0:00:02 > 0:00:05Hello. Welcome to Gardeners' World.
0:00:05 > 0:00:08I'm just lifting this euphorbia
0:00:08 > 0:00:11because it's rather swamping the plants around it.
0:00:11 > 0:00:15Staking at this stage of the year, when the whole garden is growing
0:00:15 > 0:00:19in front of your eyes and plants are opening by the hour practically,
0:00:19 > 0:00:24is not so much an exercise in control but in support.
0:00:24 > 0:00:26Just get in there and underpin
0:00:26 > 0:00:29and let things flow and look as natural as possible.
0:00:29 > 0:00:31You want to celebrate what it's doing
0:00:31 > 0:00:34rather than instruct it to behave properly.
0:00:34 > 0:00:36Now, in tonight's programme, a little bit of instruction
0:00:36 > 0:00:37but lots of celebration.
0:00:39 > 0:00:42This week, Carol is celebrating blossom.
0:00:42 > 0:00:47This year it's been a little late but it has been fantastic.
0:00:47 > 0:00:49Whether it's a sloe in the hedgerows
0:00:49 > 0:00:51or these glorious ornamental doubles,
0:00:51 > 0:00:54it really doesn't matter.
0:00:54 > 0:00:59It's their blossom which brings a whole season to life.
0:00:59 > 0:01:03And we visit a couple in Yorkshire who share their love of begonias
0:01:03 > 0:01:08with every single person that passes by their house.
0:01:08 > 0:01:09CAR HORN BLARES
0:01:09 > 0:01:11It's really embarrassing.
0:01:11 > 0:01:13You'll be out the front garden doing a bit of dead-heading
0:01:13 > 0:01:17and this bus will slow down to a crawl
0:01:17 > 0:01:19and there's like 30 people with cameras at the window
0:01:19 > 0:01:21taking pictures as they go past.
0:01:23 > 0:01:26Later on in the programme, I'm going to be planting out my tomatoes and
0:01:26 > 0:01:29I'm going to put them into different containers as an experiment.
0:01:29 > 0:01:32At the end of the year, I'll see which has been the most successful,
0:01:32 > 0:01:36but first I've got a job to do here in the Jewel Garden.
0:01:43 > 0:01:48Now, last year, I bought this pot and I got it, to be honest,
0:01:48 > 0:01:51because it was such a cheap price I couldn't resist it.
0:01:51 > 0:01:53I bought it sight unseen
0:01:53 > 0:01:55and when it arrived it was slightly daunting
0:01:55 > 0:02:00because this is a huge, big pot and planting it up is not
0:02:00 > 0:02:02just a question of putting any old thing in it.
0:02:02 > 0:02:03You have to think it through.
0:02:03 > 0:02:06Now, it doesn't matter what you plant
0:02:06 > 0:02:09you do need to give it some drainage.
0:02:09 > 0:02:15And you can buy chocks that you simply place the pot onto.
0:02:15 > 0:02:18And you do that so that it doesn't get waterlogged.
0:02:19 > 0:02:22So we just sit it up off the ground.
0:02:24 > 0:02:27I like to add terracotta crocks too.
0:02:27 > 0:02:30Now, I use terracotta because that's what we've got,
0:02:30 > 0:02:32but you could use anything.
0:02:32 > 0:02:35Polystyrene packaging chips work very well, too.
0:02:35 > 0:02:38Apart from anything else, in a great big pot,
0:02:38 > 0:02:39it actually takes up some pace.
0:02:39 > 0:02:43Otherwise, it gets really expensive putting in compost.
0:02:46 > 0:02:49When you're planting a big container of any kind,
0:02:49 > 0:02:53you will have a lot of plants and they will make quite heavy
0:02:53 > 0:02:56nutritional demands, so it's worth taking trouble with the compost.
0:02:56 > 0:02:59Now, you can use an ordinary potting compost
0:02:59 > 0:03:01but after about a month to six weeks,
0:03:01 > 0:03:04you'll have to feed regularly.
0:03:04 > 0:03:05I like to mix my own.
0:03:05 > 0:03:09I use peat-free potting compost, sieved garden compost,
0:03:09 > 0:03:12leaf mould and grit in equal proportions.
0:03:12 > 0:03:16Now, you need drama in a big pot
0:03:16 > 0:03:19and I plan a large container with three storeys.
0:03:19 > 0:03:22You need a top storey, you need a mid-level layer
0:03:22 > 0:03:25and then ground cover.
0:03:25 > 0:03:29And for the top storey, for this container, I'm going to use a canna.
0:03:29 > 0:03:32Now this is Canna Australia.
0:03:32 > 0:03:35It's got lovely chocolate plum-coloured leaves
0:03:35 > 0:03:38and then big striking red flowers.
0:03:38 > 0:03:42Cannas come from Central and South America.
0:03:42 > 0:03:44They like heat and they like moisture,
0:03:44 > 0:03:46so if you plant a canna in a container,
0:03:46 > 0:03:48you are committed to watering it regularly.
0:03:48 > 0:03:51And also it does need plenty of feed.
0:03:51 > 0:03:55Now, I'm going to plant that in the middle.
0:03:55 > 0:03:59Take it out of the pot. There we go. Nice healthy plant.
0:03:59 > 0:04:01It should flower at about eye level which is perfect.
0:04:01 > 0:04:03Word of warning.
0:04:03 > 0:04:07Cannas are very commonly being sold with a virus and this
0:04:07 > 0:04:10streaks the leaves and loses them vigour
0:04:10 > 0:04:12so look for a nice clean foliage.
0:04:14 > 0:04:17So that's my top storey. Dead easy.
0:04:17 > 0:04:20The next storey, the mid-level, is going to be dahlias.
0:04:20 > 0:04:21Now dahlias, of course,
0:04:21 > 0:04:24come from the same region of the world as cannas.
0:04:24 > 0:04:26That's Central and South America
0:04:26 > 0:04:29and they like the same sort of conditions.
0:04:29 > 0:04:32Now this is called 'Grenadier' and I've chosen it because
0:04:32 > 0:04:36the foliage and the stems pick up on the cannas' foliage.
0:04:36 > 0:04:38It doesn't turn much darker than that
0:04:38 > 0:04:41but there's this slight plum chocolatey colour to the stems
0:04:41 > 0:04:44and also it's got a fabulous red flower.
0:04:44 > 0:04:46Pure red.
0:04:47 > 0:04:49Got the tuber in there.
0:04:49 > 0:04:52And this, I've over-wintered, grew last year
0:04:52 > 0:04:55and I'm going to put three in.
0:04:55 > 0:04:57Pop that in like that.
0:05:06 > 0:05:09OK, that's my mid-storey.
0:05:09 > 0:05:12And, of course, at the moment, they're just a big as the cannas
0:05:12 > 0:05:14but the cannas will soon overtake them.
0:05:14 > 0:05:16Now, underneath I want to use annuals
0:05:16 > 0:05:19and I've got a number of different ones here.
0:05:19 > 0:05:21I've got a couple of petunias,
0:05:21 > 0:05:25'Black Velvet' and a 'Surfina Bunga...' Bungadee?
0:05:25 > 0:05:27B-B... I can't say it!
0:05:27 > 0:05:31Of course, what I'm struggling to say is "burgundy."
0:05:31 > 0:05:34I want the really rich darkness.
0:05:34 > 0:05:38In fact, 'Black Velvet' has also got a flash of yellow.
0:05:38 > 0:05:42And, of course, petunias, an annual,
0:05:42 > 0:05:43they will like moisture
0:05:43 > 0:05:46which is just as well as it's starting to rain,
0:05:46 > 0:05:48and we use the two colours
0:05:48 > 0:05:51and I'll put these all the way round and, of course,
0:05:51 > 0:05:54they all grow and spill out to a certain extent.
0:05:55 > 0:05:59These are plants that I bought in March
0:05:59 > 0:06:01when they were tiny little plugs,
0:06:01 > 0:06:04potted them on and they've grown really well,
0:06:04 > 0:06:08so it's given me a large plant for the price of a very small one.
0:06:10 > 0:06:14Now, I'm also going to introduce a flash of yellow.
0:06:14 > 0:06:18This is an Osteospermum 'Voltage Yellow,'
0:06:18 > 0:06:19almost a gold.
0:06:19 > 0:06:23And perhaps it might pick up that flash of yellow on the petunia.
0:06:23 > 0:06:27You can see it's grown decent roots. We've got a nice, strong plant.
0:06:30 > 0:06:31Now, I'll give that a good soak
0:06:31 > 0:06:35and it will settle and it will take a few weeks to get going but then,
0:06:35 > 0:06:37as soon as the nights get warmer,
0:06:37 > 0:06:39the cannas and the dahlias will really start to grow,
0:06:39 > 0:06:43so we'll have these wonderful big canna flowers on the top storey,
0:06:43 > 0:06:46the 'Grenadier' dahlias round about this level,
0:06:46 > 0:06:48and underneath, the bedding.
0:06:48 > 0:06:50And that will go on right into autumn.
0:06:50 > 0:06:52Now, I love mixing up all these different type of plants,
0:06:52 > 0:06:56but you can achieve really good effects just using bedding.
0:06:56 > 0:06:59We visited a couple in Yorkshire who don't just love bedding,
0:06:59 > 0:07:01they're obsessed by it,
0:07:01 > 0:07:05and they share their magnificent obsession with every passer-by.
0:07:13 > 0:07:16We get an awful lot of holiday traffic,
0:07:16 > 0:07:20people travelling from West Yorkshire up to the Lake District.
0:07:20 > 0:07:23We get people tooting their horns,
0:07:23 > 0:07:27people stopping, taking pictures, knocking on the door.
0:07:27 > 0:07:32We've become a bit of a tourist attraction in our own right, really.
0:07:32 > 0:07:35CAR HORN HONKS
0:07:35 > 0:07:37LORRY HORN HONKS
0:07:38 > 0:07:39It's really embarrassing.
0:07:39 > 0:07:41You'd be out in the front of the garden there,
0:07:41 > 0:07:45doing a bit of dead-heading and this bus will slow down to a crawl
0:07:45 > 0:07:47and there's 30 people with their cameras at the window
0:07:47 > 0:07:49taking pictures as they go past.
0:07:54 > 0:07:59We started 27 years ago putting the flowers out.
0:07:59 > 0:08:02It grew and it grew and it grew.
0:08:02 > 0:08:04And every year, it's still growing.
0:08:06 > 0:08:09This village is not called Coniston Cold for nothing.
0:08:09 > 0:08:12It is cold, as you can gather,
0:08:12 > 0:08:15and we get a lot of wind and very cold weather.
0:08:15 > 0:08:21So we had to find a plant that would withstand our climate
0:08:21 > 0:08:24and we ended up with the begonia.
0:08:25 > 0:08:27I would always recommend begonias.
0:08:27 > 0:08:31You can let them dry out. You can over-water them.
0:08:31 > 0:08:34They will always grow, no matter what.
0:08:34 > 0:08:38In this climate here, that's been proven time and time again.
0:08:42 > 0:08:47We get plug plants, very mall plug plants which need potting on
0:08:47 > 0:08:50so that will start in February-March time
0:08:50 > 0:08:51and run right through till May.
0:08:51 > 0:08:57When we start planting, it's late May before we can plant out here.
0:08:57 > 0:09:01But we can get frosts well into June here
0:09:01 > 0:09:04but it takes about three weeks to put them all out.
0:09:04 > 0:09:08One year, I worked out by counting the plant pots,
0:09:08 > 0:09:11I grew 6,500,
0:09:11 > 0:09:13which is a bit frightening.
0:09:19 > 0:09:24It used to take me approximately two hours a day to water them by hand.
0:09:24 > 0:09:27Sometimes, in mid-summer, when it was hot,
0:09:27 > 0:09:30you'd do two hours in the morning and two hours at night
0:09:30 > 0:09:31which is a lot of time.
0:09:31 > 0:09:33Now it's all done by computer.
0:09:33 > 0:09:36It switches itself on and off, which is a lot better.
0:09:39 > 0:09:43Feeding I will usually commence
0:09:43 > 0:09:47in an evening because you don't want direct sunlight.
0:09:47 > 0:09:51When I'm feeding the plants, I've found that
0:09:51 > 0:09:54tomato feed mixed with seaweed extract
0:09:54 > 0:09:57is the best, without a doubt.
0:09:59 > 0:10:01But you've got to be careful with seaweed extract.
0:10:01 > 0:10:04You must stick to the dilution rates.
0:10:04 > 0:10:08If you don't, you'll kill the plants. It's very powerful stuff.
0:10:14 > 0:10:18Personally, I can't see any room for expansion anywhere.
0:10:18 > 0:10:20I think they would basically have to hang them from the roof
0:10:20 > 0:10:22if they were to put any more flowers up.
0:10:22 > 0:10:25But I know that next year Robin will say,
0:10:25 > 0:10:28"I've ordered a few too many flowers now, I've got some left -
0:10:28 > 0:10:30"where shall we put them?"
0:10:30 > 0:10:32And I'll say, "There's nowhere, Robin."
0:10:32 > 0:10:36And then all of a sudden I'll hear him drilling the wall
0:10:36 > 0:10:38and he'll have found another place
0:10:38 > 0:10:40and there will be more flowers going up.
0:10:40 > 0:10:43Where there's a will, there's a way.
0:10:45 > 0:10:48There have been times where we've thought,
0:10:48 > 0:10:50"We can't carry on with this,
0:10:50 > 0:10:53"it's too much of our life, it takes too much time."
0:10:53 > 0:10:56But it is the nice cards that we get sent.
0:10:56 > 0:10:59People waving out their cars and off of coaches.
0:10:59 > 0:11:02- It makes you feel very humble. - Makes you feel good.
0:11:02 > 0:11:05Making the world a brighter place. Yeah.
0:11:18 > 0:11:22The pond is starting to get lush and mature.
0:11:22 > 0:11:25But it is only 12 months old. All this planting
0:11:25 > 0:11:27has been done in the last year.
0:11:27 > 0:11:29And one of the things that I'm keeping an eye on
0:11:29 > 0:11:33is quite subtle, which is a line
0:11:33 > 0:11:36of reflected light, exactly along the line where I am now,
0:11:36 > 0:11:39which is through the gap in the hedge.
0:11:39 > 0:11:42And I deliberately wanted this line
0:11:42 > 0:11:45to continue the path across the surface of the water.
0:11:45 > 0:11:47And of course you can do that with water.
0:11:47 > 0:11:49You can play with reflections and light.
0:11:49 > 0:11:52And the water mint, which I planted last year
0:11:52 > 0:11:56as one little clump, has now grown across that and of course
0:11:56 > 0:11:59is spoiling the reflection. So I want to just thin it back a bit.
0:12:03 > 0:12:07Now is a really good time to divide any marginal plants,
0:12:07 > 0:12:10to plant any aquatic plants, because it's warmed up.
0:12:10 > 0:12:12In fact, there's quite a chilly wind today,
0:12:12 > 0:12:16but the water is much warmer than it was a month ago.
0:12:16 > 0:12:18And it's getting clearer too.
0:12:18 > 0:12:22I think perhaps the barley straw I put in about four or five weeks ago
0:12:22 > 0:12:26is beginning to work, although the whole balance of a pond
0:12:26 > 0:12:27is a subtle and shifting thing,
0:12:27 > 0:12:31and it's to do with light, shade and minerals.
0:12:31 > 0:12:34So one of the things you have to do is keep some of the water covered.
0:12:34 > 0:12:37You want to keep a third of the surface covered by plants.
0:12:37 > 0:12:43But this water mint, you can see, is spreading across here. Look at that.
0:12:44 > 0:12:47It's really minty.
0:12:47 > 0:12:51Now I'm going to divide that a little.
0:12:51 > 0:12:53It's as tough as old tough.
0:12:53 > 0:12:55And you can see the roots are there.
0:12:57 > 0:12:59So I haven't harmed what I've taken,
0:12:59 > 0:13:04I can move it to another place if I want, or I can compost it.
0:13:04 > 0:13:07One of the things that I'm very aware of is that
0:13:07 > 0:13:10if you want to really encourage newts and frogs and snails
0:13:10 > 0:13:13and dragonflies and all the lovely things
0:13:13 > 0:13:15that will come to a pond like this,
0:13:15 > 0:13:18you must have lots of cover for them.
0:13:18 > 0:13:21Let's put a little bit of this water mint down there.
0:13:21 > 0:13:25That will bed down in and this can go to the compost. Over you go.
0:13:27 > 0:13:28This is tinkering.
0:13:28 > 0:13:30Playing, really, in the water,
0:13:30 > 0:13:33and any kind of water lends itself to nice playing about.
0:13:33 > 0:13:36But it's important and it's timely, because plants
0:13:36 > 0:13:39can very easily re-establish if you divide them,
0:13:39 > 0:13:41and if you plant new plants,
0:13:41 > 0:13:43they will get going very fast in the water.
0:13:43 > 0:13:46But you may not have water.
0:13:46 > 0:13:48Nevertheless, here are some other jobs
0:13:48 > 0:13:51that you CAN be doing in your garden this weekend.
0:13:59 > 0:14:02If you took cuttings in spring from plants like dahlias
0:14:02 > 0:14:04or delphiniums, check them over,
0:14:04 > 0:14:08and if you see new growth from leaves or roots,
0:14:08 > 0:14:09it's time to pot them on.
0:14:10 > 0:14:12Remove them carefully
0:14:12 > 0:14:16and pot up each cutting individually into fresh potting compost.
0:14:20 > 0:14:23Water them, and put them in a protected place
0:14:23 > 0:14:26where they can grow on so they should be ready to plant out
0:14:26 > 0:14:28in late summer.
0:14:38 > 0:14:41Late-flowering clematis grow very fast at this time of year
0:14:41 > 0:14:43and can get in a real tangle.
0:14:49 > 0:14:54So, using soft twine so you don't damage the delicate new tendrils,
0:14:54 > 0:14:57unravel them and tie them in.
0:14:57 > 0:14:59And then when they do flower,
0:14:59 > 0:15:01they'll be exactly where you want them.
0:15:01 > 0:15:04Come on!
0:15:04 > 0:15:07# Missed the Saturday dance
0:15:08 > 0:15:11# Heard they crowded the floor
0:15:12 > 0:15:15# Couldn't bear it without you
0:15:17 > 0:15:19# Don't get around much anymore. #
0:15:19 > 0:15:22It's time to earth up potatoes.
0:15:22 > 0:15:27Draw the soil right up over the foliage.
0:15:27 > 0:15:30This will protect them from any late frost,
0:15:30 > 0:15:33and more importantly, mean that the tubers are well covered,
0:15:33 > 0:15:34and thus protected from light,
0:15:34 > 0:15:37which turns them green and poisonous.
0:15:38 > 0:15:40There's a final benefit,
0:15:40 > 0:15:43because an extra layer of soil will also provide protection
0:15:43 > 0:15:47from blight spores that might occur later in the summer.
0:15:58 > 0:16:02The blossom on my step-over apples is a relief, actually,
0:16:02 > 0:16:04because the poor things have been moved.
0:16:04 > 0:16:06They were in with the soft fruit and they had to be moved
0:16:06 > 0:16:09to make room for the greenhouse, and now I've put them in here.
0:16:09 > 0:16:11And they seem to be adapting.
0:16:11 > 0:16:14And of course the great thing about step-over apples
0:16:14 > 0:16:16is not only do they look good,
0:16:16 > 0:16:18and you can have them as a decorative element
0:16:18 > 0:16:20in amongst vegetables, but also it does give you fruit
0:16:20 > 0:16:23in a very, very restricted space.
0:16:23 > 0:16:25But the blossom is as good
0:16:25 > 0:16:28on a little apple tree as the biggest one.
0:16:28 > 0:16:30It's the same flowers, and hopefully the same fruit.
0:16:30 > 0:16:33And there's something about any blossom
0:16:33 > 0:16:35that just makes your heart sing.
0:16:35 > 0:16:37Well, I don't know if Carol's singing,
0:16:37 > 0:16:40but she's certainly celebrating blossom.
0:16:43 > 0:16:46There are so many blossom trees that light up our gardens
0:16:46 > 0:16:50and hedgerows from spring to early summer.
0:16:51 > 0:16:56Their delicate clusters of flowers are a seasonal delight for us.
0:16:57 > 0:16:59And for the wildlife.
0:17:02 > 0:17:08Sloe is the first sight of spring in our countryside.
0:17:08 > 0:17:14It's called Prunus spinosa because the whole thing is spiny, spiky.
0:17:14 > 0:17:16It's a very well-armed sort of a shrub.
0:17:16 > 0:17:19And those spines are poisonous,
0:17:19 > 0:17:23but they're there to protect those flowers
0:17:23 > 0:17:24and the fruit that follows them.
0:17:24 > 0:17:29The wood itself of sloe is extremely hard
0:17:29 > 0:17:33and the Irish use it to make their shillelaghs.
0:17:34 > 0:17:37Not only do birds nest in its branches,
0:17:37 > 0:17:41but the whole thing is humming with activity.
0:17:41 > 0:17:45And after the flowers have fallen to the ground,
0:17:45 > 0:17:49there are the most wonderful small black fruit - sloes.
0:17:54 > 0:17:57There's no avoiding sloe.
0:17:57 > 0:18:02It's in-your-face, it's instantly recognisable, it's there.
0:18:02 > 0:18:05But it's not until you stroll in the woods
0:18:05 > 0:18:09that you come across our wild cherry, Prunus avium.
0:18:09 > 0:18:14This too is packed with all sorts of nectar,
0:18:14 > 0:18:18and as the sun shines in here, wildlife come to visit.
0:18:18 > 0:18:19You can see immediately, though,
0:18:19 > 0:18:21when you look up into these branches,
0:18:21 > 0:18:27the similarity between this and all those ornamental cherries
0:18:27 > 0:18:31that grace our gardens and pack our city streets.
0:18:33 > 0:18:36It's hard to believe that the ornamental Japanese cherry tree,
0:18:36 > 0:18:41so popular now, only came to our gardens around 100 years ago.
0:18:42 > 0:18:44In Japan, sakura, cherry blossom,
0:18:44 > 0:18:49plays a hugely important role in daily life.
0:18:49 > 0:18:52The optimism and yet the ephemerality
0:18:52 > 0:18:56of these beautiful blooms opening wide
0:18:56 > 0:18:58represents life itself,
0:18:58 > 0:19:01followed by the inevitability of death,
0:19:01 > 0:19:06as those petals fall to the floor and carpet the ground.
0:19:07 > 0:19:10The blossom too signifies clouds,
0:19:10 > 0:19:15as tree after tree opens its snowy blooms
0:19:15 > 0:19:17and moves across the countryside.
0:19:21 > 0:19:24Here at Batsford Arboretum in Gloucestershire,
0:19:24 > 0:19:28they've got 130 different types of ornamental cherry trees,
0:19:28 > 0:19:33many of them a familiar sight in British parks and gardens.
0:19:34 > 0:19:38And this is one of the finest examples. It's so blossomy.
0:19:38 > 0:19:41This is Prunus sargentii.
0:19:41 > 0:19:46Just look at the scale of this! It's huge. It's massive.
0:19:46 > 0:19:51It's a structural monument to the beauty of cherry blossom.
0:19:51 > 0:19:55Too big for a lot of gardens, but what a spectacle!
0:19:55 > 0:19:57And as if that wasn't enough,
0:19:57 > 0:19:59when the autumn comes,
0:19:59 > 0:20:03this is one of the first of all the cherries to change colour.
0:20:03 > 0:20:07Head gardener Matthew Hall is showing me
0:20:07 > 0:20:12the national collection of village cherries held here at Batsford.
0:20:12 > 0:20:15These trees come from villages in Japan
0:20:15 > 0:20:18and flower in succession right through the season.
0:20:18 > 0:20:20We've got yedoensis.
0:20:20 > 0:20:23This is what starts the flowering cherries.
0:20:23 > 0:20:25Everything goes on from here.
0:20:25 > 0:20:27The whole thing travels up the country, doesn't it?
0:20:27 > 0:20:28That's right, yeah.
0:20:28 > 0:20:33Batsford has trees that are perfect for smaller gardens, too.
0:20:33 > 0:20:36- So dainty!- Yeah.- What a picture.
0:20:36 > 0:20:39- Absolutely perfect, isn't it? - Yeah, it is.
0:20:39 > 0:20:43- So this is prunus incisa? - Incisa, yeah. It's a Fuji cherry.
0:20:43 > 0:20:45It's an ideal cherry for the small garden.
0:20:45 > 0:20:48Well, you can imagine that going anywhere, can't you?
0:20:48 > 0:20:52- Yeah, you could. - Even on a tiny, tiny plot.
0:20:52 > 0:20:54You can grow it two different ways.
0:20:54 > 0:20:56You can have a straight, upright stem,
0:20:56 > 0:21:00- or you can have maybe multiple stems coming off.- Right, right.
0:21:00 > 0:21:02It's small leaf, really compact flowers.
0:21:02 > 0:21:06- It's two to three metres and is quite shrubby. - I've got that tiny one.
0:21:06 > 0:21:12- Kojo no mai.- Kojo no mai. I've got a couple of them but I grow them in pots.
0:21:12 > 0:21:14That's right. Good for pot culture.
0:21:14 > 0:21:17So even if you haven't got a garden, you can have a flowering cherry.
0:21:17 > 0:21:20That's it, that's right. That's the beauty of them.
0:21:23 > 0:21:27Thanks to the introduction of these ornamental Japanese cherries,
0:21:27 > 0:21:31we really can choose from a wealth of blossom trees
0:21:31 > 0:21:35as well as enjoying our own wild species.
0:21:35 > 0:21:39Whether it's our sloe in the hedgerows
0:21:39 > 0:21:42or our wild cherry, Prunus avium,
0:21:42 > 0:21:44whether it's the village cherries from Japan
0:21:44 > 0:21:47or these glorious ornamental doubles,
0:21:47 > 0:21:50it really doesn't matter.
0:21:50 > 0:21:54It's their blossom that brings a whole season to life.
0:22:01 > 0:22:04I last went to Batsford 10 years ago. It was absolutely fantastic.
0:22:04 > 0:22:06I must go back next spring.
0:22:06 > 0:22:09This spring, one of the great delights has been the apple blossom,
0:22:09 > 0:22:12which of course has been very late, like all blossoms.
0:22:12 > 0:22:14Because it's all come out together,
0:22:14 > 0:22:17there should be really good cross-pollination and, touch wood,
0:22:17 > 0:22:19a nice crop of apples.
0:22:19 > 0:22:22So, to have apple blossom in late May is unusual,
0:22:22 > 0:22:25but it's been a real treat.
0:22:27 > 0:22:30BIRDSONG
0:22:37 > 0:22:40Now it is time to plant out tomatoes.
0:22:40 > 0:22:44I've got a batch here of gardener's delight, one of my favourites.
0:22:44 > 0:22:46It's got a fairly small tomato,
0:22:46 > 0:22:50delicious raw, even better, I think, roasted.
0:22:50 > 0:22:54Absolutely perfect. These I grow from seed.
0:22:54 > 0:22:58You can see they've got a nice root system. They're not pot-bound.
0:22:58 > 0:23:02If I plant these out, they'll grow really strongly over the next month or so
0:23:02 > 0:23:04and then start to set fruit.
0:23:04 > 0:23:08I've grown tomatoes, oh, for at least the last 40 years,
0:23:08 > 0:23:12and I really had thought until last year I pretty much knew how to do it
0:23:12 > 0:23:17successfully every time. But then I paid a visit to Richard Sandford,
0:23:17 > 0:23:20who is a superb vegetable grower.
0:23:23 > 0:23:27All of these tomatoes look really impressive,
0:23:27 > 0:23:31but this pair here are incredible.
0:23:31 > 0:23:37These are the best tomatoes I have ever seen in the UK.
0:23:37 > 0:23:39Very kind of you.
0:23:44 > 0:23:49Richard made me rethink everything about tomato growing,
0:23:49 > 0:23:53because he grew those amazing tomatoes, and they were stunning,
0:23:53 > 0:23:56in terracotta pots about this sort of size.
0:23:56 > 0:24:00And what was extraordinary was that the pots were certainly
0:24:00 > 0:24:03no more than half full of compost mix.
0:24:03 > 0:24:06So that they had a tiny root run,
0:24:06 > 0:24:11but he fed them every single day from home-made feeds.
0:24:11 > 0:24:14So the upshot is this year I want to experiment.
0:24:14 > 0:24:17I want to try different ways of growing tomatoes.
0:24:17 > 0:24:20I shall be growing some in the other greenhouse,
0:24:20 > 0:24:23but I'll also grow some in different containers in here.
0:24:23 > 0:24:26I've got a grow bag here, so I'll grow some in those.
0:24:26 > 0:24:29I've got some terracotta pots. I'll grow some in those.
0:24:29 > 0:24:33And I'll also grow some in what I normally use,
0:24:33 > 0:24:36which is a large plastic pot. So it's got a decent root run.
0:24:36 > 0:24:38And if they're all gardener's delight,
0:24:38 > 0:24:41I can just simply compare how they grow,
0:24:41 > 0:24:44and most importantly of all, what the fruit are like.
0:24:44 > 0:24:46Let's start with the grow bag.
0:24:46 > 0:24:50To be honest, I haven't used a grow bag for about 10 years.
0:24:50 > 0:24:53I used to use them and they were perfectly successful.
0:24:53 > 0:24:56When you buy them, give them a really good shake,
0:24:56 > 0:25:00because they're stacked on pallets and they get very compacted.
0:25:01 > 0:25:07So just make extra holes along the bottom so that can drain out.
0:25:09 > 0:25:13And then I would grow three tomatoes in a bag like that.
0:25:15 > 0:25:17Like that.
0:25:21 > 0:25:25And then you simply take a plant.
0:25:25 > 0:25:26Now, as a rule of thumb,
0:25:26 > 0:25:29I've always said that you should bury tomato plants
0:25:29 > 0:25:32at least up to the first leaf.
0:25:32 > 0:25:35It wouldn't hurt going up as much as that.
0:25:35 > 0:25:37Then you get roots growing from the stem
0:25:37 > 0:25:40and you get a more secure plant,
0:25:40 > 0:25:43because this is going to get very big and heavy.
0:25:43 > 0:25:45However, in a grow bag that's tricky,
0:25:45 > 0:25:50because what is astonishing is how shallow the bag is.
0:25:50 > 0:25:53It really doesn't feel as though there's enough depth of soil
0:25:53 > 0:25:56to support the plants. But we'll see.
0:25:56 > 0:25:58OK, that goes in there.
0:26:01 > 0:26:04And that's in there.
0:26:05 > 0:26:07Exhibit A.
0:26:07 > 0:26:11Right, next I am going to try Richard's technique,
0:26:11 > 0:26:13which is a terracotta pot
0:26:13 > 0:26:18with a dangerously small amount of compost in it.
0:26:21 > 0:26:23That's really all he had.
0:26:23 > 0:26:28It seems absurd to me, but come on, let's try, let's try.
0:26:28 > 0:26:30Just one plant.
0:26:33 > 0:26:34And put that in.
0:26:36 > 0:26:41I'm going to put a little bit more compost in there to bury it,
0:26:41 > 0:26:45not to cheat but just simply to anchor it in place.
0:26:45 > 0:26:50There we go. And I'll do a couple more of those.
0:26:53 > 0:26:56Put that in nice and deep.
0:27:03 > 0:27:08There we go. Exhibit B.
0:27:08 > 0:27:16And finally, the tried and tested large plastic pot.
0:27:25 > 0:27:31Now, I have deliberately been generous with my compost,
0:27:31 > 0:27:33left enough room to hold water on top.
0:27:35 > 0:27:39But that allows a fairly decent root run.
0:27:39 > 0:27:41And in the past I would say not overgenerous,
0:27:41 > 0:27:46but, having seen Richard's example, it now looks enormous.
0:27:46 > 0:27:48But we'll see.
0:27:50 > 0:27:54And this I will bury, nice and deep.
0:27:54 > 0:27:58That goes right down in there to bring the soil up around underneath that first leaf.
0:28:01 > 0:28:03Right, let's call that exhibit C.
0:28:03 > 0:28:07I'll treat these as I always treat tomatoes.
0:28:07 > 0:28:09Richard's... I will remember his guiding principle,
0:28:09 > 0:28:13which wasn't prescriptive, but what it was was pay great attention to their feed,
0:28:13 > 0:28:18and if need be, feed them every day.
0:28:18 > 0:28:21The grow bag, I will just try and use my common sense
0:28:21 > 0:28:24and look after as best I can.
0:28:24 > 0:28:26And we'll see.
0:28:26 > 0:28:29If you grow tomatoes in a particular way,
0:28:29 > 0:28:30I'd love to hear from you.
0:28:30 > 0:28:33If you've got any secrets, share them.
0:28:33 > 0:28:36Now, we'll only know the proof of this come August and September.
0:28:36 > 0:28:40But we'll be back here before then.
0:28:40 > 0:28:42I'll see you next Friday, here at Longmeadow, at the normal time.
0:28:42 > 0:28:45Till then, bye bye.
0:28:48 > 0:28:51Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd