Episodes

  • Hello podcast People!

    This episode I’m chatting to one of my garden designer heroes, Matthew Wilson. He tells us the story of his life in horticulture, and the many bends in the road along the way. Besides heading up a busy garden design practice, Matthew is a regular on BBC Gardener’s Question Time a speaker, journalist and author as well as finding time to spend in his own garden. His 2009 TV show Landscape Man literally broke new ground in telly gardening. We chat about what it’s really like to face the public’s gardening questions, and I grill him on all your tricky ones too. This was my first live podcast and the audience was the sunniest, kindest, smiliest sort. What a lovely bunch of people gardeners are!

    Enjoy!

    Matthew Wison

    Website | Twitter | Instagram

  • Cleve West, by Chaz Oldham

    Hi Podcast People!

    In this episode I chat to Cleve West, legendary garden designer, and passionate vegan. We talk about just what it takes to create a winning Chelsea garden, eating vegan and having long enough legs! Do take a look at his website www.clevewest.com for links to all the vegan things we speak about in this episode.

    Enjoy!

    CLEVE WEST

    Website | Twitter | Instagram

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  • Hello Podcast people! Fergus the Forager is a master of living off the land. See the show notes for all his details, including courses you can take.

  • Naomi's Twitter. Naomi's Website

    Naomi Slade is a freelance journalist with a degree in science and a background in publishing, events and managing rock bands. In this podcast she shares her love of and fascination for the subject of her latest book, Dahlias: Beautiful Varieties for Home and Garden.

    Things we talk about in this episode:

    Naomi’s background

    Her Snowdrop book: Plant lovers guide to snowdrops (Timber Press)

    Joe Sharman of Monksilver Nursery

    Naomi’s snowdrop Galanthus 'Naomi Slade'

    Her Orchard book: An Orchard Odyssey (Green Books)

    Definition of an orchard: 5 Trees with crown edges not more than 20 metres apart

    Perennial fruit and food

    Dahlia as fashion victim

    Divisive dahlias

    Rich man’s plants

    1851 Exhibition

    Christopher Lloyd

    Are they worth the effort?

    Dahlia genetics

    Humans are diploid - 2 sets of chromosomes

    dahlias are octoploid - 8 sets of chromosomes

    Loads of transposons which spontaneously change what they look like

    quick mutations = thousands of cultivars

    Yellow and orange dahlias often have irridescence

    Dahlia History

    Aztec rituals

    Cactus dahlias

    Dahlia requirements

    How to start them off

    Slugs and frost

    Slugs hide underneath the tuber and come out at night

    Pinching out

    Planting out

    Feeding

    Staking

    Deadheading

    Dahliaworld.co.uk has all 60k varieties - the perfect place to geek out

    National collection in Penzance

    Overwintering

    Nobody likes a soggy bottom

    Favourite dahlias

    Restrained dahlias: ponpons and small balls

    Containers

    Varieties and cultivars we talk about in this episode:

    D. Hamari Gold

    D. Peresii

    D. David Howard

    D. Arabian Knight

    D. Gentle star

    D. Thomas Eddison

    D. Hootenanny

    D. Eveline

    The gallery series - compact and pretty

    Happy singles - simple daisy flowers

  • Things we talk about in this episode:

    What's in a name

    The process of creating a stand at Chelsea

    Pitching, competing, submitting

    Creating an outdoor living space

    Choosing carefully so as not to overload the stand. Making a realistic outdoor space

    How to choose a grower

    How the process works

    Trees and hedging

    Choosing plants 

    Having a master plan (or not)

    Who is the client? Sponsor? Stand?

    It’s all about the medal

    Gold medals and good pr

    The first job

    Sleepless nights

    Faking it till you make it

    Not knowing the answer!

    Asking for help where you need it

    Knowledge and confidence

    How to be a good service provider

    Communication 

    Selling ideas to a client

    Suggesting, steering, guiding

    Using FACTS to get your way

    A tape measure is your best tool. 

    Balancing motherhood and a buisiness

    Baked beans again

    Being there when it counts - sports day etc

    Setting a strong example for the children

    Garden design creates beautiful spaces for families - it’s one of the nicest things you can do for people

    Planting style

    Planting a show garden vs planting a private garden

    Seasonal planting

    Shrubs and herbaceous

    Clipped shapes and chaos

    Scaling up: putting big in small

    Getting vertical interest in - wires and trellis to take eyes up

    Getting a mirror in! Should be antiqued - bounces light

    Being a weekend gardener

    Outsourcing the clearing up

    Screening and blocking out

    Trellis

    Trees

    Meadow

    Tidying tendencies

    Being brave

    Computer woes

    Turning the laptop on

    Delegation

    Plants, People, links

    Gaze Burvill Garden Furniture

    Deepdale-  hornbeams

    Chichester Trees and Shrubs 

    Hortus loci

    Rosa'Gertrude Jekyll'

    Geum'Totally tangerine'

    Rosa'Munstead Wood'

    Julia Samuel

    Colefax and Fowler

    The English Gardening School

    London College of garden design

    Andrew Wilson

    Cloudy Bay garden Chelsea 2014

    p9’s (0.5 litre pots)

    Alchemilla mollis

    roses

    nepeta

    Salvia nemerosa'Caradonna'

    Salvia'Nachtvlinder'

    Salvia'Amistad'

    Hydrangea'Annabelle'

    Hydrangea paniculata'Limelight'

    Amelanchier lamarckii

    Mobilane

    Tulipa 'Black parrot'

    Fritillaria meleagris

    Allium 'Purple sensation'

    A. 'Purple rain'

    Gareth Kinsella

    The wildflower Turf company 

    RosaMme Alfred Carriere - flowers on a north wall

    Stauntonia hexaphylla- will cover everything but beware

    Clematis armandii

    Akebia quinata

    Trachelospermum jasminoides

  • Things we talk about in the episode:

    Why we love pelargoniums

    scent of leaves

    musky stringent smell

    bad breath

    tomato foliage

    the easiness of them

    Fibrex nurseries

    The National Collection of Pelargoniums

    Heather’s growing history

    Learning about pelargoniums, ferns and ivies

    The difference between pelargoniums and geraniums

    Family: Geraneacae

    Same family, different genus:

    Genus: Pelargonium (southern hemisphere, tender, succulent or woody shrubs)

    Genus: Geranium (northern hemisphere, cranesbill. Hardy, herbaceous perennial)

    You can’t hybridise between the two - most definitely two different things!

    Geranium for pelargonium is WRONG because it’s misleading

    If you can’t say pelargonium, just call them pellies

    Pelargoniums are really tough in the right environment

    Replicate SA in the UK

    Loam based, open, free draining compost

    Water management

    Good light, even over winter

    No darkness, no dinginess

    In England that’s difficult, but not impossible

    Good airflow

    In a cool environment - Strip off a lot of the leaves which they don’t need because they’re not growing and you’re not watering.

    Zonals, decoratives, uniques, scenteds can have majority of leaves lower down taken off, leaving just the growing tip

    Gets rid of mildew, mould, botrytis etc at the same time - bonus!

    Allows good airflow which is essential

    Keeping pelargoniums indoors as houseplants

    Avoid a kitchen or bathroom environment - too damp

    Sitting room, living room, porch, 

    Close to window or on windowsill. 

    Natural daylight - doesn’t have to be direct sunlight

    Feed:

    Tomato feed like Tomorite

    First feed of season should be a balanced feed but otherwise Tomorite as soon as you see fresh young growth

    Bedding

    Zonal pelargoniums are still used for bedding - can look stunning

    Key is to mass-plant with just one colour. Colour match with neighbouring plants

    Key group within zonals: Bold series - good chunky, strong growing with short stems and lots of flowers which are shatter-proof.

    Use decorative, uniques and scented for gap-filling too!

    Attar of roses, Grey Lady Plymouth in a mixed border - 

    Chocolate peppermint and Tomentosum at Wisley - looked amazing

    Containers:

    Potting compost magic formula; John Innes no. 2 and multi-purpose compost half and half

    Re-pot in spring and you don’t need to feed for a month because of JI 

    You cant over-feed a pellie!

    Feed every time you water

    If you want to get flowers like you see in the shows then you have to feed them! They’re on steroids

    Pinching out.

    Young cuttings - single stem. Once rooted and growing, pinch out top leaf and newest bud. Leaving a couple of live axils below means it will start to branch out. It’s not about height, it’s about body.

    Keep pinching out

    Fibrex takes cuttings in August through to April. The pinching out happens throughout, until February. From buds, flowers will appear in six weeks. Pinching out is instinctive and takes practice, but not a lot of time if you’ve got a few pots outside the door.

    Dead heading.

    Pelargoniums LOVE to flower. If you take off the untidy ones it will grow more as soon as possible. If you leave them, the plant slows down.

    Heather deadheads every plant, every week - LOTS of work! Not so for a few pots.

    Snap bottom of flower stem between fingers and it will come off naturally

    Overwintering.

    Cuttings

    Prepare your pot, 9 -12 cm Sterile seed compost and perlite or grit for drainage, Pat mixture down and saturate with water. Take cuttings, 2 inches at most depending on variety. Heather takes tip cuttings with one or two leaf nodes. Strip bottom leaves off, leaving growing tip and a couple of leaves at top. After 4-5 days give another drink. 5-10 cuttings in a 9cm pot. Cuttings really do like company. Heather pushes her cuttings straight in - no dibber and no rooting hormone.

    Heather likes to keep the leaves touching in the nursery.

    Leaving pelargoniums in pots over winter

    Start in September to prepare them by feeding them with a general purpose feed

    Stops them from flowering. Take a third off in Autumn and strip the leaves. Re-pot in spring with fresh compost, fluffing up the roots. Water in lightly. After a couple of weeks, general feed and then put outside. Night temps should be around five degrees - leave till mid may or end of may. 

    If you want them to continue flowering in a conservatory then just keep feeding tomato food.

    Windowsill with radiator is fine as they like a dry environment

    Best are dwarves and miniatures for permanent flowering as they won’t outgrow their space.

    Other overwintering ideas:

    Hanging the upside-down. Used to be done. It’s a bit extreme and not entirely necessary.  You can leave in the compost just ease off on the watering.

    Pests and diseases. 

    The whitefly clap. 

    Use invigorators rather than insecticides. SB invigorator gives the plant extra and has ammonia which whitefly hate. 

    Good for spider mite too. Spidermite like dry environments 

    Greenfly like the soft young growth. Squish.

    Pelargonium starter-kit for newbies

    Scented: Attar of Roses. The gorgeousness of it!

    Decorative: Ashby. Strong, easy, free-flowering, big and beautiful, and EARLY.

    Specie: Austral. From Tasmania. Borderline hardy. Dark green, with delicate white flowers

    Pellie cake. 

    What makes a lemon smell like a lemon?

    Pelargoniums have over 120 volatile chemicals in the leaves. Hence the huge variety of scents and flavours

    Best houseplant pelargonium: Fragrans because of fresh fragrance and height. Delicate, pretty, delightful.

    fibrex.co.uk

    fibrexnurseries on twitter and instagram

    May 1st national collection is open free of charge, but you can visit whenever you like.

    Pellie party! Smelly pellie jelly! Turn up!

    Links, Plants and important stuff we mention:

    Zonal Bold series

    Attar of Roses

    Grey Lady Plymouth

    Chocolate Pepperming

    Tomentosum

    Tomorite tomato food

    SB invigorator

    Heather’s top three for beginners:

    Attar of Roses

    Ashby

    Australe

    Houseplant favourite: Fragrans

    Fibrex Pellie Party

  • Andrew in the greenhouse 

    why a greenhouse?

    hardening off

    cold frames

    potting on and space considerations

    overwintered pelargoniums: feeding

    houseplant murder

    houseplant care at this time of year

    whitefly

    mealybugs

    feeding houseplants with seaweed extract

    upping the watering regime

    vine weevil on pillow

    nemasys

    repotting containerised plants

    vine weevil vigilance

    dealing with pot-bound plants

    standardised plants

    intuitive gardening

    top-dressing

    crocks

    alpine scree

    daffodils and yellow snobbery

    forsythia, the untidy plant

    deadheading daffs

    chopping tulips

    Laetitia’s amelanchiers and how much she loves them

    amelanchier - a hard-working plant

    Garden visiting in winter and early spring

    Box topiary at West Dean gardens

    Clipping your sarcococca into mounds

    horrifying results post-clippage


    On The Ledge Podcast

    Andrew’s pelargonium tips

    Laetitia’s alpine trough

    The Garden Log

    Narcissi Thalia

    Miranda Janatka’s article in the hardy plant society blog

    amelanchier canadensis and lamarkii

    West Dean Gardens

    Plants we talk about and links

    On The Ledge Podcast

    Andrew’s pelargonium tips

    Laetitia’s alpine trough

    The Garden Log

    Narcissi Thalia

    amelanchier canadensis and lamarkii

    West Dean Gardens

  • THINGS WE TALK ABOUT IN THIS EPISODE:

    Incredible Edible Bristol

    Five minute gardening

    Knitting theory

    Using both sides of your brain

    Killing begonias

    Ivy and pelargoniums as houseplants

    Windowsill seed sowing

    Buying seedlings

    Not over-sowing

    Am I a nurseryman?

    Essential seed-sowing equipment

    Compost

    Plants to grow from seed

    Dividing plants with two forks

    LINKS, PLANTS, IMPORTANT STUFF WE MENTION

    Incredible Edible Bristol

    Ron Finley

    Emma Mitchell

    Coffee plant

    Schefflera

    Peace lily

    On the Ledge Podcast

    Sweet peas (cupani)

    Cosmos

    Chillies

    Alpine Strawberries

    Hydrangea pruning

  • Things we talk about in this episode:

    Judging at Chelsea

    Objectivity and how the judging system works

    James’s gardening journey

    Sex, death and deliciousness

    The gardener as referee

    The recipe for a good garden

    Making sure that the practical essentials are in the right place

    James’s own garden

    The corner of shame

    Calling in help when life gets in the way

    James’s inspiration

    Show gardens and unattainability

    Gardening as larceny

    Removing sentimentality (and diseased trees)

    Watching and waiting

    Dealing with the boring stuff first

    Barefoot compost heaps

    Gardens, garden designers, succulents, cacti, azaleas and rhododendrons

    Roses and revolutionary verve

    Stopping gardening when it becomes a chore

    Designers and Chelsea show gardens

    The cult of the designer

    James’s 7 minute Chelsea garden

    Evil wisteria

    Stop worrying

    Fortnum and Mason manure

    Plants for dry shade

    Right plant right place

    Self control

    Growing rhododendrons in the cotswolds

    And watching them die

    Seed sowing

    Leggy chillies

    Snow hating

    Shed cleaning

    Weeding with a hula hoop

    Apres freeze watering

    Dahlias

    Slugs and how to deal with them

    Slugs vs snails 

    Evil slugs

    Evil drunken slugs

    Savage slugs

    Hedgehog homes

    Podcasting as gardening

  • Laetitia and Andrew introduce themselves and reveal what's in store for listeners of The Virgin Gardener Podcast. Exciting news! Our first guest will be the horticultural rockstar that is James Alexander Sinclair!