Gardeners' Corner - TopPodcast.com

Latest Episodes:

Home tips from a historic house, Meath’s Poppy Garden and growing plants indoors Sep 26, 2026

Show notes

Anna Hudson visits Rob Wilson, assistant head gardener at Mount Stewart to gather ideas and techniques that gardeners can put into practice at home. In Meath, David visits Ealma Purcell’s Poppy Garden, a flourishing haven that began with just one flower bed and is now bursting with colour and life. Amy Kelly offers advice on saving summer herbs to savour through the darker months. Back in the studio, Colin Agnew joins Anna to answer questions on Rhubarb Timperley Early, moving lavender and growing plants indoors. Email the programme anytime at gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk.

Colourful displays in Ballymena, sensory gardens and saving a Sarcococca Sep 19, 2026

Show notes

Helen Mark visits Kay Rainey at her garden near the foothills of the Sperrin Mountains, where herbaceous borders and repeated bursts of colour create a stunning display throughout the seasons. In south Belfast, Helen calls by to Annadale Community Centre off the Ormeau Road, where local volunteers have been learning new skills and building a strong sense of community and friendship. Their efforts have earned them a place among the finalists in the Make a Difference Awards 2026. Nicola Kenny visits the Everton Day Centre in north Belfast to meet members of the L'Arche community, who have spent months transforming an overlooked courtyard into a sensory garden. Back in the studio, Claire McNally joins Helen to answer questions on Sarcococca plants and flowering Dahlias. Email the programme anytime at gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk.

How to feed your soil, special trees and Adam Frost's bulb of the month Sep 05, 2026

Show notes

As one season gives way to another, David travels to the County Meath garden of Paula Byrne. Twenty years ago, after building a new house, the interior designer turned her attention to the outdoors. Since then, she has created six unique gardens around her home, which attract many visitors during the summer months.

In County Down, it’s been a bumper harvest for Helen’s Bay Organic after a warm summer. Founder John McCormick explains how they use cover crops to improve the life and fertility of the soil.

Adam Frost chooses the diminutive Acis autumnalis as his bulb of the month for September, and Rosie Maye joins David in the studio to answer questions on bamboo and choosing a special tree to remember a precious uncle.

Contact the programme at gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk

Gardeners' Corner summer special with Dan Pearson and Jekka McVicar Aug 29, 2026

Show notes

After one of the hottest summers on record, David travels to the west of England to explore the private gardens of two renowned plants-people. Acclaimed designer Dan Pearson has spent the last 15 years creating his ‘Hillside’ garden with his partner Huw around an old farmhouse in Somerset. He shows David how he works with the landscape rather than imposing upon it, creating a garden for wildlife as well as people. After exploring the herbaceous borders and pond, Dan reveals his experimental sand garden, where he is testing plants for a changing climate. Twenty miles north, at her herb farm near Bristol, Jekka McVicar has spent the summer observing which plants can cope with prolonged heat and drought. Her thymes and oreganos are among the standouts. Jekka doesn’t water the garden and finds that self-seeded plants are often the most resilient. Chance seedlings can also produce something completely new, and she shows David a mint discovered in her garden that will bear her name. Both gardeners are adapting to a changing climate, searching for plants that can withstand increasingly long periods of summer drought while still coping with wet winters.

Growing lavender, success with agapanthus and healing through gardening Aug 22, 2026

Show notes

David travels to County Fermanagh, where he meets Vera Cassidy at Lavender Manor near Enniskillen. The venue is true to its name, and it is the ideal place to find out how to grow this wonderfully scented shrubby perennial. A few miles away in Lisnaskea, victims' charity SEFF has been using gardening as a form of therapy. The organisation has 44 allotment plots, many of which are used by people living with trauma. David meets some of the members, including Malcolm, who has hopes of winning a medal for some of his vegetables at a show. After a seven-year absence, Neil Porteous has returned to the National Trust's Mount Stewart as head gardener. He reveals some of his plans for the garden and takes time to enjoy the South African plants, including agapanthus and protea, that are performing well in late summer. Anna Hudson also joins David live in the studio to answer listeners' questions.

Contact the programme at gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk

Plants that perform in drought, Adam Frost's bulb of the month, and gardening for hedgehogs Aug 15, 2026

Show notes

After a summer of sunshine and heat, David catches up with Maurice Parkinson, who is continuing to plant with a changing climate in mind. Which plants can perform through weeks of drought but also cope with a wet winter? Adam Frost chooses Gladiolus papilio as his bulb of the month. In West Belfast, David finds out how we can all adapt our gardens to make them more hedgehog-friendly, and he visits a couple near Dervock who have transformed an abandoned garden into a place of beauty and bounty. In the studio, Claire McNally joins David to tackle listener questions on clematis, lavatera and the creation of a poppy-themed garden. Contact the programme at gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk

Home-grown cooking with Mollie Cunningham, summer perennials and permaculture in the park Aug 08, 2026

Show notes

Join David Maxwell for an hour of gardening advice for summer. He'll be joined in studio by expert Ann Fitzsimons who has advice on how to save a fig tree and offers plant recommendations for wedding anniversary gifts. In County Down, just outside the village of Killyleagh, David visits an old walled garden full of organic fruit and veg. Ballytrim Pantry was started by Mollie Cunningham in her family’s large garden during lockdown and became a small business that celebrates the unbeatable taste of home-grown food. David revisits Jimi Blake’s Huntingbrook gardens to hear about his top five summer perennials. Also on the programme, Nicola Kenny visits Friends of the Field community garden in lower botanic gardens where she learns about the values of permaculture and the benefits of skill sharing. Contact the programme on gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk

Summer inspiration from the Gardeners’ Corner archive Jul 25, 2026

Show notes

Join David Maxwell and Rosie Maye as they dig into the archive and look back at garden visits from past summers on the programme. From long-flowering perennials at Kilcoan Gardens in Islandmagee to producing delicious organic vegetables at Portnoo Market Garden in Donegal and a visit to the immersive Ardán Garden in Howth which has become a highlight of Dublin's coastal landscape. In studio Rosie Maye offers expert advice on keeping roses healthy over the remaining summer months and how to make comfrey feed at home.

Creating new borders with Jimi Blake, growing redcurrants for skincare and Jason Ingram on photographing gardens Jul 18, 2026

Show notes

As the dry spell continues, David travels to renowned gardener Jimi Blake's Huntingbrook garden in County Wicklow. He finds out how Jimi created three new beds for smaller plants including sedum, linaria and a few rogue sweetcorn. Adam Frost chooses Crocosmia 'Hellfire' as his bulb of the month. Advice from Amy Kelly on the food crops that will save you most money and Anna Hudson answers a question in studio from a listener who has been struggling to grow beetroot for years. Also on the programme, award winning garden photographer Jason Ingram and growing your own lemons from seed. Contact the programme on gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk

Success with delphiniums, easy early summer cuttings, and peculiar plums Jul 04, 2026

Show notes

As the summer holiday season begins, David Maxwell is joined in studio by Ann FitzSimons and Mary Doris who are full of summer gardening inspiration. Ann explains how to make more plants for free right now by taking semi-ripe cuttings. Mary makes the best of the gardens summer bounty including, chive pesto, honeysuckle syrup and lemon balm cookies. Together they answer listener questions including how best to grow delphiniums, rejuvenating old box hedging and a tree producing peculiar plums. Contact the programme on gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk

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