The Nature Garden: gardening, wildlife and nature notes

It's peak summer and still wonderfully warm in Northumberland and Tom P’s ripening crops and harvesting potatoes and onions… Tom Cadwallender’s turning the calendar page to a new season of birds and checking the Aln estuary for avian ins and outs… Steve Lowe’s reflecting on the life of someone who inspired him to dive deep into conservation... we celebrate the work of Doctor Angus Lunn, a Northumberland Wildlife Trust stalwart and map maker extraordinaire. Plus some top tips for t...

It's mid-summer and the temperature’s rising and so is Tom P’s excitement… we join him on a tour of his raised beds, and flowers and veg… Tom Cadwallender’s watching the summer skies for swifts and more….and listening to the classic sounds of summer… We’re at the ‘Love Northumberland’ awards at Alnwick Castle with Steve Lowe… The big butterfly count is underway and Dr Jamie Wildman is here to help us join in… it’s a wonderful way to help butterflies! Plus some top tips for the garden fr...

It’s time for some self-care and safety and we should all take our time to listen to Tom P... Tom Cadwallender’s out and about in the uplands of Northumberland and enjoying the collective nouns of bird, and the amazing ‘drumming’ of snipe. And we’re going medieval with Steve Lowe for a colourful re-enactment Plus some top tips for the garden from Tom P. Support the show You can follow Tom Pattinson, Steve and Tom Cadwallender and our wonderful guests and featured flowers, birds an...

Frost and drought in the garden and Tom's buzzing after a visit to the Chelsea Flower Show… Tom Cadwallender’s taking a 'tern' at volunteering and listening songbirds… And sustainability is one of Steve Lowe’s missions: composting, wormeries and hot bins at the Cresswell Pele Tower… Plus we’ve got some top tips for the garden from Tom P… Support the show You can follow Tom Pattinson, Steve and Tom Cadwallender and our wonderful guests and featured flowers, birds and projects on ...

Hello spring! Tom Pattinson’s getting the pruning gear out but please do consider carefully before you chop… Tom’s here to give us a steer. Tom Cadwallender’s muckle glad to be back and he’s enjoying woodpeckers and fieldfares at dawn… And we have an exciting update from the latest dig at Lindisfarne and some amazing new finds… Plus some top tips for the garden from Tom P. Support the show You can follow Tom Pattinson, Steve and Tom Cadwallender and our wonderful guests and featured flowers...

We’re catching up with Tom Pattinson in the bleak mid-winter and he’s full of busy in and out of the garden… Tom Cadwallender’s reflecting on the good and the bad as we move into a New Year of birding. And we’ll be looking into the magical mystical world of moths, Dr Zoe Randall is here from Butterly Conservation to tell us how we can help them. And there’s a chance to hear another sinister ‘Tale from the Hovel’ from the Alnwick Poison Garden… Plus some top tips for the garden fro...

As October passes its magical baton on to November… Tom Pattinson’s taking a trip into the kaleidoscope of colours and toffee apple smells in the garden… and he’s also joining forces with Naturalist, David Mizejewski from the National Wildlife Federation, USA on why it’s so important to ‘Leave the leaves’. And Tom Cadwallender’s looking at one of the wonders of the natural world… the staggering journeys of birds… and the importance of our urban gardens and green spaces as habitats. Plus...

As we say farewell to September… Tom Pattinson’s reflecting on a patchy but canny spring summer of flowers and crops… and the joys of soft and top fruits… and growing tetties for Christmas! Tom Cadwallender’s full of good news about the breeding season… and he’s following migrations and keeping tabs on crossbills… And we’ll be looking at the results of this year’s Big Butterfly Count, Dr Zoe Randle from Butterfly Conservation is here to tell us more… And we’ve got some top tips for the ...

Tom Pattinson’s checking some of the more common specimens in our gardens and asking: how well do you know them? Tom Cadwallender is out with the waders and rising tides… and he’s looking back on the early years of his birding on the Northumberland coast… And we’ve got some top tips for the garden from Tom P… Support the show You can follow Tom Pattinson, Steve and Tom Cadwallender and our wonderful guests and featured flowers, birds and projects on X via: @gardenersradio @TheNatureGa...

Tom Pattinson’s getting creative and investing time to propagate plants, Tom Cadwallender’s up with the larks for the dawn chorus… and he’s super excited on Coquet Island… home of the roseate tern... Steve Lowe’s trying his hand at beekeeping at the Creswell Pele Tower garden… And… Dr Zoe Randall from Butterfly Conservation is here to inspire us all to take part in the Big Butterfly Count Plus some top tips for the garden from Tom P… Support the show You can follow...

Tom Pattinson is fresh back from the Chelsea Flower Show and full of inspired ideas for small garden spaces and containers… Tom Cadwallender’s reflecting on a very moist May and in awe at some amazing ‘first ever’ bird observations in the county Steve Lowe’s looking forward to a proper celebration for the opening of the Creswell Pele Tower garden… And… we hear from pupils from the Lowick and Holy Island First School who are taking part in an exciting national gardening initiative…...

Tom Pattinson is looking at shrubs and options for gardens of all styles and sizes… Tom Cadwallender’s along the leafy lanes of Lesbury observing the comeback of a beautiful finch… And Steve Lowe’s out and about on the beach at Seaton Sluice… he’s got a canny life, that chep! Plus… Tulip bulbs and turmoil, and how silver plates could foil plotters… we welcome back, Tales from the Hovel, with John and Dean, Alnwick Poison Garden.…. And we’ve got some top tips for the ...

Tom Pattinson… is up and at ‘em in the garden and taking care as he brings us a very important ‘gan canny’ message. There’s great excitement on the Aln estuary and coast where Tom Cadwallender is watching the spring gatherings of birds… And we’ll be hearing from Butterfly Conservation and their findings on how well or not so well different types of butterflies are doing across the UK… and they’ve got some great advice on how to help butterflies. Plus some top t...

In this episode… A little bit of wintertime reflection and a chance to look ahead as January begins… bringing time, hopefully, after the festive celebrations to think about adventures, plans and dreams…. We bring you some thoughts on the year ahead and the one gone from the two Toms: Tom Cadwallender and Tom Pattinson… Plus some top tips for the garden from Tom P… Support the show You can follow Tom Pattinson, Steve and Tom Cadwallender and our wonderful guests and featured fl...

It’s time to deck the halls with boughs of holly, to dress the tree and to celebrate... And in this December edition, our correspondents are here to spread some cheer so stand by for the two Toms on Christmas trees and some alternative Christmas birds... Steve Lowe on the giving gifts that can really help people across the world… And John and Dean return with mistletoe and ivy… something a little different from the Alnwick Poison Garden! Plus some top tips for th...

Autumn’s well and truly arrived and Tom Pattinson’s enjoying the botanical fireworks and nature’s planting time… During these stormy times… Tom Cadwallender’s keeping track of the amazing arrivals of seasonal birds and there are some wonderful surprises to watch out for… Plus some top tips for the garden from Tom P… All coming up… on the Nature Garden Podcast…. Support the show You can follow Tom Pattinson, Steve and Tom Cadwallender and our wonderful guests and featured flow...

Autumn’s arrived and Tom Pattinson’s got heap lie on in the garden… and he’s enjoying the seasonal blooms and foliage. Leaves are falling and so are feathers… Tom Cadwallender’s here to tell us more about the great moult… and he’s keeping an eye on urban skies. And we’re going back in time on an archaeological dig with Steve Lowe and the Anglo-Saxons… Plus some top tips for the garden from Tom P. Support the show You can follow Tom Pattinson, Steve and Tom Cadwallender and o...

The Lindisfarne Gospels were created on the Holy Island of Lindisfarne around 1300 years ago. Professor Michelle Brown takes us on an amazing journey to the place where Eadfrith, Bishop of Lindisfarne, designed and produced this incredible book. Support the show You can follow Tom Pattinson, Steve and Tom Cadwallender and our wonderful guests and featured flowers, birds and projects on X via: @gardenersradio @TheNatureGarden and on Facebook: The Nature Garden. And you can also tune in...

Hurrah for the flower shows… Tom Pattinson’s prepping his clipboard and getting ready for the competitions… Tom Cadwallender’s here with good news about the bird that’s the RSPB’s emblem… and he’s enjoying the wonders and diversity of our seabirds... The laburnum’s a beautiful tree but why did it have to be removed from schoolgrounds? John and Dean from the Alnwick Poison Garden will tell us more… and some tips on how not to gas yourself with cherry laurel... Steve Lowe’s down by ...

Summer’s here and Tom Pattinson’s out smelling the roses and revelling in their colours, scents and fragrances… Tom Cadwallender’s off in search of the nocturnal Nightjar and migrating birds on the Aln Estuary… And Steve Lowe is out on in the hay fields around Allendale surrounded by the charismatic calls of curlews… Plus some top tips for the garden from Tom P… Support the show You can follow Tom Pattinson, Steve and Tom Cadwallender and our wonderful guests and featured flow...