Talking Dirty

This week gardening author and designer Naomi Slade joins Alan Gray (East Ruston Old Vicarage) and Thordis to share the top Autumn plants in her tiny Bristol plot. From an Autumn Snowdrop (which is extra special!) to some heavenly Hydrangeas, there's inspiration aplenty, no matter the size of your plot! PLANT LIST Galanthus reginae-olgae 'Naomi Slade' Galanthus 'Faringdon Double' Dahlia 'Chimboraz...

This week on Talking Dirty get ready for an awe-inspiring array of grasses. Tim Fuller - National Collection holder of Molinia and owner of Plantsman's Preference Nursery - shares some of his favourites varieties, not only of Molinia, but Pennisetum, Elymus and Panicum with Alan Gray (East Ruston Old Vicarage) and Thordis. And that's not all - from awesome Asters to zingy variegation and some of h...

This week Alan Gray (East Ruston Old Vicarage) and Thordis are catching up with one of their Talking Dirty favourites, Val Bourne. The award-winning garden writer and Organic Gardener shares favourite plants from her own garden this Autumn, plus the Sweet Peas she'll be sowing on November 5th and great seed-sowing advice for all kinds of plants. PLANT LIST Hepatica nobilis Euphorbia griffithii 'Fi...

When it comes to #floralartistry, it doesn't get much more colorful and intoxicating than Johnny Crow's Garden. The creation of Devon-based grower-arranger Lucy Slater, this week she shares some of her seasonal favourites with Alan Gray (East Ruston Old Vicarage) and Thordis. From long-lasting #CutFlowers to punchy foliage, #Euphorbias and her passion for #Rewilding, it's a joyful plant-filled cha...

On this week's Talking Dirty Podcast, Alan Gray (East Ruston Old Vicarage) and Thordis enjoy a long-overdue return from the fabulous Rosy and Rob Hardy of Hardy's Cottage Garden Plants. Always great at choosing plants which are perfect for a situation, they turn up some stunners for the Autumn garden - from Chrysanthemums to Strobilanthes. PLANT LIST Thalictrum 'Chantilly Lace' Glandularia 'Margar...

The Talking Dirty Podcast is all about spreading the love of plants and some know-how for getting the best out of them. And what better way to supplement our weekly conversations with top gardeners, than by answering your horticultural conundrums! Don't forget if you have a question you can email it to hello@getgardeningnow.co.uk or message us on Instagram and Twitter - we'll endeavour to answer y...

This week on The Talking Dirty Podcast, Alan Gray (East Ruston Old Vicarage) and Thordis are diving into the world of #propagation with Young Propagators, Georgia and Soham. Alongside, explaining what the YPS is all about, the pair share the techniques they've used from softwood cuttings to #airlayering through an amazing array of Show and Tell. Just check out that plant list... PLANT LIST Geraniu...

We are so excited to bring you our latest Talking Dirty podcast with none other than Claus Dalby. The Danish King of container planting and great plantsman has tranformed his plot in Risskov over the last twenty-seven years, into an inspiring planty paradise. And his exploits are followed by Instagram and YouTube viewers the world over. This week Alan Gray (East Ruston Old Vicarage) and Thordis ch...

He's back! Grower of extraordinary plants and seller of rare seeds - Mike Clifford is a plantaholic through and through. In this return appearance to the Talking Dirty Podcast, he shows Alan Gray (East Ruston Old Vicarage) and Thordis his favourite fern, an amazing Sauromatum which has hybridised in his garden and some incredibly rare plants. Plus a few selections for anyone keen to introduce jung...

As we revel in what may be the only ever September RHS Chelsea Flower Show, Alan Gray of East Ruston Old Vicarage and Thordis share their highlights from the show. Having spent a glorious day perusing the Show Gardens and Floral Pavilion, they've gathered together their favourite plants from, Salvias to succulents, via a plant from Alan's childhood and something brand new this year. PLANT LIST Beg...

Famed for many things from their Chillis to their Glasshouses and Arboretum, West Dean is an inspiring place. And this week Alan Gray (East Ruston Old Vicarage) and Thordis catch up with its inspiring Head Gardener Tom Brown. He talks us through how planting, compost and plastic use are all changing at West Dean, and brings along some of the plants they're using to be more drought tolerant. And if...

Hold onto your hats - from big, scented blooms to unusual shade-lovers, Bleddyn and Sue are back to wow you with more of their treasures from Crug Farm Plants. We've got Cautleyas to covet, Roscoeas to revel in, Begonias, Buddleja and Bomarea...just check out that plant list! PLANT LIST Dahlia excelsa Dahlia imperialis Dahlia pteropoda Cautleya spicata 'Crûg Canary' Cautleya spicata 'Arun Flame' C...

We've got a real treat for you this week on The Talking Dirty podcast! Derry Watkins of Special Plants is back and she's taking us for a little look around her garden! From the so-called 'Carnival' bed to the plants that dwarf her, there is inspiration a-plenty - and that's before we move to the Show and Tell part of the podcast! PLANT LIST Zinnia tenuifolia 'Red Spider' Sedum Sunsparkler® 'Cherry...

If you thought you had enough Dahlias in your life, then think again. Dan Cooper is about to change your mind! His Dahlia-tastic show and tell wows Alan Gray (East Ruston Old Vicarage) and Thordis as he takes us from Cactus-types to Waterlilies via fibriated and single. Whatever colour and shape of Dahlia you want, he's got it! Plus some terrific Tropaeolums and heavenly Hedychiums squeezed in for...

This week on Talking Dirty Alan Gray (East Ruston Old Vicarage) and Thordis delve back into the world of Exotic plants with Conrad McCormick AKA That Botanic Guy. But if you think big-leaved, tropical-looking plants are for big, expansive spaces then think again, because Conrad manages to fit all his large-leaved loves into his small garden in Northern Ireland. From fantastic foliage to love-at-fi...

If you think Floral Design is all about extravagance and cutting garden favourites, then allow Brigitte Girling - the genius behind Moss & Stone Floral Design - to show you her wilder way of arranging. Using the wildflowers from her garden and some she's grown from seed, she brings a celebration of nature to her designs which is in keeping with her love of the wildlife in her plot. As Brigitte...

Val Bourne returns to The Talking Dirty Podcast to share some of her top plants of the moment with Alan Gray (East Ruston Old Vicarage) and Thordis , plus bumper Butterfly chat and cracking Crocosmia care tips! PLANT LIST Origanum vulgare Clematis 'Elsa Späth' Buddleja x weyeriana 'Pink Pagoda' Bupleurum fruticosum Daucus carota 'Dara' Clematis tibetana subsp. vernayi 'Glasnevin Dusk' Clematis 'Li...

This week Joe Whitehead takes a break from Burghley's exciting walled garden project to join Alan Gray (East Ruston Old VIcarage) and Thordis Fridriksson on this week's Talking Dirty podcast. Their conversation weaves from planting up Summer containers, to why 'common' plants deserve a place in your garden, and how water conservation and planting for the future are at the heart of Joe's plans for...

He's back and he's brought ALL the plants to talk about! Ian Roofe - one of our original Get Gardening team - returns to regale us with his favourite plants of the moment, which leads into an exciting conversation about planting in the Exotic Garden at East Ruston Old Vicarage and some climber inspiration from Ian's own garden. With thanks, as ever, to the brilliant online plant community who've s...

What better way to celebrate both our first Birthday and our 50th episode than with a podcast devoted to a beloved plant, the Rose. Most of us have at least one in our garden, they feature in bouquets, in perfume...but how do you possibly choose which one to grow? And what are the tricks to getting the best out of them? This week Alan Gray and Thordis are joined by someone who knows his Roses insi...

If you've got a small garden and worry that it can't have the same impact has a bigger plot, then listen up for some great planting ideas! In this edition of Talking Dirty, Alan Gray (East Ruston Old Vicarage) and Thordis catch up with fellow podcasters Michael Perry (Mr Plant Geek) and Ellen Mary of @ThePlantBasedPodcast and three of the four have small gardens at home. Alongside chatting about t...

Some places are synonymous with certain flowers, and at Easton Walled Gardens that flower is the Sweet Pea. For years they've tried different varieties and ways of growing them and shared their discoveries with their garden visitors. As this year's Sweet Pea Season begins, Lady Ursula Cholmeley joins Alan Gray (East Ruston Old Vicarage) and Thordis to talk through the history of both the gardens a...

Once you fall in love with plants, you generally find you want to make more from what you've got. Propagation is addictive and magical, but how do you master it? And exactly how far can you take a method when you figure one out? In this episode of The Talking Dirty Podcast, plantsman Joe Sharman shares some of the secrets he's learned from a lifetime loving plants. Plus he, Alan Gray (East Ruston...

They say the best things come in small packages...well that couldn't be more true of Alpines. And this week - if you needed convincing - Luke Whiting of Alpine Specialists D'Arcy & Everest is along to prove how wonderful they are. From their hardiness, to the range of situations you can grow them in, and of course their stunning flowers and foliage, Luke shares just a smidgen of the treasures...

Sometimes they're so perfect, it's hard to believe they're real - In this week's Talking Dirty podcast it's ALL about Auriculas as grower Jane-Ann Walton explains the different types and how to grow these Diva plants. From compost mixes, to dealing with pests like root aphid and red spider mite, the best pots to use, overwintering, where to start if you're a beginner and even helpful tools - Jane-...