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00:41Hello, welcome to Gardener's World. This is the lime walk. It's the first thing I see when I come
00:47out into the garden in the morning. And some years ago, I planted ferns, mainly Dryopterus,
00:53all the way along its length. But they've become a little bit straggly. Some have got very big,
01:00some are smaller, and that rhythm of the ferns is beginning to be lost. However, I've got the new
01:08woodland area where I really want to add ferns. So I think I can kill two birds with one stone.
01:13By
01:13removing ferns from here and reshaping it, I can use them where I think they'll be much more
01:19effective. So that's what I'm doing. Now, I'm digging this Dryopterus out. It's a beast. It's
01:24quite something. When you're moving any plant, you want to take as much of the root as you possibly
01:29can. Right. Weightlifting for the day. Into there. That's one. I've got another one to move.
01:43They are really quite substantial.
01:49Okay. Off to the woodland hunt.
02:16The one unifying factor with all the plants in the woodland garden is that they all have
02:21adapted to some degree of shade. Of course, at this time of year, there's hardly any, which
02:25is why you get spring flowering plants that wouldn't survive the sort of shade that they're
02:29going to get in June. However, ferns will take deep shade, whether it be dry shade or wet.
02:37I've been around. I've marked the spots where I want to put the ferns with canes. I know exactly
02:41where I want them to go. It's just a question of making a hole, bunging them in.
02:46It may not look like it now, but this is the darkest corner of the woodland garden. In fact,
02:51it's arguably the darkest corner of the whole of Longmeadow, because once the foliage grows
02:56on this hawthorn, it shades this area out. There are trees beyond that shade the hawthorn
03:02itself.
03:14Right. Let's see if that will fit.
03:31There you go. It is important not to plant them too deep, just the level that they were
03:38when you dug them up. I will now water that in. Everything you plant into the ground should
03:55have a good soak. And if it's very dry, you're going to have to keep watering. Once when they're
03:59established and growing strongly, then you can back off. Right. That's one. And the beauty
04:04of that is it's big. It's going to fill that space. It will look dramatic. So that's fine.
04:09However, the other one, I'm going to divide.
04:14Oh, boy.
04:19There we go.
04:20When you're chopping up a big root, and this applies to ferns like this, to hostas, a really big,
04:26chunky root, your best tool is a sharp spade. Just jab down on it hard and hope that you hit
04:32it fairly
04:32accurately, but you won't do much damage. There we go. Perfect. That's the one. That gives us two
04:41big ferns. What I'll do is divide each of these in two again. So...
04:58ferns are really, really adaptable plants. Get them established. Then they'll need no attention at
05:03all. And I know some people feel they're, you know, a bit dull. They're just green.
05:08Actually, once you get into them, they're wonderful. They're beautiful plants.
05:33The orchard is filled with daffodils. The first lot are the wild daffodils, the pseudo-narcissus,
05:38which is actually, to be honest, just beginning to go over. But we've got others coming through.
05:41We've got daffodils that we've planted out from pots. We've also added pheasant-side daffodils,
05:48which flower very late. They will come through in May. But the point about the daffodils here in the
05:54orchard and any in long grass is they're quite robust, and they have to be, because the wind can sweep
06:00in,
06:00we can have rain, we can have snow, and the daffodils have to take it all and keep on flowering
06:06without any
06:06protection. And by and large, they do, and they look wonderful. However, Francis has been to visit
06:13a collection of daffodils that are very different. They're small, but they're exquisitely beautiful.
06:26Today, I have been given the keys to a world very few people ever get to see. Behind these greenhouse
06:32stores lie one of the most extraordinary private collections of miniature daffodils in the country.
06:43The hands that tend this incredible collection prefer to stay out of the spotlight, but she has
06:48given me permission to have a look around and to share it with you.
06:57Inside this Yorkshire garden, there's three greenhouses, a rock garden, and over 30 years of work
07:03dedicated to these lovely little flowers. This, of course, is a daffodil. It is a favoured flower of
07:11spring. It sort of heralds that new season. We see them everywhere. But what we're seeing more and more
07:16of are these. These are miniature daffodils. I grow them in my garden. There are some beautiful ones.
07:22But what you probably won't have seen is one of these. This one is called Little Finn, and this
07:31is what this collection is made of.
07:35These are truly tiny. The flowers grown here require real dedication.
07:43Miniature daffodils originate from places like the Mediterranean, places where it's very hot in
07:49the summer and very dry. And to flower well, they need to be baked by the sun in the summer
07:54and then
07:54have a cool winter. So in terms of growing them, a glass house to keep them protected from the rain
08:00and lots of drainage, so gravel and sand, very much in the way that you would grow alpine plants.
08:13In this greenhouse is where all the species daffodils or Narcissi are kept. So these are
08:19ones that naturally occur in the wild. This is Narcissus provincialis. So this is a very definite,
08:27classic daffodil shape, only obviously much smaller. This is the corona, the central trumpet part of the
08:35daffodil. And then around it is the perianth, which makes up the petals. And it's those two features and
08:42their size and shape that give the daffodils their characteristic forms. This one, on the other hand,
08:50which is a cyclaminius type, which has these reflex petals that point backwards, always feels to me like
08:57it's scared. Or like it stuck its head out of a car window and everything being blown backwards.
09:04I love these. These ones may be my favourite Narcissi. They're called Bulbacodium or Hooped
09:12Petticoat, so you can kind of see why from this beautiful big trumpet. So this is a really oversized
09:20corona and very, very small peri-amp with these tiny petals. Absolutely stunning. And it's all
09:28of these differences. Once you start to look at daffodils, as with any plant, if you get obsessed
09:33with them, you see these minute little shifts from one species to another species. And then,
09:39of course, from them, you can start breeding brand new hybrids.
09:47From one greenhouse of pure and simple miniature species,
09:50it's a short hop to another to see the results of selective breeding.
09:57Now, all of the Narcissi in here are bred hybrids. So they've been selected over a huge
10:03process to come to this stage of being ready. And there are some absolutely incredible ones here.
10:09Look, this is peach twist. It has twisted petals on the perianth and the corona is that peachy colour.
10:17It's really unusual, really, really beautiful. What else do we have? Oh, look. So this one
10:24has a square flower because it has two extra petals on it. And then just in front, look,
10:32this beautifully delicate spider-shaped flower with a pronounced trumpet and really,
10:40really defined perianth. And I do have to say, the scent in here is incredible. Narcissi don't all
10:48have scent, but a lot of them do. And this breeder is choosing them especially for their really rich
10:54scent. So even if you're just growing these, to cut them and put them in a little vase on your
10:58table where
10:58you can smell them. They're so worth it. To get here, though, is not a simple thing. As with any
11:06passion project, selecting and breeding these takes an awful lot of time.
11:20This is the propagation greenhouse. So once you've chosen the two parents you want to cross,
11:26you'd collect the seed from that cross and sow it. And this is what you would get. This is just
11:32germinated seed in year one. Look how fine and delicate this is. And each one of these blades
11:40will grow into a slightly different flower, potentially, with different characteristics
11:44from the parents. So you never know what you're going to get when you do plant breeding.
11:49Now, this is year two. So again, incredibly fine and delicate plants. And it won't be until year four
11:58when the first flowers will grow. Now this is a year four seedling. So this is the first time
12:09that this has ever flowered. No one's ever seen this before because it's never existed before.
12:14But that's the magic of this. You know, you never quite know where it's going to end up.
12:19This is the first time that I'm seeing this. Well, that we're seeing this.
12:25Isn't it lovely? Let's hope it does well.
12:31But not all miniature daffodils need the comfort and safety of a cool greenhouse, as it is their
12:38selective breeding that has resulted in their tolerance to our UK outdoor climate.
12:43If you look closely in amongst the woodland and the spring garden, you will see the odd miniature
12:50daffodil. Now this is one called Little Beauty. It's a miniature, but it is a lot more generalist
12:58than the ones in the greenhouses, which means it doesn't need to be as baked by the sun.
13:02It doesn't need to be on gravel and it can grow in a garden setting, but it doesn't like to
13:08get too wet.
13:09So if you're growing these, which are much more widely available, just make sure you're putting
13:13them somewhere fairly free draining. The nice thing about these miniature daffodils is that
13:19they sit at just the right height to mingle in with other spring flowers. So there's Scylla here,
13:24which are blue, hellebores of all colours, primroses, snowdrops, and they all look beautiful together.
13:33We all love daffodils, but I think there's a very good argument for also trying miniature daffodils
13:41in the garden too, to bring colour, to bring elegance, and maybe even to bring some scent.
13:46But be careful, because you never know, it might become an obsession.
14:06I do think those miniature daffodils, of which I do have a few and grow them in pots,
14:11are exquisite, jewel-like. The daffodils I've got here on the mound, and I've trialled them in pots,
14:17I've got two different sorts, they're very, very similar. This is Pacific Hunter,
14:23and this is Hunter Dawn, but they both share the quality I wanted, which is that soft pale yellow,
14:32because the colour scheme here on the mound is pale yellow and pale blue, and that's half the fun.
14:39You're looking for varieties and trialling them, and just seeing which hits the mark. The daffodils,
14:43for example, yellow queen, are spot on. And I think these daffodils are great too, and they have
14:49another extra bonus. They're very fragrant.
15:03I'm mixing a compost mix for sweet peas. I sowed the sweet peas in October, so they spent all winter
15:11protected by a cold frame, and I'm going to plant these ones into pots. I've got a sweet pea,
15:17called blue velvet, which fits in with the mound's colour scheme, and also has a wonderful fragrance.
15:24Now, with sweet peas, you can grow them in pots really easily, and I've done it many times,
15:29but they are hungry, and they are thirsty, so you need a big container. First of all, I need a
15:36crock.
15:39The second thing is, when mixing up the mix, I've used bark-based compost with sieved garden compost
15:45and grit. So it's rich, it'll hold moisture, but there is some drainage. They don't like sitting in a puddle.
15:58Next phase is to put up the supports before you plant. So we put one in there like that,
16:07another like that.
16:16Okay, it's nice and strong. The plants themselves, I have pinched them out at least twice to try and
16:24stop them getting leggy. What you want are nice, strong, stocky, sturdy plants with a good root system,
16:31and then they will grow nice and tall. They're planted in very deep plugs, and however you're
16:38planting them, put them inside the support, not outside. If you put them around the outside,
16:44they're going to be hard against the side of the pot and will drain quicker and dry out quicker.
16:51The rule of thumb, when you're taking anything out of any container, is you want an equal amount of
16:56root and compost. If it's more compost than root, then probably it needs to be in there a bit longer.
17:01That's just about perfect. That's how I like them to be. So, pop it in like that, one at the
17:08base of
17:19each support.
17:20As they grow, they will need tying in with soft twine. They will start to attach themselves
17:25after about a month or so. Water them at least weekly and feed them with a seaweed feed.
17:33If it's very hot and dry, you will have to water them more. They really do not like hot, dry
17:39weather.
17:40So, a tip is, if you're growing them in a pot like this, make sure you've got a water supply
17:44nearby.
17:47I do think that sweet peas look good in any garden, but we went down to West Sussex to visit
17:53Millie Proust,
17:54who grows lots and lots of varieties of sweet peas and uses them for cut flowers.
18:07I would describe my garden as bucolic, pastoral, a little bit wild, not perfect,
18:15mainly because I've been trying to grab corners to grow flowers on where I can, and it's very, very productive.
18:29I'm Millie Proust. This is my garden in West Sussex, and my life is basically just flowers and seeds.
18:40When I moved here, I really knew so little about gardening. I'd been interested in floristry for a
18:46long time, and I knew that you could grow cut flowers, and I gave it a go and immediately caught
18:52the bug. The learning curve was steep.
19:01There's a project I've been doing for 10 years called Willis a Wednesday, and it's a chance for me
19:06to gather floral ingredients and put them together, and it has acted as a record of what's been in
19:12flower when, and it's also been a chance for me to practice the skills of floristry.
19:19So sweet peas have really become an obsession. I'm growing over 70 varieties this year, some here
19:26outdoors and then some in the tunnels indoors, and that just helps us hedge our bets on seed harvesting.
19:33This is a variety that I'm really excited about, David Tosterman. It was bred just a couple of years ago,
19:40and it is the first of a dappled classification. Then this is one of my all-time favorites. It's just
19:47such
19:48a unique color. It's called Susie Zed, and it's got this smoky rose and then this silvery gray, and I
19:55just
19:56love using this in arrangements.
20:08I love violas, and we grow them at the feet of our sweet peas to keep them shaded and keep
20:13the moisture
20:14locked in. It acts as a sort of living mulch, and they get a bit stressed underneath the sweet peas,
20:19so they stretch up, and the stems get quite long. So you can see here, got a very usable stem.
20:26Just cut off the side shoots, and then that goes in a bouquet. Look at that lovely little movement.
20:37I think that you can get something quite extraordinary from the ordinary.
20:41These hookah leaves I use throughout the year, and they're so lovely and change color. It makes such
20:50a pretty base for an arrangement. And the musia, that is one thing I really love. You can get it
20:56at most
20:57garden centers, and they come in all sorts of lovely colors. They last really well as a cut flower,
21:02and they have these most gorgeous scents.
21:12So something we need to do before we begin is to remove any lower leaves.
21:16Anything that's going to sit below the water line, because if they're in the water, they'll rot,
21:22and the arrangement won't last very long. Then once we've done that,
21:25you can start putting in the framework. And I always like to use a foliage framework. One really
21:32simple rule that I use is I don't do anything at the same height, and this gives a natural movement
21:37and makes it look a lot more thoughtful and designed.
21:42One thing I really love to grow in pots is herbs, because not only do they make lovely cut flowers,
21:50like this flowering oregano, they also double up as a culinary ingredient.
21:59I love these little mimicia.
22:03And finally, I'm going to use my favorite sweet pea variety. This is Chocolate Streamer.
22:08It's such a productive, healthy variety, and I just love the color, and it has a great scent.
22:15And it tucks them in.
22:19I love detail, so having something that is small and intricate, I find draws you in and makes
22:27you look closer at things. It doesn't take much to create lots of beauty. So sweet.
22:43There is something so special about growing things from seed and from cuttings,
22:49because there is a sort of input-output that is very satisfying. And then when you're rewarded with
22:56so much beauty, and really the main cost is your time and your love, it feels just very nourishing
23:05on a very simple level.
23:20I love it.
23:29Watching Millie compose her display struck me that actually putting a border together is very like
23:36making a vase of cut flowers. You need the same difference in heights and sizes, you need texture,
23:41you need foliage, you need color, and you need fragrance. And fragrance at this time of year is a
23:47little bit thin on the ground, except for these Crown Imperial Fritillaries. A week ago they just saw
23:55they emerge from the ground, they're growing really fast, they're in bud, but already that very distinctive,
24:02musky, slightly foxy fragrance is coming through. And some people find it a little strong. I have to say
24:10I love it. Not least because it's such a marker of the season.
24:21Come on in. Good boy, come on.
24:43Now if you've been with me a week or two ago, or at any time during the winter, the water
24:50would be up over my wellies.
24:52This was a pond. Now you might think that's terrible for all plants, but there are some plants
24:57that not only survive a winter wet like that, but actually thrive. And this is one of them. This is
25:03a
25:03cornice, a dogwood, and like willows, they like wet feet. They're great for planting in a bit of boggy
25:11ground or at the edge of a pond, although it actually is very adaptable and will grow in reasonable amount
25:17of dry too. It's one of those plants that is tough as old boots. Now I pruned this back about
25:24two or three
25:24years ago, right down. So you can see this is two or three years growth. Now the reason why we
25:30grow dogwood
25:31in the garden as much as anything else is for the new shoots in winter, because they have a really
25:37vibrant bark, really strong color. You can see the new growth in there is a sort of lovely rich
25:46burgundy color. Now this is Sibirica alba. So the bark is red, but you can get them with green bark,
25:53you can have yellow bark, and if you prune hard you stimulate lots of new growth and lots of wonderful
26:00intense color in the middle of winter when there isn't much else. Now the time to cut it back is
26:06now. When you start to see the new foliage emerge, cut it back. Now what I'm going to do with
26:12this is
26:13really be ruthless. The easiest way to do this is get in there, have a really good hack and then
26:21tidy up.
26:29Right, that's the first pass. But the basic rule of any pruning is always cut back to something.
26:36For instance we've got a side shoot coming there and another one coming here. If I cut in the middle
26:43I've got a length of stem that will not produce any new growth and that will die back. And dead
26:49wood
26:50is going to invite disease, fungus and increase the risk of damage to the plant. So always make a point
26:58of cutting to something. So if I tidy up by going above a side shoot or a bud or a
27:05leaf, as long as the
27:06some growth. Now in some cases you want to reduce it but there's no obvious side shoot. But if you
27:19can
27:19see there's a slight bump and that's a node and that counts as something because that is where leaves
27:26will grow from.
27:37I know that this looks quite catastrophic but the roots are there, they're strong, what's left behind
27:43is very healthy. That will produce new shoots in weeks and in a couple of months time it'll be about
27:50three four foot tall and by this time next year you'll have about four foot of brilliant red new
27:56stems. And they will shine throughout the winter whatever the weather. And then you can leave it
28:02for a year or two if you want to get it bigger. But it is worth doing this I would
28:07say at least every three years.
28:11Now most of this will go through the shredder. However I've selected this which is a nice straight
28:17piece of new growth because this will make really good cutting material. And cornice, like willow,
28:23takes very easily from cuttings.
28:43This is the nursery bed. Now a nursery bed is essentially a holding bed for plants that you've
28:50propagated and are growing on till they're big enough to hold their own on a border. There are two great
28:55advantages of having a nursery bed. The first is that you don't need pots, you don't need compost,
29:01you don't need to water them very often. They look after themselves. And the second thing is that
29:07they are growing into the biome of your soil in your garden. So when you plant them out they are
29:14immediately adapted to the conditions they're in. Now these are cuttings by and large which I have struck
29:20and rooted in the greenhouse and then planted out. But with dogwood you don't need to do that. There's
29:26none of that fat. All you need is a pair of secateurs, some soil and a nice straight stem. No
29:33thicker than
29:33your finger and no thinner than a pencil. You want the cuttings of dogwood to be about six to nine
29:40inches
29:40long. Cut beneath a node. Now here are the nodes there and there. This by the way is the opposite
29:48to
29:48when you prune when you cut just above a node which will produce a leaf. This produces roots from just
29:54below
29:55a node. So I'm going to cut beneath the node like that. Now make sure it's the right way up.
30:01Make sure
30:02that's the top and so that you know it's the top cut it at an angle. By having a slant
30:07on it it means
30:08any rainwater won't collect on it and there's no risk of that rotting. And the next stage is the
30:14easiest of the lot. I just stick them in the ground. Push them so that they're at least half buried
30:21if not
30:22three quarters. If you've got compacted soil or it's very heavy clay then it's a good idea to make a
30:28sort
30:28of v-shaped trench three or four inches deep filled with organic matter and maybe even put a bit of
30:34grit or sand in the bottom so the drainage is good. Space them two three inches apart. You will know
30:41there are roots forming when you start to see new growth but leave them where they are till at least
30:47early autumn. Then you can dig them up and plant them. If it doesn't rain they'll need watering once a
30:54week.
31:01I'm confident that those cuttings will take but the truth is this is not a time of year
31:05when you can or should take cuttings from many plants. Dogwood are an exception. It is a time of
31:11year however when we should all be sowing seed and as many as possible. And the best way of getting
31:17hold of seed is to collect it yourself from your own garden. And Sue has been to visit a garden
31:24where
31:25seed collection has been taken to another level.
31:41If you like saving seed you've probably got more than enough and I like to give away my excess. So
31:49when I meet fellow gardening enthusiasts not only are we sharing knowledge but we're sharing seeds as well.
31:55So some of my plants are in their garden and some of their plants are in my garden and it's
32:00really rather lovely.
32:03And I've come to Flanethley to meet someone who's taken seed saving to a whole new level.
32:10Maggie Carr has been gardening here for 30 years and she's recently started a seed library.
32:18Hello Maggie. Hi Sue. What is a seed library? Well a seed library is a collection of seeds that
32:24you can have some seeds from. So we give you the seeds for free. You can have up to 10
32:29different
32:29packets. You can go onto the website and choose your own seeds and then we'll send them out to you.
32:35And
32:35then we ask you to grow them and to save enough seeds from one variety for 10 packets and send
32:42them back to
32:43us at the end of the year. And that way we can keep the library going. But of course what
32:48actually
32:48happens is that people get really enthusiastic about this and they save loads and loads of seeds.
32:54And I end up with people sending me shoe boxes full of seeds. Really? Absolutely fantastic.
32:59What are you harvesting here? So this is a moth mullin of a bascum. It's fantastic for pollinators,
33:07especially moths and things like that. So this would be in our plants for pollinators section.
33:12And the seeds slowly ripen over the plant and so I'll be picking these seed heads and saving them.
33:21And how do you tell if I look carefully? Some are darker than others, aren't they?
33:25Darker, but also they start to split. Ah, yep. And so that's when they're really ripe,
33:30when they start to split. They're crispy and they're dry. Can you see the seed? Oh, yes.
33:36Lots of seed. That's plenty to share, isn't it? Yeah.
33:46It's lovely wandering through Maggie's garden. Like mine, it's on so many different levels.
33:53Her love of plants is obvious because there's so many different varieties.
34:01These are Maggie's carrots. And if I think of them as biennial flowers, I can understand the process
34:08better. So what Maggie does is she sews a lot of carrots in a tub, then she harvests them in
34:14the
34:14autumn. She's looking for the typical carrot, not the biggest or the smallest, but the most typical
34:19to that variety. And then she replants them in this polytunnel. She needs about 20 because some
34:25may die. There's only actually now 16 here. And they need to cross pollinate before they set seed
34:31to get a really resilient carrot. And so she's going to harvest the best seed for her seed library.
34:37And the carrots that don't make the grade, they may be a bit knobbly in the autumn, of course,
34:42end up on her table.
34:52So, Maggie, where are you taking me?
34:54Well, this is the tunnel of beans.
34:56It certainly is.
34:57These are full of Maggie's bolotti beans.
35:00Give one a go. They come from a seed that I was given many, many years ago by somebody who
35:07told
35:07me that they had the best bean ever. But when she sent me the beans, she didn't send her name.
35:13So I had to, in the end, just call them Maggie's bolotti bean.
35:16How fabulous. I have a bean named after you.
35:20Bolotti beans I love. I normally have them dry. How would you have them?
35:25Well, first of all, this is my most favourite way. Just like this, you know.
35:28They are delicious.
35:29Delicious. Sweet as anything. So I have them raw in salads. And then I let them get a bit bigger,
35:34so they get a bit like this, a bit bigger. And then I have them steamed or in stir fries,
35:40just chopped up as like a regular bean.
35:43These are delicious. I hope I can take a couple of seeds home.
35:46I think we might find you a packet.
36:06So this looks exciting. What's going on here?
36:09OK, yeah. So these are germination tests. I've got two different varieties of pea here.
36:14So this is a variety called May Queen. And this is a variety called Voix de Carribee.
36:19So I take 50 seeds and I sow them in these gutters. And then I count and see how many
36:28have germinated.
36:29And how many do they have to be to get past the test?
36:34You need to get at least 45.
36:36Oh, that's 90%.
36:38Indeed.
36:39I'd better get counting.
36:401, 2, 3, 4,
36:4115, 16, 17, 18, 19, 16, 17, 17, 18, 19, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 18, 20, 18, 20, 20,
36:4521,
36:4543, 44. I failed!
36:49Oh, and they figured in.
36:50The thing is that these are actually only just been sown. So I'll give them another few days.
36:56Give them a chance.
36:56And at least one more, I guarantee, will pop up. So this will, in fact, hit the minimum.
37:02There's nothing more frustrating, is there, or disappointing, is when you put out your seeds
37:07and they don't germinate.
37:08Oh, I know.
37:09Are they really tasty?
37:10They are the sweetest, loveliest peas. They rarely get up to the garden, out of the garden,
37:16up to the house, you know, because I just eat them on the way.
37:18That is always a sign of a good point.
37:19I'm a snacker.
37:34So this is a bit of high-tech gardening wizardry.
37:39Indeed, indeed.
37:40Does it guess what it's used for?
37:42Well, can you?
37:43Well, no.
37:45This is the seed cleaner.
37:47And I always used to winnow all my seeds, but you end up with it all around the garden.
37:53You know, it gets everywhere. And so this is a much more efficient version of that.
37:57And so what I do is I put the vacuum cleaner on and suck the air out with the vacuum
38:03cleaner,
38:03pour the seeds in here, and the chaff gets separated here and goes down into the bottom there,
38:10and the seed ends up in that bucket down there.
38:13This is ingenious.
38:15I know. My son made me this for Christmas.
38:18Don't you love sons who make me things for Christmas?
38:20Vacuum off.
38:22Vacuum off, please.
38:23So here's the seed ready to pack up and send off all around the country.
38:30About my personage, I bought you some seeds of mine.
38:34There we go.
38:34And these are Mrs. McGee Amaranth.
38:38Oh, brilliant.
38:39I believe you're missing amaranth now.
38:41I am missing amaranth, yes.
38:43And I've brought for you...
38:45Ah, Maggie's Balotty Beans.
38:47Wonderful. Thank you.
38:49You're welcome.
39:03Come here. Up.
39:06Do you promise to take this biscuit and look after it and care for it until the end?
39:15Will you do that for me, Ned?
39:21Well done.
39:23Good boy.
39:33What Maggie's doing works on lots of levels.
39:37And I think the idea of a seed library introducing people to plants that they haven't otherwise got and then
39:42using them to increase the store and the stock of seed of otherwise quite rare plants is a brilliant idea.
39:50But there's another more personal reason for collecting seed from your own garden, which is not only that it saves
39:56a lot of money, but also if you collect seed from a plant that is clearly happy in your garden,
40:03the new plants you grow from the seed will also thrive.
40:06And if you then collect seed every year, in effect you are breeding plants that increasingly are adapted to your
40:15particular garden.
40:17And that means they're going to be extra healthy, extra happy and extra beautiful.
40:32Having collected your seed, or bought seed, sowing it is in many ways straightforward, but actually it's worth taking real
40:40trouble and care.
40:41And what I'm going to do now is give you a brief masterclass in seed sowing, and sowing seed is
40:49one of the most rewarding things you can do.
40:51OK, let's start.
40:52What I've got here are ingredients.
40:55Now, seeds don't need much nutrition.
40:57It's all in the seed.
40:59What it really needs is good soil structure.
41:03The compost needs to be loose and open with some nutrition, but not too much.
41:08You can buy seed compost, and if you can get it, that's a good option.
41:13Personally, I like to modify, brought in bark-based compost.
41:17I then loosen it up.
41:19We want a nice loose root run.
41:21Vermiculite is very good because it biodegrades quite quickly.
41:25This is perlite.
41:27This is actually reused perlite.
41:29Perlite opens the soil out.
41:30It holds water, but it doesn't get waterlogged, and it biodegrades very slowly.
41:35This is leaf mould, not very high in nutrition, but great for soil structure, which is ideal for seeds.
41:41And this is sift garden compost.
41:43You don't need much of this.
41:45Just a little bit to add a bit of goodness and bacteria.
41:49It's not an exact science, but I use equal quantities of vermiculite.
41:54Leaf mould and compost, and if you don't have any leaf mould, simply substitute it with more compost.
42:04It's very light cooking.
42:05You're mixing it up, and it feels light and fluffy.
42:09It should just feel as though it runs through the fingers, and it does, and that's perfect.
42:15Now, having made your perfect seed compost, you need to put it in something.
42:20Seed trays are ideal, particularly if you have small seeds and quite a lot of them.
42:24If you haven't got many seeds, you can buy half-sized seed trays.
42:29If you've got big seeds, anything that you can pick up individually in your hands,
42:33plugs or cells are really good, because each seed has space for the roots to grow.
42:40Now, today, I'm going to sow tomatoes, so I'm just going to use a small seed tray,
42:46because I don't need a massive amount.
42:50Fill it, not quite too overflowing, and then give it a shake so it's even.
42:56And what I do is very lightly push on it, and that levels the surface.
43:02Now, I'm sowing gardener's delight, which is a really good tomato to start with.
43:07If you've not grown tomatoes before, it is very forgiving.
43:10It's good to grow outside.
43:11You can grow it in the greenhouse as well, so a good place to start.
43:14Now, the simplest way to do it is take a pinch and try and spread them out as evenly as
43:21you can,
43:23looking to space each seed, ideally half an inch, a centimetre apart.
43:29But that is quite tricky.
43:30Another little tip is to take a pencil, and in this case, it's a sharpened stick, but the principle is
43:37the same.
43:37Lick the end, and then with the damp end, pick up a seed.
43:43And then place that on the surface, and it should come off.
43:48And that way, in principle, you can place them exactly where you want.
43:54There is no benefit for sowing them more thickly.
43:59All you get is lots of seedlings that don't have room to develop good roots, and the roots are the
44:05important bit,
44:06not what you see above ground.
44:08Then, all I do is very gently press lightly, just to make sure that the seed has good contact with
44:14the compost,
44:15because that will help germination.
44:16At this point, you need to know whether the seed needs light or darkness in which to germinate.
44:23Most seeds like darkness, and seed packets will always have that information on it.
44:29Tomatoes need covering. I cover them with vermiculite, a sprinkle of compost or work as well.
44:35Now, I'm just sprinkling this very thinly.
44:40Like that. Label it.
44:50That's the sowing done, but there's one more really important stage, which is to water.
45:01Probably the best way is simply place the seed tray in a tray or a bath or a container of
45:07water,
45:08so it absorbs moisture from the bottom.
45:10Leave it there for about 10 or 15 minutes, and then put it somewhere warm to germinate.
45:15Ideally, sort of somewhere between 15 and 20 degrees, and if you can keep it constant, so much the better.
45:20Keep them watered, but not sodden, and then the seedlings will emerge,
45:24at which point we go on to the next step, but we'll come to that in due course.
45:31Now, I adore tomatoes and grow lots, but we went to Wiltshire to visit a real tomato aficionado.
45:44We've only got to walk in the tunnel and have a peek and wonder.
45:48This bloke's a bit odd, isn't he? It's a bit weird, this chap. What's he doing?
45:53There's said to be about 12,000 varieties, and don't just eat a red tomato.
45:58Try something a bit different.
46:00I call tomatoes vegetables, really, because you wouldn't have them in a fruit salad.
46:10My name's Lance. I'm a passionate tomato grower.
46:13I grow about 120 varieties a year.
46:17Tomatoes are the one fruit or vegetable, whatever you want to call them,
46:22that cannot be replicated in the supermarket.
46:25If you can buy cabbage and grow a cabbage, there's a little bit of difference in the quality,
46:29but you cannot replicate a homegrown tomato.
46:37So I really like to grow a cross-section between modern classics and heirloom varieties.
46:44And heirloom varieties generally, well, I would say are pre-1950 varieties.
46:49Heirlooms have this fantastic backstory with their history,
46:53and I like finding them and unearthing them because some of them were lost unless they'd been saved in seed
46:59banks,
47:00an heirloom with a story with a great taste profile.
47:04So this is a new one to me this year, and I was attracted to the name.
47:07It's called Plan 9 from Outer Space, which is a terrible 1957 sci-fi movie.
47:14This is actually an accidental cross that was found in someone's garden in 2014.
47:20It's a lot brighter than I expected on the palate, tropical acidity to start with,
47:24and then you've got a really sticky sweetness right on the finish.
47:28It's quite balanced, quite intense.
47:30A lot of bi-coloured tomatoes tend to be a bit bland, and this definitely is not bland.
47:35It's all about the flavour.
47:37I love intense flavoured tomatoes, which you simply can't buy.
47:40It's nothing like a homegrown tomato, nothing to replicate it.
47:44So the way I taste tomatoes and perceive them,
47:47you start out with bland, ordinary, mild, and then you can go off in two directions.
47:52You've got particularly sweet, which you get in a lot of cherry tomatoes.
47:57Quite tart, which you can get in yellow tomatoes.
48:01And then what I'm really looking for in all my tomatoes is balanced.
48:04So we come up to here.
48:06Ideally, I'm looking for both these characteristics in equal amounts.
48:10And just occasionally, just occasionally, the bit I'm really looking for is intense.
48:15And I only find it occasionally in tomatoes.
48:18Savory, sweet, balanced, and a really long finish.
48:23And you don't get it very often.
48:24Just a couple of times a season, and I really savour those moments.
48:33So this is a wonderful heirloom that I've been sent by a gentleman in Hertfordshire who
48:38have been growing it for 15 years.
48:39And his family have been growing it in Cyprus for three generations.
48:44And many people in the same village have been growing it.
48:47And it's a village called Vassa in Cyprus.
48:50And this is called Heart of Vassa.
48:52And it's the first time I've grown it.
48:54This has been passed down by many generations in this village in Cyprus.
48:59So it's a genuine heirloom that's been unearthed.
49:01And I'm so thrilled to be growing it.
49:06This is Chopper Chops.
49:07And I've been growing this for about four years.
49:09And it is deeply embedded in my collection there.
49:12And I grow it every single season.
49:13So this variety has black shoulders.
49:15And that is where the sun has hit it.
49:18And it's anthracyanin.
49:19It's a pigment that you find in blueberries.
49:22What I love about this tomato has an array of colour inside.
49:26And it varies between tomatoes.
49:28So let's see what we've got in here.
49:32Initially quite sweet.
49:33And then you've got some zingy coming through.
49:36Yeah, it's got a classic tomato taste.
49:38But there's just a little bit more going on.
49:44One of the great things about growing an heirloom variety that is stable
49:48is that you save the seed from it.
49:50And it runs true.
49:51So how I save the seed is you need a ripe tomato.
49:55And I take the seed out of that.
49:57And I put it in a little pot with some water.
49:59Label it.
50:00Then I leave that for a week.
50:01It kind of ferments.
50:02And it replicates the tomato rotting on the ground.
50:06And a very ripe tomato improves germination.
50:10So then what I do after a week is I wash the seed.
50:12Get rid of all the impurities and the other bits apart from the seed.
50:16And I lay that on a piece of greaseproof paper.
50:20Label it again.
50:21And I leave that to dry for about a week.
50:24And then that seed is dry and good.
50:26And at its peak for five years.
50:29And that can go into a small jam jar at room temperature.
50:32And the seed's good to go.
50:34If you have a stable variety that's not a hybrid.
50:37It will always breed true.
50:39You may get a very rare accidental cross.
50:41But that is quite rare.
50:43I start seed sowing in February.
50:46Bring my seedlings on.
50:47And once they reach about 12 inches high.
50:49I transfer them into 15 litre pots with a multipurpose compost.
50:54Tomato plants like to have damp soil.
50:57They like a good soaking once a week and a good feeding.
50:59But damp soil is preferable.
51:01I tend not to use grow bags.
51:03Because they lose their moisture quite quickly.
51:06And that's why I opt for pots.
51:08And during the early flowering stage and the growth stage.
51:10I use quite a nitrogen rich feed.
51:13Liquid seaweed is a good option.
51:15A lot of nitrogen in liquid seaweed.
51:18And as the flowers start to turn to fruit.
51:20I reduce the nitrogen levels.
51:23And I increase the phosphorus and potassium.
51:25Because that encourages more flowering.
51:27And really good large fruits.
51:34So something I've been growing for the last couple of years.
51:36Because it's just a really interesting concept.
51:39Our micro tomatoes.
51:41And this is the complete variation you get from the smallest.
51:45Up to the tallest.
51:48And they come in different growth habits.
51:50Colors.
51:50What I really like about micro dwarfs is their versatility.
51:54You can sow seed.
51:56And within 12 weeks you've got ripe tomatoes.
51:58And if you haven't got a garden.
52:00Or you've got a small balcony.
52:02Limited space.
52:03You can grow this.
52:05No problem.
52:06And also once the season ends.
52:08You can bring this in and treat it like a house plant.
52:11And extend the season.
52:12So these are all mature plants.
52:14They will not get any taller.
52:15Quite happy in two litre pots.
52:17But apart from that.
52:18They don't need any management at all.
52:20Just a little bit of love.
52:21And a little bit of feed.
52:28If you've never grown a tomato before.
52:30I would definitely give it a try.
52:32It's very rewarding.
52:33Homegrown tomatoes are fantastic.
52:36Take the plunge.
52:36Give it a go.
52:37You've got nothing to lose.
52:55I think the great thing about tomatoes is to work out how you like best to eat them.
53:01And if you find out what you want to use them for.
53:04Then you will find wonderful varieties to choose from.
53:08Now this is about as far removed from tomatoes as you can get.
53:10But I think it's delicious.
53:11This is rocket.
53:12And this is not any old rocket.
53:14Because the rocket you buy.
53:16Or the rocket you get served when you go out for a meal.
53:18Is almost invariably the perennial kind.
53:21Has much more zigzag leaves.
53:22And actually is a bit thicker and tougher.
53:24But if you're growing at home.
53:26The annual rocket is much better.
53:29The taste is better.
53:30The texture is buttery and peppery and delicious.
53:34It doesn't store well.
53:35It bolts very quickly when it gets warm.
53:38It needs lots of water.
53:39In other words, it needs some attention.
53:41It needs gardening.
53:42But we're gardeners.
53:43And that's what we do.
53:45This I sowed actually in January.
53:47But sow it now.
53:48And it will come up within days.
53:50And it will be good until May.
53:52And then it will start to bolt.
53:53But you sow another crop in August.
53:55For harvesting in September and October.
53:58Now if you have grown them.
54:00And you've got nice young plants.
54:01Give them space.
54:03Because actually these want to be quite big plants.
54:06Each one needs, you know, six to nine inches in which to grow.
54:10And then you get a big plant.
54:12And you can cut it all.
54:14And it will come back at least twice before it bolts.
54:18It likes plenty of moisture.
54:21So add organic matter to the soil to retain moisture.
54:28I'm planting them in a grid.
54:30Because it makes it so much easier to hoe and weed.
54:39Although it seems a very humble plant.
54:41I think this is something for the epicure.
54:44Really delicious rocket.
54:46And it also makes very good pesto.
54:49Rocket.
54:51Walnuts.
54:52You can use cheddar cheese.
54:54Oil.
54:55It's absolutely delicious.
54:57Now to complete this job I need to water them in well.
55:00But that's all the watering they'll need.
55:02And while I'm doing that.
55:04Here are your jobs for the weekend.
55:22If you're growing climbing or rambling roses.
55:25And you haven't tied them in.
55:27Then do so now.
55:31Otherwise the new growth can be damaged by the wind.
55:35And this of course will restrict flowering.
55:48Now's the time to sow broad beans.
55:50Not least because they are one of the seeds that will germinate at lower temperatures than most.
55:57A double row is best.
55:59With the rows spaced about a foot apart.
56:01I use a board to space them.
56:04And then the beans three or four inches apart along the length of the row.
56:08So just push the seeds into the soil so they're an inch or two below the surface.
56:16Rake them over so they're well covered.
56:18Mark the spot.
56:19If it's very dry give them a water.
56:22But rain should do the job.
56:23And they should appear above ground in a few weeks time.
56:35If you grow the winter honeysuckle.
56:37The Nesra fragrantissima like I do.
56:39Then now is the time to print it.
56:41And this applies to all the early flowering shrubs.
56:44Prune them immediately after flowering.
56:49This is because they produce their new flowers on this year's growth.
56:54It's a good idea to refresh the plant by cutting out old wood.
56:58So get right in there.
57:00And using a saw or strong loppers cut the oldest growth down at the base of the plant.
57:06It may look dramatic.
57:08But it will let light and air in and encourage the new shoots to grow more vigorously.
57:19Come on in.
57:27The snake's head fritillaries are now probably at their best.
57:32And they're a fascinating plant.
57:34There are two things about them that I love.
57:36The first is that they are a plant of floods.
57:40And of course here at Longmeadow we do flood.
57:43And they need a really good soaking in winter.
57:47They can be dry in summer but not in winter.
57:49They won't grow if they're dry in winter.
57:51And I planted about a dozen, 25, 30 years ago.
57:55And they have spread down this end which is the wettest end.
57:59When the flood comes in this is where it comes in and it comes halfway up and no further.
58:03And they haven't spread further up at all.
58:05So they're absolutely a marker of the water line.
58:09And the second extraordinary thing about them is we think of them as one of our really special wildflowers.
58:14It's flowering by the thousand on water meadows.
58:17But actually they're almost certainly a garden escapee.
58:21So it's a plant that has been introduced, slowly left gardens, found where it likes and made itself at home.
58:27Which is what it's done here at Longmeadow.
58:30Anyway that's it for today.
58:32I'll see you back here next time.
58:33So until then, bye-bye.
58:54TORONTO
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