Mike The Gardener - Gardening Podcast

In this week's episode, I chat with garden writer and author, climate change expert and editor of Amateur Gardening magazine, Kim Stoddart. We chat about: Kim's excellent new book, 'The Climate Change Resilient Vegetable Garden', published by Cool Springs Press. Resilience The importance of connecting with nature Wellbeing Emotional regulation Nutrient density, and, of course, lots more To learn more about Kim head to her website by clicking here, or to her Instagram account by clicking here. You can learn more about me by heading to my Instagram account bye clicking here, or have a read of my writing on Substack by clicking here. Thanks to you all for listening and please don't forget to follow/subscribe and please leave a review if you are able. I'll see you next week. Mike

In this week's, episode, I head back to the Cotswolds for what is fast, becoming my annual get together with garden writer, Val Bourne. The weather, not on our side, this time, meant we had to record this episode in the lounge of Val's beautiful cottage. We chat about: Writing for a living Val's pretty cottage garden Erythroniums Dahlias Ed Sheeran (!), and, Lots more as always Please don't forget to follow/subscribe as there are more episodes to come. And please do leave a review if you are able. To follow me on my Instagram account tap here. See you next week. Mike

In this week's, episode of the Mike The Gardener – Gardening Podcast, I chat to my friend and one time tutor, garden writer, broadcaster, and author, David Hurrion.   Twenty years ago, I was lucky enough to have had David as the tutor of my RHS level 1 course. As you will hear in today’s episode, David’s vocation has been to share his vast knowledge of all things, plants, gardening and horticulture with others. He’s also been a journalist, writer and editor, working for publications, including Amateur Gardening magazine and Gardeners’ World magazine.   David’s new book The Raised Bed Book, has recently been published by DK books, and in today’s episode we chat about:   David’s new book and how it came about David’s career to date The importance of inspirational teachers/tutors Broadcasting on radio and television, and lots lots more My thanks to David for joining me in today’s episode, and to find out more about him or to order the book, please click here.   You can find out more about me and follow me on my Instagram account by clicking here.   Thanks for listening, and please don’t forget to follow/subscribe, and if you are able, please do leave a review.   See you next week.   Mike

In this week’s episode of the Mike the Gardener - Gardening Podcast, I chat with garden writer, veg grower and author, Rob Smith.  Rob’s new book ‘Grow to Eat: Growing Colourful & Tasty Vegetables From Seed’ is published by Quadrille Publishing on 28th March, 2024 and in this episode we chat about: How Rob’s passion for growing veg started His career to date How the book came about The BBC TV programme, The Great Allotment Challenge, which Rob won in 2015 Rob’s plans for the future, and of course lots more.  We also speak to Rob’s friend, gardener, maker, upcycler and lover of all things vintage, Darren Lakin.  It’s a great episode and my thanks to Rob, and Darren for coming along to have a chat with us.  You can learn more about about Rob by clicking here. You can learn more about Darren by clicking here. And, you can learn more about me by clicking here.  Please don’t forget to follow/subscribe and please leave a review if you’re able.  Thanks for listening.  Mike

In this week's episode of the Mike the Gardener - Gardening Podcast, I chat with award-winning garden designer, Manoj Malde. We chat about his new book 'Your Outdoor Room' published by Frances Lincoln on 21 March 2024. We chat about: His childhood His career in the fashion industry The book and how it came about Manoj's Chelsea Flower Show Gardens His TV work, and lots more You can find out more about Manoj by clicking here and follow him on Instagram by clicking here You can follow me on my Instagram account by clicking here. Please don't forget to follow/subscribe and leave a review if you can. See you next week. Mike

In this week’s episode of the Mike the Gardener - Gardening Podcast, I chat with Lucy Hutchings (@shegrowsveg) about her career to date. In 2018, Lucy took to Instagram to chart her progress growing her own fruit & vegetables. She now has a following of over 180,000.  In this episode, I chat to Lucy about her career to date, including her work as a writer, author, garden designer, and now, entrepreneur as she and business partner, Kate Cotterell have set up the UK Heirloom Seed Company. Lucy also shares exclusively their plans for the Chelsea Flower Show in May 2024. To follow Lucy on her Instagram account click here. To follow me on my Instagram account click here. Thanks for listening and please don't forget to follow/subscribe as there are more episodes to follow.  And, if you are able, please leave a review. See you next week. Mike

In this week's episode of the Mike The Gardener - Gardening Podcast, I chat once again to Jekka McVicar whose new book '100 Herbs to Grow' is published 7 March 2024 by Quadrille Publishing. In this fascinating and in-depth chat, we talk about: Jekka's new book, '100 Herbs to Grow'. How to inspire people to grow The future of small and independent specialist nurseries How Jekka spends her ‘me-time’ Her plans for the future, and much more. This is truly another great chat with Jekka, and I am re-releasing our first chat alongside this episode as some of our conversations relate back to our first meeting. My thanks to Jekka for taking time from her schedule to chat to us today.  You can follow Jekka's Herb Farm by clicking here. And you can follow Jekka's personal account by clicking here. And you can follow me on my Instagram account by clicking here. Please don't forget to follow/subscribe and if you are able, please leave a review. Thank you and see you next week. Mike

In this week's episode of the Mike The Gardener - Gardening Podcast, I chat with Scotland Grows Editor and Podcaster and freelance writer M.T. O’Donnell.  Amongst many topics, we discuss: MTs, role as Editor and Podcaster for Scotland Grows. The Scotland Grows magazine. The challenges of gardening in Scotland.  The TRELLIS charity - Gardening for Well-Being, and lots more.  You can find out more about Scotland Grows by clicking here. My thanks to MT for taking time out of her schedule to come and chat to us today. You can follow MT on her Instagram account by clicking here.   And you can follow me on my Instagram account by clicking here.    My thanks, as always, for listening, and please don't forget to follow/subscribe as there are more great episodes to come. See you very soon.  Mike

In this week's episode of the Mike the Gardener - Gardening Podcast, I return to Kingston Maurward, horticultural college, where I learnt my trade many, many years ago. Nigel Hewish, the Head Gardener there, is responsible for the national collection of salvias held within the grounds of the college. What Nigel doesn't know about salvias frankly, isn't worth knowing. In this informative episode, we chat about: Where salvias originate from How to grow them How to propagate them How to get the very best from them Planting companions Pests and diseases, and much more My thanks to Nigel for taking time to come and talk to us today. If you want to know more about me and my own garden, you can follow me on my Instagram account, mike_the gardener.  My thanks to you for listening, and please don't forget to follow/subscribe as there are more great episodes to come. And, if you are able to, please leave a review so that other gardening enthusiasts can find us here. Thanks for listening and see you next week.

Hello and welcome to the Mike the Gardener - Gardening Podcast. In this first episode of Series 7, I'm delighted to be joined by the rather lovely Anya Lautenbach, a.k.a. Anya, The Garden Fairy (Instagram). Anya's brand new book, her first, The Money Saving Gardener is published on 8 February by DK books. We chat about: How the book came about The writing process Anya's first gardening memories How a personal tragedy led to her building a beautiful garden of her own How she got into propagation Her plans for the future, and lots, lots more. You can follow Anya on her Instagram account by clicking here and details of her new book and can be found here. You can find out more about me and my garden by following me on my Instagram account.  Click here for more information.  Thanks for listening and I'll be back next week. Mike

In this weeks episode, I chat to another Head Gardener, Nigel Hewish of Kingston Maurward college in Dorchester. I completed my horticultural training at Kingston Morwood many years ago, and it was a delight to catch up with Nigel to talk about the gardens and his career. In this chat, we cover: Nigel's career to date His love of trees and shrubs The plant collections at Kingston Maurward The impacts of climate change, and lots more. There's also some very handy gardening advice and tips about caring for penstemons and salvias. To learn more about Kingston Maurward, click here. To learn more about me, click here Thanks to you all for listening to this series and I will be back shortly with Series 7. Mike

In this fascinating episode,  I chat to Charles Carr, who is the Head of Wholesale Nurseries at Hillier Nurseries Limited.  Charles took me on a tour of the site and it's just incredible to see this massive operation, and the technology thats in use, the skills of the staff all around the site and most importantly, the quality of the plants that are produced. I chat to Charles about his role and, as with so many conversations I've had in this series, we talk about the impact of climate change and going peat free and how the industry is responding to these very real challenges. Hilliers Nurseries are pretty much peat free, and they have some fascinating technology to help them learn about this new growing medium. And for all of us, whatever the size of our garden, we too will need to learn about how to grow our plants in a peat, free medium. As you might expect, we cover a lot of ground within this discussion, including pests and diseases, what happens during the winter months, the importance of learning and development for staff, new plant development, and Charles own plant passions and of course lots more. Thank you all for listening to this series of the Mike The Gardener – Gardening Podcast and I will be back in the New Year with one more episode for this series, before picking up again in spring with Series 7. Wishing you a very Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy, 2024. Mike

In this episode of the Mike the Gardener - Gardening Podcast, I go back to a garden, that's not too far from me, the Harold Hillier Gardens in Ampfield near Romsey to chat to Head Gardener, Fran Clifton. I last visited Fran a couple of years ago, when we talked about the stunning winter garden, but today, we talk about: Fran's role as head gardener What the role entails How much time does she actually get to spend in the garden as opposed to looking after the paperwork in the office How has her role as head gardener changed over the years and more.  We also touch upon the very important topic of climate change and Fran shares how she is responding to the challenges of an ever-changing weather pattern. And for those of you, who think that gardening comes to an end in winter, Fran tells us exactly how she and her team get ready for next year's season and what jobs need to be done. We also talk about dahlias, tulips, the Chelsea Flower Show, re-wilding, National Collections and lots, lots more. I think it's fair to say this episode is crammed with helpful information.

Hello, and welcome to this weeks episode of them Mike The Gardener - Gardening Podcast.  This week I chat with Harry Baldwin, the Head of Horticulture at the beautiful Borde Hill Gardens near Haywards Heath, West Sussex, UK.  In this current series of the podcast, I've been chatting to a number of Head Gardeners & Heads of Horticulture about their roles, their careers and the gardens they work in.  I met with Harry in late September to talk about his career, his job at Borde Hill, the gardens, the challenges they face and lots, lots more.  To follow Borde Hill Gardens, click here.  To follow me on my Instagram page, click here.  As always, thanks for listening and don't forget to follow/subscribe. Mike

Hello and welcome to this episode of the Mike The Gardener - Gardening Podcast. In this episode, I chat to gardener, writer and author, Miranda Janatka, whose second book, Happy Indoor Garden has just been published by Batsford Books. Until recently, Miranda was also a senior content creator for the fabulous Gardeners’ World magazine. We chat about: Her career to date How she got into gardening Her books and the writing process How own garden, and of course lots more My thanks to Miranda for taking time to come and have a chat with us. You can follow Miranda on her Instagram account by clicking here. You can follow me on my Instagram account by clicking here. Please don't forget to follow/subscribe as there are more episodes to come. Thanks for listening! Mike

In this episode I travel to Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens near Weymouth in Dorset (UK) where I chat to Curator, David Pearce. We chat about: His role as Curator. The gardens and how they're looked after and maintained. The historic plant collection Gardening jobs for autumn and winter. David's own plant passions. Why people should go to Abbotsbury Gardens. The joy and passion that working in the garden, and within the horticultural industry brings about. To learn more about Abbotsbury Subtropical Gardens, click this link. To learn more about David Pearce, click this link. As always, don't forget to follow/subscribe as there are more great episodes to come. And you can learn more about me by following me on my Instagram account by clicking this link. Thanks for listening and see you soon. Mike

Hello, and welcome back to episode two of series 6 of them Mike The Gardener - Gardening Podcast. In this episode, I chat with Roz Chandler, a cut flower farmer and teacher, writer, speaker, and fellow podcaster. And, if that were not enough, she is also an award-winning wedding florist based in Milton Keynes. I chat with Roz about everything you could possibly need to know about growing cut flowers from how she started to how to keep the business running successfully. To learn more about Roz click here to check out her fantastic Instagram account Thanks for listening to this episode and please don't forget to follow/subscribe. And, you can follow me on my Instagram account, Mike_the Gardener by clicking here. And I will see you all very very soon. Mike

Hello and welcome back to Series 6 of them Mike The Gardener - Gardening Podcast. The eagle eyed amongst you will have noticed the title of the podcast has changed very slightly. I'm ditching the 'MIC' (which was a nod to the microphone element) in favour of MIKE. And, in a further change for this series, I will have an occasional co-host who I introduce you to in today's episode. Going forward, there will still be your favourite content, including: Interviews with great, gardening, personalities, gardeners, garden, designers, broadcasters, and more. In-depth plant specials The ever-popular Slot From the Plot, and Much, much more As always, please do contact me with your questions, suggestions, comments and feedback at my new email address mikethegardenerpodcast@gmail.com, or you can contact me via my Instagram account @mike_thegardener. Please do recommend the podcast to your gardening friends & family and if you're able, why not give me a share on social media. And to make sure you don't miss out on a single episode please follow/subscribe. Thank you! Mike

Hello, and welcome to this bonus episode of the Mike the Gardener – Gardening Podcast. This time we return to the allotment with Otis to see what has been happening since we were last there a few weeks back.  And, I can assure you, the allotment has been very, very productive. I know that, because we've been lucky enough to be on the receiving end of some of the delicious crops, including bumper hauls of courgettes, beans and beetroot.  In today's episode, we touched upon the use of peat-free compost.   Have you been using peat-free compost on your allotment this year? We'd be really interested to know how they have performed for you? Do tell us which products you have used and the results you have got. In the meantime, I will be back with Series 6 in mid-September, so I look forward to seeing you all then. Mike

Hello and welcome to this last episode in the current series of a Mic The Gardener - Gardening Podcast. As I said last week, we have a great final guest today, in fact, it's my youngest guest on the podcast ever.  Now, one day, when I was whiling away time on good old Instagram, I stumbled across an account in the name of The First Time Gardener. Now, there are two people behind this particular account, one of whom is probably more in charge of the shall we say administration, whilst the other person is the face of the account. So, completely bowled over by the contents of their page, I contacted them to ask if they would come and have a chat on the podcast. So, today, I'm absolutely delighted to be joined by Joanne and her son Charlie. We talk about: How the account came about? What Joanne was hoping to achieve through the account? How Charlie became the face of the account? Their plans for the future (gardening and Instagram), and Charlie's plans for the future, and lots more. My thanks to Joanne and Charlie for taking time to come and have a chat with me. You can follow their account by clicking here. You can follow me on my Instagram account by clicking here. I will be back shortly with another Slot from the Plot special. As always, please don't forget to follow/subscribe and please leave a review if you are able. Mike