0:00:05 > 0:00:06I'm Alys Fowler.
0:00:06 > 0:00:09I'm a gardener and a writer.
0:00:11 > 0:00:13I grew up in the countryside,
0:00:13 > 0:00:16but now my husband and I live in the city.
0:00:19 > 0:00:21I get pleasure from the simple things.
0:00:21 > 0:00:24My chickens, home-grown food,
0:00:24 > 0:00:27and sharing nature's gifts with friends.
0:00:27 > 0:00:31- Hi, Alice.- A house warming present. - Thank you. That is beautiful.
0:00:35 > 0:00:40This is my garden, a small Victorian terrace backyard,
0:00:40 > 0:00:42around 20 foot by about 60.
0:00:42 > 0:00:45Oi, nicely!
0:00:45 > 0:00:46That's my finger.
0:00:46 > 0:00:49This year, I'm experimenting and trying to avoid
0:00:49 > 0:00:54shop bought fruit and veg and live off my own home-grown produce.
0:00:54 > 0:00:59But this won't be easy because I want my garden to be both beautiful
0:00:59 > 0:01:00and productive.
0:01:02 > 0:01:06This week, I am focusing on the flowers and herbs that flavour my food,
0:01:06 > 0:01:11colour my home and attract wonderful wildlife into my garden.
0:01:11 > 0:01:12They're my garden garnishes.
0:01:12 > 0:01:16Showing how your plot can be pretty and edible,
0:01:16 > 0:01:18even if you live in the city.
0:01:25 > 0:01:31A purist would say that the only flowers you should have in an edible landscape are ones you can eat,
0:01:31 > 0:01:34but there are just too many that I love too much
0:01:34 > 0:01:36to stick to such extreme rules,
0:01:36 > 0:01:42so instead I've chosen to keep flowers in my garden that I can use for several purposes.
0:01:42 > 0:01:47Some of them need to be edible and then there's others that I can use for cut flowers.
0:01:47 > 0:01:51But the third group, they're perhaps more important than all the others.
0:01:51 > 0:01:55I have a group of flowers which are just here for the insects.
0:01:55 > 0:01:58The beneficial predators, the pollinators -
0:01:58 > 0:02:01these are the things that actually make my garden work.
0:02:01 > 0:02:06Without the pollinators I would be bereft of fruit, flowers and vegetables
0:02:06 > 0:02:09and my garden would be a very sorry place.
0:02:10 > 0:02:13But my garden must feed me as well as the insects,
0:02:13 > 0:02:17and provide cut posies for my home and for my friends.
0:02:18 > 0:02:23And if I'm clever, I can use flowers that will satisfy more than one of these needs.
0:02:25 > 0:02:29For instance violas, calendulas and poppies can all be both eaten
0:02:29 > 0:02:33but are also a good source of nectar and pollen for insects,
0:02:33 > 0:02:38and then other plants like the valerian or the verbenas, those that will bring in bees
0:02:38 > 0:02:42and other good insects are just as lovely in a vase in my house.
0:02:42 > 0:02:47So I get to eat something, I get to put something in my house and the insects get something to forage in.
0:02:54 > 0:02:57In high summer there is plenty of food to go round.
0:02:57 > 0:03:00Flowers and herbs from my kitchen and nectar for the insects too.
0:03:00 > 0:03:03But in spring it's more of a challenge,
0:03:03 > 0:03:09because at this time of year there's not many flowers out in the garden, so any bees and pollinators
0:03:09 > 0:03:12that are around are desperately looking for kind of nectar.
0:03:12 > 0:03:17I am in the classic late spring/ early summer hungry gap,
0:03:17 > 0:03:21which is one of my winter crops are coming over
0:03:21 > 0:03:27and I haven't really established enough of my spring/summer crops.
0:03:27 > 0:03:32You can get out of this gap if you plan a bit better but I didn't!
0:03:33 > 0:03:40And by this time next year, my hungry gap will be filled with a range of leafy greens to call on,
0:03:40 > 0:03:44like kale and chard, along with some late winter salad crops.
0:03:46 > 0:03:50But despite my lack of planning this year I already have a few established herbs,
0:03:50 > 0:03:55such as this aromatic purple sage that appears all year round.
0:03:59 > 0:04:05And for the insects, I have early sources of nectar from the beautiful spring blossoms on my magnolia tree.
0:04:09 > 0:04:13But the big hitters in my April borders are rosemary and rocket.
0:04:13 > 0:04:20Of all of my garden garnishes, rocket is one of the most beautiful, obeying all of my three rules.
0:04:20 > 0:04:24It's a delicious tender salad leaf, and if you keep your plants over winter,
0:04:24 > 0:04:29their early flowers are a welcome sight in spring and the insects get a good meal too.
0:04:31 > 0:04:34I love rocket because it's a really pretty flower.
0:04:34 > 0:04:39It's got this lovely sort of antique veining up it and it's edible.
0:04:39 > 0:04:43It's got a very mild rocket flavour.
0:04:43 > 0:04:47It's very nice to put in salads.
0:04:47 > 0:04:50'Whilst rocket brings a feast of flavour to the table,
0:04:50 > 0:04:55'this sun-loving rosemary will give me evergreen garnishes throughout the year.
0:04:55 > 0:05:02'It's a drought-loving herb, with aromatic leaves that need a minimal haircut to keep it happy each year.
0:05:02 > 0:05:06'In return, it will offer untold rewards, decade after decade.
0:05:10 > 0:05:15'Herbs fulfil many uses in the garden, both as medicine and for culinary purposes,
0:05:15 > 0:05:21'and so this group of plants fill the gap between your vegetables and your ornamentals.
0:05:23 > 0:05:27'At this time of year, rosemary adds a delicate flavour to my home-made bread.
0:05:36 > 0:05:42'I just add a tablespoon of chopped leaves into the dough and bake as normal.
0:05:42 > 0:05:48'And as the year progresses, there will be poppy and sunflower seeds to add variety to my loaves.'
0:05:51 > 0:05:56It's hard to be good at making bread and when the right loaf comes out...
0:05:59 > 0:06:02..it's a very...
0:06:02 > 0:06:03pleasing moment.
0:06:03 > 0:06:06You're very grateful for your daily bread
0:06:06 > 0:06:08when it all comes together.
0:06:15 > 0:06:23'It's May and the warm weather means my first chance to plant out the beautiful Verbena bonariensis,
0:06:23 > 0:06:28'which bears her wispy purple flowers from late July.
0:06:28 > 0:06:35'For me she's the supermodel of my border catwalk. Slim, elegant and irresistible to my winged visitors.'
0:06:35 > 0:06:40You can always tell you've got a good plant if you can see roots...
0:06:40 > 0:06:42just beginning to come out.
0:06:45 > 0:06:49It's not root bound, but the roots have taken up the entire pot,
0:06:49 > 0:06:53and a sign of a perfectly happy plant, they're just...
0:06:53 > 0:06:57You can just tease them out as gently as possible because you want
0:06:57 > 0:07:01them to get out and into your soil as quickly as possible.
0:07:04 > 0:07:10And the trick is always to make sure that you've got the level of the pot
0:07:10 > 0:07:13at the level of soil.
0:07:13 > 0:07:16The lovely thing about verbena is that at this stage it doesn't
0:07:16 > 0:07:22look much, but it grows very tall, and is completely airy, you can see right the way through it,
0:07:22 > 0:07:25and then on the top it has lovely deep purple flowers,
0:07:25 > 0:07:29and it won't shade out any of the vegetables around it,
0:07:29 > 0:07:34so it's perfect for here and will bring in a lot of bees and pollinators.
0:07:34 > 0:07:35I can also use it as a cut flower.
0:07:35 > 0:07:40And, if you didn't need any more it will flower right the way through to the first frost.
0:07:50 > 0:07:54'Whilst Verbena bonariensis is a perennial, my sunflowers are annual plants.
0:07:54 > 0:07:58'One-off wonders giving a virtuoso performance in late summer,
0:07:58 > 0:08:02'followed by an edible winter encore for the hungry birds and me.'
0:08:04 > 0:08:09I sowed these seedlings back in February and I'm planting them out at the back of my border,
0:08:09 > 0:08:13because they'll develop into towering ten foot displays
0:08:13 > 0:08:16and my fence will provide them with support.
0:08:18 > 0:08:24'Although our gardens are often enclosed by walls and fences, they needn't be a barrier to friendship,
0:08:24 > 0:08:26'or for that matter to wildlife.'
0:08:28 > 0:08:31It's unfortunate that our countryside is not
0:08:31 > 0:08:35full of more small fields and lots of wild flowers, but the reality is it's not,
0:08:35 > 0:08:41so the back garden has suddenly become a really important resource for the insect world.
0:08:41 > 0:08:46The more flowers you can put in the garden and the longer that those flowers can go over
0:08:46 > 0:08:49so that you have flowers in January right through to December,
0:08:49 > 0:08:52then you suddenly have this incredibly important habitat.
0:08:52 > 0:08:58Many little back gardens together filled with flowers and fruit and vegetables
0:08:58 > 0:09:03actually make a huge resource for the insect world, particularly the bees.
0:09:08 > 0:09:11And for me, bees are the life blood of the garden,
0:09:11 > 0:09:15an echo of the countryside in the midst of city life.
0:09:15 > 0:09:19I'm keen to know where my own garden bees come from,
0:09:19 > 0:09:22so it's time to pay the beekeepers in my local park a visit.
0:09:33 > 0:09:37So what exactly is the honey made out of then, the nectar?
0:09:37 > 0:09:39The nectar and the moisture in it is reduced.
0:09:39 > 0:09:41How far will they travel in a day?
0:09:41 > 0:09:44About a three-mile radius of the hive.
0:09:44 > 0:09:47So the bees that I see in my garden must be your bees then.
0:09:47 > 0:09:50- Could well be. - Because I'm just over there.
0:09:50 > 0:09:53You're not going to charge us for it, are you? It does my whole heart good.
0:09:53 > 0:09:54ALICE LAUGHS
0:09:54 > 0:10:01No, but it is funny, because you see one come and find something they like, and then you suddenly see...
0:10:01 > 0:10:05- I want to get a fuller one. - ..hundreds of them.
0:10:05 > 0:10:10Honey bees will go to one flower that's yielding nectar in the morning
0:10:10 > 0:10:13and they'll stick with that all day.
0:10:13 > 0:10:18- Now that is a load of nectar coming in, can you see it glistening?- Yes.
0:10:18 > 0:10:25If you turn it over on the other side, when it's ripe they cover it over with wax.
0:10:28 > 0:10:31'Urban honey is holding its own against its country cousins
0:10:31 > 0:10:35'because of the different nectar sources our small back gardens can provide.
0:10:35 > 0:10:39'And every hive produces unique honey because the flavour depends on the flowers
0:10:39 > 0:10:41'the bees are visiting.'
0:10:46 > 0:10:50If you want honey as good as the stuff these guys make,
0:10:50 > 0:10:54then you need lots of bees and more importantly lots of flowers.
0:10:57 > 0:11:00Mmm. So sweet.
0:11:04 > 0:11:07Insects are the same as guests.
0:11:07 > 0:11:11Some are always welcome and others only arrive when your larder's full
0:11:11 > 0:11:13and proceed to eat you out of house and home.
0:11:13 > 0:11:17The trick is to get the balance right, because then your welcome guests will see off
0:11:17 > 0:11:19the ones only intent on vandalism.
0:11:21 > 0:11:27Sometimes you have to make a leap of faith when you're asking nature to do your pest control.
0:11:27 > 0:11:30For ages these seed heads have been covered in aphids,
0:11:30 > 0:11:35but yesterday I noticed a whole host of ladybird larvae
0:11:35 > 0:11:39and these guys are munching their way through the aphids.
0:11:39 > 0:11:45Then there are also hover fly larvae doing exactly the same job.
0:11:45 > 0:11:53So by waiting and just having that extra bit of faith, the problem's going to be taken care of.
0:11:56 > 0:11:59Even so, I do give a helping hand when I can
0:11:59 > 0:12:03by picking off caterpillars which the chickens simply love.
0:12:03 > 0:12:07This honesty is absolutely covered...
0:12:07 > 0:12:11in cabbage white caterpillars.
0:12:11 > 0:12:15Very large cabbage white caterpillars.
0:12:15 > 0:12:20Although I don't really mind them being on the honesty because it means at least they've left my
0:12:20 > 0:12:25cabbages and kale alone, I think there's slightly too much of a population here,
0:12:25 > 0:12:33and as a treat, a welcoming present for the chicks,
0:12:33 > 0:12:38I thought I would do just a little bit of pest control.
0:12:42 > 0:12:45Here chicky, chicky, chicks.
0:12:45 > 0:12:47Look what I've got for you!
0:12:55 > 0:13:00June sees the arrival of another champion in my edible garden.
0:13:00 > 0:13:01Chives.
0:13:01 > 0:13:03Their flowers offer colourful edging to my borders
0:13:03 > 0:13:06and nectar for the insects throughout the summer months.
0:13:06 > 0:13:13I use both the leaves and the flowers to flavour and embellish my seasonal meals.
0:13:13 > 0:13:16For me, herbs are such an essential part of an edible garden,
0:13:16 > 0:13:19that you need to keep them close by for easy pickings.
0:13:24 > 0:13:31Many of the most kind of useful herbs around the patio, so that come winter when it's dark and wet
0:13:31 > 0:13:40and muddy, I don't have far to go, and then all the way along the path there are various different chives.
0:13:40 > 0:13:44Chinese chives, garlic chives, mouse garlic.
0:13:44 > 0:13:46Normal ordinary chives.
0:13:46 > 0:13:49I can't really get enough of those.
0:13:51 > 0:13:57This is Sweet Cecily. It's an amazing herb. It smells of aniseed.
0:13:57 > 0:13:59It's exactly the smell.
0:14:00 > 0:14:03It's quite sweet.
0:14:03 > 0:14:11But it has this lovely delicious anise flavour and you use it in puddings and apple pies and
0:14:11 > 0:14:13things like that. It's lovely.
0:14:15 > 0:14:20'June is also the perfect time to make elderflower champagne, so my brewing partners Jeremy
0:14:20 > 0:14:24'and Ingrid, are joining me on a floral forage for the ingredients.'
0:14:27 > 0:14:30I think it's best to go for the ones which are really in flower.
0:14:30 > 0:14:34Yes. Try not to get any that are discoloured in any way.
0:14:34 > 0:14:36How many does the recipe say we need?
0:14:36 > 0:14:42If we're going to do 10-12 litres, something like that, we're going to need about 35 heads.
0:14:43 > 0:14:47How strong you do think it's going to be, the champagne?
0:14:47 > 0:14:50They call it champagne but it's not going to be as strong as champagne.
0:14:50 > 0:14:54It's going to be more like a weak lager, something like that.
0:14:54 > 0:14:59It's always the way that the really good ones are really high up, isn't it?
0:14:59 > 0:15:01Yes. It's that sun thing, isn't it.
0:15:01 > 0:15:05It's also important that we don't get... THEY LAUGH
0:15:05 > 0:15:08- ..we don't the leaves and stalks. - OK. Why's that?
0:15:08 > 0:15:13Because there's some sort of cyanide or poison in there.
0:15:13 > 0:15:17Yeah, they smell, you can tell that though when you break the leaf up.
0:15:17 > 0:15:21I mean that smell, that's really bitter, it's just clearly unpleasant, isn't it?
0:15:36 > 0:15:38The hot water is boiling.
0:15:38 > 0:15:41Excellent. Right well, let's start with the champagne.
0:15:41 > 0:15:45Back at theirs it's just a matter of throwing the ingredients together.
0:15:45 > 0:15:48That's sugar dissolved in boiling water and
0:15:48 > 0:15:51then topped up with more water and then the elderflower heads.
0:15:51 > 0:15:56We're only using this just to... dissolve the sugar.
0:15:56 > 0:16:00Because if we were to put the flowers in now
0:16:00 > 0:16:03with the boiling water, it would kill all the yeast on the flower heads,
0:16:03 > 0:16:06so we wouldn't have an alcoholic brew at all.
0:16:08 > 0:16:12'Elderflowers have a natural yeast on them, so there's no need for a brewing yeast.'
0:16:12 > 0:16:14It smells brilliant as well.
0:16:14 > 0:16:17'But to give it a kick, there's the zest and juice of lemons and limes,
0:16:17 > 0:16:22'followed by a couple of tablespoons of white wine vinegar.'
0:16:22 > 0:16:25So the important bit is how long before we actually get to drink champagne?
0:16:25 > 0:16:29We will be drinking this at its earliest within two weeks.
0:16:29 > 0:16:31It does improve with age.
0:16:55 > 0:17:03The warmth of July heralds the harvest of two more of my garden garnishes, mint and lavender.
0:17:05 > 0:17:09For me, lavender is a must-have plant.
0:17:09 > 0:17:14It is kept happiest in well-drained soil and loves a warm, sunny spot.
0:17:14 > 0:17:21Mint though, grows any where, sun or shade, with very little maintenance, so it's one of my essential herbs.
0:17:21 > 0:17:25One of the nicest things to grow is your own mint tea.
0:17:25 > 0:17:30It's incredibly easy. It's just as happy in a pot as it is in the ground,
0:17:30 > 0:17:36and all it needs is good, rich, compost to grow fat and happy.
0:17:36 > 0:17:40The more you pick, the more it sprouts, so you pick all summer long
0:17:40 > 0:17:46and then come towards the end of summer you cut the plant back and dry it for winter use and that's it.
0:17:46 > 0:17:48Simple as that.
0:17:52 > 0:17:56All mint makes great tea but ginger mint,
0:17:56 > 0:18:01lemon mint and black stemmed peppermint
0:18:01 > 0:18:04make a fantastic brew.
0:18:04 > 0:18:08There are lots of different varieties of mint but the one thing they all have in common
0:18:08 > 0:18:11is that they tend to spread, so it's best to plant them in pots.
0:18:18 > 0:18:20CRASH OF THUNDER
0:18:27 > 0:18:32It seems that the summer's over before it begun and we've two weeks of solid rain.
0:18:36 > 0:18:40- ALICE SIGHS - It's not easy to be a good vegetable grower when you've got
0:18:40 > 0:18:45this much rain constantly, because the slugs keep coming out,
0:18:45 > 0:18:49there's too much, there's just not enough sun for good growth.
0:18:49 > 0:18:51It's really heart breaking.
0:18:51 > 0:18:57Sometimes you break absolutely everything - your back, your heart, your nails.
0:18:57 > 0:18:59The whole experience hurts.
0:19:03 > 0:19:10The fact is, even the Met Office agree that this summer is rubbish.
0:19:10 > 0:19:14And when the garden is too wet for words, I turn to the kitchen for solace.
0:19:16 > 0:19:19This is not the summer I asked for.
0:19:19 > 0:19:26And my way to get myself out of this slight funk about the British weather
0:19:26 > 0:19:29is just to bake. And lavender biscuits,
0:19:29 > 0:19:33there's nothing more summery than the smell of lavender biscuits.
0:19:33 > 0:19:37They say summer indoors even if it's not summer outdoors.
0:19:48 > 0:19:50It's good, isn't it, Iz?
0:19:52 > 0:19:56I've chopped some lavender leaves into the biscuit mixture and put a few flowers on top.
0:19:56 > 0:20:00But the flavour is quite strong so it's best not to overdo it.
0:20:14 > 0:20:19As the rain clouds pass and the sun comes out, so do the hot colours of the season.
0:20:19 > 0:20:21My edible firecrackers have arrived.
0:20:21 > 0:20:24Summer flowers unfurling from my vegetable crops.
0:20:24 > 0:20:28Others are are springing from seed I sowed directly on to the the soil in spring.
0:20:28 > 0:20:30All are perfect for picking.
0:20:34 > 0:20:40Now I don't think anybody in their right mind would suggest that you can dine solely off flowers.
0:20:42 > 0:20:46But a few nasturtiums, a stuffed courgette,
0:20:46 > 0:20:51some chicory petals,
0:20:53 > 0:20:57the lovely bright colours of calendula.
0:20:59 > 0:21:03Chive flowers.
0:21:03 > 0:21:06The point about them is to use flowers
0:21:06 > 0:21:09in your cooking much the same way as you would in your garden.
0:21:09 > 0:21:11They're just there to kind of decorate.
0:21:11 > 0:21:15Often, more often than not it's just the petals which are edible.
0:21:16 > 0:21:19Scatter them through salads or across soups.
0:21:19 > 0:21:22They're there to make the whole thing look pretty.
0:21:36 > 0:21:42August arrives and my slender supermodel Verbena bonariensis is striking a pose.
0:21:42 > 0:21:44What's more, the bees adore her.
0:21:44 > 0:21:47My garden garnishes are reaching a glut.
0:21:47 > 0:21:50Something I'm very keen to take advantage of.
0:21:51 > 0:21:59The classic Herbes de Provence, those main stay of cooking, that's bay, thyme, rosemary, sage
0:21:59 > 0:22:04and winter savory, all have fairly similar requirements.
0:22:04 > 0:22:07They want very free draining soil.
0:22:07 > 0:22:11They want to be in full sun and they need to be used a lot.
0:22:11 > 0:22:14The whole point about herbs is you eat them.
0:22:14 > 0:22:19If you don't keep cutting and keep harvesting you get leggy plants and they're no good because you
0:22:19 > 0:22:21get less and less leaves,
0:22:21 > 0:22:24so the more you pick and the more you use,
0:22:24 > 0:22:27the healthier your herbs will be.
0:22:28 > 0:22:32It's good to know where herbs originate from in order to get the best flavours.
0:22:32 > 0:22:38Thyme for instance comes from the harsh Mediterranean, so it really can't cope with too much love.
0:22:38 > 0:22:41Too much food, too much water and it gives up.
0:22:41 > 0:22:45So if you want thyme, be mean.
0:22:45 > 0:22:49And when you want a plant like basil, mint or parsley,
0:22:49 > 0:22:53and you want a good amount of leaves and you don't want them tough,
0:22:53 > 0:22:56you want them tender and sort of soft,
0:22:56 > 0:22:58then there's no point starving them of love.
0:22:58 > 0:23:02You get those leaves by good rich soil and lots of water.
0:23:04 > 0:23:07Of course every garden has a range of conditions.
0:23:07 > 0:23:11So it's worth thinking about where each herb will thrive before planting out.
0:23:16 > 0:23:20But a garden or kitchen without herbs would be a sorry place.
0:23:26 > 0:23:29'And as my friend Rachel is moving house,
0:23:29 > 0:23:33'I hope my herb bouquet will be the perfect house warming gift.'
0:23:33 > 0:23:35- Hello.- Hi, Alice.
0:23:35 > 0:23:39- It's a little house warming bouquet. - That's beautiful.
0:23:39 > 0:23:43- Some of the herbs you should need until your own garden gets going. - Gorgeous. What's that?
0:23:43 > 0:23:46That's mouse garlic, and you just let it dry and put it in soups.
0:23:46 > 0:23:50Then there's sage, Vietnamese coriander, which is good in stir-fries.
0:23:50 > 0:23:55Oregano, thyme, bay and I think there's some rosemary down the middle.
0:23:55 > 0:23:58- Lovely.- So just hang it upside down and let it dry naturally.
0:23:58 > 0:24:01Gorgeous. Are you going to give me a hand?
0:24:01 > 0:24:02Of course.
0:24:17 > 0:24:22I've had my chickens for three months now and they're very happy hens laying daily,
0:24:22 > 0:24:26so summer for me means fresh omelettes with home-grown herbs.
0:24:26 > 0:24:30Every day I get two eggs,
0:24:30 > 0:24:34one from Gertrude and the brown one from Alice.
0:24:37 > 0:24:41I sort of feel now that a life without chickens is a life half lived really.
0:24:41 > 0:24:48They're such lovely, sweet, easy to look after animals.
0:24:48 > 0:24:54It's that whole cottage sort of economy thing, you know they're really kind of resourceful animals
0:24:54 > 0:25:00to have because you can just recycle all sorts of things into their lifestyle, and in return
0:25:00 > 0:25:03you get the eggs.
0:25:03 > 0:25:08So even the shell of the eggs I wash, and then I give it back to them as a form of grit.
0:25:08 > 0:25:12And then they eat it and can make more shell. They're just lovely.
0:25:12 > 0:25:14They're a complete kind of recycling loop.
0:25:14 > 0:25:16Aren't you, girls? Yes, you two.
0:25:16 > 0:25:19Little that you know about it though.
0:25:19 > 0:25:22Anyhow, omelettes.
0:25:22 > 0:25:24Hey Isobel, omelettes.
0:25:28 > 0:25:31Isobel, come on.
0:25:31 > 0:25:35One of the joys of growing your own is that you get to eat things that aren't in the shops.
0:25:35 > 0:25:42I'm going to use mainly oriental herbs,
0:25:42 > 0:25:49because I've found it makes a really great omelette.
0:25:49 > 0:25:53Firstly I'm chopping up Japanese bunching onions.
0:25:53 > 0:25:58They're a bit like spring onions but sweeter and less pungent.
0:25:58 > 0:26:00They sound exotic but they're simple to grow.
0:26:00 > 0:26:05The first one, perilla, is a herb with a delicious bitter flavour.
0:26:05 > 0:26:10I bought my plants in pots, from my local gardening show back in June.
0:26:14 > 0:26:20Then there is mitsuba, it's the Japanese equivalent to parsley and tastes a little like celery.
0:26:20 > 0:26:25And to complete the flavours, I am adding chillies, grown in pots on my patio.
0:26:26 > 0:26:31They'll be a very good alternative take on the herb omelette.
0:26:31 > 0:26:35Before then, I need to whip some eggs into shape.
0:26:47 > 0:26:52Time to enjoy a summer lunch cooked exclusively from my garden larder.
0:26:53 > 0:26:57No food miles. No chemicals.
0:26:59 > 0:27:02Two happy hens and a handful of herbs.
0:27:09 > 0:27:14By September, it's clear that the natural cycles I've been trying to create are working and the garden
0:27:14 > 0:27:16is mostly taking care of itself.
0:27:16 > 0:27:19The sunflowers I planted back in May are at their most glorious
0:27:19 > 0:27:22and I'm still picking salads and herbs every day.
0:27:24 > 0:27:27Then right on cue an Indian summer arrives.
0:27:29 > 0:27:34It's a mellow month, beckoning me to sit back and enjoy its fruits.
0:27:34 > 0:27:36I love camping with friends.
0:27:37 > 0:27:40But even here flowers and herbs that have decorated the garden
0:27:40 > 0:27:43and my food all summer long are on the menu.
0:27:44 > 0:27:47This is the most girlie tent now.
0:27:47 > 0:27:49Along with Jeremy's elderflower champagne.
0:27:52 > 0:27:55THEY LAUGH
0:27:56 > 0:28:01To friends, elderflower champagne and our beautifully decorated bell tent.
0:28:06 > 0:28:08Is there any more?
0:28:12 > 0:28:16Next week, I'm looking at how my garden can furnish me with a winter store cupboard.
0:28:16 > 0:28:19It's all about the plants that will keep me fed into autumn and
0:28:19 > 0:28:23those that will provide me with gluts that I can store over winter.
0:28:23 > 0:28:26- Look at that. And I did nothing. - I'll share it with you.
0:28:26 > 0:28:30And I'll be meeting two friends who know everything there is to know about pickling and preserving.
0:28:30 > 0:28:32That smells really nice.
0:28:48 > 0:28:52Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
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