BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine Podcast

Her Majesty the Queen had a life-long fascination for plants and gardens, from her earliest years to one of her final public engagements, at the 2022 Chelsea Flower Show. Alan Titchmarsh, who enjoyed many gardening moments with the Queen, shares his memories of those encounters and reflects her place in a long line of royal gardeners, right up to today, with to the new King and his children. Learn...

How do you make the most of a small garden? Find out from the expert himself – Monty Don, who guides us through the key steps to creating your (tiny) dream garden. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Would you like to start prioritising gardening for wellbeing? Today on the podcast we’re chatting to someone who did just that. Social media celebrity Joe Sugg began posting videos on YouTube as something to do with his friends as a teenager in rural Wiltshire. Now his channel has over seven million subscribers.   Here he shares how he became addicted to scrolling social media and how stepping awa...

Join the team from BBC Gardeners’ World Magazine as we share lively conversation about all things gardening. We’ll be exploring growing for health and for wildlife, success with homegrown food and flowers, making a thriving garden for you and your family to enjoy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This time on Sowalong, Gardeners’ World presenter, Adam Frost, shares his love of growing rocket from seed. Discover how Adam first discovered this peppery herb, along with his expert advice on how and when to sow it for best results. Adam also reveals how he likes to use rocket with ‘almost everything’ when it comes to harvesting for the kitchen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastcho...

Bats are often overlooked in the garden. Being nocturnal, we don’t see them much. But did you know there are 18 species of bats in the UK, which by night, eat a range of our common garden pests? Today, Dr Amy Schwartz, ecologist and bat carer is in conversation with Kate Bradbury as they explore these interesting flying mammals. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn mo...

This time on Sowalong, herb farmer Jekka McVicar, shares her love of growing angelica from seed. Jekka’s shares her advice on ‘tricking’ germination, plus how to use the young leaves in salads, candy the stems and turn it into a delicious marmalade. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We’ve long known that bees and other pollinators are in decline. But did you know how many types of bees there are, and the wonderful ways they live their lives? Today, author and committed wildlife gardener Brigit Strawbridge and Kate Bradbury discuss their passion for bees. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adc...

This time on Sowalong, BBC Gardeners’ World magazine Gardening Editor, Emma Crawforth, shares why she likes to grow parsley from seed. One sowing of this tasty herb can produce pickings for up to a year, and here Emma explains her tricks for a great crop packed with fresh leaves and flavour. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcas...

Did you know that wasps are the best pest controllers you could wish for in the garden? Today, entomologist and wasp expert Professor Seirian Sumner and Kate Bradbury explore these wonderful, often misunderstood, insects. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This time on Sowalong, herb farmer Jekka McVicar, shares her love of raising basil from seed. Jekka’s favourite pick for flavour, here she explains all the tips and tricks for a great crop and rounds up her top basil varieties too. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The wonderful world of flies is so amazing and varied. Today, Dr Erica McAlister and Kate Bradbury delve into why they really are the unsung heroes of the planet. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today on Sowalong, landscape garden designer and writer Jack Wallington shares his passion for growing valerian. This perennial wildflower loves part-shady, woodland spots and is easy to grow from seed once you know how. With tall spikes and a cloud of white flowers on top, Jack talks you through his tips for autumn sowing, how he likes to use it in his schemes and the wildlife it attracts to the...

Frogs, toads and newts are water-loving garden visitors that anyone can enjoy if you make a pond. Experts Jules Howard and Kate Bradbury geek out in wildlife’s weird world of water. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today on Sowalong, Gardeners’ World presenter and seed sowing expert Frances Tophill shares her love of cornflower. Frances talks you through sowing and growing this cheery, pollinator-friendly annual. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

From ladybirds to chafers and weevils, we uncover beetles – the unsung heroes of the garden, as Kate Bradbury discovers from expert ‘Bugman’ Jones Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today on Sowalong, chef, passionate gardener and popular Bake Off judge Dame Prue Leith reveals her love for nasturtium – as not just a beautiful flower but an edible one, too. Discover delicious ways to use not just the flowers but also the seed pods in fresh summer salads – plus what other edible flowers are on Prue’s menus. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more...

Voted one of the UK’s favourite mammals, the hedgehog holds a special place in the nation’s hearts – and particularly the hearts of gardeners. With hedgehogs in significant decline, many of us who have regular hedgehog visitors in our gardens know how lucky we are, continuing to invest in hedgehog houses, providing food and setting up cameras to watch them at night. Today in the podcast, GW Magazi...

Today on Sowalong, Oliver Parsons, sub-editor of Gardeners’ World Magazine, harks back to his childhood with a lifelong love of courgettes, sparked by his Mum’s love of French cooking. Discover from Oliver the fundamentals of growing courgettes from seed, a hungry plant that demands rich soil and warm conditions to really thrive. There’s always the promise of a glut with courgettes, so he shares h...

Kate Bradbury is delighted to be hosting the brand new Gardeners World Wildlife Series here on the podcast. Join us over the next few weeks, As Kate speaks to all the experts about all the creatures visiting our gardens. We'll be giving you practical advice for things you can do at home to help improve the chances for wildlife in your area. And we'll also be sharing our favourite stories about our...

Today on Sowalong, chef, gardener and formidable Bake Off judge Dame Prue Leith reveals her love for cosmos, a favourite flower in her Cotswolds garden. She shares her earliest memories of cosmos, dating back to her South African childhood when it was a plant her mother knew and grew. Prue continues to grow it for the colours it offers, from rich purples for a richly hued flower arrangement, to co...

Monty’s garden at Longmeadow is among the most famous gardens in Britain, thanks to its starring role every Friday evening on Gardeners’ World. But it’s been the private garden – and passion – of Monty and his wife Sarah for 30 years, created from a bare field of rough grass with a lot of energy and imagination. In this podcast, Monty takes us back to its beginnings and shares how much has changed...

Today on Sowalong, designer, writer and gardener Jack Wallington shares his favourite veg to grow from seed – purple-sprouting broccoli. He has tips on how to get the most from this early and easy spring crop, that requires little attention once it’s in the ground and growing away. Producing heads for harvesting in the spring months known as ‘the hungry gap’, it’s a delicious and valuable addition...

Herbs have the power to ease our pain, fight infections, lift our mood – and add delicious flavours to our food. But they’re so often treated as a throwaway plant from the supermarket. ‘Queen of Herbs’ Jekka McVicar believes it is not just easy to grow herbs all year round but that, with their health-giving properties, herbs are our future. She discusses how to grow your herbs for better flavour a...

Today on Sowalong, Gardeners’ World presenter and seed sowing expert Frances Tophill guides you through growing sweetcorn from seed. She shares her tips for sowing and planting out, plus how to store seeds for winter. Frances has loved sweetcorn ever since she was a kid, enjoying using 1970’s prong forks to eat boiled corn on the cob with melted butter. First growing it as an apprentice gardener,...