Gardeners World Episode 2

Episode 2 – Friday 14th March 2014

This week Monty is assisted on the programme by Carol who finds out about cyclamen and meets the President of the Cyclamen Society ! and Joe Swift.

Joe is down in Cornwall again. This time on the Northern coast visiting a garden which is protected from the salt spray wind by his use of hedging. The garden has a hedge which works in with the high salt content and also allows the wind to blow through it so as to dissipate the strength as it blows in to the garden. This garden is interesting as most Northern Cornwall coast gardens get battered by the winds through the winter months and the owner has made a special effort to plan based on the prevailing weather and soil conditions (very sandy).

We also hear from an amateur gardener from Kippax, West Yorkshire who enjoys growing many varieties of sweet peas.

Jobs to get on with now for allotmenteers and gardeners

• Sow broad beans. These are very easy to germinate and can now be sown directly outdoors. Monty has chosen one of his raised beds and he expects to see something appear in about three weeks time. He is also doing a test to compare how they far compared to the ones he planted outdoors last October and some that were planted in the greenhouse in January. Looking forward to some fresh broad beans at the end of spring….!
• Tomato seeds. Either use a seed tray or sow individually into plugs. Those in plugs require less handling and develop a better root system before they are potted on.

Here’s the link on BBC IPlayer if you have time to watch the Gardeners World episode >>