What's your recommended recipe for homemade seed compost? What makes a dog friendly garden? What is the most inappropriate piece of garden advice that you've received?
Peter Gibbs and the panel offer advice to an audience of keen gardeners in the borough of Wokingham. Joining Peter are house plants expert Anne Swithinbank, garden designer Bunny Guinness, and proud plantsman Matthew Biggs.
Later in the programme, for Plant Health Week, Kirsty Wilson visits the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh to meet biosecurity officer Matt Elliot and discover how new pests and diseases are threatening our gardens — and what we can do to fight back.
Producer: Matt Smith
Assistant Producer: Rahnee Prescod
Executive Producer: Carly Maile
A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4
Plant List
Questions and timecodes are below. Where applicable, plant names have been provided.
Q - Do the panel have any favourite help or design features in their gardens made by their pets? (01'45")
Q- Could you give me some top tips on growing Dahlias? (05'40")
Q- How do you manage a wildflower area after the first year of flowering? (10’18")
Feature – Kirsty Wilson and Biosecurity Officer of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh discuss how we can protect our plants from new pests and diseases (14'20")
Q- My Fatsia Bush has flowered – do I prune it back or leave the fruits for the birds? (19'30")
Q - Which exciting new plants should we be looking forward to growing in the south-east of England?
(22'31")
Bunny Guinness –
Diospyros virginiana (F), common persimmon
Diospyros 'Nikita's Gift' (F), Nikita’s Gift Persimmon.
Salvia involucrata 'Hadspen', rosy-leaf sage ‘Hadspen’
Matthew Biggs –
Salvia officinalis 'Bicolor', sage 'Bicolor'
Echium
Echium wildpretii, tower of jewels
Echium pininana giant viper's bugloss
Anne Swithinbank –
Leonotis Leonurus, lion's tail
Dictamnus albus, burning bush
Eriobotrya, loquat
Q - What is your recommended recipe for homemade seed compost? (28'00")
Q - I have a small starter allotment; can the panel advise me on how to make the most of my small plot? (32'10")
Bunny Guinness –
Onion
Garlic
Lettuce
Matthew Biggs –
Lettuce,
fresh beetroot,
fresh carrots,
finger carrots
Baby leaf
Spinach
radish
courgettes
French beans
Runner beans
Anne Swithinbank –
Foeniculum vulgare var. azoricum, florence fennel
Q - What is the most inappropriate piece of garden advice that you've received, and did you follow it? (37'24")
