Roots and All - Gardening Podcast

This week I’m chatting with writer Kendra Wilson. Kendra has written a vast amount about gardening but I was particularly interested in speaking to her about her book Garden for the Senses. Engaging all your senses can lead to a deeper connection with the landscape and it can be an unusual and transformative experience. I wanted to find out how we can all learn to better use our senses and firstly, what prompted Kendra to write the book.  Dr Ian Bedford’s Bug of the Week: The blue butterflies What We Talk About How catering to the senses can lend another dimension to the garden How many senses should we aim to stimulate in a garden? One good plant that will engage with each of our five senses How you can learn to engage your senses more when in the garden About Kendra Wilson Kendra has contributed to The Sunday Times, Gardens Illustrated, Guardian Weekend, Garden Design Journal, RHS The Garden,  and Vogue. She is a longstanding correspondent for Gardenista online and contributed a chapter 'The Gardenista 100' to the 2016 book, Gardenista: The Definitive Guide to Stylish Outdoor Spaces. Kendra has worked on numerous projects including a limited-edition book for Mulberry and other books including My Garden is a Car Park and The Book of the Flower. Links Garden for the Senses by Kendra Wilson - Dorling Kindersley, February 2022  www.kendrapagewilson.com

This week’s guest is ecologist and author Julian Doberski. If you think about compost heaps, how much do you really think about the living micro and macro organisms that dwell within them, how they contribute to the composting process and how what you do to your heap can increase or decrease their chances of survival? Julian has written about the science of what goes on in a compost heap and about the living organisms who provide the ‘hard graft’ of transforming waste organic matter in his latest publication The Science of Compost. I spoke to Julian to find out more.  Dr Ian Bedford’s Bug of the Week: Fuchsia Gall Mite What We Talk About What is compost? Does what go in also come out? Eg if we want a high nitrogen compost product should we use raw materials that are also high in nitrogen? How do you know what you’ll be getting as an end product? How do you get the right balance of the organisms that break down the heap? The correct ratio of woody versus green materials in a compost heap What makes a compost heap break down, apart from the organisms in it?  About Julian Doberski Julian Doberski has degrees in Zoology (BSc Southampton), Forestry (MSc Oxford) and a PhD in biological control of insects using fungi (Cambridge). He has thirty years of teaching experience at Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge (and its predecessor institutions) where he was a Principal Lecturer in Ecology. He has jointly published a resource pack for A level ecology students and a range of scientific research and science in education papers. He is currently retired and lives in Cambridgeshire. Links The Science of Compost: Life, Death and Decay in the Garden by Dr. Julian Doberski Other episodes if you liked this one: The Regenerative Grower’s Guide to Garden Amendments with Nigel Palmer Mycorrhizal Fungi with Jeff Lowenfels Patreon Membership

This week I’m speaking to Juliette Goggin, perfumery consultant to some of the most recognised brands in the world, upcycling and reusing champion, owner of the cosmetics company Hand Made by Juliette and author of the books Handmade Beauty and Handmade Spa. We talk about how you can use plants from your garden to create products that are natural, inexpensive, easy to make and that actually work.  Dr Ian Bedford’s Bug of the Week: Gooseberry Sawfly What We Talk About Juliette’s background in perfumes and cosmetics The impetus behind the books Handmade Beauty & Handmade Spa Why should we try to make our own products?  How are they better than what you can buy? Do you need a lot of equipment? Do you need to source fairly specialist ingredients?  How you can incorporate items from your garden into your products Prepping ingredients About Juliette Goggin Juliette trained in perfumery evaluation, and worked for a Fragrance house in Grasse in the South of France to develop bespoke products for niche brands in the UK. Throughout this time Juliette was always keen to learn how everything was made and to expand her knowledge, combining this with a natural love of crafting which she developed as a child forever making things from cast off bits and pieces.  Juliette teaches classes in Natural Skincare and Candle Making, based around her Handmade Beauty and Handmade Spa illustrated books. The books also acted as a springboard to creating her own Collection of natural skincare and home fragrance products in 2018, appropriately called Handmade by Juliette. Links www.handmadebyjuliette.com Instagram @handmadebyjuliette Other episodes if you liked this one: Sensory Herbalism with Karen Lawton The Rose in Perfume with Mairi MacKenzie Patreon Membership

This week’s guest is Hawaii-based writer and grower Ja-Ne de Abreu. When the pandemic began, Ja-ne became an instant 24/7 caregiver for her hanai mother. To keep things positive, she started growing food and discovered it also grew peace and calm to their lives amid the ongoing chaos. Ja-ne had an intuition to write Sassy Food to share the inspiration that everyone can grow food at any time of year, anywhere in the world on any budget and harvest peace in the process. We talk about growing in small spaces, how growing food can foster positive connections in difficult times and what happens when the creative spark catches.  Dr Ian Bedford’s Bug of the Week: Butterfly decline What we cover The idea behind Sassy Food The climate in Hawaii and what you can grow Why it’s important that we all grow food where we can Seeds that can be eaten as sprouts Grow tents to increase indoor growing space Easy and cheap/free ways to propagate edible plants Washing produce and some easy, natural products to use Why is food like music? About Ja-ne de Abreu When the pandemic began, Ja-ne de Abreu became an instant 24/7 caregiver for her hanai mother. To keep things positive, she started growing food and discovered it also grew peace and calm to their lives amid the ongoing chaos. Ja-ne had an intuition to write Sassy Food to share the inspiration that everyone can grow food at any time of year, anywhere in the world on any budget and harvest peace in the process. Sassy Food has won two first place book awards and was a finalist in two book contests for the book cover as well as interior design.   De Abreu’s other award-winning books are a memoir with her sister and brother-in-law, Chasing the Surge: Life as a Travel Nurse in a Global Pandemic, and her debut novel, The Energy Inside Valsin’s Choices. In addition, de Abreu also published five books of the Richard Tregaskis Classics Collection under the JMFdeA Press imprint last year and will publish five more in the near future. Ja-ne’s focus is exploring the energy inside our choices and the resulting responsibilities and freedoms by telling stories through various methods.  Links Join Sassy Food Farms on Instagram  Ja-Ne de Abreu’s website www.jmfdeapress.com Ja-Ne on Facebook Ja-Ne on Twitter Ja-Ne on Instagram Other episodes if you liked this one: Abundance and Self-Sufficiency with Liz Zorab Patreon Membership

This week I’m speaking to Founder of Wildflower Turf Limited and author of the book ‘How to make a wildflower meadow’ James Hewetson-Brown. James has a vast amount of experience creating meadows at domestic and public scales, is passionate about creating species rich habitats which are attractive to people and wildlife and which have the added benefits of pollution mitigation and carbon sequestration. We talk about the nuts and bolts of meadow making but also about why meadows can be the solution to so many of our landscaping needs. Dr Ian Bedford’s Bug of the Week: Tardegrades What we cover Why meadows can be a quick solution to bring biodiversity to previously relatively barren areas, particularly in urban environments If you build it, will they come? Or is biodiversity too depleted already? The best ways of establishing a meadow Convert an area of lawn to meadow Annual species, perennials, and mixtures of both Do you need grass species in a meadow? Unusual or interesting projects James has worked on Links www.wildflowerturf.co.uk How to make a wildflower meadow: Tried-And-Tested Techniques for New Garden Landscapes by James Hewetson-Brown - Filbert Press, 2016 Other episodes if you liked this one: Meadows with Keith Datchler Patreon Membership

My guest this week is naturalist, conservationist and writer Benedict Macdonald. Benedict has recently released a new book ‘Cornerstones’, which talks about how by restoring cornerstone species we can help turn around the current impoverished state of nature in the UK. His previous book ‘Rebirding’ was how I first came to know of his work and I’ve been a great admirer of his work ever since. We talk about the numbers of UK birds, how land management needs to change in order to stop the loss of species in this country and what we can do at a garden level to make changes. Dr Ian Bedford’s Bug of the Week: Box tree moth What we cover - Do we waste money propping up untenably small populations of threatened species in isolated areas? - Bird species that are the ‘walking dead’ in Britain - Achieving cooperation between individual land owners to create the large scale and connected habitats that are needed to sustain populations - Adopting a build it and they will come approach -  Are we wasting our time trying to make a difference at the garden scale? If not, what can we do to make a difference?  - Some of the problems mentioned in Rebirding are directly related to the EUs common agricultural policy. How could this change given Brexit? - Ecotourism About Benedict Macdonald Benedict Macdonald is a conservation writer, field director in wildlife television, and a keen naturalist. He is passionate about restoring Britain's wildlife, pelicans included, in his lifetime.  During his extensive global travel experience, Benedict has found inspiring examples of why desecrating our country’s ecosystems is both entirely avoidable and against the national interest. This book is his attempt to ensure that this generation, for the first time in thousands of years, leaves Britain’s wildlife better off, not worse, than the generation before – for wildlife and people alike. Benedict is a long-time writer for Birdwatching magazine, as well as a contributor to the RSPB Nature’s Home and BBC Wildlife. He has been fortunate to work on TV series for the BBC and Netflix - most notably the grasslands and jungles programmes of Sir David Attenborough’s conservation series Our Planet. Links Cornerstones: Wild forces that can change our world by Benedict Macdonald - Bloomsbury Publishing PLC , 2022 Orchard: A Year in England's Eden by Benedict Macdonald - HarperCollins, 2021 Rebirding: Restoring Britain's Wildlife by Benedict Macdonald - Pelagic Publishing, 2020 Other episodes if you liked this one: Irreplaceable with Julian Hoffman Patreon Membership

This week’s guest is Martin Harvey, an entomologist and biological recorder based at the UK CEH Biological Records Centre. His main areas of work include the iRecord online recording system, liaison with national recording schemes, and the UK Pollinator Monitoring Scheme. Martin enjoys watching and recording hoverflies and I was delighted he agreed to an interview as although I know next to nothing about them, I do love seeing them in the garden and I’m always keen to find out more. Dr Ian Bedford’s Bug of the Week: Beewolf What we cover The UK Pollinator Monitoring Scheme How hoverflies are distinct from bees or other flies How many species of hoverfly are in the UK More common species and the rarest Mimicry How to encourage more hoverflies into our gardens Where to find out more about hoverflies About Martin Harvey Martin Harvey is an entomologist and biological recorder based at the UK CEH Biological Records Centre. His main areas of work include the iRecord online recording system, liaison with national recording schemes, and the UK Pollinator Monitoring Scheme. He also teaches for Field Studies Council. Martin enjoys watching and recording hoverflies and other insects, and as a volunteer he runs the national Soldierflies and Allies Recording Scheme, and is County Moth Recorder for Berkshire. Links UKCEH Biological Records Centre Hoverfly Recording Scheme UK Hoverflies on Facebook Buzz Club hoverfly lagoons from Sussex University Dipterists Forum (the society for the study and conservation of flies) Other episodes if you liked this one: Butterflies with Peter Eeles Patreon Membership

This week, I’m speaking to Michael Marriott about historic roses. Micheal is an expert rosarian, Chairman of the Historic Roses Group and author of the recently published book RHS ‘Roses’. We talk about what historic roses are, some of the myths surrounding them and why they’re an excellent choice for your garden, particularly if you’re looking for something a little different. I began by asking Michael about his background and how he became interested in historic roses. Dr Ian Bedford’s Bug of the Week: Harebell Carpenters What we cover The Historic Roses Group and Michael’s involvement with the group What is an historic rose?  More common historic roses we might have come across Disease resistance Scent Do they repeat flower? Gardens in the UK where you can see historic roses Good old rose varieties if you’re dipping your toe in the water of growing them Links Historic Roses Group RHS Roses: An inspirational Guide to Choosing and Growing the Best Roses by Michael Marriott Other episodes if you liked this one: Pruning Roses with Richard Stubbs of David Austin