Young Gardener of the Year Young Talent of the Year

The show that searches for the best in young, hard-working British talent is back.

Some of this!

This year, with a whole new crop of trades,

from tailors to farmers, carpenters to bakers.

If you cut me through, it would say "bread" on the inside.

These grafters are used to being the very best in their business.

Winning is like a drug. The adrenaline it gives you is just phenomenal.

There's nothing like the feeling that you're a winner.

Get a bit addicted to it, at times.

But, over a series of gruelling rounds, our judges will decide

whose talent really shines out, as they push them to breaking point.

I just can't do it.

-Come on, show us passion!

-I'm passionate.

Well, it's hardly chopped the teat off,

so I don't think it's quite that drastic.

I think he wants to be put back in his place.

End of the day, we're the judges.

With bigger, more extreme challenges than ever before,

this is their chance to prove themselves.

-To add nutrients, or...?

-You have to tell me.

It's one of the basics of gardening. If you don't get that right, then...

-This is horrible!

-Lots of arithmetic going on, but not much action.

You look like you're in a nightmare maths A-Level!

-That's really, really bad.

-I'm disappointed in myself, because I know I can do better.

If he'd have spoke to me like that on my farm, I'd have sent him straight out that gate.

Each of them desperate to convince the experts they're worthy of the title.

Competition's on. Game on.

Tonight it's the turn of the budding young gardeners.

I'm not here to make friends, I'm here to win.

They'll have to dig down deep into their knowledge.

-My mind's gone blank.

-You should know this.

-To propagate their way to victory.

-I'm out of my depth.

Four green-fingered gardeners, but only one winner.

Hello, I'm George Lamb, and welcome to the show.

Over the last couple of weeks we've seen Britain's young talent

battle it out to prove they're the very best.

tonight it's the turn of the workers who keep Britain in bloom

to fight it out for the title of Young Gardener Of The Year.

Now, for the last few months our experts have been on a mission,

searching every inch of the UK to find the youngest

and most gifted green-fingered gardeners.

Hundreds applied, but only the ripest crop were picked

to undertake a gruelling test and rigorous interview.

It's OK. Until I discuss the answer with someone else

and their answer's different. So, who knows?

The top 20 were put through to face the judges,

where they had to prove their green fingers were worthy of a chance to take the title.

To win Young Gardener Of The Year, I could die a happy man.

The competition was fierce.

Our final four are as follows.

But only the four finest specimens were chosen for the final.

-I got picked!

-Oh, well done!

It'd mean the world to me to win.

It'd open up so many doors and so many opportunities.

-I'm through.

-Oh, well done!

-Yeah.

I can't quite believe it, pretty amazing.

I'm going to break into tears.

I'm just ringing you, I'm through to the final four.

'Oh, my God!'

Now, that final four must sow, cultivate and nurture their way to the title

and we'll soon know the name of our first ever Young Gardener of the Year.

It's time now to meet the men and women who flourished in their field

while the competition were nipped in the bud.

Finalist number one, the urban gardener with a community conscience.

It's 25-year-old Damian Jenkinson from Wigan.

Getting through to the final four, I'm definitely in it to win it.

I'm not here to make friends, I'm here to win.

Finalist number two, from Lancashire,

has already landscaped his own business.

It's 24-year-old John Foley.

I don't think you could find someone more passionate.

I love growing plants, I love telling people about plants.

Our third finalist, the constant gardener with a stately career,

it's 24-year-old Amy Bray from Bedfordshire.

Being the only female in the competition hasn't really worried me at all.

I'll always have to prove myself in my job, and that's what I'm doing today.

And last but not least, our fourth finalist,

the gardening protege who's already propagated himself a career at 16,

it's Jamie Butterworth from Wakefield.

I may not have the experience that the others have,

but I think I've got what it takes to win the competition.

OK, everybody, well done for getting to the final,

but have you got what it takes to impress these heroes of horticulture?

Recipient of the prestigious Prince Philip Medal in 2007,

it's Chris Collins.

One of the country's leading horticulturalists and garden designers,

Chris's cultivating qualifications are second to none.

I love plants, they really do it for me. I'll never get sick of them.

After a five-year apprenticeship he gained the coveted position

of Head Gardener at Westminster Abbey.

ALL: Hello!

But Chris is probably best known as the Blue Peter gardener.

I think the title of Young Gardener Of The Year is a big ask.

I'm glad it's there, cos I want the world to see there's a lot of young, gifted gardeners

going to come through and keep my trade alive.

She's been the Show Manager of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show

for the past five years.

Meet Alex Denman.

She's the woman behind the most prestigious flower show in the world,

and when it comes to garden design, Alex knows how to sort the weeds from the prize blooms.

I get to work with some of the finest plantsmen and designers in the world.

This is the place that they want to exhibit their designs and their craft.

Throughout her career, Alex has nurtured budding young gardeners,

ensuring the green-fingered gene doesn't wilt away.

So, to be a great gardener, I really want them to be

living and breathing their work.

After all, they're going to be our custodians of our open spaces.

Alex, what will you be looking for in this competition?

George, you have to have a number of skills.

They have to be designers, they have to be able to construct, and, of course,

they've got to have fantastic plant knowledge.

OK. Chris, what does it take for you to mature and grow

in this line of work?

Well, you've got to have, George, a thirst for knowledge. There's entomology, botany, pathology.

But ultimately you've got to be able to put it into practice.

OK, thank you, Chris.

Guys, our judges have devised four thorny gardening challenges for you.

Remember, only one of you will ultimately win the title

of Young Gardener Of The Year.

This first challenge is all about the fundamentals of gardening,

the raw materials, and obviously the most important raw material is soil.

Right plant, right place.

It's one of the basics of gardening, if you don't get that right, then you're history.

We're giving you four different types of soil to work with,

and 25 plants to find homes for. It's time to get your hands dirty.

You've got 45 minutes to get this done. Your time starts now.

In this crucial first round to find Young Gardener Of The Year,

our four opponents are faced with 25 different plants,

and need to label them with both their common and Latin names.

So, John.

Man with his own nursery, should be great at naming these plants.

Some of them I haven't come across before, some I know the full names.

Next, the rivals have to identify

the four different soil types in front of them,

ericaceous peat, sand, chalky and clay,

and choose the most suitable soil environment for each plant.

Have you identified your four soil types?

Yeah, I'm just separating the plants out to the soil type it likes.

And, to make the competition even tougher,

Chris and Alex have thrown in a red herring to catch out our contenders,

a succulent house plant that's only suitable for indoor use,

and should be left well alone.

Now, judges, what's going to be the key to success in this challenge?

Every gardener should know their soil.

They need to know why they're choosing the plants to go in that soil.

You've got to decide what goes where and why.

With only 45 minutes to complete the challenge,

highly competitive contender Damian

is the first of our four finalists to start labelling his plants.

-Damian, how we doing?

-I'm all right.

I hear you're responsible for making Wigan beautiful, right?

-Well, yeah.

-You've become a bit of a pin-up.

There's no well to sell flowers better than a picture.

-Absolutely. With you stood smiling behind them.

-Preferably!

# Because you're gorgeous... #

Street gardener Damian has fast become a poster boy for his home town Wigan...

..after pioneering the transformation

of a drab inner-city location.

I wanted to put Wigan on the map. Floral displays in the town centres and in the neighbourhoods.

and now we get comments throughout the year about how good Wigan's looking.

I'm very proud of my son, what he's done.

He's brought the whole community together.

This was a derelict little corner.

Damian came along with Wigan In Bloom

and created a really nice piece of the town centre.

And Damian's local profile is going from strength to strength.

He's just been nominated to design the planting for Wigan's Olympic torch route,

and this competitive young gardener just can't get enough of winning awards.

I've achieved significant recognition for Wigan Borough In Bloom.

It would be very nice to get some recognition for the hard work

that I've put in to the project over the last few years.

But even with all those awards under his belt,

pin-up boy Damian isn't exactly smelling of roses.

Damian, how you getting on?

Stressed. It's the naming of the plants. I've not done this for years.

It's been a while since I've been to college,

so it's a bit of a test, but I'm doing my best.

All four opponents have sussed out their soils, and started planting.

But for the youngest contender, this back-to-basics test is a total nightmare.

So, Jamie, how you feeling about this first challenge?

Not too good, actually. I mean, it's not something that I've ever studied before.

-So, your naming of plants?

-Naming of plants, yeah.

It's something that I'm not too good at, at the moment.

-You've just started at college, right?

-Yeah, two weeks in, yes.

At the auditions,

16-year-old Jamie wowed the judges with his energy and enthusiasm.

Since a very, very young age I've had a passion for gardening.

It's more than just a hobby for me. It's my lifestyle.

This green-fingered prodigy works in a garden centre,

is studying for an NVQ in horticulture, and spends his spare time on his grandparents' allotment.

But instead of gramps passing on his gardening know-how,

it's Jamie doing the teaching.

So, if you keep cutting it, it'll promote more growth, and we get more lettuce.

It's a little bit of role reversal. I'm, kind of, Jamie's apprentice.

Jamie's transformed the garden.

I've never had as many flowers or fruit and vegetables.

We've never eaten as well. Don't know about five a day, I think sometimes we have ten a day.

Just last week I actually won a second place for these carrots.

And the next thing I hope to win is Young Gardener Of The Year.

His carrots may be prize-winning, but back at the competition,

Jamie has gone into panic mode.

With the judges and his opponents watching his every move, he's failed to come up with

even the common name for most of the plants.

Jamie's looking a little bit nervous.

It's the plant knowledge that he's really lacking on.

-Very under-confident in the naming of the plants.

-Yeah.

OK, gardeners, you're at the halfway point.

You've got just over 20 minutes left.

At this key point in the first round, grassroots gardener John is head and shoulders above his rivals,

having meticulously labelled most of his plants with the common and Latin names.

-John looks pretty confident to me.

-He is the real deal.

Yeah. He's being extremely methodical about what he's doing.

Self-confessed perfectionist Amy

spent nearly half the challenge thoroughly testing the soils.

But with time running out, she's now struggling to name the plants.

I'm concerned about her naming. There are some plants in there that she really should have got.

Competitive Damian got off to a flying start,

but this green-fingered pin-up has fallen down on his floral knowledge.

-How about Damian?

-There's a mis-label there, the dianthus,

which I'm surprised about.

-That plant knowledge, those Latin names are evading him at the moment.

-Sure.

But for these judges,

there's something even worse than mis-labelling your dianthus,

and that's not knowing when a plant belongs on your windowsill.

Only a young lad, so he doesn't know all the plants.

-He has fallen for our curveball, though, cos I spied it in there.

-I know!

OK, guys, you've got ten minutes left. Ten minutes to go.

In the final minutes of the challenge,

Chris and Alex want to drill down further into our finalists' knowledge.

-You've got an acer here.

-Yep.

-What are the main problems you get with these Japanese...?

It's finding the ideal situation for them, half sun, half shade.

What's so special about that soil?

I've identified it as being a sandy loam.

What would you do in the long term to treat it?

To treat it? What, to add nutrients, or...?

You have to tell me.

And our judges are also assessing

whether these young gardeners have considered what their beds look like.

Amy and Damian are good at handling plants

-and putting them together aesthetically.

-They've actually put some design in there.

OK, finalists, you've got one minute to go.

You've got one minute to go, guys, start thinking about finishing up.

Five, four,

three, two, one.

That's it, guys.

Time's up. Stand by your beds.

The gardeners have done their all,

but is it enough to impress judges Chris and Alex?

Right, Amy.

Perfectionist Amy spent a long time identifying the soils.

She has all four spot-on, but her hesitation cost valuable time.

Labelling, Amy. Not so hot on some containers as others.

What have been the greatest challenges?

Time has been one of them, and secondly,

just, kind of, remembering, to be honest.

Hopefully I've done enough,

but I wish I'd got more plants labelled.

Damian, how you feeling?

Better, now it's over.

Competitive Damian was confident with identifying all the soils,

but he failed to name some of the plants.

Can you just tell me why you haven't included some of these plants,

and this one, in particular?

-Obviously it's succulent, which would imply that it should go there.

-Mm-hmm.

-But, to me, that's a house plant, so that's why I didn't include it.

-OK.

Feel like I have done my best. I think it was a good challenge to see who knows what,

and separate the people who should and shouldn't be here.

Grassroots gardener John correctly identified the soils,

and named the majority of his plants.

How did you conclude that these plants would be good for this soil?

It's either plants with a very fine leaf, which reduces transpiration through the leaf,

and then any plants with a silvery foliage.

Again, silvery plants like a much drier soil.

Took my time, composed myself.

I managed to identify my plants and soils. So I'm quietly confident.

Teenage prodigy Jamie correctly identified

three out of the four soil types,

but his plant knowledge was lacking.

Just tell us a little bit of how you've composed these plants.

What I've done, I've tried to do it

so that from every angle there's something to look at.

I'm interested in the choice of this plant.

To be honest, I've got that on my windowsill, at home.

I had a chance to look at the other contestants.

They looked to have used the correct plants and put me to shame, really.

OK, Jamie, thank you. Judges, if you've seen enough,

it's time for you to go off to the hush room.

-It's going to be tough, cos they're all pretty good.

-Very much so. Jamie.

I felt for him, cos he was struggling with the plant identification.

-We have to remember he is 16. But, he did fall for our red herring.

-He did.

Damian. I felt he was nervous to begin with, but he pulled it through.

-Labelling, there was a few things he wasn't sure about.

-Amy.

I thought she'd do better on the plant names. She seems to be lacking belief in her answers,

questioning herself as she goes along.

We come to our man John, who's hyper-efficient and confident.

Do you think he was thinking about design?

I don't think he was, and I'm really interested to see in the coming challenges how he picks that up.

Well, nobody goes at this point.

-There is so much more to play for.

-Redemption is possible.

Judges, if you're ready, we'll have some feedback.

Chris, if you want to start with Damian.

I thought you looked a bit nervous,

but you seemed to settle into it, and confidence seemed to grow.

Amy, I was really disappointed with your plant knowledge.

Chris, some feedback for Jamie, please.

Jamie, I think you'd be the first to admit

you need to work on your plant knowledge.

I do feel, though, your design flair was excellent.

Thank you.

So, John, your plant knowledge absolutely wowed us.

On a slight negative tone,

we want to see more creative flair coming through.

OK, judges, it isn't the case,

but if you did have to send somebody home after this first round, who would it be?

It would be Jamie, so far.

All right, guys, the good news is you've still got another chance

to prove that you're the top of the tree.

The bad news is, one of you will be out after the next challenge.

I'm afraid, guys, it's going to get a hell of a lot tougher.

As the judges' sharp criticisms start to sink in,

our contenders' family and friends offer their support

to spur them on to the next challenge.

It wasn't a good round for me.

If I was a judge, I would've picked me, to be honest.

They picked on my, on the areas I'm not confident in.

And that I don't know.

Jamie's definitely in this to win it.

When he got through, he said that was the best day of his life.

He is struggling, cos he hasn't got the experience.

I'm hoping the next challenge is plant orientated. I'm very plant orientated.

What I wouldn't like it to be is maybe a design challenge.

I think there may be a few people there who are stronger at design than myself.

I think in design the lad's all right.

My main competition is John. He's got really sound knowledge.

Yeah, see what happens. I don't know.

Being told I'm disappointing has made me even more determined

to go for the next challenge and prove them wrong.

Sustainability is all the rage right now.

But which of our finalists really knows how to put it into practice

in the garden or in the community at large?

Chris, they're going to have to be really resourceful in this challenge.

It's about taking everyday products and making them look aesthetic, but also productive.

If a gardener's throwing something away, he's not gardening right.

The next challenge is to create a cleverly-deigned space

with these wonderful wheelbarrows at the centrepiece.

You've got 60 minutes to show us

it's not you who should end up on the scrapheap.

Your time starts now.

For this vital second round,

our four opponents need to get their creative juices flowing,

and pimp their wheelbarrow into an attractive centrepiece for a community garden.

So, Damian, this surely is going to suit you, guerrilla gardener.

It sure is, getting a bit of creative flair is good for me.

They've been given a mixture of fruit and veg

so their garden can also be used as a local food source,

and they'll need to imaginatively re-cycle the other bits of junk

into funky plant containers.

-Much better challenge for you?

-Much better, yeah.

Garden design is definitely something I enjoy a lot more.

-I can see you've definitely got a smile on your face, this time.

-Oh, yeah.

This is our opponents last chance to impress the judges

with their creative flair and deep-rooted plant knowledge,

because in just 60 minutes' time, one of the four will be sent home.

Alex, what will you be looking for?

I'm looking for the gardeners to create a really attractive centrepiece for us,

cos, after all, if they're not producing something pretty,

then the community's not going to get involved.

The finalists start by clearing their gardens.

But, for John, creativity is a totally alien concept.

So, this challenge, is it suiting you, do you think?

-I'm not a design person.

-No, very much a plants person.

Very much a plantsman, so I'm out of my depth.

Three years ago, 24-year-old John took over his father's overgrown and outdated nursery...

..in a bid to revitalise the business.

We've put a hell of a lot of hours in. Blood, sweat and tears.

Look at it now. It's a lot more shipshape.

John is really passionate about gardening,

and everything he does, he puts 100% into.

If it's not perfect, he'll do it again until it is perfect.

And that passion for perfection paid dividends

when John entered the prestigious Tatton Park Flower Show.

We got a silver gilt, which we were very pleased with, don't get me wrong,

but the frustrating thing was we were one point off a gold.

We went back with a real fire in our belly this year.

We pulled out all the stops, we got our gold.

Now the next award I've got my eyes on is Young Gardener Of The Year.

But John's not leaving anything to chance.

This salt-of-the-earth businessman has already cultivated a solid strategy for the competition.

Nowadays there's all this about garden design and, you know,

very airy-fairy gardening.

How I see it is coming back to basics with the knowledge,

with the passion for plants,

and I feel I've got what it takes to win it.

Back at the creative challenge, and plantsman John

has abandoned his back-to-basics principles,

and is starting to get proper arty-arty.

It's kind of a garden with a story.

The wheelbarrow's spilled over, the blocks have spilled out,

which will be a kind of string of bedding plants.

Something with a bit of flair, really.

OK, guys, you're at the halfway point. You've got half an hour left.

All four rivals now have their structures sorted,

and start to plant up.

But for poster-boy Damian, teenage prodigy Jamie

and perfectionist Amy, the contest is hotting up to see

who can impress the judges the most with their design jargon.

How are you getting on?

Good, just trying to get some balance before we start planting anything.

I started off with the idea of having separate areas, but trying to link them all together.

Cos we've got this square to work with, I'll hopefully use the plants

to break that up and get a natural feel to it.

It was Amy's passionate commitment to gardening

that won her a place in the final four.

It's not just a job. You live it and you breathe it,

and you get a little bit obsessed by it.

But, little did the judges know that this sweet, unassuming 24-year-old

is practically royalty.

OK, so this isn't exactly Amy's house,

but, as deputy head gardener of Woburn Abbey,

she does get to rub shoulders

with the duke and duchess who reside there.

The duchess comes out regularly. It is her back garden, I suppose, at the end of the day.

And she's very enthusiastic on gardening, as well.

And also we're quite lucky that I think we kind of have the same taste.

Oops! Sorry, duchess.

Amy may not live in the abbey itself,

but one big perk of her coveted job is getting a quaint country cottage

on the estate, complete with its own gardening challenge.

She doesn't stop. Weekends and evenings,

just constantly thinking about her gardening,

and trying to improve.

But, will Amy's gardening obsession stand her in good stead

for winning the competition?

To think that I'm in the final four is just incredible in itself.

And to win it, I think, would just blow my mind, really.

It would mean the world to me.

Back at the competition, and with minutes left,

the rivals race to finish the most important garden of their lives.

Jamie looks like he's far happier.

I think this challenge has given his confidence back.

-And John? I don't know how you feel about the design.

-It's a little weak.

A little low.

It's all a little bit itsy-bitsy.

Certainly the structure is far stronger in Damian's and Amy's, for this one.

Five, four,

three, two, one.

Time's up, gardeners.

Park those barrows and let's see how you've done.

Their 60 minutes are up, but who will be eliminated?

-Jamie, how we doing?

-Very good, thank you.

Jamie's confidence has grown throughout this design challenge.

But has this talented teen got the goods to back it up?

Tell me about growing conditions in there for a strawberry.

The strawberries can trail off, they get a lot of air to it.

Mm-hmm. Why is that important, Jamie?

Erm, good circulation. I mean...

Can't remember now. Erm.

-It helps ripen the fruit.

-Mm-hmm.

It'll get more sunlight.

Competitive Damian designs community gardens for a living,

but can Wigan's poster-boy prove he can also maintain them?

A little bit worried about your grape. Where do you see this going?

Yeah, I just needed somewhere at the back, to be honest.

If we had a wall at the back, you've got to try and train it up the wall.

I might even get a few more of those wheels,

attach them to the wall, or something like that.

After a disappointing first round,

will Amy's design flair be enough to keep her in the competition?

So, talk me through your inspiration.

I've tried to keep it an English garden.

Any other design principle that you've brought into play

in this particular garden you've created?

Well, height, definitely.

I've obviously started off small,

and kind of bringing it up to the tools and the pear tree.

After acing the first round, gardening entrepreneur John

struggled to get to grips with this creative challenge.

Talk me through the principles you've been trying to employ.

Well, I didn't really follow any principles with this one,

not being a designer. We've got some height at the back,

then over here we've got a vine growing up some string.

What'd be your technique to look after the grape?

Pruning the grape is about keeping it balanced.

Any strong shoots that come out, tying them in.

All right, then, judges.

If you're happy, I'll ask you to go off to the hush room and deliberate.

With no idea what the judges think, all our finalists can do is wait.

Don't feel ready to home yet, at all.

The challenges, I've put 100% into them so far.

And I just hope the judges see that, really,

and put me through to the next round.

I don't think they've seen the whole of me.

Need another challenge to prove and show them what I can do.

There's no doubt Amy wants this desperately.

She's realised she's got to get in there, dig her heels in,

really concentrate on the job and, you know, do well in it.

Everyone else seemed to have their plan, and I had no idea at all.

If I have dropped a few points because I'm not a designer,

maybe the challenge before where I did score highly

might help me get through. So, who knows?

I think John'll be quietly confident, getting through.

I've got faith in him. He's out of his comfort zone, but he seems to be coping really well.

I think I messed up on the first one.

And that one, I thought I did really well.

I'm still giving it my all.

I went in there and upped my game,

and did everything possible I could to stay in.

But we'll have to wait and see.

I was really pleased with the way Jamie came through with this.

I think the design is actually brilliant.

His use of materials is interesting.

We had strawberries in the saucepan, and I'm thinking,

"anaerobic conditions." Which means, if you don't have drainage,

and the wrong bacterias get involved, the plant's going to rot.

But moving on to Damian, we've got a really good central focal point,

he's got great use of the materials to get height in the structure.

Where he suffered, I didn't think he thought about why he put the grape there.

And grapes get quite big, and they need training. But he has lifted it up.

And I think the same can be said of Amy.

I felt her composition was good. I'm perhaps a little disappointed.

It was lacking a bit of pizzazz, for me.

What about our man John?

Design composition, flat for me.

As he says himself, he's not a designer, and I think there's a bit of a chink in his armour, there.

I think this is really tough, now. One or two of them in there

still failing on their plant knowledge. Somebody's got to go.

OK, gardeners. Time, now, to get some feedback.

If we could start with Jamie, please, Alex.

So, Jamie.

We thought you really got the brief and interpreted it really well.

Little bit of concern over the plant knowledge, again.

Some feedback for John, please, Chris.

Well, John, there's a little bit of weakness with design,

it's one area you need to work on.

Damian, you really raised your game with this.

I thought your composition was beautiful.

Still a little concerned about your plant knowledge.

And, finally, some feedback for Amy, please.

Amy, you went away this morning knowing you could've done a bit better.

You certainly picked up your game. I'd like to see a bit more adventure from you.

Bit more contemporary, bit more risk, maybe.

OK, guys. The first gardener to leave the competition is...

..Jamie.

All right, Jamie. Thank you.

Even though Jamie proved he had the passion and an eye for design,

his poor horticultural knowledge meant the judges had to let him go.

APPLAUSE

Absolutely delighted to get through to the top four,

and it's something nobody can ever take away from me.

It's been a fantastic experience,

and it's something that...

It's been amazing.

So, guys, you're down to the final three. Well done.

How you feeling, Damian?

It's amazing. I can't believe it.

Amy, the judges are hoping you're going to come out your comfort zone.

-Do you think we'll see that in the next challenge?

-I hope so.

I hope they see a bit more of myself.

-How you doing, John?

-I was struggling on the last one, which I'll admit.

But there's a lot more to come from me.

All right, well done for getting through to the next round.

APPLAUSE

There's no hiding anymore. It's full on and we've got to show everybody what we can do.

Really relieved. The last two challenges

have been an absolute roller coaster, to be honest.

I've just got to push myself now.

It's all to play for at the moment, you know. Who dares, wins.

Coming up...

The gardening gloves are off,

as the remaining three get the grilling of their lives.

-You've got me.

-My mind's gone blank.

-You should know this.

It's the wrong answer, Damian.

And the final two go head-to-head in the ultimate test

to determine who will take the title.

The first ever Young Gardener Of The Year is...

So, we're down to the final three. This next round is the grilling.

-How's your theory, Damian?

-Yeah, I'm confident.

-All right, mate, good luck. Off you go to the hush room.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

So, Damian, what state is a plant in when it is fully turgid?

Oh. Erm.

Er...

When the cells of the plant are fully filled with water.

BELL TINGS

Fully turgid, fully full of water.

Correct answer.

Erm. Erm.

Dehydration, maybe?

BUZZER SOUNDS

In design, what do the terms "space" and "mass" relate to?

You've got me. You know I'm not a designer.

Er, space relates to being able to see through a garden,

and mass is describing the sense of, like a planting, a shrub barrier.

It's the right answer.

You've got a big open space, you don't want to do a small garden,

so you're looking at the scale of things that will go back into that space.

BUZZER SOUNDS

Erm, I would relate it to planting, really, within a border situation.

BUZZER SOUNDS

Why is lime added to soil before planting brassicas?

Um, it stops um...

Oh, God. Root... Um.

Come on, Amy, you should know this.

My mind's gone blank.

Erm. Change the PH of the soil.

Which way?

-Oh!

-Young gardener of the year should know about PH.

-Yes.

When the roots... Um. God, I know this really well.

I'm going to have to stop you there.

BUZZER SOUNDS

It's not ringing at the moment.

PH, which way, up or down?

Er, down.

It's the wrong answer, Damian.

BUZZER SOUNDS

Why do you think you should be Young Gardener Of The Year?

Because I've got the knowledge. You can design gardens, make it look pretty,

but if you don't get the plants in the right place,

don't know what you're using them for, how to maintain them,

a garden's going to be a one or two week thing.

I think I should be Young Gardener Of The Year because of the visual difference I've made

within the community that I live.

I hope that I'm a good ambassador to young people

and to girls, as well, to get into a very male-dominated industry.

Everything I've done before, because I work at a council,

is for a council, and this is the first thing I've ever done for me.

I may not be very self-confident, but the proof is in the pudding,

and I can show that I can do it.

I've got what it takes to push it through. You know, watch this space.

In this high-pressured round,

grassroots gardener John scored eight out of ten.

Perfectionist Amy also scored eight,

and competitive Damian was bottom of the pile, with six.

But the judges will be taking all three challenges into account

before deciding who to eliminate.

I feel grilled. It was hard.

They asked some tricky questions on things I didn't know.

Let's just hope I did enough.

It looked very stressful, in there.

JOHN LAUGHS

That's why I had two bottles of water before I went in.

Gin and tonic, I think.

Knew this would be my weakest round, and I knew this would be the most nerve-racking.

At least it's over. Just have to see what happens.

-I can't wait, though.

-Yeah.

Of course it'd be lovely getting through to the final,

and if it is practical, it'd be fantastic,

cos that's my thing, really.

And I'd be able to show a bit more of myself, again.

This is really tricky, cos we've got to go from three to two,

and there's not a great deal between them.

Damian, in that design challenge,

he really showed his creative ability,

and yet in the grilling, he really let himself down, I felt.

I think he knew more than he managed to get out.

Amy, what did you make of her?

She's very knowledgeable, she knows the answers.

But it's almost like she's reading from a textbook.

There's undoubtedly great talent, there.

John, a little bit weak on design, but very strong horticulturally.

Yeah, but didn't he do well in that specific question on design?

-And he was the only one to get it right.

-Yeah.

So, we've got to choose who's going to go into the final

of Young Gardener Of The Year.

So close, Chris. So close. There's hardly anything to put between them.

OK, judges, if we could give our contestants some feedback,

starting with Amy, please, Chris.

Amy, you've improved through the challenges, you were very nervous at first,

but do you really believe you're the best young gardener in Britain?

Damian, there's no getting away from the fact

that you were the poorest in the last round.

Disappointing.

But, for me, you have design flair,

and you seem to be a great ambassador for horticulture.

John, very good, strong lateral answers.

I think you went away from the last challenge and gave the design issue some thought.

But to be Young Gardener Of The Year you've got to be able to put it into practice.

So, there's three gardeners, only two places in the final.

The next gardener leaving us now, is...

It's Amy.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

-Cheers, Amy.

In the first round, Amy's plant knowledge let her down.

And even though she proved herself creatively,

the judges felt she didn't quite hit the mark.

APPLAUSE

I'm obviously disappointed.

I think I have held myself back, which is a bit frustrating.

It's been a learning curve, and I might never get a chance to do this again.

Oh, well. Never mind.

You've got to grab any opportunity with both hands.

Well done, Damian. Well done, John.

You're the last two gardeners standing.

-How are you feeling, Damian?

-I knew that last round wasn't my best.

So I was really worried about that.

-But, hopefully the next round, I can really claw it back.

-John.

Pretty competent gardener. Not enough flair, apparently.

Mm. Got to put it into practice now. All talk, and I've got to do the walk.

All right, guys. At the end of this challenge,

one of you will be crowned Young Gardener Of The Year.

Good luck.

APPLAUSE

It's amazing. I can't believe I'm through to the final.

Not sure what the challenge is going to be, but if it was something to do with garden design,

I think John might struggle. I really think it's something I could get my teeth into.

We've got, at the moment, a designer against a plantsman.

He might know where plants look great,

but whether they're going to grow there, and how to look after them,

I don't think he's got it in him.

I'm going to do it. I'm going to do it.

I'm here to win. And I want that title.

From the start, the final four was great,

but I'm getting that feeling, I want first, now.

To be so close, you know. I want it.

To be a truly gifted gardener,

you need to have both practical know-how and creative vision.

Artistic flair and an ability to interpret the needs of the client are essential,

so, for the final round, it's the ultimate gardening challenge.

Normally when we garden, we work with existing spaces.

Here, they've got 24 square metres, they start from scratch.

I'm interested to see how they use that knowledge, and what standard they achieve.

It's something you might see in a flower show, top-level working,

and they're really going to have to draw on their creative elements to really come good on this.

So, It's time for their last challenge.

For added pressure, we've invited an audience including friends and family,

so let's bring back our two finalists.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

So, judges, what have you got planned for the final challenge?

We're going to be giving you a blank canvas,

and all the materials and plants to transform it into a magical place.

The brief is, it's an urban, busy couple's garden,

which they want to use the space to entertain.

However, it's also about creating a garden that works.

You've got your brief. Time now to see the gardens.

Can we have the doors open, please?

OK, gentlemen, you've got identical plots, materials and equipment.

You've got three hours and your time starts now. Good luck.

APPLAUSE AND CHEERING

So, this is it. The final challenge.

In just three hours, competitive Damian from Wigan

or green-fingered entrepreneur John from Lancashire

will be crowned the first-ever Young Gardener Of The Year.

I just want to give you a brief, and show you what I was thinking of.

Can you get us the plants off the trolley that are ours?

The rivals get straight down to choosing their materials,

planning their design, and briefing their team,

in the hope that their urban garden

will blow the competition out of the water, and win them the title.

Try and keep it as simple as possible, really.

Small, circular table in the middle.

Need a gate at the front,

but I don't know how we're going to secure that.

Judges Chris and Alex will be analysing every stage

of this gardening battle.

Plus, to pile on the pressure, our finalists' friends and family

are watching their every move.

-You all right, Damian?

-No!

Let's have a look at the plans.

Damian's design includes

a circular entertainment area,

a circular lawn,

and a large set of metal gates.

I'm just trying to think of a small space,

so I've gone with a circle theme on both sides,

and try and get it as low maintenance as possible, so that's the planting I've chosen.

And then they just need to keep on top of the lawn, really. But that's why I kept it small.

And your thought process revolving around the materials?

Try and keep it a bit more rustic, really.

It's a modern couple, they've probably got a modern house,

so a bit more of a retreat, something totally different.

And just give them an escape.

Take a seat, by all means.

So, can you just talk us through your approach to this plan

and the garden?

For John's urban garden,

he's planned a winding gravel path

with a rope handrail,

large beds and a back trellis.

Taking a different slant on urban.

-Right.

-It is very low maintenance

because they've got quite a hectic lifestyle.

Can you justify the choice of your materials?

It's urban, but you could say it's urban, brinking on the edges of rustic.

But I'm hoping, with all the gravel, bricks, a lot of hard materials,

to soften it up with the planting. So I'll be very focused

on the choice of plants we're going to use.

The brief for this show garden is an urban space,

but, bizarrely, both competitors have described their concepts as rustic,

the opposite of a sleek, urban look.

Have the rivals already made a huge mistake?

-It's not been the strongest start for either of them.

-I'd agree.

We've asked for an urban garden, and they've both used the word "rustic,"

which could be a contradiction. Are they following the brief?

Well, I think Damian's OK on this, because he's said,

"It IS an urban situation, but I want to create some rustic charm in it."

So he's spot on there, I don't have a problem with that.

However, John says, "It's urban, but we'll give it a bit of rustic,"

and doesn't actually seem quite clear in his thinking.

Throughout the contest, competitive Damian's creative skills

have beaten his opponents' hands down.

With these, do you reckon I should just screw them to this board?

Less than an hour into the challenge, his gates are up

and he's already laying the turf for his circular lawn.

Like laying a carpet. Look at that!

But show-garden guru Alex Denman

is convinced Damian has committed a cardinal design sin.

-Circles in design? Big no-no!

-You don't like those?

Loathe them, cos they produce all these pinch points round the outside of the design,

so you have very narrow beds for planting into.

-And, as we know, those always look pretty rubbish.

-Yeah.

Although the grassroots gardener's plant knowledge

has been unbeatable in every round,

John's creative flair has been severely lacking

throughout the competition.

-And if you can put two more in.

-Same?

-Yeah, please.

But, having painted the backboard a fresh blue,

and with his winding path starting to take shape,

John's garden is poles apart from his rival's design disaster.

John's is looking great.

He's using these wooden posts with the rope,

so it's this lovely divide of the space,

which is allowing you to still feel that you've got a journey to make, yeah.

Damian's - is there any chance he can turn it around?

Well, he's still got two hours to go,

and if he gets those plants right, I think he's still in with a chance.

I wouldn't be able to judge these gardens at all.

It's going to be so tough. It could go either way at the moment.

He's doing really well, I'm impressed.

-And who's the boss out of you two at work?

-Me.

Not even a moment's hesitation, there.

You're at the halfway mark, guys, you've got about an hour and a half to go.

With the clock ticking until our judges crown the first ever

Young Gardener Of The Year,

our contenders' empty plots

are being totally transformed into stunning gardens.

We want to fill it up.

John's team are busy filling beds with bark.

Yeah, keep it coming.

While his attention is fully focused on climbing a jasmine up his back trellis.

DAMIAN SIGHS

Damian's team have constructed an archway,

to divide his controversial circular areas.

The fences are up, and his lawn has completely taken shape.

- How we doing? - All right.

I'm trying to push my boundaries. Instead of putting everything against the sides

and making it feel narrower, I'm trying to push the boundaries

and make it look bigger with the circles.

Right, OK. John's listening in. You're meant to be getting on, mate. No earwigging!

The brief was an urban garden for a busy couple,

and both opponents said a key part of their design was keeping it low maintenance.

What's the deal here, are you going to use any grass?

No, we're not going to use it for the fact it's too much maintenance. Sticking to gravel.

And plantsman John isn't the only young gardener to have picked up on

his rival's potential mistake.

The only thing that concerns me with Damian's garden is the grass.

Grass is seen as very low maintenance, cos it looks low maintenance,

but, actually, you've got to mow it weekly.

-Damian. A third of the way through. Confident, are you?

-I'm confident, yeah.

You've got very tight edges, have you got planting plans for those?

I was looking for more of a grassy, ferny thing, to grow into that kind of space.

Got to design it to where it's going to fill out

rather than when you fist finish it.

-John. How you feeling?

-Getting there.

-How's it advertising your skills?

-It's tailored for a couple who haven't got time,

so we have picked very low-maintenance planting.

There's also things here to give scent. We've got jasmine at the back.

Chose jasmine instead of honeysuckle, more easy on maintenance.

Honeysuckle's great for the first two years, but not good in the long run.

With less than an hour to the finish line,

both contenders are cracking on with their planting.

But, at this crucial point in the competition,

grassroots gardener John seems to be going from hero to zero.

At the beginning, John went in and got very organised and the garden progressed quickly,

and Damian's looked a bit hectic and unorganised.

-But that seems to have reversed, don't you think?

-I do.

I've been blown away, because I really was down on Damian.

I was really concerned about those circles,

and the pinch points, really horrible points

to put plants into.

But he's not using plants, he's using the gravel.

John I'm now disappointed in, in the planting,

because, to my mind, he's planting for a real garden.

We've actually asked him for a show garden,

so we would have wanted more impact from the planting.

And, also, I do like a more open feel.

-However...

-You're worried about height, aren't you?

I am worried about height. He had this lovely graduation,

but where is that graduation going to?

There's nothing in the corner to hold the plot together.

You got 20 minutes to go, guys. 20 minutes left.

With only minutes left until the judges choose their winner,

the rivals pick up the pace and push their teams for perfection.

Can you move that to the end, and put the clematis in the middle of that trellis?

They're both fantastic gardens. They're doing really well.

Is there a little bit of you that wishes you were in this final round?

Half of me is relieved that I don't have to go through tension

and not knowing whether you're through or not.

But half of me wants to just grab a spade and get digging.

Put that back in that barrow.

John is pulling it out the bag with the designing. I know Damian, that's what he does full time,

-but John might just pip it to the post.

-Let's do this.

-I think it's neck and neck at the moment.

-Really?

I certainly think John has gone not for that show impact at all.

The back of it looks a bit sparse. And how is he going to view that in the future?

Damian has produced some crazy combinations of plants.

I'm so worried about them.

He's got cotinus next to fatsia, and they're cheek by jowl.

That is just not going to work.

-It's just...

-SHE GROANS

OK, guys, five,

four,

three, two,

and one. Time's up.

APPLAUSE AND CHEERING

Two very different gardens, two very different contenders,

but who will be the first ever Young Gardener Of The Year?

Damian. Do you think you've matched the brief?

Yeah, I think a professional couple's probably got a contemporary interior to their house,

and I wanted to give them something a bit different outside.

Well, Damian, I'm particularly concerned about this grass space.

How do you expect this to be maintained?

Would you use a lawnmower on it?

Yeah, I would. You can get lawnmowers which are specifically designed for smaller spaces.

So, I don't see a problem with it.

What I do like about your planting is

I like the way you've balanced it.

One plant combination that I'm slightly baffled by

is the fatsia with the cotinus in front of it.

Just tell me a little bit about the growth habit.

It will get quite a lot bigger and woodier.

-- It just needs to be controlled. - Thank you, Damian.

-Well done.

-Thanks.

I think it's going to be a very tight contest.

The judges have got a very hard decision to make.

And I think they'd make a very good decision if they made me the winner.

So, Mr Creativity.

Talk us through your plan, mate.

The brief was for a young, hectic lifestyle couple,

they haven't got time to maintain the garden,

so when you look at it, the planting is very spaced out.

However, this isn't a show garden. You could have this garden done,

and not do anything with it for three years.

Really pleased you've justified your planting.

-If this was a show garden, it'd be too far apart.

-It'd be boring.

-But you've done it for longevity.

One thing that strikes me, the back looks quite bare at the moment.

How long do you see it before that jasmine and the parthenus fill that space out?

Height-wise, the jasmine will put on about three feet growth.

As long as it's somewhere into that trellis,

it'll start to look like it's filled out.

With me having my own business, to get this title, it'd be great.

However, if I don't get the title, it's going to have a flipside to it,

cos people will think, "You're not the best at your game."

So there's a lot at stake, here.

Thank you, John. Judges, I'll ask you to go off to the hush room for the last time.

-John.

-Thank you.

I think they've really pulled it off in this final challenge.

Damian, I think, has done reasonably well.

At the start, it didn't look like he knew where he was going.

But he was brave with it, and I think he's pulled it off.

I'm still so concerned about his plant knowledge,

it's really letting him down.

And what about John's garden? Very much the gardener's garden.

It was quite sparse in places, but you could see where his logic was coming from.

He created a space that was really useable.

He really took on board that brief.

Really wouldn't have to do much to that garden until three years was up.

The only down point for me was that little rear area.

There was no real height in it.

So, all in all, very, very hard decision.

-But do you think we know who the Young Gardener Of The Year is?

-I think we do, Chris.

OK, it's time to crown the winner.

Let's bring back our two finalists.

APPLAUSE AND CHEERING

Damian, John, it's been a tough contest,

but only one of you will be going home as Young Gardener Of The Year.

Before we find out which one of you that's going to be,

-like to get some feedback from the judges.

-Damian, you were strong and brave in your design,

and you took risks, which I liked. Keep working on your plant knowledge,

and remember, plants don't sit still, they move and they grow.

Well, John, you have constantly wowed Chris and I

with your plant knowledge, but what has thrilled us most

is your growth in your design work in this competition.

Still lots to improve, but you're well on your way.

OK, guys, crunch time.

This is it, the first ever Young Gardener Of The Year is...

It's John.

APPLAUSE AND CHEERING

John's outstanding plant knowledge blew the judges away.

And in the final design test

he upped his game and really rose to the creative challenge.

- How you feeling, John? - Oh, wow!

How does it feel to be Young Gardener Of The Year?

Pretty impressive. And mental.

It's been an incredible competition, and congratulations to John,

the winner of Young Gardener Of The Year.

Good night.

APPLAUSE AND CHEERING

I'm over the moon. I'm absolutely well happy that I've got it.

I'm really proud of him.

He's worked really hard for it,

and I've no idea why I'm crying, but... It's really good.

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