Growing Up Podcast

Send us Fan Mail Please join us for the Christmas Party of the Growing Up Podcast.  We know there is a huge community of you who listen to our podcast each week.  We travel through the growing season, sharing it's challenges and joys.  This week we wanted to wish every single one of you a very Happy Christmas. The Growing Up Podcast is proudly sponsored by the amazing First Tunnels.  We are b...

Send us Fan Mail Join us with a hot drink and a mince pie as we evaluate the 2025 growing season.  in this episode, we sit by the fire and talk about our happiest memories from this year, before we dream of the growing season to come. The Growing Up Podcast is proudly sponsored by the amazing First Tunnels.  We are big believers in the benefits of growing in a polytunnel and genuinely believe in t...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Kate introduces us to the dark world of "bad" plants, plants that can be deadly, dangerous or just a real nuisance.  Kate's been wanting to share this episode for ages - really hope you enjoy it. The Growing Up Podcast is proudly sponsored by the amazing First Tunnels.  We are big believers in the benefits of growing in a polytunnel and genuinely be...

Send us Fan Mail This week, Andy talks about jobs that you can and definitely SHOULD complete in the December garden.  The build up to Christmas is a really special, magical time but it all provides an opportunity for chill out and recharge in the garden.   Grab yourself a mince pie, a Christmas jumper and a trowel and embrace December gardening. The Growing Up Podcast is proudly sponsored by the...

Send us Fan Mail Join us as Andy discusses how you can plant garlic successfully to ensure the best harvest possible next year and Kate details her mission to ensure that Christmas Poinsettias last beyond the festive period! The Growing Up Podcast is proudly sponsored by the amazing First Tunnels.  We are big believers in the benefits of growing in a polytunnel and genuinely believe in the quality...

Send us Fan Mail In this video, I sit down and talk to Ed, one of the founders of Roots Allotments, regarding some of the criticism levelled at Roots as a business.  As a Roots Allotment plot holder, I was keen to establish the truth surrounding some of the accusations that I had read online, and Ed was amazing in re-assuring and addressing those concerns head on. The passion in Ed's voice is...

Send us Fan Mail Will Petty has had an amazing journey, from working in special effects for TV and Film to now running an incredible family run lanscaping company, designing and building inspirational gardens. Will's story is incredible and we really hope that you enjoy hearing it and find it as inspirational as we do. Check out Will's Company:  https://www.jwlandscapes.co.uk/ Instagram:...

Send us Fan Mail Join us as we discuss the jobs you should be doing in your November garden.  Grab yourself a drink and join Andy and Kate for November gardening chat. The Growing Up Podcast is proudly sponsored by the amazing First Tunnels.  We are big believers in the benefits of growing in a polytunnel and genuinely believe in the quality of the products that First Tunnels supply.  Check out th...

Send us Fan Mail This week we travel back to Victorian times and discuss the phenomenon of Victorian Plant Hunters.  Have you heard of 'Orchidmania'?  You might just have caught it by the end of this episode. The Growing Up Podcast is proudly sponsored by the amazing First Tunnels.  We are big believers in the benefits of growing in a polytunnel and genuinely believe in the quality of th...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Kate is joined by her sister on the podcast to talk about how why she doesn't garden, what she feels are barriers to beginning her growing journey, and together they plan her perfect growing space. The Growing Up Podcast is proudly sponsored by the amazing First Tunnels.  We are big believers in the benefits of growing in a polytunnel and genuinely believe in...

Send us Fan Mail Everything that you have ever wanted to know about polytunnels.  This week we deep dive into polytunnel growing.  Over the last few months, we've received loads of questions about building and growing within a polytunnel, and this week we wanted to answer those questions within one very geeky podcast episode. Put the kettle on, close the polytunnel door and join us for a deep...

Send us Fan Mail How did it get to October already?  In this episode, we talk through the jobs that we really think you should be doing in the garden during the month of October.  Join us as we enjoy a hot drink and plan out our gardening adventures and plans this month. The Growing Up Podcast is proudly sponsored by the amazing First Tunnels.  We are big believers in the benefits of growing in a...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, we look back to the episodes we recorded back in January 2025, in which Andy and Kate both boldly made New Year's growing resolutions and sat down together with a cup of tea to plan the season ahead. Nine months later, in this week's episode, we listen back to our plans and ask how many of our resolutions came true this year so far. The Growing Up Podcas...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode we chat and share our honest tips and advice for anyone who is thinking of starting a business in horticulture.  We don't sugarcoat this and talk really honestly about the realities of this idea. Andy often receives messages asking for advice about starting a business within the horticulture sector, so many messages that it is impossible to respond to all of t...

Send us Fan Mail This week, Andy attempts to convince you to join him in adopting an autumnal gardening mindset, of embracing the deceleration of growth and actually embarking on some gardening adventures this autumn. The Growing Up Podcast is proudly sponsored by the amazing First Tunnels.  We are big believers in the benefits of growing in a polytunnel and genuinely believe in the quality of the...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Kate takes us for an evening outing into the night garden.  It's a magical, special place and we wanted to spend a little time there. The Growing Up Podcast is proudly sponsored by the amazing First Tunnels.  We are big believers in the benefits of growing in a polytunnel and genuinely believe in the quality of the products that First Tunnels supply.  Check o...

Send us Fan Mail How did we get to September already? For us, this is such an exciting month, a time of change silhouetted in gorgeous low-level sunlight.  Grab yourself a mug, and join us as we chat through gardening jobs that you can be completing in the month of September. The Growing Up Podcast is proudly sponsored by the amazing First Tunnels.  We are big believers in the benefits of growing...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, we chat to Lucie Ponsford of Mimosa Design about designing gardens for the future.  This is a seriously inspirational, hopeful chat about the future of garden design that provides a vision of new build gardens that are sustainable and anything but generic and boring. Find out more about Lucie and her work here: https://mimosagardendesign.com/ The Growing Up Podcas...

Send us Fan Mail At the beginning of our third season, we just wanted to take the time to reintroduce ourselves at your hosts. In our second-ever episode, Kate spoke very honestly about her journey and we wanted to update that story, almost two years later.  We talk about feeding carnivorous plants with spaghetti and the realities of dealing with a chronic illness while having fun growing things....

Send us Fan Mail When we began our podcast in Autumn 2023, we were both in a very different place, both professionally and personally.  We wanted to re-introduce ourselves at the beginning of our third season.  You are going to be listening to our voices a lot over the next year as we bring you monthly gardening advice and some amazing guests and we wanted to take this opportunity to re-introduce...

Send us Fan Mail Join us as we discuss the gardening jobs you can be busy doing in the month of August, as you juggle childcare, warm weather, mildew and Andy's singing halfway through this episode. Enjoy. The Growing Up Podcast is proudly sponsored by the amazing First Tunnels.  We are big believers in the benefits of growing in a polytunnel and genuinely believe in the quality of the produc...

Send us Fan Mail Join us as we mark the beginning of the third season of the Growing Up Podcast.  We look back at the incredible support that we've received for this slightly irreverent gardening chat and look forward to what we have lined up for you in season three. Oh, Andy also asks Kate what she would buy from the Garden Centre with one million pounds to spend.  Serious gardening journali...

Send us Fan Mail Andy has been so excited to record this episode. For a number of years we have become aware of the phenomenon of the 'second herb season' a time from mid to late summer when herbs once again become front and centre - filling gaps in our growing spaces and offering hardy alternative planting options as we begin to plan towards colder weather. What is the second herb seaso...

Send us Fan Mail July is a firework display in the garden, it's beautiful chaos in which the energy of growth is so beautiful, obvious and frenetic.  But amidst the joyful chaos of July there are so many jobs that you can do to really enhance your growth during the month of July and beyond. Join Andy and Kate for a fun, chilled-out chat about the July garden, slugs the size of cats, the joy o...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, you find Andy and Kate dealing with the realities of growing in a heatwave.  We took shelter in the podcast studio to share some heatwave gardening tips, to share the reality of working outside during high temperatures. But perhaps more importantly, we look forward to the second half of 2025. The Growing Up Podcast is proudly sponsored by the amazing First Tunnels...