0:00:17 > 0:00:19Hello, welcome to Gardeners' World.
0:00:19 > 0:00:24Now, I'm already thinking of next spring and planning ahead,
0:00:24 > 0:00:26so I'm going to lift these wallflowers that
0:00:26 > 0:00:29I sowed a couple of months ago and move them
0:00:29 > 0:00:32so that I can line them out. They'll develop into
0:00:32 > 0:00:35nice bushy plants, so, next autumn,
0:00:35 > 0:00:39when I plant them into their final position, they're really nice,
0:00:39 > 0:00:44healthy specimens that will give me maximum flower when I want it.
0:00:44 > 0:00:46But it's not all about next spring.
0:00:47 > 0:00:51On tonight's programme, Carol takes us on a journey into the rich
0:00:51 > 0:00:54and voluptuously colourful world...
0:00:54 > 0:00:56of the iris.
0:00:57 > 0:01:01The whole point about irises is they're so varied
0:01:01 > 0:01:05and so incredibly beautiful that you can create your very own
0:01:05 > 0:01:07pictures, your own tableaux.
0:01:07 > 0:01:10You can express yourself by using them.
0:01:11 > 0:01:15It's time to prune wisteria.
0:01:15 > 0:01:17Now, if you think it's a big job,
0:01:17 > 0:01:23we visit a gardener with a 250 foot wisteria!
0:01:28 > 0:01:32I shall also be planting irises here in the cottage garden,
0:01:32 > 0:01:36and if you want some lovely, fresh salad leaves and you think
0:01:36 > 0:01:39the moment's over or you haven't got enough room, well, you're wrong,
0:01:39 > 0:01:43because I shall be planting some salad crops in a container.
0:01:55 > 0:01:58Let's get these wallflowers done. A curious thing has happened
0:01:58 > 0:02:01because although they've grown really well...
0:02:03 > 0:02:06..quite a few are flowering.
0:02:06 > 0:02:07Now, they shouldn't be flowering now.
0:02:07 > 0:02:11I don't want them to flower now. I want my flowers next April.
0:02:11 > 0:02:14They're very healthy, there's absolutely nothing wrong with them.
0:02:14 > 0:02:17I think this has been triggered by the really hot weather.
0:02:17 > 0:02:20And this is a very hot spot, south facing.
0:02:20 > 0:02:23They've got baked, they've got a decent root system,
0:02:23 > 0:02:26and they've simply forged ahead.
0:02:26 > 0:02:28They're biennials, wallflower, so you normally sow them
0:02:28 > 0:02:31sometime in spring, early summer,
0:02:31 > 0:02:35and then they develop their foliage and roots, and their flowers follow
0:02:35 > 0:02:39the following year, so that's what to buy, the second year in spring.
0:02:39 > 0:02:43If your wallflowers are flowering now, be ruthless - cut them back.
0:02:43 > 0:02:46That way, you won't use up their energy
0:02:46 > 0:02:49and pay the price by less good flowering next spring.
0:02:53 > 0:02:54Come on.
0:03:09 > 0:03:12Now, I've taken the wallflowers from the seedbed, which is
0:03:12 > 0:03:16designed just simply to raise seedlings. Now they need more room.
0:03:16 > 0:03:18So, I'm lining them out,
0:03:18 > 0:03:21cos what I want to create are really nice bushy plants.
0:03:21 > 0:03:24You can see that if you have a clump, like this,
0:03:24 > 0:03:26you've got a number of plants in there.
0:03:26 > 0:03:29Although, actually, I'm happy with them,
0:03:29 > 0:03:34that's a nice healthy plant, it'll be even better, those two,
0:03:34 > 0:03:37if they're spaced out about nine inches apart.
0:03:37 > 0:03:40And that's what we're after. By the beginning of October,
0:03:40 > 0:03:44the best wallflowers are really bushy, strong plants.
0:03:44 > 0:03:45They don't have to be tall.
0:03:45 > 0:03:48That way, you'll get the best performance the following spring.
0:03:48 > 0:03:52Now, wallflowers are members of the brassica family.
0:03:52 > 0:03:55So, what I usually do is line them out in the vegetable garden
0:03:55 > 0:03:59in amongst the cabbages and, like here, the purple sprouting broccoli.
0:03:59 > 0:04:03And the advantage of that is that you will treat them
0:04:03 > 0:04:06in the same way, and that's how they like it.
0:04:06 > 0:04:09And all the things that makes for a good cabbage,
0:04:09 > 0:04:12makes for a good wallflower.
0:04:12 > 0:04:13So, we're spacing these out.
0:04:37 > 0:04:40Important to water these in really well.
0:04:40 > 0:04:44As much as anything else, it washes the soil around the roots.
0:04:44 > 0:04:48These are bare root, and you've ripped them out the ground, however carefully.
0:04:48 > 0:04:50And it gets them growing again quickly.
0:04:50 > 0:04:53Now, you can do this with all your biennial flowers,
0:04:53 > 0:04:56whether they be foxgloves, or sweet williams, lift them
0:04:56 > 0:04:59from the seedbed, or plugs, if you've been growing them like that,
0:04:59 > 0:05:02and plant them out to give them room to develop.
0:05:02 > 0:05:05And, very often, a corner of the vegetable garden is the best place.
0:05:08 > 0:05:10This is a time of transition in the garden.
0:05:10 > 0:05:14You have crops like the sweetcorn and the courgettes coming along.
0:05:14 > 0:05:18The chard is really fantastic. I love chard.
0:05:18 > 0:05:21I love the way that it can be eaten just the leaves
0:05:21 > 0:05:24or just the stems, and go on right through the year, too.
0:05:24 > 0:05:28Broad beans, almost over. Almost finished those.
0:05:28 > 0:05:30I've good carrots.
0:05:30 > 0:05:32These, we've been eating. They're perfectly good.
0:05:32 > 0:05:36Do you think that's nice? A little woody.
0:05:36 > 0:05:38Health and safety wouldn't approve
0:05:38 > 0:05:40but I eat these with a bit of tough dirt.
0:05:40 > 0:05:42Lovely. Absolutely lovely.
0:05:42 > 0:05:46Peas also almost over. Nigel, did you want a pea? Here! Come on!
0:05:48 > 0:05:50Nigel loves peas.
0:05:50 > 0:05:51Look at that.
0:05:51 > 0:05:53There you go.
0:05:54 > 0:05:57He quite often picks them when I'm not around.
0:05:57 > 0:05:59This is chicory. Growing strongly.
0:05:59 > 0:06:02We won't harvest that for another two or three months.
0:06:02 > 0:06:05And, of course, the brassica, all kinds of cabbages
0:06:05 > 0:06:09and cauliflowers and kales have to be protected from cabbage whites.
0:06:09 > 0:06:11And they're desperate to get on it.
0:06:11 > 0:06:14I found, over the years, the easiest way to deal with it is just
0:06:14 > 0:06:17try and keep them off. Look, there's one inside there.
0:06:17 > 0:06:20It's got through, the little so-and-so, and it's laying its eggs.
0:06:20 > 0:06:23You can never stop nature doing what it really wants to do.
0:06:37 > 0:06:40It's a mistake to gear your vegetable and fruit production
0:06:40 > 0:06:42to one big harvest season.
0:06:42 > 0:06:46Inevitably, more plants come together towards the end of summer
0:06:46 > 0:06:49than at other times of the year, but the real secret is to keep it
0:06:49 > 0:06:52going for as long as possible, right throughout the year, if you can.
0:06:52 > 0:06:55And that means sowing in succession.
0:06:55 > 0:07:00I want to sow some lettuce now that will give me a harvest in autumn.
0:07:00 > 0:07:03And you don't need to have a big space to do that.
0:07:03 > 0:07:07I've got this tin bath here, which I've drilled holes into,
0:07:07 > 0:07:10I don't know if you can see, there are holes in there for drainage.
0:07:10 > 0:07:14That makes a really good container for growing vegetables,
0:07:14 > 0:07:16but you can sew veg in anything.
0:07:16 > 0:07:19An old shoe, if you've got it, will do the job. Now...
0:07:21 > 0:07:22..I put some compost in.
0:07:22 > 0:07:27I've mixed a little bit of gardening compost to give it a bit of oomph,
0:07:27 > 0:07:28but normal, peat-free,
0:07:28 > 0:07:32commercial potting compost will do the job fine.
0:07:33 > 0:07:34There we go.
0:07:39 > 0:07:43I have to say, this is probably the easiest thing to do in gardening.
0:07:43 > 0:07:47You just put some potting compost or soil in a container
0:07:47 > 0:07:50and sprinkle some seed. Job done.
0:07:50 > 0:07:52But it is worth thinking about what to seed to sow.
0:07:53 > 0:07:56I'm going to use a salad bowl lettuce.
0:07:56 > 0:08:01You can have green salad bowl or red salad bowl. They're both delicious.
0:08:01 > 0:08:04The nature of salad bowl, or oakleaf, lettuce
0:08:04 > 0:08:05is that they have a mass of
0:08:05 > 0:08:09crinkly leaves and you cut them, cut the whole lot off,
0:08:09 > 0:08:10and they regrow.
0:08:10 > 0:08:13And on a healthy plant, you can probably get two, three,
0:08:13 > 0:08:15even four pickings from it.
0:08:15 > 0:08:18What I like in a container is if you sprinkle the seed in there,
0:08:18 > 0:08:21it will fill...completely fill up with these leaves.
0:08:21 > 0:08:24You come along with a knife, cut what you want for dinner,
0:08:24 > 0:08:27and then there's more left behind and that will regrow.
0:08:27 > 0:08:32And, like all these things, sow thinly.
0:08:32 > 0:08:35You will not get more leaves by having more seeds.
0:08:36 > 0:08:39Now, that little pinch of seed is plenty.
0:08:40 > 0:08:44And, then, just very thinly, sprinkle them on.
0:08:45 > 0:08:47OK.
0:08:47 > 0:08:51That's it. All I have to do now is just water that in.
0:08:51 > 0:08:56Now, when you're positioning lettuce in a container or in a border,
0:08:56 > 0:09:00just bear in mind that lettuce doesn't germinate
0:09:00 > 0:09:03so well once it goes over about 24-25 degrees.
0:09:03 > 0:09:07So, if it's very hot, you should give it shade.
0:09:07 > 0:09:09But it does need light.
0:09:09 > 0:09:11So, at this time of year, the nights are getting cooler,
0:09:11 > 0:09:15the days are getting shorter, you can safely put this in full sun.
0:09:16 > 0:09:19Those should give me a lovely fresh salad
0:09:19 > 0:09:22from the middle of September to the middle of November.
0:09:22 > 0:09:26But man cannot live by vegetables alone.
0:09:26 > 0:09:30You need colour, you need flowers. I'll be planting some irises later.
0:09:30 > 0:09:34There's hardly any flower that gives you more intense colour than
0:09:34 > 0:09:35the bearded iris.
0:09:35 > 0:09:38Of course, they finished about a month ago,
0:09:38 > 0:09:44but back in June, Carol went to celebrate irises in all their glory.
0:09:51 > 0:09:53At the water's edge,
0:09:53 > 0:09:59the straight sword-like blades of Iris pseudacorus rise up.
0:09:59 > 0:10:03bearing at their tops these beautiful yellow flowers.
0:10:03 > 0:10:06This is our native, yellow flag.
0:10:06 > 0:10:11You see it all over the place, every opportunity it gets to paddle,
0:10:11 > 0:10:12it'll be there.
0:10:12 > 0:10:16Whether it's canals, ponds, reservoirs,
0:10:16 > 0:10:19any damp place at all, up it comes.
0:10:20 > 0:10:23There is a theory that before the last ice age,
0:10:23 > 0:10:27Iris pseudacorus was a landlubber.
0:10:28 > 0:10:31But as the glaciers retreated,
0:10:31 > 0:10:34the ice melted, the land became wetter,
0:10:34 > 0:10:39and the iris evolved gradually to live in moist conditions.
0:10:41 > 0:10:43We have another native iris, too.
0:10:43 > 0:10:46Iris foetidissima. It's in the winter that we notice it,
0:10:46 > 0:10:51when its seed pods explode, showing to perfection
0:10:51 > 0:10:54these brilliant, bright orange seeds.
0:10:54 > 0:10:57There are hundreds of species of irises
0:10:57 > 0:11:00all across the northern hemisphere.
0:11:00 > 0:11:03And though some of them love living in damp conditions,
0:11:03 > 0:11:07there are others which prefer exactly the opposite.
0:11:07 > 0:11:12They'll grow in dry, arid sites, on mountainsides, almost in deserts.
0:11:12 > 0:11:16I've come to Norfolk, a county famed for big skies
0:11:16 > 0:11:20and an exposed landscape, where the sun bakes the earth.
0:11:33 > 0:11:36Aren't they just devastatingly beautiful?
0:11:36 > 0:11:43Since the dawn of time, irises have held this allure for mankind.
0:11:43 > 0:11:47They've been depicted, poems have been written about them.
0:11:47 > 0:11:50And they feature in everybody's mythology.
0:11:51 > 0:11:54Iris was the Greek messenger of the gods.
0:11:54 > 0:11:58She delivered her message via a rainbow
0:11:58 > 0:12:00that stretched between heaven and earth.
0:12:00 > 0:12:05And, just like a rainbow, they're here one minute and gone the next.
0:12:18 > 0:12:21All irises have these straight, linear leaves,
0:12:21 > 0:12:23rising out of the ground.
0:12:23 > 0:12:25And through them thrusts the flower stem.
0:12:25 > 0:12:28And here are the coalescent leaves on their way up,
0:12:28 > 0:12:31each with a bud in its axil.
0:12:31 > 0:12:35But this is what you really need to concentrate on.
0:12:35 > 0:12:36This is the main flower.
0:12:36 > 0:12:38And it's always the top flower,
0:12:38 > 0:12:40the apical flower, that opens first.
0:12:40 > 0:12:43There are these three beautiful falls.
0:12:43 > 0:12:46These are the ones that lure the insects in with these
0:12:46 > 0:12:48beautiful pollen guides here.
0:12:48 > 0:12:52And this soft beard which must provide a great landing stage!
0:12:52 > 0:12:55And, then, above them are these three standards,
0:12:55 > 0:12:59which protect all the inner workings of the flower.
0:13:13 > 0:13:17- I got my first iris when I was 15. - Can you remember what it was?
0:13:17 > 0:13:21- It was Jane Phillips, actually. - She's a beautiful iris. - Yes, she's one of the best.
0:13:21 > 0:13:23Strong and stands up well in a border.
0:13:23 > 0:13:25Always appears at Chelsea, every year.
0:13:25 > 0:13:27So, they're obviously so happy here.
0:13:27 > 0:13:28What is it about your soil they love?
0:13:28 > 0:13:32I think it is well-drained soil, which is the main thing.
0:13:32 > 0:13:36A little bit of clay in it. And they just thrive on it.
0:13:36 > 0:13:40A sunny spot... So, if there's a sunny spot, in the right zone for next year's flower,
0:13:40 > 0:13:42that's what you want.
0:13:42 > 0:13:44You must put them in August or September, not too late.
0:13:44 > 0:13:47Get them established before the winter, that's the main secret.
0:13:47 > 0:13:50So, what happens is you see one and you think,
0:13:50 > 0:13:53"That's got to be the most beautiful iris I've ever seen!"
0:13:53 > 0:13:55And then the next one you say the same thing.
0:13:55 > 0:13:59Two nights later, it'll be something else, and it goes on, really.
0:13:59 > 0:14:00This has to be one of my favourites.
0:14:00 > 0:14:04- This is Iris pallida, isn't it? - It's one of the best, actually.
0:14:04 > 0:14:08- Very good for foliage. - I love the simplicity of the flower.
0:14:08 > 0:14:11This is one of the forebears of all those beautiful,
0:14:11 > 0:14:14- multicoloured irises. - Yes, that's right, Carol.
0:14:14 > 0:14:19Isn't it incredible to think that from a plant like that, and maybe
0:14:19 > 0:14:23one or two other different species, you get that huge range of colour?
0:14:23 > 0:14:26- Yes, unbelievable.- Just astonishing.
0:14:26 > 0:14:29- Can you dig us one up?- Course I can. Just show you what's what.
0:14:29 > 0:14:30Look at that.
0:14:30 > 0:14:34Look at your soil, it just goes almost to sand, doesn't it?
0:14:34 > 0:14:38- It does, yes. There is the one from last year.- Where is the new one?
0:14:38 > 0:14:42The new one is here. This is a new piece.
0:14:42 > 0:14:45With those lovely white roots. What a handsome plant.
0:14:45 > 0:14:48- Very handsome plant.- You don't want to replant these, do you?
0:14:48 > 0:14:50No, I don't. You can take it home!
0:15:02 > 0:15:06The whole point about irises is they are so varied
0:15:06 > 0:15:08and so incredibly beautiful.
0:15:08 > 0:15:12You can create your very own pictures, your own tableaux.
0:15:12 > 0:15:16You can express yourself by using them.
0:15:16 > 0:15:20They may be shooting stars, they are not here for very long.
0:15:20 > 0:15:23But the point is that they are beautiful.
0:15:23 > 0:15:25Enjoy them while they are there.
0:15:36 > 0:15:38I tell you,
0:15:38 > 0:15:42if seeing irises like that doesn't make you want to have some
0:15:42 > 0:15:46in your garden, then I don't know if the blood is flowing in your veins.
0:15:46 > 0:15:50They are fantastic. We do have irises here at Longmeadow.
0:15:50 > 0:15:54It is quite tricky because our soil is heavy and they must have
0:15:54 > 0:15:57good drainage, certainly the bearded varieties,
0:15:57 > 0:15:59and they need sun to bake.
0:15:59 > 0:16:01I think this will do.
0:16:01 > 0:16:04This is the moment that you should be planting irises
0:16:04 > 0:16:07and if you have got any, it is also the time to divide them.
0:16:07 > 0:16:11I have got a selection here... Sorry, Nige, I trod on his tail.
0:16:12 > 0:16:15We have got plants like this which...
0:16:15 > 0:16:21This is Carnaby which is a mixture of pinks and apricots,
0:16:21 > 0:16:24which is exactly the right colour scheme for the Cottage Garden
0:16:24 > 0:16:28which can absorb anything from white through to dark.
0:16:28 > 0:16:31This is how you buy an iris if you get it bare root.
0:16:31 > 0:16:33You often get it with the leaves cut off.
0:16:33 > 0:16:36Don't worry about that, there is nothing very fancy about that.
0:16:36 > 0:16:37It is simply to make it easier to transport
0:16:37 > 0:16:39and also to stop it rocking.
0:16:39 > 0:16:42If you go to a garden centre, they will look like this -
0:16:42 > 0:16:46in a pot, tall leaves, looks a much bigger plant.
0:16:46 > 0:16:50The real difference is, that costs about £4, £4.50,
0:16:50 > 0:16:52and that is about £6, £7.
0:16:52 > 0:16:55They are much cheaper to buy at bare root.
0:16:57 > 0:17:00You can see really clearly here that you have the rhizome, the sort
0:17:00 > 0:17:06of knobbly, sausagey bit which stores the goodness for the plant.
0:17:06 > 0:17:10The roots that come down, which are fairly thick and fleshy
0:17:10 > 0:17:13but conventional roots, which go down in
0:17:13 > 0:17:16and then draw up the nutrients and the water for the plant.
0:17:16 > 0:17:20That is the storage system and that is a feeding system.
0:17:20 > 0:17:23And then from this, a stem will come up which is the flowering system.
0:17:23 > 0:17:26And the foliage, of course, is also doing its work.
0:17:26 > 0:17:29And it is the rhizome that must be kept above the soil,
0:17:29 > 0:17:33and wants maximum sunshine to produce maximum flowering.
0:17:33 > 0:17:37It is a really simple equation - sun in, flower out.
0:17:37 > 0:17:40What this means is, where I have a low hedge here,
0:17:40 > 0:17:43I mustn't plant it in the deep shade of the hedge.
0:17:43 > 0:17:47That means keeping away about a foot or so from the hedge.
0:17:47 > 0:17:51Assuming that your soil is well-drained, this is not too bad,
0:17:51 > 0:17:54you can see I can sink my trowel right down, that is a good sign.
0:17:54 > 0:17:56I could put grit underneath but all
0:17:56 > 0:18:03I need to do is put it in there and then bury the roots like that...
0:18:04 > 0:18:06..leaving the rhizome on the soil.
0:18:06 > 0:18:09And that is one of the reasons why the leaf is cut back,
0:18:09 > 0:18:15because when you have a plant in a pot, I can take this out...
0:18:16 > 0:18:21I will plant it next to it just to show you how it works.
0:18:22 > 0:18:25I don't want to bury that down, I want to keep it up.
0:18:26 > 0:18:29That is easy because you can see the rhizome
0:18:29 > 0:18:32is on the surface of the soil like it is in the pot.
0:18:32 > 0:18:36But when you have planted it, always cut the leaves back
0:18:36 > 0:18:38because the roots have got no anchorage.
0:18:38 > 0:18:42Any strong wind could blow them over. It acts as a sail.
0:18:42 > 0:18:45So simply take the leaves and just reduce them
0:18:45 > 0:18:47by about two thirds, like that.
0:18:50 > 0:18:52And then like that.
0:18:52 > 0:18:56That will do the plant no harm at all but will make it more
0:18:56 > 0:18:59secure until the roots have got down and given it anchorage.
0:18:59 > 0:19:03Next year when they grow up, it will be absolutely fine in the wind.
0:19:05 > 0:19:08If ever a plant was an investment, it is an iris.
0:19:08 > 0:19:12Not only will this plant itself last for years,
0:19:12 > 0:19:18but also you can divide it and divide it again for generations.
0:19:18 > 0:19:21We could keep irises going here in my grandchildren's time.
0:19:21 > 0:19:25And I think on that basis, they are relatively cheap.
0:19:25 > 0:19:26But you may not be planting irises
0:19:26 > 0:19:30but here are some other things that you can be doing this weekend.
0:19:36 > 0:19:39By this stage of summer, mint is fast going to flower
0:19:39 > 0:19:42and the leaves are getting very small.
0:19:42 > 0:19:45If you cut back half your supply, right to the ground, that will
0:19:45 > 0:19:48provoke a fresh flush of leaves.
0:19:49 > 0:19:52And you needn't throw away the cut leaves either.
0:19:52 > 0:19:57Tie them up and hang them to dry and that will give you a winter supply.
0:20:00 > 0:20:03An easy but important job at this time of year is to keep
0:20:03 > 0:20:06picking sweet peas, especially if you're going away.
0:20:06 > 0:20:11I have found that if you cut all the flowers off a plant every
0:20:11 > 0:20:14eight or nine days, it will go on producing a fresh
0:20:14 > 0:20:17flush of flowers right into autumn.
0:20:21 > 0:20:23Main crop strawberries have finished producing fruit
0:20:23 > 0:20:26and it is time to give them some attention.
0:20:26 > 0:20:27This is a job in two parts.
0:20:27 > 0:20:30The first is to cut off all existing foliage
0:20:30 > 0:20:32and clean up around the plants.
0:20:32 > 0:20:33This will let light and air into them
0:20:33 > 0:20:37and encourage fresh growth before winter.
0:20:40 > 0:20:42The second job is to take some runners.
0:20:42 > 0:20:46Choose a healthy plantlet closest to the parent
0:20:46 > 0:20:50and either pin it into the soil or into a pot of compost.
0:20:50 > 0:20:53Leave this for a few weeks until it roots and then it can be cut
0:20:53 > 0:20:57free and there you have a new strawberry plant.
0:21:09 > 0:21:13The White Garden is one of the most recent projects here at Longmeadow.
0:21:13 > 0:21:15We started by making the path
0:21:15 > 0:21:19and then gradually brought the planting in.
0:21:19 > 0:21:22We've got bulbs in there, I put in hardy annuals,
0:21:22 > 0:21:28then we've planted shrubs, climbers, perennials and tender annuals
0:21:28 > 0:21:30such as the Ammi majus,
0:21:30 > 0:21:32which, of course, picks up the spirit of cow parsley.
0:21:32 > 0:21:35And I'm always instigated by feelings rather than just
0:21:35 > 0:21:40specific plants and the feeling I wanted to capture was
0:21:40 > 0:21:44cow parsley in May in all its glory.
0:21:44 > 0:21:47To try and extend that throughout the season for as long as possible.
0:21:47 > 0:21:49So I am working on it and it is very
0:21:49 > 0:21:52much a work in progress, but given that it is only a few months old,
0:21:52 > 0:21:56I am absolutely delighted with the way that it has developed.
0:21:56 > 0:21:59And hopefully I can build on it and create a White Garden
0:21:59 > 0:22:05that will capture that essence of cow parsley for years to come.
0:22:05 > 0:22:08I have already put in quite a wide range of plants
0:22:08 > 0:22:09and I have got some climbers in too.
0:22:09 > 0:22:13I've got rambling rose, a clematis, there are honeysuckles.
0:22:13 > 0:22:16I've thought of adding a wisteria but I don't know
0:22:16 > 0:22:18whether it would take over these apple trees.
0:22:18 > 0:22:21Certainly this is the time of year when they finish flowering
0:22:21 > 0:22:25when wisterias really start to romp and grow.
0:22:25 > 0:22:29But I bet there are very few people amongst you watching who have
0:22:29 > 0:22:33got a wisteria that is romping to quite the extent of the one
0:22:33 > 0:22:35we went to visit in Essex.
0:22:46 > 0:22:50Most people have this wonderful romantic view of the wisteria -
0:22:50 > 0:22:53just gently climbing up and over the door,
0:22:53 > 0:22:55perhaps a little rose up next to it.
0:22:55 > 0:22:58The truth is, it is not really like that.
0:22:58 > 0:23:03Once it starts to grow, it is actually quite a thug.
0:23:03 > 0:23:06Its main aim in life is to get 100 feet to the
0:23:06 > 0:23:10top of the canopy in its native China or Japan.
0:23:10 > 0:23:14And they will grab hold of anything that is nearby.
0:23:14 > 0:23:16When we came here 26 years ago,
0:23:16 > 0:23:19the wisteria wasn't actually attached to the wall, it was in
0:23:19 > 0:23:23a great big mound and came out right over the grass where we're standing.
0:23:23 > 0:23:26So probably about 15 feet or more away from the wall.
0:23:28 > 0:23:31We pruned it with a chainsaw, it seemed a bit violent
0:23:31 > 0:23:32but it was the only way of doing it.
0:23:32 > 0:23:34I started then to train it back to the wall
0:23:34 > 0:23:38and then began to train it over.
0:23:42 > 0:23:46This is the Chinese Wisteria sinensis, which is
0:23:46 > 0:23:49one that is most commonly grown.
0:23:49 > 0:23:54This wisteria is 252 feet long and it is up on this 11-foot high
0:23:54 > 0:24:00wall and extends probably a bit above, so it is 13 feet.
0:24:02 > 0:24:04Once I started growing it across the wall, I thought then,
0:24:04 > 0:24:06"I know what I'll do.
0:24:06 > 0:24:09"I'll see if I can grow it right the way to each end."
0:24:09 > 0:24:10And that was my ambition.
0:24:10 > 0:24:14So, ten foot by ten foot each direction, obviously.
0:24:14 > 0:24:17And within about 14 years, it actually got there.
0:24:17 > 0:24:19So, now it's a case of just keeping it where it is
0:24:19 > 0:24:22and just maintaining it.
0:24:22 > 0:24:26I have wondered whether to grow it round the whole two acres. Hm...
0:24:26 > 0:24:28I don't think so!
0:24:31 > 0:24:33Well, as the wisteria hits the ground,
0:24:33 > 0:24:37it will then lie on the ground and it will start to root.
0:24:37 > 0:24:41And then I dig up that piece and I have a baby of my wisteria
0:24:41 > 0:24:45which, obviously, as a rooted layer is guaranteed to flower.
0:24:45 > 0:24:48Often with the wisterias that people have,
0:24:48 > 0:24:50they say they never flower, and so many of them,
0:24:50 > 0:24:52unfortunately, are grown from seed,
0:24:52 > 0:24:56which means that it's probably going to be 15, 20 years,
0:24:56 > 0:24:58sometimes, before they do flower.
0:25:06 > 0:25:10This is one of the two varieties of wisteria that we grow in the garden.
0:25:10 > 0:25:12This is actually Japanese.
0:25:12 > 0:25:15This is one of the Macrobotrys varieties,
0:25:15 > 0:25:17and it has these huge racemes,
0:25:17 > 0:25:21or flowers, which can be up to a metre in length.
0:25:22 > 0:25:25It grows here over this pergola,
0:25:25 > 0:25:27which allows it to sort of drip over the edges.
0:25:27 > 0:25:29I always say to people,
0:25:29 > 0:25:32"Don't plant it against a wall, because it looks completely flat."
0:25:32 > 0:25:35You need to see the way it all drops down.
0:25:37 > 0:25:40The wind's at the moment blowing the racemes in here
0:25:40 > 0:25:43and it's the smell. It's very, very different.
0:25:43 > 0:25:46I think probably if you were given this,
0:25:46 > 0:25:48you would never realise it was wisteria.
0:25:48 > 0:25:52It's a sort of a musky, soft, sweet smell.
0:25:52 > 0:25:55It actually wafts up the whole of the garden.
0:25:57 > 0:26:02I don't feed it, I don't water it, I don't do anything to it.
0:26:02 > 0:26:03I talk to it.
0:26:06 > 0:26:09I think the biggest amount of time I spend on it, of course,
0:26:09 > 0:26:11is the pruning.
0:26:11 > 0:26:14In July is when we normally start.
0:26:14 > 0:26:18It's about two months after the original flowering.
0:26:18 > 0:26:24The pruning, really, is more of a tidying up at this time of year.
0:26:24 > 0:26:26It's taking off the surplus.
0:26:26 > 0:26:30You have far too much of the new growths that come out.
0:26:30 > 0:26:34They come out looking for something to climb onto.
0:26:34 > 0:26:37Very twisty, tangly little corkscrews.
0:26:38 > 0:26:42January, February time is the time it gets its main cutting.
0:26:42 > 0:26:44That's quite a vigorous cut
0:26:44 > 0:26:47with everything then back to two or three buds,
0:26:47 > 0:26:49and that's the real shaping of it.
0:26:52 > 0:26:55Because this year we've had such a late spring,
0:26:55 > 0:26:57it's just been perfection.
0:26:57 > 0:26:59It really does make me feel quite emotional.
0:27:22 > 0:27:26You may remember that I sowed the top of the mound
0:27:26 > 0:27:30with a clay meadow mix.
0:27:30 > 0:27:33We tend to think of wildflower meadows as needing poor soil
0:27:33 > 0:27:36and very good drainage. It's not true, actually.
0:27:36 > 0:27:39You can get mixes for almost any situation.
0:27:39 > 0:27:43Now, sowed this in the hottest summer we've had for ages,
0:27:43 > 0:27:46just watered it once a day, it's done really well.
0:27:46 > 0:27:48It's actually better than I possibly could have expected.
0:27:48 > 0:27:52This should develop into a glorious field of flowers.
0:27:52 > 0:27:55You can replicate that in as small an area as you like.
0:27:55 > 0:27:58Now, that's it from Long Meadow today.
0:27:58 > 0:28:01Next week, we shall be celebrating, along with the rest of the BBC,
0:28:01 > 0:28:03with the BBC's Summer of Wildlife,
0:28:03 > 0:28:08looking at all the different ways that wildlife can be included
0:28:08 > 0:28:12and encouraged and celebrated in our gardens.
0:28:12 > 0:28:13Till then, bye-bye.
0:28:39 > 0:28:42Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd