0:00:07 > 0:00:09Hello. Welcome to Gardener's world.
0:00:09 > 0:00:12Come on, you. Get up there.
0:00:12 > 0:00:13That's it.
0:00:13 > 0:00:16I'm really pleased to see that the bluebells that we planted
0:00:16 > 0:00:20as little bulbs last September have largely flowered.
0:00:20 > 0:00:22Now, they're delicate at the moment
0:00:22 > 0:00:26but they do already cast this lovely blue shimmer
0:00:26 > 0:00:28over this piece of the garden,
0:00:28 > 0:00:30and that will spread naturally by seed.
0:00:30 > 0:00:33You can make your own little bluebell wood
0:00:33 > 0:00:34if you've got a few trees.
0:00:34 > 0:00:39The cowslips are spread entirely by seed from about 50 yards away.
0:00:39 > 0:00:42There's some cow parsley coming through.
0:00:42 > 0:00:45It's got all that magic of spring.
0:00:45 > 0:00:49Now, you haven't been to Longmeadow for three weeks
0:00:49 > 0:00:51so I'm going to give you a little tour
0:00:51 > 0:00:54to show you how spring has transformed it
0:00:54 > 0:00:57and, then, later on, I'll be planting those bee-friendly plants
0:00:57 > 0:00:59that I bought at Malvern.
0:01:03 > 0:01:06This week, Juliet Sargeant visits a garden in South London
0:01:06 > 0:01:08that's been created specifically
0:01:08 > 0:01:11to develop physical and mental wellbeing.
0:01:12 > 0:01:14I like using my hands and feeling, you know, the earth.
0:01:14 > 0:01:19There is something really therapeutic about it, isn't there?
0:01:19 > 0:01:21And, over the next few weeks,
0:01:21 > 0:01:25Joe will be learning to love the hanging basket,
0:01:25 > 0:01:28and this week starts with the most traditional kind.
0:01:29 > 0:01:34I'm on a mission to find out the secrets behind these riots of colour
0:01:34 > 0:01:38and how I can bring them into my world of contemporary garden design.
0:01:51 > 0:01:54The Cottage Garden has really come into its own,
0:01:54 > 0:01:58and, this year, I planted tulips chosen for their height.
0:01:58 > 0:02:00These are Triumph varieties,
0:02:00 > 0:02:02so you've got Camargue,
0:02:02 > 0:02:05this, flushed with pink.
0:02:05 > 0:02:07You've got Roi du Midi, the buttery yellow,
0:02:07 > 0:02:10rising up from the forget-me-nots.
0:02:10 > 0:02:13Now, forget-me-nots will seed themselves everywhere
0:02:13 > 0:02:16but you can control that by lifting plants after they've flowered
0:02:16 > 0:02:18and then replanting where you want them,
0:02:18 > 0:02:20spaced about a foot or so apart.
0:02:20 > 0:02:22They very quickly spread
0:02:22 > 0:02:25and, if you've got the boundaries, some containment of a hedge,
0:02:25 > 0:02:27that stops them spreading too far.
0:02:27 > 0:02:29It makes them nice and upright.
0:02:29 > 0:02:33Then, through that, the tulips can rise up
0:02:33 > 0:02:40as these lovely, pastel-y, almost ice cream flowers
0:02:40 > 0:02:46and the whole thing is shamelessly frothy, light and fun.
0:03:01 > 0:03:06The daffodils in the long walk are still flowering up to a point,
0:03:06 > 0:03:09although increasingly they need deadheading
0:03:09 > 0:03:11almost on an hourly basis
0:03:11 > 0:03:16but, through them, have come the ballerina tulips and the wallflowers
0:03:16 > 0:03:19and the result is a really fiery
0:03:19 > 0:03:22and, I have to say, very fragrant mix
0:03:22 > 0:03:26and, of course, the whole point of this is to provide a transition
0:03:26 > 0:03:29from the pastel colours of the Cottage Garden
0:03:29 > 0:03:32to the intensity of the Jewel Garden.
0:03:46 > 0:03:50The Jewel Garden, with its strict palette of jewel colours,
0:03:50 > 0:03:51is quite slow to get going.
0:03:51 > 0:03:56It doesn't kick in until the first tulips arrive at the end of April
0:03:56 > 0:03:58but then it all starts to happen very fast
0:03:58 > 0:04:00and, from now through to October,
0:04:00 > 0:04:03everything about this piece of the garden is about colour
0:04:03 > 0:04:06and the colours are arriving thick and fast.
0:04:06 > 0:04:10Now, at this time of year, they're dominated by a kind of fresh energy
0:04:10 > 0:04:13that's best seen in the golden hops and in the euphorbias.
0:04:13 > 0:04:16That's matched by the alliums, which are just beginning to open,
0:04:16 > 0:04:18Purple Sensation,
0:04:18 > 0:04:24but, above all, it's about keeping that palette of jewel-like colours
0:04:24 > 0:04:28growing and firing on all cylinders
0:04:28 > 0:04:30from now right through into autumn.
0:04:40 > 0:04:43Nothing could be more different to the Jewel Garden
0:04:43 > 0:04:45than the Writing Garden
0:04:45 > 0:04:49which is fundamentally white, except at this time of year
0:04:49 > 0:04:51because the apple blossom's out
0:04:51 > 0:04:54and that means that it's touched with pink
0:04:54 > 0:04:58and the dominant note comes from cow parsley.
0:04:58 > 0:05:03I wanted to make a garden that captured the essence of cow parsley
0:05:03 > 0:05:06at this time of year and, in fact, I've got quite a few plants
0:05:06 > 0:05:09I've been growing from seed that are umbellifers,
0:05:09 > 0:05:12like cow parsley, and, long after that's disappeared,
0:05:12 > 0:05:17will keep providing these umbels of white froth.
0:05:17 > 0:05:20Now, this is Ammi visnaga
0:05:20 > 0:05:24and the umbels are rather more rounded rather than plate-like
0:05:24 > 0:05:26and are just touched with green.
0:05:26 > 0:05:28So very easy to sow.
0:05:28 > 0:05:31I actually sowed these in February.
0:05:31 > 0:05:33Nice little plants like that
0:05:33 > 0:05:35but, of course, if you haven't sown any from seed,
0:05:35 > 0:05:40it's too late to do so now but you can buy plugs online.
0:05:43 > 0:05:48And I'll just pop them randomly, maybe 20, 30, 40
0:05:48 > 0:05:52throughout this area, so that, in a couple of months' time,
0:05:52 > 0:05:58those will rise up through and give this floating cloud of white flower.
0:06:02 > 0:06:06The thing about growing plants at this time of year
0:06:06 > 0:06:10is that the whole process, from planting out
0:06:10 > 0:06:12to enjoying them flowering,
0:06:12 > 0:06:15makes you feel so much better.
0:06:15 > 0:06:20I've written at great length about how it helped me with depression,
0:06:20 > 0:06:25simply through the process of looking after plants and gardening.
0:06:25 > 0:06:31And we went to Bethlem Hospital in Beckenham in Southeast London,
0:06:31 > 0:06:34where they are doing exactly that work.
0:06:38 > 0:06:40My name is Juliet Sargeant.
0:06:40 > 0:06:42I now work as a garden designer
0:06:42 > 0:06:45but, in my former life, I was a hospital doctor.
0:06:46 > 0:06:50In my bones, I know that gardening is good for our health
0:06:50 > 0:06:53and, today, I'm visiting a place that proves it
0:06:53 > 0:06:56by actively incorporating it into treatment.
0:06:59 > 0:07:01This is Bethlem Royal Hospital,
0:07:01 > 0:07:05the oldest psychiatric hospital in the world.
0:07:05 > 0:07:08For over 700 years, at various sites,
0:07:08 > 0:07:12it's been involved in the treatment of people with mental illness.
0:07:15 > 0:07:18Patients come here mostly for residential care
0:07:18 > 0:07:22and they can stay from a few weeks to even a few years.
0:07:22 > 0:07:26One of the most innovative treatments they offer is gardening therapy.
0:07:28 > 0:07:31I'm meeting the head of occupational therapy, Peter O'Hare,
0:07:31 > 0:07:34to find out exactly what it involves.
0:07:35 > 0:07:38We have a range of gardens here on site.
0:07:38 > 0:07:40We've a courtyard garden,
0:07:40 > 0:07:43a walled kitchen garden - where we grow mostly vegetables -
0:07:43 > 0:07:46and we have restored the orchards recently, as well,
0:07:46 > 0:07:50so this provides us with a wide range of potential activities
0:07:50 > 0:07:52which we can adapt for therapeutic purposes.
0:07:52 > 0:07:55So what sort of conditions might people have?
0:07:55 > 0:07:59Here, we have people with schizophrenia, depression,
0:07:59 > 0:08:01anxiety disorders, eating disorders,
0:08:01 > 0:08:04we have a mother and baby unit, we have children and adolescents.
0:08:04 > 0:08:07With something like depression, how does the gardening actually help?
0:08:07 > 0:08:11A lot of it is to do with the sensory experience.
0:08:11 > 0:08:13When you're out there in nature, just like here,
0:08:13 > 0:08:16you can see the bluebells, and the smell of them, the touch,
0:08:16 > 0:08:18it does a lot to stimulate.
0:08:18 > 0:08:20Being out in the sun, as well.
0:08:20 > 0:08:22That can all have an impact on people's mood,
0:08:22 > 0:08:26so getting off the ward and getting out there can really, really help.
0:08:26 > 0:08:29I can imagine that, if you have a condition like anxiety disorder,
0:08:29 > 0:08:33it could be quite a challenge working in a muddy kitchen garden.
0:08:33 > 0:08:36Actually, anxiety is a good example
0:08:36 > 0:08:40because people often come with severe contamination fears,
0:08:40 > 0:08:41if they have OCD,
0:08:41 > 0:08:44so, actually, yes, it's really difficult to think
0:08:44 > 0:08:45of getting your hands dirty
0:08:45 > 0:08:48but that's precisely what some of them have to do,
0:08:48 > 0:08:50but doing it in a very gradual way,
0:08:50 > 0:08:52seeing that it isn't going to actually kill them,
0:08:52 > 0:08:54which is often a fear they may have,
0:08:54 > 0:08:56or they're not going to contaminate somebody else,
0:08:56 > 0:08:57which is another fear people may have,
0:08:57 > 0:08:59so they work through those in therapy
0:08:59 > 0:09:02but it's only because they can actually do it in the garden
0:09:02 > 0:09:03that it is actually effective.
0:09:03 > 0:09:06It's the two together that really work.
0:09:13 > 0:09:16Gardening therapy might seem new
0:09:16 > 0:09:19but hospitals and their gardens have a long history.
0:09:19 > 0:09:22In the past, they were used to grow medicinal plants
0:09:22 > 0:09:24and food for patients.
0:09:24 > 0:09:28Today, here at Bethlem, patients produce food for themselves
0:09:28 > 0:09:32and, in turn, help in their own recovery.
0:09:32 > 0:09:35And there's real evidence that this treatment works.
0:09:35 > 0:09:38In Norway, they looked at people with depression
0:09:38 > 0:09:41and found that, after just 12 weeks of gardening therapy,
0:09:41 > 0:09:44they had a significant improvement in their mood.
0:09:55 > 0:09:58- Hi, Jack.- Hi.- I'm going to help.
0:09:58 > 0:09:59Thank you.
0:09:59 > 0:10:02'Jack is new to Bethlem
0:10:02 > 0:10:03'and to gardening.'
0:10:03 > 0:10:06I like using my hands and feeling Mother Earth and...
0:10:06 > 0:10:10There is something really, really therapeutic about it, isn't there?
0:10:10 > 0:10:13Well, that's what I've noticed. For me, it's not...
0:10:13 > 0:10:17What's therapeutic is being outside in the sunlight
0:10:17 > 0:10:20but it's also the social interaction and the other people you meet
0:10:20 > 0:10:22while you're here. You're not here on your own,
0:10:22 > 0:10:26so you can ask questions, gain knowledge as well,
0:10:26 > 0:10:28and chat about anything.
0:10:28 > 0:10:31It'll take your mind off, maybe, if you've got any worries.
0:10:31 > 0:10:34- It's a form of distraction, yeah. - Yeah. Yeah.
0:10:34 > 0:10:36But a very positive form of distraction.
0:10:43 > 0:10:46Leon's been here for a few months
0:10:46 > 0:10:49and gardening therapy is making a difference.
0:10:49 > 0:10:53I'm not that confident to join in groups at all.
0:10:53 > 0:10:58I do get a bit shy, to be honest.
0:10:58 > 0:11:01It helps me build up my confidence outside in the community.
0:11:01 > 0:11:04And do you find it relaxing to be here in the garden?
0:11:04 > 0:11:07It helps you relax, and, when you go back,
0:11:07 > 0:11:11you've always got a smile on your face and people like that.
0:11:11 > 0:11:14So do you think you're going to carry on gardening
0:11:14 > 0:11:16- after you leave Bethlem? - Yeah, definitely.
0:11:16 > 0:11:18I'm going to find like a community place
0:11:18 > 0:11:20where they do activities and stuff like that
0:11:20 > 0:11:23so, hopefully, yeah, do gardening in another garden.
0:11:23 > 0:11:27- Yes.- And I can show them what I've been doing at Bethlem.
0:11:27 > 0:11:30I love it. It's just lovely weather
0:11:30 > 0:11:33and lovely to do a bit of gardening, really.
0:11:33 > 0:11:35- Nothing better.- No.
0:11:41 > 0:11:44'Seeing the work that's going on here at Bethlem
0:11:44 > 0:11:48'confirms everything I believe to be great about gardening.
0:11:48 > 0:11:50'It's good for mental wellbeing,
0:11:50 > 0:11:52'it's good for physical wellbeing
0:11:52 > 0:11:54'and it's something, if at all possible,
0:11:54 > 0:11:56'we should all be doing more of.'
0:11:56 > 0:11:58What's the thing you like best about gardening, then?
0:11:58 > 0:12:01Gosh, there's so many things I love about gardening.
0:12:01 > 0:12:05I think probably my favourite thing is when I discover a new plant
0:12:05 > 0:12:07- that I've never seen before.- Yeah.
0:12:07 > 0:12:11- And I learn how to grow it.- Exactly.
0:12:11 > 0:12:13I agree with you there.
0:12:17 > 0:12:19Juliet will be joining me at Chelsea next week,
0:12:19 > 0:12:22where I'll be learning more about her interest
0:12:22 > 0:12:24in gardening as therapy.
0:12:32 > 0:12:33Good boy.
0:12:35 > 0:12:41Now, I've created an area here at Longmeadow to maximise wildlife
0:12:41 > 0:12:43but I did say, when I set out to make this,
0:12:43 > 0:12:47that I wanted to make it a garden that would be beautiful
0:12:47 > 0:12:48and that is a key part of it.
0:12:48 > 0:12:51This area around the back is now ready
0:12:51 > 0:12:53for planting with bee-friendly plants.
0:12:53 > 0:12:56In other words, plants that are designed to attract
0:12:56 > 0:12:57as many bees as possible
0:12:57 > 0:13:01and, at Malvern last week, I went shopping and bought a few plants
0:13:01 > 0:13:03just to get it going.
0:13:03 > 0:13:07The first is this pretty little geum
0:13:07 > 0:13:12and it's called Bell Bank,
0:13:12 > 0:13:15and it's got a slightly pinky, apricot flower
0:13:15 > 0:13:18and it fulfils one of the first really important things
0:13:18 > 0:13:21if you want to attract bees, which is to have open flowers.
0:13:21 > 0:13:23Easy for the bee to get to.
0:13:23 > 0:13:26So I'm going to plant this at the edge
0:13:26 > 0:13:28so we're starting to create a border.
0:13:28 > 0:13:31This is not wild gardening, this is going to look a really nice border.
0:13:31 > 0:13:33Before I plant, I just want to position
0:13:33 > 0:13:34the other plants around them.
0:13:34 > 0:13:38I've got a scabious. This is Scabiosa Pink Mist.
0:13:40 > 0:13:42What's beautiful about this plant is, if you deadhead it,
0:13:42 > 0:13:45it'll flower from now right through summer,
0:13:45 > 0:13:49and you can see - perfect for bees to land on
0:13:49 > 0:13:51and get the nectar and the pollen,
0:13:51 > 0:13:53and that's the other thing you need to look for
0:13:53 > 0:13:56is plants that are rich in nectar and pollen.
0:13:56 > 0:14:00The other plant I bought at Malvern is this glorious thistle,
0:14:00 > 0:14:03and thistles are good for insects of all kinds.
0:14:03 > 0:14:07It's called Cirsium rivulare Atropurpureum.
0:14:07 > 0:14:09It's a glorious flower.
0:14:09 > 0:14:11Unfortunately, it is quite short-lived
0:14:11 > 0:14:12so you have to live with that.
0:14:12 > 0:14:15It'll perform superbly for about three years
0:14:15 > 0:14:17and then it'll disappear.
0:14:17 > 0:14:18Now, I'm standing on boards
0:14:18 > 0:14:21because I have prepared this very thoroughly.
0:14:21 > 0:14:23Just because it's a wildlife garden
0:14:23 > 0:14:26doesn't mean to say that you can plant in amongst the weeds.
0:14:26 > 0:14:29If you're making a border, same rules apply.
0:14:29 > 0:14:31Weed it thoroughly, dig it thoroughly,
0:14:31 > 0:14:34and that, apart from anything else, makes planting a lot easier.
0:14:36 > 0:14:42The key thing is to have a succession of plants from February,
0:14:42 > 0:14:48for the first bumblebees, through to September/October.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51You'll be surprised what those plants might be.
0:14:51 > 0:14:53There's a wide choice.
0:14:53 > 0:14:57At certain times of year, seemingly unlikely plants
0:14:57 > 0:15:01like ivy, for example, are really important for bees.
0:15:01 > 0:15:06It doesn't always have to be flowers in a border.
0:15:06 > 0:15:08BUZZING
0:15:08 > 0:15:10See, that's incredible.
0:15:10 > 0:15:16You plant a geum and, literally within a minute, there are bees.
0:15:16 > 0:15:18BUZZING
0:15:25 > 0:15:28As well as encouraging bees by planting for them,
0:15:28 > 0:15:30I've gone a step further.
0:15:32 > 0:15:35I've got a simple beehive.
0:15:36 > 0:15:39It's called a top-bar hive
0:15:39 > 0:15:45and is really just an elementary box to encourage the bees in.
0:15:45 > 0:15:50Now, if I take the lid off here for a minute,
0:15:50 > 0:15:54you'll see what looks like a series of bars across the top.
0:15:54 > 0:15:58If you lift one off, you can see it's simply that.
0:15:58 > 0:16:02You rub beeswax on here and that attracts the bees in.
0:16:02 > 0:16:05There's a little door down there through which they enter
0:16:05 > 0:16:09and they make their honeycombs attached to these bars,
0:16:09 > 0:16:11so they hang down like that.
0:16:11 > 0:16:16In time, they can fill the whole hive with a whole row of them,
0:16:16 > 0:16:20and if you want to, you simply lift them out and take the honey from it.
0:16:20 > 0:16:23But actually, you don't even need to do that.
0:16:23 > 0:16:29You can just regard it as a home, living space for wild bees.
0:16:29 > 0:16:31Just set it up and leave it.
0:16:32 > 0:16:35And you can contact your local Bee Association
0:16:35 > 0:16:37and they will provide you with a swarm
0:16:37 > 0:16:40and you can learn how to beekeep and make honey.
0:16:40 > 0:16:45Either way, you're going to do a lot to help the bee population
0:16:45 > 0:16:49and the beauty of this is you don't need an orchard to place it in,
0:16:49 > 0:16:51you don't need to be in the countryside.
0:16:51 > 0:16:55This works just as well in a small suburban or urban garden,
0:16:55 > 0:17:00or even a roof garden as it does in the countryside.
0:17:00 > 0:17:04Now for something very different indeed.
0:17:04 > 0:17:08Joe is in search of the perfect hanging basket.
0:17:17 > 0:17:21As a garden designer, my style is quite contemporary.
0:17:21 > 0:17:23I like clean lines and slick and simple planting
0:17:23 > 0:17:27so, for me, hanging baskets are a bit of a no-no.
0:17:27 > 0:17:29They're big, they're brash, they're colourful,
0:17:29 > 0:17:32and dare I say it, a little bit dated.
0:17:32 > 0:17:36Yet I know they're incredibly popular and they adorn millions of homes
0:17:36 > 0:17:39and workplaces up and down the country.
0:17:40 > 0:17:44As a nation, during the summer months, we go crazy for them.
0:17:44 > 0:17:46From back gardens and city balconies
0:17:46 > 0:17:50to street corners and pub fronts, they're everywhere.
0:17:50 > 0:17:52So what am I missing?
0:17:52 > 0:17:54Am I just being a design snob?
0:17:56 > 0:18:00I'm on a mission to find out the secrets behind these riots of colour
0:18:00 > 0:18:04and how I can bring them into my world of contemporary garden design.
0:18:04 > 0:18:07It's not going to be easy but I'm willing to be convinced.
0:18:09 > 0:18:11To kick off my voyage of discovery,
0:18:11 > 0:18:14where better to head than a commercial grower?
0:18:14 > 0:18:18Miles Watson-Smyth is an expert in traditional hanging basket design.
0:18:20 > 0:18:23How many hanging baskets do you make up every year?
0:18:23 > 0:18:25- Well, in this block, there's about 4,000.- 4,000?!
0:18:25 > 0:18:28But we actually grow over 11,000 every summer.
0:18:28 > 0:18:31- 11,000?- Yeah. - So where do they all end up?
0:18:31 > 0:18:33Well, these ones are for the City of Westminster,
0:18:33 > 0:18:35so these are going on to Piccadilly,
0:18:35 > 0:18:37Trafalgar Square, even Downing Street.
0:18:37 > 0:18:39But remember it's early in the season.
0:18:39 > 0:18:42They're only just showing a little bit of colour now.
0:18:42 > 0:18:46- Soon it's just going to be masses of colour.- Oh, it'll be huge, yeah.
0:18:46 > 0:18:49So, Miles, what do people want from a hanging basket?
0:18:49 > 0:18:56They want floral impact - bright, blowsy colours, all mixed together.
0:18:56 > 0:19:01They want the basket to shout and say, "I'm here!"
0:19:01 > 0:19:03- You know what I mean? It's just... - It's not subtle then?
0:19:03 > 0:19:06No, no, there's nothing subtle about a hanging basket,
0:19:06 > 0:19:10it's got to have mixed colours, all clashing with each other.
0:19:10 > 0:19:13- Really providing that impact. - So it's like a mini garden.
0:19:13 > 0:19:15You're trying to get lots of different colours
0:19:15 > 0:19:17and lots of different plants in a hanging basket?
0:19:17 > 0:19:19Absolutely, the more the merrier, Joe.
0:19:19 > 0:19:23- There's going to be a party in there.- A party in a basket?- Yes.
0:19:23 > 0:19:26It's a party in a basket! Of course it is, that's what they're about.
0:19:27 > 0:19:31Miles clearly has a real passion for these pockets full of colour
0:19:31 > 0:19:34and his healthy order book proves he's not alone.
0:19:35 > 0:19:39With 11,000 baskets to get finished in the next few weeks,
0:19:39 > 0:19:44if I help him out, can he persuade me of the virtues of hanging baskets?
0:19:45 > 0:19:48So it's just a simple wire basket. What's the liner we put in?
0:19:48 > 0:19:52It's a type of felt which has got a thin plastic backing onto it
0:19:52 > 0:19:55and then we've lined it as well with a rather heavy-duty
0:19:55 > 0:19:58piece of polythene that has got holes drilled in it.
0:19:58 > 0:20:02The holes are about five centimetres up from the bottom of the basket,
0:20:02 > 0:20:04creating a reservoir of water.
0:20:04 > 0:20:08And, Joe, remember to try and get a basket that's as big as possible.
0:20:08 > 0:20:12These are 55-centimetre baskets, they're absolutely huge.
0:20:12 > 0:20:15That means you've got that volume of moisture that will keep it wet.
0:20:15 > 0:20:17Plant-wise, what are we putting in, then?
0:20:17 > 0:20:21- Ah!- Here we are, we're going to start off with a bidens.
0:20:21 > 0:20:24- Central bidens.- Central bidens, right in the middle?
0:20:24 > 0:20:25- Right in the middle.- OK.
0:20:25 > 0:20:29That's going to grow really long and come through everything else.
0:20:29 > 0:20:31We've got some ivy leaf geranium.
0:20:31 > 0:20:34So what composts have you got in here, then?
0:20:34 > 0:20:36It has got a bit of peat in it.
0:20:36 > 0:20:38We've also got perlite and, in addition,
0:20:38 > 0:20:41- we've got water-retaining granules. - And what else have we got?
0:20:41 > 0:20:45Both a base fertiliser and a slow-release fertiliser in there,
0:20:45 > 0:20:48just to leach that feed out through the season.
0:20:48 > 0:20:50What did you put in there, then? I've got to keep up here.
0:20:50 > 0:20:53That's a surfinia, which is a white flower
0:20:53 > 0:20:55with this lovely blue delicate vein
0:20:55 > 0:20:57that comes through the trumpet-shaped flower.
0:20:57 > 0:21:01- A yellow begonia.- Yeah, of course we are! A yellow begonia!
0:21:01 > 0:21:04It just goes beautifully with the pink and the red, doesn't it?
0:21:04 > 0:21:06And another pink Illumination.
0:21:06 > 0:21:09So, Joe, another thing about the plant selection
0:21:09 > 0:21:11is that we choose self-cleaning plants,
0:21:11 > 0:21:14where the wind naturally blows the dead heads off
0:21:14 > 0:21:18and they just continue generating new flowers through the season.
0:21:18 > 0:21:22So, in total, we are putting in about 10 or 11 plants?
0:21:22 > 0:21:25In two weeks, they'll double in size.
0:21:25 > 0:21:27Now, some people punch holes in the side of the liner
0:21:27 > 0:21:32and plant up the sides to try and envelop it in flowers.
0:21:32 > 0:21:34- Yeah. Absolutely unnecessary.- OK.
0:21:34 > 0:21:37This is going to be a mass of flowers that's going to trail over.
0:21:37 > 0:21:40In a few weeks time, you won't see the liner or the basket.
0:21:40 > 0:21:43- It'll just be draped in plants? - It will be covered.
0:21:43 > 0:21:44What about ongoing maintenance?
0:21:44 > 0:21:47Is it just watering, or do you feed it through the season?
0:21:47 > 0:21:49Feed and feed and feed, yes.
0:21:49 > 0:21:50You cannot overfeed these things
0:21:50 > 0:21:53because, remember, a lot of it all leaches through,
0:21:53 > 0:21:57so feed it and water it as much as you possibly can.
0:21:57 > 0:22:01With a big basket like this, once every four days should be plenty.
0:22:01 > 0:22:04What's going to happen to my hanging basket, where will it end up?
0:22:04 > 0:22:06We will put it on the streets of London.
0:22:06 > 0:22:08When it goes out, I want to know exactly where it is.
0:22:08 > 0:22:12So I can walk past it and say, "I planted that!"
0:22:13 > 0:22:17Most of these hanging baskets will adorn urban spaces,
0:22:17 > 0:22:19so those shots of colour will be seen by people
0:22:19 > 0:22:22who don't even have a garden at all.
0:22:22 > 0:22:24That is a serious plus point,
0:22:24 > 0:22:28especially for a hanging basket sceptic like me.
0:22:28 > 0:22:32But I still need more convincing so, next time,
0:22:32 > 0:22:34I'll be exploring an edgier side of hanging baskets
0:22:34 > 0:22:37and trying out a more radical approach
0:22:37 > 0:22:41in my mission to embrace these miniature gardens of the sky.
0:22:45 > 0:22:49You know, I've never had a hanging basket here at Longmeadow,
0:22:49 > 0:22:51but I'm going to make one or two
0:22:51 > 0:22:53over the course of the next few weeks.
0:22:56 > 0:23:00This time of year has long been known as the hungry gap
0:23:00 > 0:23:04and that's because there is surprisingly little to eat
0:23:04 > 0:23:05in the vegetable garden.
0:23:05 > 0:23:08The winter crops are pretty much all over
0:23:08 > 0:23:11and yet the summer crops haven't really kicked in.
0:23:11 > 0:23:13However, things are happening.
0:23:13 > 0:23:16So for example, this bed looks empty
0:23:16 > 0:23:18but I had some spare seed potatoes
0:23:18 > 0:23:20and I popped them in there a week ago.
0:23:20 > 0:23:23So if you've got seed potatoes or if you can get some,
0:23:23 > 0:23:25it's not too late to plant them.
0:23:25 > 0:23:28This is cavola nero, the black Tuscan kale.
0:23:28 > 0:23:29Too early to pick it yet
0:23:29 > 0:23:33but I would be able to pick it in maybe three, four weeks' time
0:23:33 > 0:23:35and that will go on growing and being harvested
0:23:35 > 0:23:38right through next winter.
0:23:38 > 0:23:41I've got a rocket in among the elephant garlic
0:23:41 > 0:23:43but you can see that it's gone to seed.
0:23:44 > 0:23:49What that means is that the leaves get fewer and further between.
0:23:49 > 0:23:52They're still perfectly good.
0:23:52 > 0:23:54Nice and peppery.
0:23:54 > 0:23:57I've got some Little Gem coming through.
0:23:57 > 0:24:02The early Belle de Fontenay potatoes got frosted but they survived.
0:24:02 > 0:24:04It will set them back about a week, no more.
0:24:04 > 0:24:09However, the Swiss chard that I sowed - complete disaster.
0:24:09 > 0:24:13I put that down to the fact that it was very dry after I sowed them.
0:24:13 > 0:24:17It's a write-off. I will just hoe these out and start again.
0:24:17 > 0:24:20I probably wasted a fiver's worth of seed.
0:24:20 > 0:24:24It's a shame but not the worst thing that can happen in the garden.
0:24:24 > 0:24:28However, the rhubarb is just triumphant.
0:24:28 > 0:24:30Broad beans have been slow to get going
0:24:30 > 0:24:33but they're coming through, and you can see the peas,
0:24:33 > 0:24:38a real difference between the ones that I sowed in plugs under cover
0:24:38 > 0:24:41and raised and planted out, and the ones I have sowed directly,
0:24:41 > 0:24:44which have only just started to appear.
0:24:44 > 0:24:47I don't think that matters, it gives succession.
0:24:47 > 0:24:50Perhaps it's a little bit too early to harvest much.
0:24:50 > 0:24:53But just in a week or two, when the days warm up,
0:24:53 > 0:24:55everything is just going to go whoosh!
0:24:57 > 0:25:01BIRDS SINGING
0:25:01 > 0:25:05I don't know if you can hear the chattering in the sky.
0:25:05 > 0:25:08It is suddenly full of house martins, and I love them
0:25:08 > 0:25:10because they are so busy.
0:25:10 > 0:25:14Hard at work, catching insects, riding the wind.
0:25:18 > 0:25:20Well, I've been busy while you've been away.
0:25:20 > 0:25:23There's always work to do at this time of year
0:25:23 > 0:25:27and here are some things you can do in your garden this weekend.
0:25:31 > 0:25:35I like to grow tulips in handsome terracotta pots
0:25:35 > 0:25:37but you have to leave them to die back
0:25:37 > 0:25:41after they have finished flowering and this ties the pot up.
0:25:41 > 0:25:45So deadhead the tulips, lift them from the terracotta
0:25:45 > 0:25:47and then put them into a plastic pot,
0:25:47 > 0:25:52where they can slowly die back as next year's bulb develops properly.
0:25:55 > 0:26:00Wash the terracotta pot and you'll have it to reuse for something else.
0:26:02 > 0:26:05If you have sown your own sweet peas or bought some seedlings,
0:26:05 > 0:26:08now is the time to plant them into the garden.
0:26:08 > 0:26:10They will need something to climb up.
0:26:10 > 0:26:13I like to use wigwams, but netting will do or a fence.
0:26:13 > 0:26:17Anything that they can be tied to, although they will form tendrils
0:26:17 > 0:26:20and attach themselves after about four or five weeks' growth.
0:26:21 > 0:26:24They relish rich soil, so add plenty of compost
0:26:24 > 0:26:26and when you've planted them,
0:26:26 > 0:26:29water them in well and keep them well watered.
0:26:32 > 0:26:34If you're growing outdoor tomatoes
0:26:34 > 0:26:37or taking part in our blight-free experiment,
0:26:37 > 0:26:40it's too early to plant them out outside,
0:26:40 > 0:26:43unless you live in the far South, because the nights are too cold.
0:26:43 > 0:26:46However, they should be hardened off now
0:26:46 > 0:26:49so take them out of the greenhouse, check through them
0:26:49 > 0:26:51and pinch out any side shoots,
0:26:51 > 0:26:53although Losetto, one of our varieties
0:26:53 > 0:26:57is a bush type and that shouldn't be pinched out.
0:26:57 > 0:27:00Then place them somewhere where they can gradually be exposed
0:27:00 > 0:27:05to outdoor life and we will plant them out in a few weeks' time.
0:27:09 > 0:27:13I do absolutely love this time of year.
0:27:13 > 0:27:16Of course you can get some bad weather, still,
0:27:16 > 0:27:19and just a week or so back, the magnolia that I planted
0:27:19 > 0:27:21got BLASTED by frost
0:27:21 > 0:27:24and all the flowers and all the foliage immediately blackened.
0:27:24 > 0:27:27If that has happened to your magnolia, don't worry.
0:27:27 > 0:27:28The plant will be fine.
0:27:28 > 0:27:31There will be fresh growth and that will come back through.
0:27:31 > 0:27:36There is so much else around it that it hardly matters.
0:27:36 > 0:27:41Just for the next week or two, spring is still holding strong.