being. Steed actively advises and serves on expert panels for organisations such as the Design Council UK and the Government's Office for Place. As a lecturer at The Bartlett, UCL, she shares her knowledge and volunteers her time to support community empowerment and inclusive public spaces. Steed's exceptional contributions to landscape architecture have garnered prestigious awards, including the WAFX Award for innovative global solutions and The LI Award for Excellence in Tackling Climate Change. With a strong focus on preserving biodiversity and ecosystems, Steed's dedication to integrating natural processes into her designs is evident. Through her work and advocacy, she champions climate change mitigation and inspires others to connect with and appreciate the natural world.
About Portrait to Landscape
"Portrait to Landscape: A Landscape Strategy to Reframe Our Future" is a ground-breaking book that calls for a transformative shift in our relationship with the natural world. Written by a renowned landscape architect, this book…
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Episode 272: Living with the Earth
5 februari 2024 · 20 min
Perrine Bulgheroni is a renowned farmer who, along with Charles Herve-Gruyer, co-authored the Living with the Earth series of books and co-founded the famous Bec Hellouin, an ecoculture farm in Northern France. We talk about growing produce, closed loop farming, how food growing helps capture carbon and how to manage your natural environment for maximum benefits for people, wildlife and ecosystems. Lees meer
What we talk about
What ecoculture is
Does it take up less space than traditional agriculture?
The ecoculture approach to rainfall and soil
Volumes two and three of Living with the Earth
Ideal land area for a plot
The Flow of Organic Matter
How ecoculture contributes to carbon capture
About Living with the Earth: A Manual for Market Gardeners - Volume 1: Permaculture, Ecoculture: Inspired by Nature
by Perrine and Charles Hervé-Gruyer
Living With The Earth is a three volume series bringing together years of hands-on
organic growing experience and research from the world-renowned Bec Hellouin Farm
in France.In 2006, Perrine and Charles Hervé-Gruyer set out on a mission to discover a new form
of agriculture that provides organic crops, creates healthy soil and brings meaningful
employment to the local community. A combination of biointensive methods and
permaculture design, which they have named 'ecoculture', and backed by scientific
research, has resulted in a highly abundant market garden that sequesters carbon and
frees up land for Nature.This beautifully illustrated, comprehensive first volume shows you how natural
systems work, and explains how a wide range of simple and effective techniques can
create ecologically diverse gardens or highly productive farms. The in-depth chapters
on weather patterns, soil types and ecosystem services, give the reader a sound
understanding of the environment they are growing in.The book covers everything you need to design a farm and implement a high-yielding
food system from scratch, from understanding permaculture and… -
Episode 271: Japanese Maples
29 januari 2024 · 26 min
Miles Hayward is a dendrophile and keen plantsman, who discovered a passion for Japanese Maples and soon began to accumulate a wide variety of different cultivars. He started Miles Japanese Maples in 2016 specialising in Japanese Maples, after becoming frustrated by the lack of good quality trees in garden centres and local nurseries. He now grows high-quality trees in relatively small numbers, focussing on quality over quantity. Lees meer
What we talk about
What is a Japanese Maple?
The different species
Preferred growing conditions
Should you feed your Japanese maple?
Where to site them
Growing maples in containers
Pruning maples
Miles' favourites
About Miles Hayward
Miles Hayward is a dendrophile and keen plantsman, having studied Botany at Reading University in the late 1990s before going on to work at a hardy exotic plant nursery for ten years where his love of trees flourished. While exhibiting at various flower shows around the country, he discovered a passion for Japanese Maples and soon began to accumulate a wide variety of different cultivars.
Miles decided to start a small nursery in 2016 specialising in Japanese Maples, frustrated by the lack of good quality trees in garden centres and local nurseries. We like to think of ourselves as 'small batch growers', producing high-quality trees but in relatively small numbers, due to lack of space! Each tree receives a lot of care and won't be sold to a customer until Miles is completely satisfied that it is the best it can be (or he really likes it and wants to hang on to it!)
Miles Japanese Maples has been peat and pesticide free since inception, although there is always experimenting and tinkering to find the perfect compost mix. The trees have been grown in Air-Pots for the last 5 years or so, to ensure that they have the best possible root systems.
The nursery is open to visitors by appointment or we are at various plant fairs around the south-east at some lovely venues. We were delighted to exhibit for…
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Episode 270: Herbology
22 januari 2024 · 23 min
My guest this week is Catherine Conway-Payne. Catherine is the course director of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh's diploma in Herbology and an expert on the history of natural remedies. Catherine recently authored possibly the most beautiful book ever, a book called 'Herbology – A Physic Garden Pharmacy' where she looks at the origins of the physic garden at RBGE in the mid-17th Century. She recreates and reimagines original recipes from that time, mentioning in the book the historical uses of such ingredients as powdered toads and spiders' web, but thankfully providing alternatives to those who want to look at growing their own medicine and herbal remedies. Lees meer
What we talk about
What is the 'Herbology' about?
What is green pharmacy?
What are the Materia medica?
What is a vulnerary herb and can you give me an example of one and how you could use it?
What are lunar infusions?
Some of Catherine's favourite plants to work with
About 'Herbology – A Physic Garden Pharmacy'
The practice of referencing and using nature to create remedies, recipes and therapeutic preparations has been around for thousands of years. Over time, our knowledge of the more traditional 'green pharmacy' of this sort has diminished. Yet today herbology, the study of herbs, is enjoying a renaissance as reconnecting with nature and sustainability surges.
To coincide with this renaissance, the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh has published Herbology – A Physic Garden Pharmacy, a beautiful, hard-back book filled with natural remedies and recipes, and showcasing the best practices on gathering ingredients and safely preparing them.
Much more than a recipe and remedy book, Herbology is also a history of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, a place where medicinal plants have been grown for hundreds of years, for the benefit of the medical profession and their patients.
The book references four other publications which date from the origins of the Garden in the 17th century. One, the Edinburgh …
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Episode 269: What Do Garden Designers Do?
15 januari 2024 · 25 min
This episode features horticulturist, garden designer, RHS Show Judge and plant guru Nina Baxter. We talk about what garden designers do, why they differ from landscapers, how you can find one and what they might charge for their work. Whether you're thinking of hiring a garden designer, thinking about becoming one or are just curious about the profession, this is worth a listen. Nina begins by describing her journey into garden design… Lees meer
What we talk about
What is a garden designer?
Where can you find one?
What might the process look like once you've hired one?
What should they possess in terms of qualifications, insurance, etc?
How do they differ from landscapers?
How do they charge for their work and what might you expect to pay?
About Nina Baxter
Nina Baxter is an experienced garden designer and horticulturist who has run her successful practice; Nina Baxter Garden Design Ltd. since 2004. Nina is Director of London College of Garden Design, an RHS Show Judge and a member of RHS Show Gardens Selection Panel.
Links
Nina Baxter Garden Design
London College of Garden Design
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Hiring a Garden Designer
Hiring a Gardener
Support the podcast on Patreon
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Episode 268: The Death Flower
18 december 2023 · 28 min
My guest this week is writer, broadcaster, nature observer, citizen scientist and champion of the outdoors, Kelly Brenner. This episode came about off the back of a listener suggestion and begins with a look at Lycoris radiata aka the Death Flower, and its place in nature and culture. This may seem an odd choice of subject for this festive time, but this is the last episode of 2023 and the nearest to the winter solstice, which heralds the death of the sun, so it somehow seemed fitting. Lees meer
Dr Ian Bedford's Bug of the Week: Overwintering fruit and veg pests
What we talk about
What intrigues Kelly about Lycoris radiata, and why she thinks it has garnered such dark symbolism throughout history
Nature, wildlife, and folklore – how they are seamlessly woven into Kelly's work
The origin story of Kelly's passion for plants, nature and folklore and how they naturally blend into her writing and explorations
How urban dwellers can maintain their connection with nature, and are there specific aspects of urban landscapes that come alive during these colder months?
The Sleuth Wood Show
Invertefest
Links
Kelly Brenner's website
Other episodes if you liked this one:
The Winter Garden
Camellias with Fiona Edmond
Support the podcast on Patreon
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Episode 267: Growing Box: Moths, Blight and Solutions!
11 december 2023 · 25 min
My guest this week is Belgian nurseryman Karel Goossens. Karel runs an internationally renowned nursery supplying box plants and is the Chariman of the Belgian arm of the European Boxwood & Topiary Society. With decades of experience growing box and an irreverent approach to tackling the problems that go along with it, when he was recommended to me, I thought he was my ideal sort of guest! He does recommend intensive cultivation methods which include spraying chemical fungicides and insecticides, so this epsiode is not for everyone. However, I do acknowledge that many historic gardens are built around a backbone of box and that many listeners are professional gardeners who deal with box and its attendant blights, so this epsiode is a practical look at what you can do. Lees meer
Dr Ian Bedford's Bug of the Week: Box Tree Moth
Links
Kwekerij Goossens on Instagram
European Boxwood & Topiary Society
Karel's website for tripod ladders
Our Plant Stories with Sally Flatman
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Lawns with David Hedges-Gower
Hiring a Garden Designer
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Episode 266: The Winter Garden
4 december 2023 · 22 min
This week's guest is Naomi Slade. Naomi is a journalist, author, designer and consultant. She works as a writer and broadcaster and lectures on a range of specialist subjects. She has written a number of popular gardening books and as if that weren't enough, she's also an award-winning garden designer and will be exhibiting the Flood Resilient Garden, which she's co-designed with Ed Barsley, at RHS Chelsea 2024. We're speaking about her latest book, The Winter Garden: Celebrating the Winter Season. Lees meer
Dr Ian Bedford's Bug of the Week: Organic Recyclers and Millipedes
The Winter Garden by Naomi Slade
Other epsiodes if you liked this one:
New Nordic Gardens
Natural Stone
Support the podcast on Patreon
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Episode 265: Natural Fibres
27 november 2023 · 26 min
This week's guest is multi-media artist Hanna Varga. Hanna incorporates the natural world into her work and her current projects involve foraging for fibres she turns into both useful and beautiful items. The conversation began with Hanna talking about her work past and present and developed into a really important conversation about the value of items at their more than fiscal level. Lees meer
Dr Ian Bedford's Bug of the Week: Cabbage Whiteflies
About Hanna's 'Say It With Knots' Project
"I am currently working on an engaging and urgent body of work in response to our current ecological times. I'm making a new series of sculptural forms using wild foraged plant fibres and transforming them into tactile artefacts of cordage, ropes and knots to tell stories. I source the art materials I use from the local environment to minimise my carbon footprint. The process of both gathering and making cordage is beautiful, versatile and yields evocative results. The metaphors in language offer us a diverse range of symbols, hiastorical and cultural associations and highlights the important role of rope making technologies played in the development of civilisations.
I juxtapose the craftmanship with the natural history of the landscape where the raw materials come from. I'm beginning this work on the north coast of the Scottish Highlands where a long history of shipping and fishing trades have been present. Natural and human history intertwines in the resulting artworks. I am currently in Cromarty on an artist residency developing this project that will culminate in the first exhibition of this project opening on the 15th of December.
I wish to transport my audience in time - back to the beginning, where it all started by twisting together vegetal fibres into a piece of string. Also, looking ahead into the future, an invitation to imagine new possibilities in tactile dimensions in our increasingly digitised age. I wish to awaken curiosity and evoke questions about interconnectedness.
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Episode 264: Looking out for Bumblebees
20 november 2023 · 26 min
Hello and welcome to this week's episode where my guest is Gill Perkins, CEO of the Bumblebee Conservation Trust. We talk about bumblebee populations and habitats, what we can do to encourage and care for bumblebees in our gardens and about the role of bumblebees in tomato pollination, which came as a complete surprise to me! Lees meer
Dr Ian Bedford's Bug of the Week: Fuchsia Gall Mite
What We Talk About
Bumblebee concerns
Bumblebee identification
Honeybees and beekeeping
Encouraging and caring for bumblebees
Tomato pollination
Links
Bumblebee Conservation Trust
Bee the Change
Managed Honeybees
lbka.org
Article on beekeeping
Honeybees and other wildlife
Trouble with beekeeping boom
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Urban Bees with Mark Patterson
Pollinators with Professor Jeff Ollerton
Patreon
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Episode 263: Ooooby - Out of Our Own Back Yard
13 november 2023 · 26 min
This week's episode my guest is Pete Russell, founder of Ooooby, an online platform which matches customers with small scale, local growers. Shopping for food in this way promotes homegrown produce, farm to consumer sales, supports independent growers, helps people to buy local, protects our farming heritage and helps us to move away from the chronically broken food system we currently live under. Listen in as Pete tells us how Ooooby works and how you can get involved if you're interested. Lees meer
Dr Ian Bedford's Bug of the Week: Allium Leafminers
What We Talk About
The idea behind Ooooby
The value of small scale and local farming
Sustainability
The range of products available
Quality control
The cost to the producer
Links
www.ooooby.com
Pete's Ted Talk
More on Ooooby
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Climate Cuisine with Clarissa Wei
Greg Peterson of The Urban Farm
Patreon
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Episode 262 - Low Impact & Environmentally Conscious Design
6 november 2023 · 26 min
My guest this episode is New Zealand based landscape designer Jo Wakelin. Jo creates low impact and environmentally conscious spaces and her own garden is a masterclass in water-wise planting that sits lightly within the landscape - beautiful but in keeping with its surroundings both aesthetically and ecologically. We talk about her extensive research and the lessons she's learnt along the way. Lees meer
Dr Ian Bedford's Bug of the Week: Black Vine Weevils
What We Talk About
Jo's work and what she does in her own garden
Jo's thoughts on native versus non-native plants in a garden setting
How gardens can and should work with their surrounding landscape
Current schools of thought in NZ garden design
Links
Jo Wakelin on Instagram
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Design Experts - Xanthe White
Ecologically Integrated Gardens
Patreon
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Episode 261 - The Butterfly Garden
30 oktober 2023 · 27 min
This week's episode, my guest is Clive Farrell. Clive is a butterfly expert who established The London Butterfly House at Syon House and has dedicated his life to breeding and studying the butterflies of Britain and the world. His latest project has been to develop the 100 or so acres around his home in Dorset into a haven for insects, that features unusual, even magical elements such as a giant fibreglass dragon, a replica of a Saxon longhouse that is home to a huge bog oak sculpture, a temple dedicated to ravens and a giant's chair. Clive's garden is the stuff of dreams to adult and child visitors, but also to the invertebrates which makes their homes amongst this garden which is built for them. Lees meer
Dr Ian Bedford's Bug of the Week: Overwintering Butterflies
What We Talk About
I'm not telling you, just listen ;-)
Other episodes if you liked this one:
Butterflies with Peter Eeles
Bugs in Your Garden with Dr Ian Bedford
Patreon
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Episode 260 - Moon Gardens
23 oktober 2023 · 28 min
This episode my guest is Jarema Osofsky, founder of the design studio Dirt Queen NYC and author of Moon Garden: A Guide to Creating An Evening Oasis. Moon gardening is an enchanting way to slow down in the evenings, immerse yourself in nature and cultivate a relationship with your plants and the moon and I'm talking with Jarema about how you can create your own. Lees meer
Dr Ian Bedford's Bug of the Week: Large Hairy House Spiders
What We Talk About
What is a moon garden?
Do they have to contain all white flowers?
Should you plant for year round interest?
Should the garden be visible from the house?
Apart from colour, what else is important in a moon garden?
Can you create a moon garden indoors?
Can moon gardens benefit wildlife?
Night blooming and night fragrant plants
How best to enjoy your moon garden
About the book
MOON GARDEN: A Guide to Creating an Evening Oasis (Chronicle 10/3/23) is a guide to creating a garden that comes alive at night, with night-blooming plants and night fragrant flowers. The book is full of design and horticultural wisdom; planting tips for outdoor, indoor, and container gardeners; and soothing rituals such as journaling and meditations. With beautiful botanical illustrations, Moon Garden encourages readers to approach gardening as a grounding, spiritual practice.
Spending time outdoors, and bringing nature into one's home, is both joyful and healing. MOON GARDEN is part of Jarema's mission to design beautiful garden spaces that help people cultivate meaningful connections to the natural world, while also benefiting local ecosystems in the process.
About Jarema Osofsky
Brooklyn-based landscape and interior plant designer, Jarema Osofsky is the founder of Dirt Queen NYC, a garden design and plant care business. Her debut book, MOON GARDEN: A Guide to Creating an Evening Oasis (Chronicle 10/3/23), invites readers to dive into the world of moon gardens and all that they offer. MOON GARDEN is a guide to creating a garden that comes al…