Pennod 15 Garddio a Mwy

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-Welcome.

-Coming up, in Talybont-on-Usk...

-..I learn about the relationship

-between hedgerows and biodiversity.

-Sioned visits a garden close to

-her home in search of inspiration.

-Iwan sings the praises of ivy.

-Naturalist Bethan Wyn Jones

-discusses herbs.

-Well...

-..I'm pleased to say

-I had a busy weekend.

-I've done the little jobs

-that need doing this time of year.

-My winter lettuces

-have finally gone in.

-I left it a bit late.

-They'll be OK by next March.

-My celery and leeks look good.

-The odd one has bolted,

-but I'm not too worried.

-The garden looks more autumnal

-now.

-Removing the runner beans

-left a big space in the garden.

-The frame will go

-in the shed over winter.

-I'll put it

-in a different bed next year...

-..to continue

-the crop rotation system.

-I never grow the same crop

-in the same soil year after year.

-This is my perennial bed.

-What that means is...

-..once planted,

-they come back every year.

-My artichokes were very tasty.

-I have rhubarb, asparagus...

-..sea kale...

-..and strawberries.

-Perennial vegetables

-take a few years to establish.

-If you intend to plant

-perennial vegetables this autumn...

-..you won't be harvesting

-for a year or two.

-It's worth the wait. You'll

-have vegetables year in, year out.

-This rhubarb has been in the soil

-since this time last year.

-I haven't tasted any of it.

-I'm waiting for it to establish.

-It'll take a year for

-the crown and roots to establish...

-..and I have a strong,

-healthy plant.

-We need to give them some feed

-to help them along.

-This is how I maintain

-my perennial bed.

-A little compost or manure...

-..and straw...

-..protects the soil in winter...

-..and prevent weeds from spreading.

-Keep the weeds off your perennials.

-They don't like

-competing with weeds.

-If you create a new bed...

-..pay attention to the weeding.

-Once the plants are in the ground,

-that's where they'll stay.

-I'll leave that...

-..so the leaves and stalks will

-rot down over the coming weeks.

-That's all I'll do with the rhubarb

-until next spring.

-Next, asparagus.

-Asparagus

-are delicious to eat in spring.

-In May and June they poke their

-little fingers out of the soil.

-I cut them and they go straight

-in the saucepan.

-There's nothing like them.

-You never see asparagus fern

-in the shops.

-This is how asparagus looks

-when left to grow.

-Let the plant to do

-what it wants to do...

-..for the first two or three years.

-Let them grow, flower...

-..and die down naturally

-over the winter.

-By spring 2018...

-..I'll have fresh asparagus

-in the garden.

-The perennial gardener

-has to be patient.

-They surround our gardens.

-We drive past miles of them

-every day.

-They're home to a myriad

-of creatures and plants.

-What are they?

-Hedgerows.

-There are over 88,000 kilometres

-of hedgerows in Wales.

-That's enough

-to encircle the world twice.

-That's a long hedgerow.

-The Welsh name varies

-from county to county.

-Due to the industrialization

-of farming and bigger fields...

-..Wales has lost 30% of its hedges

-since the Second World War.

-To prevent the decline...

-..Keep Wales Tidy and the Woodland

-Trust's Long Forest project...

-..aims to plant new hedgerows

-and protect existing ones.

-What makes a good hedgerow?

-We can determine a hedgerow's age...

-..by counting

-how many species live in it.

-In a lovely hedgerow like this...

-..there is ivy, hawthorn...

-..blackthorn and blackberries.

-They provide shelter for the animals

-that live in the field.

-They prevent diseases

-spreading from field to field.

-They help to regulate water

-and reduce flooding.

-They provide a home

-for pollinators...

-..and a wild harvest for us.

-They're brilliant,

-and should be celebrated.

-How old are some of the hedgerows?

-Some of them...

-..not necessarily these...

-..are thousands of years old.

-Thousands?

-Thousands?

-

-Exactly.

-Some came about

-when land was cleared...

-..either side of the hedge

-to create fields.

-The old forest became a hedge.

-How do hedgerows

-help prevent floods?

-It has been proven

-that water is absorbed...

-..sixty times faster

-under a hedge...

-..than the middle of a field.

-That's because of the roots...

-..and the fact that animals

-don't compact the land under hedges.

-They can be effective.

-The Long Forest project

-has three goals.

-Firstly, to educate us about

-the importance of hedgerows.

-Secondly, to inform us

-how to maintain them...

-..and how to lay a hedge.

-Thirdly, to encourage us

-to create new ones.

-Glasnant Morgan farms

-in Talybont-onUsk.

-They say "perth" for hedge here.

-He has worked with the project

-to plant a great number of them.

-The farmer who was here before us

-let the farm go.

-Cows had trampled the hedges.

-We took over about 50 years ago.

-This is almost the last field

-we have to do.

-You've been busy.

-You've been busy.

-

-We've done miles.

-As well as the newly planted

-hedgerows...

-..Glasnant cultivates

-those he already has.

-We'll let it be for

-a year or two.

-It'll bear fruit next year.

-I can trim it down.

-We'll lay the hedge

-in ten to twelve years.

-This keeps the hedgerow alive.

-We'll continue to lay the hedges.

-Every county has a different style.

-This is the Breconshire style.

-Every county is different.

-Every county is different.

-

-Not only is it good for wildlife...

-..and conservation...

-..but it brings back

-an agricultural tradition.

-Yes.

-That's important.

-That's important.

-

-Yes.

-Who would think hedgerows

-were so important?

-Their flowers provide

-pollen and nectar for wildlife.

-Their berries and fruit

-are a food source.

-They provide shelter

-for bird nests...

-..and mammals

-like hedgehogs and field mice.

-They're shelter for farm animals.

-They're more than just a place

-for picking blackberries.

-They are a crucial part

-of the environment.

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-Iwan and I want

-to change this border...

-..between now and next year.

-It was originally a rose bed.

-But over the past two years...

-..it's become a hotchpotch

-of informal and cottage plants.

-Even though they look nice,

-I do want some sort of order here.

-I need to get ideas

-and find inspiration.

-The best way to do that

-is visiting other gardens.

-The Old Rectory in Llanfihangel

-Glyn Myfyr is 200 hundred years old.

-In 1824, Wordsworth came

-to stay with a friend...

-..Rector Robert Jones,

-and wrote a poem about the area.

-Who knows how it looked then.

-It's a sight to behold today.

-The different sections

-each have an individual theme.

-One has a Mediterranean influence.

-Another has the feel

-of a Japanese meditation garden.

-There are wooded paths and

-an arch of laburnum and wisteria.

-I met Elwyn Hughes

-in the rose garden.

-He is one of the Old Rectory's

-creative partners.

-I really like the shape

-of your rose garden.

-Why did you choose this shape?

-We wanted to have four squares

-that suited the garden's shape.

-It was difficult.

-We decided to have...

-..four rectangular beds.

-The two nearest the house are

-longer than the two furthest beds.

-When you get up

-and look out in the morning...

-..the perspective is perfect.

-How clever!

-That really is design.

-Maybe people don't think

-of planning a garden...

-..looking out from the house.

-Looking out at the garden

-is just as important...

-..as it is when

-you're in the garden.

-Yes.

-I like the way it's been laid out.

-You have Buxus, which is evergreen.

-There are all sorts

-of other plants in the borders too.

-There are tulips, aquilegia...

-..alliums and much more.

-We've tried to create colour...

-..for every season.

-We grow old garden roses.

-Newer roses wouldn't grow as well...

-..in this soil.

-You know how old roses are.

-After blooming, they're finished.

-But the thing is...

-..the scent of old roses...

-..is glorious.

-Definitely!

-I know you don't like taking

-the praise for all the work.

-It's Jenny who enjoys

-designing the garden.

-She has all the ideas.

-I'm the one who has

-to do a lot of the heavy work!

-Let's look for her.

-Let's look for her.

-

-OK!

-Jenny was a teacher.

-But she has designed

-several gardens.

-After retiring, she and Elwyn

-focused on the Old Rectory garden.

-One plant caught

-my attention immediately.

-Oh!

-Oh!

-

-That is my favourite.

-It's absolutely beautiful.

-It's the Rolls Royce of trees.

-There's a gorgeous pattern in it.

-The light is catching it now.

-I particularly like the layers,

-like a tiered wedding cake.

-Iwan and I have been developing

-our garden for only three years.

-But Elwyn and Jenny

-have worked here for 25 years.

-Does she have any advice for us?

-Probably the best tip

-to anybody starting out new...

-..is not to put your plants

-too close together.

-The tendency of all gardeners,

-even the best...

-..is to plant

-far too closely together.

-There's an example over there.

-I've got two conifers

-growing into each other.

-I've got to make a decision

-which one has to go.

-These trees were planted to protect

-young plants from the wind.

-But now they're established...

-..the garden can be opened up,

-to make the most of the views again.

-That would be my number one bit

-of advice. Give yourself space.

-Thank you.

-I've thoroughly enjoyed myself here.

-Thank you.

-I really enjoy autumn.

-It's the season

-of abundance and ripening.

-Everything starts to end.

-Here in the garden...

-..this time of year...

-..I like to sit near the herb patch.

-One of my favourite herbs is thyme.

-It's a marvellous plant.

-All summer,

-the light pink flowers...

-..have attracted wasps,

-bees, honeybees...

-..and all sorts of hoverflies.

-If I rub the leaves in my hands...

-..there's a strong aromatic scent.

-People used it

-for its medicinal properties.

-Gypsies treated

-whooping cough with it.

-But they'd never

-take it into the caravan.

-People think it shouldn't be

-taken into houses either.

-It's very unlucky...

-..and a portent of death.

-There is a natural

-antiseptic on the leaves.

-Centuries ago...

-..people were scared

-of catching diseases...

-..especially from the poor.

-They carried some of this...

-..to try and protect

-themselves from plague.

-Right next to the thyme...

-..I have a shrub of southernwood.

-When toilets were located

-at the bottom of the garden...

-..people planted a shrub

-of southernwood nearby.

-After doing their business

-in the toilet...

-..people rubbed

-their hands on the plant.

-The natural antiseptic

-on the leaves...

-..cleaned their hands.

-It's similar to what we do now

-with gels in hospitals.

-Herbs like southernwood

-and feverfew next to it...

-..were very important long ago.

-People had to pay to see a doctor.

-If they could grow things

-themselves, it was a great help.

-I use feverfew myself...

-..for migraine.

-I take a small piece of leaf...

-..and eat it.

-It's very bitter.

-The Physicians Of Myddfai called it

-"y chwerwyn gwynn", bitter white.

-Round the corner, there's wormwood.

-If you think feverfew is bitter...

-..you should taste this.

-When I was a child

-and fussy with my food...

-..Mam would say...

-"..Good gracious, do you have worms?

-You'd better have some wormwood."

-The threat was enough.

-I'd soon clear my plate.

-I have mint here, of course.

-Mint is easy to recognize.

-Two leaves grow

-in pairs opposite each other.

-The next pair grows

-at a 90 degree angle.

-All the mint family

-have this feature.

-We use mint to cook.

-It's also used for indigestion...

-..and of course to make

-gripe water for babies.

-Although the herb patch is small...

-..there's a good variety.

-And they're very easy to grow.

-This time of year...

-..most plants start

-to slow down and die.

-But one plant thrives

-this time of year.

-Ivy.

-Ivy growing on the side

-of a house is one thing.

-People tend to cut it.

-But what if ivy grows

-on a tree in the garden?

-Should that be cut?

-The simple answer is...

-..no.

-The subject often arises...

-..especially with my work

-at the Wildlife Trust.

-The general opinion

-is that ivy strangles trees.

-But that's a misapprehension.

-If you have a dying tree..

-..the additional weight

-of the ivy...

-..will accelerate the process.

-But if you have a healthy tree,

-like this sycamore...

-..ivy won't cause a problem.

-One of the first creatures

-to take advantage of ivy...

-..are wasps.

-They're flying around,

-but not collecting pollen.

-This hasn't started to bloom yet.

-They're catching aphids...

-..that live on the plant

-and drink sap from the ivy.

-Ivy blooms late in autumn.

-It attracts different creatures...

-..like hoverflies, bees,

-wasps, moths and butterflies.

-They're all attracted

-to this special food store.

-Because it blooms

-so late in autumn...

-..ivy is a very important plant.

-It's a food source for creatures

-to help them survive in winter.

-Over there,

-an ivy shrub has bloomed...

-..because it's in the sun.

-In time, the flowers

-will turn into berries.

-They provide food

-for many birds in winter.

-Talking of birds...

-..look how thick

-the ivy is on the tree trunk.

-It's a fine spot

-for nesting birds...

-..and for bats too.

-That gives you an idea

-how vital this plant is.

-That's it for another week.

-Sioned, Bethan, Meinir and I

-will be back next week.

-Until then, enjoy

-the countryside and the gardening.

-S4C Subtitles by Gwead

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