:00:00. > :00:00.For the next eight weeks, Gardeners' World is extending to a full hour,
:00:07. > :00:09.and we shall be bringing you the best of gardening
:00:10. > :00:15.Well, well, well, this is strikingly different from pretty much
:00:16. > :00:18.anything else you could see in Britain.
:00:19. > :00:22.This garden is packed full of the biggest flowering plant family
:00:23. > :00:28.There's going to be so many surprises.
:00:29. > :00:33.The team has been out and about, visiting gardens big...
:00:34. > :00:39.I like a rockery where the rocks take centre stage!
:00:40. > :00:41.Never before have I used a winch to get a shrub out.
:00:42. > :00:46.There's some real challenges in this border but, in fact,
:00:47. > :00:49.there's some really, really easy solutions.
:00:50. > :00:54...and meeting gardeners of every kind...
:00:55. > :00:59.but it's also got a great sense of humour.
:01:00. > :01:19...as well, of course, as celebrating our most beautiful plants.
:01:20. > :01:24.Well, it's a new beginning at this time of year.
:01:25. > :01:28.There is a sense of going back to school, autumn coming in,
:01:29. > :01:32.summer has gone and everything is changing.
:01:33. > :01:39.I love the way that the light in September is better than at
:01:40. > :01:43.any other time of year. It has a kind of fragile quality to it.
:01:44. > :01:50.added to that is the poignancy that the days are getting shorter
:01:51. > :01:54.and there is this sense of wanting to hold and treasure every moment
:01:55. > :01:58.of the days and the hours that we have in our gardens.
:01:59. > :02:04.And on top of all that, there's masses to do.
:02:05. > :02:10.we explore unusual gardens in both the countryside and the city.
:02:11. > :02:21.A group of local people have literally been greening the streets.
:02:22. > :02:29.And I'll be here in Devon, exploring some surprising family ties.
:02:30. > :02:33.As well as all that, we've got the weekend's weather.
:02:34. > :02:36.And we'll also be paying our first visit to Adam Frost's
:02:37. > :02:59.new garden, and I'm off to Kew. But more of that later.
:03:00. > :03:02.I've been meaning to get in the pond and give it a bit of
:03:03. > :03:07.a sort-out, particularly the yellow irises, the Iris pseudacorus,
:03:08. > :03:12.which have really expanded in the last year or so.
:03:13. > :03:14.Right, just concentrate for a second...
:03:15. > :03:22.This is the canna Erebus that I planted a month ago,
:03:23. > :03:24.the water canna, which seems to be fine,
:03:25. > :03:27.we've got the flowering rush, and I love the purple loosestrife.
:03:28. > :03:34.one, because it's very slippery and there are dips and hollows,
:03:35. > :03:40.and two, I don't want to disturb the frogs and newts I know are in here.
:03:41. > :03:45.Iris pseudacorus, it's a native iris, and because it's native,
:03:46. > :03:50.once it gets established, it makes itself very much at home.
:03:51. > :03:53.These were planted in spring 2012 and haven't been touched,
:03:54. > :03:57.And at the moment, it's forming a bit of a wall,
:03:58. > :04:02.And now is actually a good time to do it - the water is nice and
:04:03. > :04:06.warm at this time of year, so if you move plants or if you disturb
:04:07. > :04:09.them at all, that isn't going to be a major problem.
:04:10. > :04:14.Warm water at the roots will quickly grow back.
:04:15. > :04:22.All this is planted in baskets, aquatic baskets.
:04:23. > :04:30.The basket's in there, and this is growing out the side of it.
:04:31. > :04:40.It was just connected to the parent by one rhizome.
:04:41. > :04:46.If you can see, that's where I cut, there.
:04:47. > :04:53.What I'm trying to do is clear back through this,
:04:54. > :04:56.so I can see through these lovely upright leaves.
:04:57. > :05:00.And I don't want to get rid of them, I love the iris.
:05:01. > :05:09.They're bright, they're held tall above the water. They're perfect.
:05:10. > :05:14.So, it's not a question of lessening the value I'm getting from
:05:15. > :05:17.the plant, it's just managing it so that it fits in well
:05:18. > :05:35.and compost this, on the basis that I've got too many,
:05:36. > :05:39.or if I want to replant it in the other pond or give it away,
:05:40. > :05:42.I can pot this up in an aquatic basket,
:05:43. > :05:46.and I can either put it into gravel, where it'll be fine as long
:05:47. > :05:49.as it's in water, or just some ordinary garden soil.
:05:50. > :05:53.Put this into a big enough basket, an aquatic basket with holes,
:05:54. > :05:57.pack the soil around it and over it so it can stand upright
:05:58. > :06:00.without falling over, and that can be lowered into the water
:06:01. > :06:08.and this will go on and live and, in turn, spread quite happily.
:06:09. > :06:15.Well, I've created a little mini havoc, but it'll settle down,
:06:16. > :06:21.which is to be able to see through the iris foliage rather than just
:06:22. > :06:26.it becoming a wall that's blocking other plants that I want to see.
:06:27. > :06:30.Now, these aquatic irises come under the Iridaceae family,
:06:31. > :06:34.as indeed every plant finds its niche in some family or other.
:06:35. > :06:38.And over the next four weeks, Carol is going to be celebrating
:06:39. > :06:42.some of those amazing plants in family groups.
:06:43. > :06:48.We join her down at RHS Rosemoor in Devon, where she is beginning
:06:49. > :07:08.Most of us think of plants as belonging to one big, happy family.
:07:09. > :07:12.But they don't - there are hundreds of different plant families.
:07:13. > :07:16.DNA testing allows us to identify exactly which group
:07:17. > :07:22.a plant belongs to, but not many of us have our own DNA testing kit!
:07:23. > :07:28.But we can rely on our eyes to see similarities in the characteristics
:07:29. > :07:36.between plants and get a pretty good idea of which family they belong to.
:07:37. > :07:40.Botanists have grouped plants into over 400 plant families,
:07:41. > :07:47.One of those families is Ranunculaceae,
:07:48. > :07:55.It's also known as the buttercup family.
:07:56. > :07:58.The buttercup itself gives us lots of clues
:07:59. > :08:02.about the characteristics of the Ranunculaceae family.
:08:03. > :08:09.Lots of them do - clematis, aquilegias.
:08:10. > :08:12.Most of these flowers look as though they're composed of petals,
:08:13. > :08:18.The buttercup is one of the few that has both petals and sepals.
:08:19. > :08:24.If you look at this clematis, this bud is actually formed of sepals.
:08:25. > :08:27.It protects the inner workings of the flower.
:08:28. > :08:34.it opens up and becomes much more brilliantly colourful.
:08:35. > :08:38.At that stage, insects are drawn into the centre here.
:08:39. > :08:40.They are drawn in both to the pollen,
:08:41. > :08:46.nearly the whole family have a multitude of stamens -
:08:47. > :08:52.to the nectar that lies deep within the flowers.
:08:53. > :08:56.In most Ranunculaceae, the leaves are born in one of two ways.
:08:57. > :09:00.They are either basal, they come actually from the base of the plant,
:09:01. > :09:07.or they are coalescent, they are born up the flower stems.
:09:08. > :09:13.for almost every condition and every aspect.
:09:14. > :09:23.Perfect for livening up a dank late-winter garden
:09:24. > :09:33.And for shade, one of the most poisonous of plants - the aconite.
:09:34. > :09:36.There are no trees within the family Ranunculaceae -
:09:37. > :09:39.the great majority of buttercups are perennials,
:09:40. > :09:49.If you've got a small garden, it's really vital to maximise every inch
:09:50. > :09:54.of space, and vertical space is particularly important.
:09:55. > :09:57.That's where the clematis comes into its own.
:09:58. > :10:11.This is a member of Ranunculaceae.
:10:12. > :10:14.It's a Japanese anemone, a very familiar plant.
:10:15. > :10:18.so it runs just under the surface of the soil
:10:19. > :10:25.each of which has little nodules all the way along it
:10:26. > :10:28.and each one of those nodules is capable of making
:10:29. > :10:37.a couple of roots that are fairly substantial, pieces like this.
:10:38. > :10:43.And I'm just going to tease them away from the pot.
:10:44. > :10:47.All I want to do is cut these into small pieces.
:10:48. > :10:51.I want to remove any of those fibrous roots at the side of there,
:10:52. > :10:57.and then I want to cut it in little pieces -
:10:58. > :11:02.chunks about an inch, two-and-a-half centimetres, long.
:11:03. > :11:06.When I've got some bits, I'll just get my seed tray
:11:07. > :11:11.and place them on the top, like this.
:11:12. > :11:16.I can probably get about 20 or 30 little cuttings in there.
:11:17. > :11:19.Cover them with some grit, water it really well
:11:20. > :11:22.and put it in a nice, light, bright place.
:11:23. > :11:25.Eventually you'll see little shoots developing.
:11:26. > :11:29.Leave it a few weeks after that, when they'll make root,
:11:30. > :11:32.and then when you feel they've developed properly,
:11:33. > :11:42.take them out and pot them up individually.
:11:43. > :11:47.your root cuttings will flourish and within no time at all,
:11:48. > :11:53.like this gorgeous Anemone hybrida, Honorine Jobert.
:11:54. > :11:58.I suppose it typifies the kind of plants that are within this family.
:11:59. > :12:01.It's incredibly elegant and yet very, very subtle.
:12:02. > :12:04.Whatever the conditions in your garden,
:12:05. > :12:08.there's bound to be a member of the Ranunculaceae family
:12:09. > :12:23.I find it fascinating the way that plants that seem so unconnected,
:12:24. > :12:25.when you find out they're in the same family
:12:26. > :12:27.and you start to look into them more closely,
:12:28. > :12:32.you do see the family resemblance, and that of course does help you
:12:33. > :12:36.in how you grow them and how you place them in the garden.
:12:37. > :12:38.Now, the buttercup that Carol didn't talk about,
:12:39. > :12:41.although she did talk of course about the Japanese anemone,
:12:42. > :12:51.it's time to think about planting spring bulbs.
:12:52. > :12:54.And one of the things that I like to do first,
:12:55. > :12:56.before I start putting them in the ground,
:12:57. > :12:57.not least cos the ground is often very hard,
:12:58. > :13:02.is to start planting up pots, and the beauty of growing bulbs in pots
:13:03. > :13:06.is that it means you can grow any type of bulb,
:13:07. > :13:09.because you can create the right conditions for it in the pot.
:13:10. > :13:12.It also means if you don't have a garden,
:13:13. > :13:14.you can have a fabulous spring display.
:13:15. > :13:17.Now, Anemone blanda are essentially a woodland plant.
:13:18. > :13:21.They like light shade and they like nice, loose, friable soil
:13:22. > :13:26.Now, I've got a general-purpose potting mix
:13:27. > :13:29.which I use for planting bulbs in pots
:13:30. > :13:32.and it's a mixture of our own compost,
:13:33. > :13:35.a little bit of proprietary peat-free compost, some coir,
:13:36. > :13:40.You can see it's really free-draining and, by and large,
:13:41. > :13:44.you won't go wrong if you get a peat-free potting compost
:13:45. > :13:48.The counsel of perfection for the anemone, actually,
:13:49. > :13:53.If you have got leaf mould, then add some of that too.
:13:54. > :13:57.So I am going to put a little bit of leaf mould in the bottom,
:13:58. > :14:06.a little bit of this and then mix it up, just like preparing pastry.
:14:07. > :14:11.Now, anemone tubers look, quite frankly, like goat droppings.
:14:12. > :14:15.They're small, black and very hard indeed,
:14:16. > :14:19.and it's a good idea to soak them before using them.
:14:20. > :14:22.These have been in here for a couple of hours, overnight is perfect.
:14:23. > :14:25.Now, when you're growing bulbs in a pot,
:14:26. > :14:28.you don't need to worry about planting depth too much.
:14:29. > :14:34.And you don't need to worry about spacing them too far apart.
:14:35. > :14:40.and you can repot them or replace them next year.
:14:41. > :14:45.So that will do and we'll put a bit of compost over the top,
:14:46. > :14:52.like that, and then I will dress it with some grit.
:14:53. > :15:02.One, it will stop the surface either getting too wet or capping,
:15:03. > :15:06.and capping is when soil gets wet and then dries out,
:15:07. > :15:09.and the surface dries out much quicker than that below it,
:15:10. > :15:13.so it forms a hard crust and the rather delicate shoots
:15:14. > :15:15.sometimes can't work their way through that.
:15:16. > :15:19.The second reason is that it stops the water splashing up
:15:20. > :15:23.after the plants have grown and spattering the petals
:15:24. > :15:26.with the compost from the surface of the pot -
:15:27. > :15:30.it keeps them clean and, thirdly, it looks nice.
:15:31. > :15:34.So we've got that there. I will write a label in case I forget.
:15:35. > :15:37.And of course, you can get Anemone blanda that are white,
:15:38. > :15:41.you get them pink and this wonderful blue.
:15:42. > :15:45.I've got another blue which I want to put in a pot too.
:15:46. > :15:49.Earlier on, I was looking at the flag iris, Iris pseudacorus.
:15:50. > :15:52.Well, the same family - Iris reticulata,
:15:53. > :15:55.and it's one of my favourite iris of all.
:15:56. > :16:00.It's got such intense colours and this is a variety called Harmony
:16:01. > :16:06.which has got just a jewel-like blue, that's almost mauve.
:16:07. > :16:11.and flowers the end of January, February time,
:16:12. > :16:14.and at that time of year it blazes out
:16:15. > :16:19.of the late winter, early spring light.
:16:20. > :16:23.and then when you've done some drainage,
:16:24. > :16:29.So this very gritty compost is perfect as it is.
:16:30. > :16:34.you need to have very free-draining soil.
:16:35. > :16:36.It likes growing in there cos that keeps it dry
:16:37. > :16:40.or if you've got a rock garden, they will grow.
:16:41. > :16:45.But I just grow it in pots. Don't worry about spacing, pack 'em in.
:16:46. > :16:48.And as long as you remember to stick them pointy side up,
:16:49. > :16:52.Ooh, does that look like it could be a biscuit?
:16:53. > :16:54.It's not, it's an Iris reticulata, I'm afraid.
:16:55. > :16:57.I find in pots that they last for about two or three years.
:16:58. > :17:02.And then they start to feel a little bit unhappy.
:17:03. > :17:04.They need watering when you plant them
:17:05. > :17:07.and maybe, at most, watering once a month after that, but no more.
:17:08. > :17:14.Now, I actually keep these in an open-sided cold frame,
:17:15. > :17:19.so they're protected on top by a glass top, and that keeps them dry,
:17:20. > :17:24.then put them somewhere a little bit sheltered.
:17:25. > :17:27.Don't put them in a heated greenhouse either,
:17:28. > :17:29.you don't want that - you want them to be fairly cold.
:17:30. > :17:32.But if you can provide that range of conditions,
:17:33. > :17:39.they will provide you with just stunning spring colour.
:17:40. > :17:42.Now, a growing problem over the last 10 or 20 years
:17:43. > :17:45.has been the very lack of colour in our front gardens.
:17:46. > :17:48.And that's because, not unreasonably,
:17:49. > :17:50.people have been increasingly using them
:17:51. > :17:56.However, there is a slight change in this trend,
:17:57. > :18:02.looking at ways we can refresh and renew
:18:03. > :18:13.The RHS Greening Grey campaign has discovered
:18:14. > :18:17.that one in four gardens in the UK is paved over.
:18:18. > :18:23.I want to find ways of making the most of our urban spaces
:18:24. > :18:33.Like many neighbourhoods around the country, it's had its difficulties,
:18:34. > :18:36.but the community has taken matters into its own hands.
:18:37. > :18:40.A group of local people have literally been greening the streets
:18:41. > :18:43.and I'm keen to get some inspiration.
:18:44. > :18:46.Hello. Hiya. Hazel, hi. Helen. Hiya.
:18:47. > :18:50.So, what's the story, when did it all start? Um...
:18:51. > :18:53.it started planting about 12 years ago
:18:54. > :18:57.in response to the fact that the area was being emptied out
:18:58. > :19:00.because the plans were for total demolition.
:19:01. > :19:02.We just basically started to clean up the streets
:19:03. > :19:09.So why's it so important to green the grey, to grow stuff?
:19:10. > :19:14.Cos it makes us happy. I mean, it just raises your spirits.
:19:15. > :19:16.It's almost like an insanity at some point
:19:17. > :19:19.because if you're living in such a derelict, neglected area,
:19:20. > :19:23.So you take up a new madness as a cure,
:19:24. > :19:28.Wow! I love that. The power of planting.
:19:29. > :19:33.has started the renovation of the houses.
:19:34. > :19:37.It's been the catalyst for the whole change. It has, it has.
:19:38. > :19:41.And stubborn women have been the catalyst as well, yeah.
:19:42. > :19:46.What we'd like to see is it taking off like an epidemic, like a rash,
:19:47. > :19:49.and we'd like to see rashes of pots and plants
:19:50. > :19:54.People choose to walk through this street
:19:55. > :19:57.and you can see people slowing down
:19:58. > :20:03.as they get to the planter and just looking.
:20:04. > :20:06.Community spirit, a desire for positive change and planting
:20:07. > :20:09.has transformed this area of Toxteth
:20:10. > :20:11.into a colourful and vibrant community.
:20:12. > :20:14.I've been inspired by what people have done here
:20:15. > :20:18.and I'm keen to get involved and play my part.
:20:19. > :20:21.I'm going to demonstrate just how easy it is to transform
:20:22. > :20:27.I think the best way to do this is with container gardening.
:20:28. > :20:36.I get to put together some great plants
:20:37. > :20:39.and create some wonderful combinations for the garden.
:20:40. > :20:46.My first thing is I want some height, so this is a cotinus,
:20:47. > :20:50.I'm going to tease the roots a little bit,
:20:51. > :20:55.just to give them a chance to help them to spread and just put it in.
:20:56. > :21:00.OK, so next to my cotinus, I'm going to put in some crocosmia.
:21:01. > :21:06.I want some big leaves, I want some big, bold leaves,
:21:07. > :21:09.so I'm going to put this canna in here.
:21:10. > :21:13.So to add another dimension, I'm going to put in fuchsia,
:21:14. > :21:16.This has got this variegated leaf with a pink tinge on it
:21:17. > :21:19.and it's trailing as well, so it'll grow
:21:20. > :21:23.and it will just cascade over the side of the pot.
:21:24. > :21:25.So this combination looks really exotic,
:21:26. > :21:29.so a final firm press and there we have our first combination.
:21:30. > :21:34.I think that's... I think that's great. I love that.
:21:35. > :21:38.For my next pot, I'm going to put these geraniums in this planter.
:21:39. > :21:42.that classic Mediterranean, summer plant,
:21:43. > :21:47.But because we're putting it on the windowsill,
:21:48. > :21:51.a good tip is to put some grit in the bottom,
:21:52. > :21:53.just to help to give it some stability,
:21:54. > :21:56.so I think we'll put three in cos three's always a good number.
:21:57. > :22:00.It looks really nice and they're in like that.
:22:01. > :22:03.Geraniums, they have a long flowering season,
:22:04. > :22:08.So it doesn't have to just be flowers that you plant, actually -
:22:09. > :22:12.and put together a beautiful combination of herbs
:22:13. > :22:15.that you can have growing just by the door,
:22:16. > :22:17.so it's easy, convenient for you to just grab a handful
:22:18. > :22:28.And now the really fun bit is I get to place all the plants.
:22:29. > :22:36.So, in this one I've got hot colours.
:22:37. > :22:43.This front garden belongs to Mojeed and his partner Maxine.
:22:44. > :22:45.They were so inspired by the way the area
:22:46. > :22:47.has been transformed that they've moved back.
:22:48. > :22:53.Hey, hi, guys. Hi, hello. Come outside. OK.
:22:54. > :23:00.Oh! Wow! What do you think? It's beautiful. Boss, brilliant.
:23:01. > :23:05.Come round this side and have a look. Oh, it's absolutely gorgeous.
:23:06. > :23:09.Yeah, that colour is gorgeous, isn't it?
:23:10. > :23:12.And that's picked up here with the... With the orange.
:23:13. > :23:15.All the neighbours will be wanting it now. Thank you very much.
:23:16. > :23:18.My pleasure. Thank you very much. Enjoy, enjoy. I will, thanks.
:23:19. > :23:29.Oh, thank you. Thanks very much. That's brilliant.
:23:30. > :23:33.The nurserymen Nick Macer has a passion for exotic plants
:23:34. > :23:38.and in a new series he's travelling the length and breadth of Britain
:23:39. > :23:42.to explore some unexpected tropical delights.
:23:43. > :23:48.over 5,000 islands that make up the British Isles,
:23:49. > :23:51.boasting a huge range of microclimates,
:23:52. > :23:55.from wide-open fells like here in the Peak District
:23:56. > :23:59.to dripping-wet Atlantic temperate rainforest.
:24:00. > :24:11.This country really is a haven for plants from across the world.
:24:12. > :24:16.Our nation is bathed by the Gulf Stream, which raises our temperature
:24:17. > :24:20.above the global average for our latitude.
:24:21. > :24:28.This means Britain is warmer and more temperate as a result.
:24:29. > :24:31.I'm here to meet the man who's done something
:24:32. > :24:34.He's brought the Southeast Asian tropics
:24:35. > :24:40.to the heart of the industrial north.
:24:41. > :24:43.This Sheffield suburban house hides the jungle
:24:44. > :24:56.umbrella plants and 15 types of bamboo.
:24:57. > :25:02.I've always had an interest in reptiles and amphibia.
:25:03. > :25:06.I have to admit, Simon, it is quite some specimen.
:25:07. > :25:09.So, Nick, this is one of my favourite bamboos.
:25:10. > :25:19.It is Phyllostachys vivax aureocaulis.
:25:20. > :25:23.I do grow this, I admit, but it is nowhere near as big as yours.
:25:24. > :25:31.I've actually built a compost heap on top of it,
:25:32. > :25:35.so a lot of my shreddings from the garden go onto this compost heap
:25:36. > :25:38.and it creates a really rich environment, which of course
:25:39. > :25:42.this plant loves and it just romps away.
:25:43. > :25:44.Now, there are a lot of people, Simon,
:25:45. > :25:47.who would be very wary about growing bamboo of any sort in their garden,
:25:48. > :25:50.but I think there is a really important point to be made
:25:51. > :25:53.here about clumpers and spreaders, right? Absolutely, Nick.
:25:54. > :25:56.There is a bamboo for every situation.
:25:57. > :26:00.I've created a jungle effect here with some bamboos which move
:26:01. > :26:03.about quite a lot, and many of them are unsuitable
:26:04. > :26:06.for the average small suburban garden.
:26:07. > :26:12.there are a lot of bamboos which are tight clumpers, and those will
:26:13. > :26:25.to pick the bamboos for your own situation, using expert advice.
:26:26. > :26:29.Simon has a wide range of rare bamboos.
:26:30. > :26:32.The finest of the hardy blue stem species, Borinda papyrifera,
:26:33. > :26:36.the fantastic knobbly cane Chinese walking stick bamboo,
:26:37. > :26:42.Even the species which is the favourite food of the giant panda,
:26:43. > :26:53.For me, one of the great joys here are some fantastic umbrella plants.
:26:54. > :26:56.Normally seen as house plants or on foreign holidays,
:26:57. > :27:07.Simon has hardy, mature sheffleras thriving in Sheffield.
:27:08. > :27:15.What made you think about planting a tropical paradise in Sheffield?
:27:16. > :27:18.Well, to be honest with you, Nick, I was really enthused by plants,
:27:19. > :27:21.particularly jungle plants, but I don't fly.
:27:22. > :27:26.I've flown once and I was terrified, so really,
:27:27. > :27:31.the chance of me experiencing jungle is not very high.
:27:32. > :27:34.I decided I would try as best I could to create my own jungle,
:27:35. > :27:39.so that's what I have attempted to do here.
:27:40. > :27:42.Some evergreen trees, which I just loved.
:27:43. > :27:45.The sort of things that come from Southeast Asia,
:27:46. > :27:48.some very tropical-looking plants, which are...surprisingly,
:27:49. > :27:51.if they are collected in the right location, are hardy.
:27:52. > :28:00.you can create a very jungly and a very exotic atmosphere.
:28:01. > :28:04.So, how does this garden survive in the Sheffield climate?
:28:05. > :28:07.Well, I think our situation, which is three-quarters of the way down
:28:08. > :28:12.quite a steep hill, allows for very good air drainage.
:28:13. > :28:15.So, the cold air is sinking deep into the valley bottom,
:28:16. > :28:19.past your garden? Yes. You're not sitting in that frost pocket?
:28:20. > :28:23.I'm able to create, really, what I hope is, what I feel is,
:28:24. > :28:28.a very jungly and very tropical-looking garden.
:28:29. > :28:38.Well, I think you have certainly done that, without a doubt.
:28:39. > :28:44.Wow! Simon, I am loving this huge, hardy snow gum.
:28:45. > :28:48.The snow gum is a species which originates high on
:28:49. > :28:58.Like so many plants here, the snow gum is a close relation
:28:59. > :29:04.But it's one which thrives in the British climate.
:29:05. > :29:10.To be honest with you, Nick, I grew it from seed 28 years ago. Wow!
:29:11. > :29:14.So, that has been witness to your garden maturing to the state
:29:15. > :29:18.Absolutely, it has been here all the time.
:29:19. > :29:36.What a tree, and what an achievement! Thanks very much.
:29:37. > :29:39.I always love it when you come across a garden
:29:40. > :29:43.that you feel couldn't possibly have anything other
:29:44. > :29:46.than the hardiest of plants and suddenly you find exotics,
:29:47. > :29:50.completely at home. Mind you, this banana, this is Ensete,
:29:51. > :29:54.the Abyssinian banana, are really tender.
:29:55. > :29:57.It's said that you only have to say the word "frost"
:29:58. > :29:59.and they shrivel up and give up the ghost.
:30:00. > :30:03.So, I will bring those in probably in about three, four weeks' time
:30:04. > :30:08.even if the weather is good, because if there's just an overnight
:30:09. > :30:13.snap and it dips below zero, that can kill them.
:30:14. > :30:17.Now, if you grow plants that shouldn't survive in your
:30:18. > :30:21.part of the world, or you are particularly proud of,
:30:22. > :30:27.because they are exotic, tropical and unusual, share them with us.
:30:28. > :30:31.You can either post them on our Facebook page or you can
:30:32. > :30:34.e-mail us a picture and an account of them and you can get our
:30:35. > :30:43.Coming up on the programme, we meet a man devoted to growing
:30:44. > :30:47.one of the most dramatic members of the buttercup family.
:30:48. > :30:51.What I love about delphiniums is their wow factor.
:30:52. > :30:56.And Adam Frost moves into a new house with a garden that is
:30:57. > :31:01.full of potential to create a space for all the family to enjoy.
:31:02. > :31:04.This is more less crying out to make a big herbaceous border.
:31:05. > :31:13.This could look absolutely brilliant.
:31:14. > :31:17.There's no question that some of the borders that we have here at
:31:18. > :31:22.Longmeadow are really big and they take a lot of plants
:31:23. > :31:27.But when I heard that, earlier this year,
:31:28. > :31:32.the Royal Botanic Garden at Kew had opened what was the largest
:31:33. > :31:46.I thought that was something I really had to go and see.
:31:47. > :31:50.30-odd years ago, when I lived in London, I often used to come
:31:51. > :31:55.I always made a beeline for Decimus Burton's Palm House,
:31:56. > :31:59.which is this extraordinary upturned boat of a glass building.
:32:00. > :32:03.And then walked through the grounds, going down this long,
:32:04. > :32:10.taking you down to the Palace and the Orangery.
:32:11. > :32:13.Although it was a lovely place to come to,
:32:14. > :32:16.and although there were masses of specialist plants, what was
:32:17. > :32:21.noticeable was the absence of what one might call a herbaceous border.
:32:22. > :32:24.A mixed border that made it more like a garden,
:32:25. > :32:37.The landscape architect William Nesfield
:32:38. > :32:44.with huge deodar cedars on either side.
:32:45. > :32:48.But it has never shown off Kew's botanical expertise...until now.
:32:49. > :32:53.After three years of evolution, Kew has finally got it right.
:32:54. > :32:57.The scale of Nesfield's broadwalk means that the planting
:32:58. > :33:02.has to be of an equal, extraordinary scale, so what they ended up with
:33:03. > :33:14.are the largest herbaceous borders ever created in the world.
:33:15. > :33:18.Richard Wilford is the head garden designer who, with his team,
:33:19. > :33:23.has created horticultural history here at Kew.
:33:24. > :33:26.As a gardener, I am fascinated by the logistics.
:33:27. > :33:30.I mean, preparing the soil must have been a major thing? Well, it was.
:33:31. > :33:35.this whole border covers, with all the cultivated ground.
:33:36. > :33:39.We had about 1,000 tonnes of compost to put on it to dig it in.
:33:40. > :33:43.How many plants? There's about 30,000 plants in this border.
:33:44. > :33:46.So, the whole border is 320 metres on each side,
:33:47. > :33:51.It looks as though it is mirroring pretty much? It is.
:33:52. > :33:54.It is a mirror image on each side of the path.
:33:55. > :33:57.I see you have these yew cones spaced along.
:33:58. > :34:00.Were these always part of the plan or did you add them in?
:34:01. > :34:03.No, they were one of the first things I put in, actually.
:34:04. > :34:06.I wanted to create that formality that Nesfield intended
:34:07. > :34:09.and it just brings the whole landscape into the path.
:34:10. > :34:13.What were the limitations that you had to work with,
:34:14. > :34:18.Well, this border is seen from both sides.
:34:19. > :34:21.It's not like a traditional border which is often against
:34:22. > :34:25.so we really needed to make sure it looked good from whatever angle.
:34:26. > :34:28.Does that mean you've got your tallest plants in the middle?
:34:29. > :34:31.Sometimes, not always. I like to mix it up a bit.
:34:32. > :34:35.I didn't want to just have a big mound so we had to vary the heights
:34:36. > :34:37.a bit throughout the border but, yes, generally,
:34:38. > :34:39.the higher plants towards the middle.
:34:40. > :34:42.What are your themes that you've pursued?
:34:43. > :34:45.Well, because this is Kew, I wanted to try and link a bit
:34:46. > :34:51.so I have kind of themed some of these circles,
:34:52. > :34:55.This one, for example, is a Lamiaceae family,
:34:56. > :35:00.It's got loads of great plants for summer colour, which is helpful,
:35:01. > :35:03.like salvias and stachys and perovskias.
:35:04. > :35:06.Er, but it's also linked to a lot of Kew research
:35:07. > :35:09.into the essential oils a lot of these plants contain.
:35:10. > :35:12.You're under great pressure to provide a public display.
:35:13. > :35:16.Did you have to get in big plants from day one?
:35:17. > :35:20.No, we actually used nine-centimetre pots,
:35:21. > :35:22.partly due to the quantity we had to put in.
:35:23. > :35:24.This was all planted in... last October
:35:25. > :35:40.I like being able to see this in its very early stages.
:35:41. > :35:43.Yes, it will get more magnificent in a year or two,
:35:44. > :35:45.but it's so interesting at this stage.
:35:46. > :35:48.You can see, for example, the way that the sedums
:35:49. > :35:52.have a texture completely different to the foliage
:35:53. > :35:55.of the achillea, let alone the colour you get on top.
:35:56. > :35:57.And then behind it there's Deschampsia,
:35:58. > :36:03.so already you're building up a tapestry of texture and colour
:36:04. > :36:07.that will only enlarge and get stronger over time.
:36:08. > :36:13.don't be tempted to fill it with a few big plants.
:36:14. > :36:23.Much better effect, much better value for money.
:36:24. > :36:27.The closer you look at these borders, the more you realise
:36:28. > :36:32.I love the way that the purple of the salvia flowers
:36:33. > :36:35.picks up the chocolate colour on the stems
:36:36. > :36:45.topped by these glorious plum-coloured flowers.
:36:46. > :36:55.Just three plants, but you couldn't improve it by adding anything else.
:36:56. > :36:58.Inevitably, some plants grow faster than others, and at this stage,
:36:59. > :37:01.they've not necessarily reached their final heights,
:37:02. > :37:03.but it is interesting to see the way that
:37:04. > :37:06.you don't have to have the tallest plants at the back,
:37:07. > :37:09.or even the middle. You can have tall plants like this Agastache
:37:10. > :37:12.in the front of the border, so you look through it
:37:13. > :37:20.and pick out shapes and foliage in the background.
:37:21. > :37:23.These borders are quite unlike anything I've seen before.
:37:24. > :37:26.They're a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
:37:27. > :37:29.And if I lived in London or anywhere near,
:37:30. > :37:33.I would certainly come and visit them as often as I possibly could
:37:34. > :37:48.and share this remarkable horticultural experiment.
:37:49. > :37:51.But it's not just in our great gardens
:37:52. > :37:56.that we find stunning plant collections.
:37:57. > :38:03.there are gardeners cultivating their own particular plant passions.
:38:04. > :38:07.And in Hemel Hempstead, Graham Austin has dedicated his life
:38:08. > :38:12.to growing one member of the buttercup family.
:38:13. > :38:16.What I love about delphiniums is their wow factor.
:38:17. > :38:20.A lot of plants rely on real bright colours
:38:21. > :38:24.to give them the wow factor, where the delphiniums don't.
:38:25. > :38:26.All the colours blend in together so you've got the dusky pinks,
:38:27. > :38:29.the blues, the violets - they all blend in together.
:38:30. > :38:33.One of my favourites is delphinium Walton Benjamin,
:38:34. > :38:42.Absolutely stunning, and if that was at the bottom of your garden,
:38:43. > :38:47.it would show off a mile, it'd look spectacular.
:38:48. > :38:51.There's short varieties - three, three-and-a-half foot high -
:38:52. > :38:55.You've got the mid varieties, five to six foot,
:38:56. > :39:00.and if you've got an old Victorian wall,
:39:01. > :39:02.you've got the six to eight foot varieties,
:39:03. > :39:05.so, yeah, they blend in all different gardens.
:39:06. > :39:08.People think delphiniums are difficult to grow.
:39:09. > :39:12.They're not - they're very tough, hardy perennials.
:39:13. > :39:15.It's getting the right strain of delphinium.
:39:16. > :39:18.The most popular delphinium is a Pacific Giant.
:39:19. > :39:29.Most delphinium florets are semi-double,
:39:30. > :39:35.Then we go to the doubles, so they have no eye in the centre,
:39:36. > :39:43.And then you go on another stage to the rosebud doubles.
:39:44. > :39:54.every other Sunday or something like that,
:39:55. > :39:57.and I used to love going into this nursery
:39:58. > :40:00.and the smell of the greenhouse after they'd watered, it was lovely.
:40:01. > :40:03.And I used to take cuttings off different plants.
:40:04. > :40:05.I didn't have a clue what I was doing.
:40:06. > :40:10.My parents' garden is full of old conifers and things that I'd rooted.
:40:11. > :40:14.Love being outside, I love the nature, the birds, the wildlife.
:40:15. > :40:20.So the option for me was to be a nurseryman when I left school, yeah.
:40:21. > :40:23.Delphiniums, they're actually an alpine plant,
:40:24. > :40:32.If that goes down to minus 10 here this winter,
:40:33. > :40:39.They go dormant, they rest, and then they've got the energy
:40:40. > :40:44.to produce this great big spike the next summer.
:40:45. > :40:49.A delphinium will begin to flower about mid June.
:40:50. > :40:56.for the whole spike to run out and come in full flower.
:40:57. > :41:01.But I think the actual flowering lasts about six weeks,
:41:02. > :41:04.because these florets, as they start to open,
:41:05. > :41:11.and that's as good as any flower, to me, anyway.
:41:12. > :41:16.right down to the ground after it's finished flowering,
:41:17. > :41:20.clear it all out and give it a dose of fertiliser,
:41:21. > :41:25.usually in September/October you'll get a good second flowering.
:41:26. > :41:28.They are quite vulnerable to slugs, delphiniums.
:41:29. > :41:31.You've got to keep the slugs off them, specially at the early stages.
:41:32. > :41:35.So we recommend when you cut down your delphinium for the winter,
:41:36. > :41:38.you cover it with sharp sand or horticultural grit.
:41:39. > :41:43.Some people put it round the delphinium - we actually cover it.
:41:44. > :41:45.It looks like a load of molehills here in the winter,
:41:46. > :41:49.and then you've got to use slug control in the spring.
:41:50. > :41:52.One thing you must do with your delphiniums,
:41:53. > :41:55.either a young or an old plant, is thin them.
:41:56. > :42:00.So in March, April, you'll notice that your delphinium will have...
:42:01. > :42:03.It could have as much as 30 or 40 little stems,
:42:04. > :42:06.they're potential flowers, but that's too many.
:42:07. > :42:11.You just get a knife and you cut them down to ground level
:42:12. > :42:16.In a young plant you'd leave three stems,
:42:17. > :42:20.and as the plant gets older, you'd leave five, seven or nine stems.
:42:21. > :42:24.No more than that, really. And that will give you better flower spikes.
:42:25. > :42:27.Also it lets the air through the centre of the plant,
:42:28. > :42:33.and it just helps with the overall health of your plant.
:42:34. > :42:35.After you've thinned your delphinium,
:42:36. > :42:39.you want to stake your plant. This is very important.
:42:40. > :42:43.If they're not staked, this main spike will lean over
:42:44. > :42:49.and then water will get in and the crown will rot.
:42:50. > :42:55.We use four-foot canes and we do three as a triangle round the plant.
:42:56. > :42:58.So they're in a cage, really, and they just sway,
:42:59. > :43:01.they hit the string, and then sway back.
:43:02. > :43:08.is stake each flower spike separately to a cane tightly,
:43:09. > :43:18.because the wind would blow and it would just snap.
:43:19. > :43:24.Now, a lot of these are not really up to scratch at the moment.
:43:25. > :43:32.This is a very tight double, and I'm quite pleased with that one.
:43:33. > :43:36.Doubles are not that common, so this one I'm going to grow on
:43:37. > :43:39.for another couple of years and if it stays good
:43:40. > :43:45.then hopefully we'll have a chance of naming that delphinium.
:43:46. > :43:51.I've got two children, so we've got Rebecca,
:43:52. > :43:53.and that's obviously got to be a pink,
:43:54. > :43:58.and we've got Scott, so we're thinking a white Arctic Scott.
:43:59. > :44:02.I'm glad I didn't have any more children!
:44:03. > :44:05.Last year, no delphiniums were registered,
:44:06. > :44:08.so we need more people growing delphiniums,
:44:09. > :44:11.growing them and hybridising them and making them more popular,
:44:12. > :44:23.because they're lovely plants. They deserve to be more popular.
:44:24. > :44:29.And Graham's absolutely right - cut them back and almost certainly
:44:30. > :44:31.they'll regrow and re-flower, like this one behind me,
:44:32. > :44:41.Longmeadow's a hard place for plants,
:44:42. > :44:50.and delphiniums seem to thrive on it.
:44:51. > :44:54.I've got some seeds to sow into the Cutting Garden,
:44:55. > :44:58.and now is a really good time to sow hardy annuals.
:44:59. > :45:02.If you sow these, they will germinate, a nice warm soil,
:45:03. > :45:06.and hopefully establish roots right into the end of October
:45:07. > :45:10.They will last the winter - they are hardy, after all -
:45:11. > :45:13.and then they've got a head start and will grow away next spring,
:45:14. > :45:16.whereas if you leave the sowing until next spring,
:45:17. > :45:24.they will flower up to a month later.
:45:25. > :45:28.And I'm going to sow a relative of the delphinium, the larkspur,
:45:29. > :45:42.This larkspur is a variety called White King -
:45:43. > :45:47.flowers for a nice long time, about four weeks,
:45:48. > :45:49.and apparently - because I've not grown it before -
:45:50. > :45:52.lasts a good long time when it's cut.
:45:53. > :45:54.And of course when you're choosing cut flowers,
:45:55. > :45:58.that's an important consideration. It's got to look good,
:45:59. > :46:05.but ideally keep looking good for up to a week or more.
:46:06. > :46:15.thinness and wide spacing is a virtue.
:46:16. > :46:19.A good tip for larkspur is to vernalise them.
:46:20. > :46:24.What that means, basically, is giving them a taste of winter.
:46:25. > :46:26.And then they think it's spring when they come out
:46:27. > :46:28.and they're more likely to germinate.
:46:29. > :46:37.is just put the packets of seed in the freezer for a week or two.
:46:38. > :46:41.What I'll do is I'll have these couple of rows in here now
:46:42. > :46:45.and then I'll sow another couple of rows next March,
:46:46. > :46:48.or as soon as the ground is dry enough to take them.
:46:49. > :46:51.These will flower first and then I'll get good succession,
:46:52. > :46:54.a nice continuous supply of lovely white flowers.
:46:55. > :46:57.But I also want to sow some cornflowers in here too,
:46:58. > :46:59.and I've got a variety called Double Blue
:47:00. > :47:11.And of course cornflowers you think of as a field flower,
:47:12. > :47:16.and so we can grow them in our gardens as lovely flowers,
:47:17. > :47:29.and also as a link to the countryside.
:47:30. > :47:31.They have quite curious shaped seeds.
:47:32. > :47:56.so give them a water and don't let them dry out,
:47:57. > :47:58.and then they will germinate and grow up,
:47:59. > :48:03.so you don't need to mollycoddle them at all.
:48:04. > :48:06.Now, this part of the garden was originally made
:48:07. > :48:10.But, of course, before that, it was an empty field
:48:11. > :48:13.and when we came here 25, 26 years ago,
:48:14. > :48:16.the only garden that existed was in my mind.
:48:17. > :48:25.And Adam Frost has moved to a new home in Lincolnshire
:48:26. > :48:30.where he plans to make a garden for himself and his family.
:48:31. > :48:39.And we join him as he begins that adventure.
:48:40. > :48:42.Looking back, gardening has been a big part of my life
:48:43. > :48:49.I even had my own patch on Nan and Grandad's allotment
:48:50. > :48:54.with a little sign with my name painted on it.
:48:55. > :48:57.At 16, I started on North Devon Parks Department
:48:58. > :49:02.I then went on and trained as a landscaper before my lucky break
:49:03. > :49:09.which was working for Geoff Hamilton at Barnsdale.
:49:10. > :49:12.This year, I've taken on my biggest challenge yet.
:49:13. > :49:15.I moved my family to this beautiful old house and garden
:49:16. > :49:19.in the heart of the Lincolnshire countryside.
:49:20. > :49:23.I want to carefully coax and nurture this wonderful old place
:49:24. > :49:36.into the true family garden that the whole tribe can enjoy.
:49:37. > :49:40.Back in March, just a few weeks before the family and I were due
:49:41. > :49:44.to move in, I went to have a look at the new garden.
:49:45. > :49:53.excited but at the same time nervous about what we were about to take on.
:49:54. > :49:55.This beautiful old garden is big, but do you know what?
:49:56. > :50:01.You can really see in the past that somebody cared about this space.
:50:02. > :50:06.I've got this wonderful, wonderful walled space.
:50:07. > :50:08.This wall here is south-facing, so for me, you know,
:50:09. > :50:11.this is more or less crying out to make a big herbaceous border.
:50:12. > :50:16.Widen these out and have that sort of colour, that texture, that scent,
:50:17. > :50:22.and right through the summer, this could look absolutely brilliant.
:50:23. > :50:25.Do you know, I'm so excited about this garden.
:50:26. > :50:27.I think that's going to be the most difficult thing for me,
:50:28. > :50:30.There's going to be so many surprises
:50:31. > :50:35.But I think actually in reality, to get this garden right,
:50:36. > :50:43.it will be about me sort of gently adding ideas.
:50:44. > :50:47.This garden's got all the growing conditions you could imagine.
:50:48. > :50:55.from mini-redesigns to replanting projects.
:50:56. > :50:59.Every great garden should have a beautiful house and I've got that.
:51:00. > :51:01.But I'll let you into a little secret.
:51:02. > :51:03.The reason I took his place on was that wisteria.
:51:04. > :51:06.I think it must have gone in at the same time as the house was built.
:51:07. > :51:12.It's Wisteria sinensis, because it grows anticlockwise.
:51:13. > :51:20.The garden's not just for me. It's for the family as well.
:51:21. > :51:23.And they all want to get stuck in and grow some veg.
:51:24. > :51:26.I've got this cracking little extra space that's close to the house
:51:27. > :51:28.and I think for me, this is going to be the kitchen garden.
:51:29. > :51:30.But I want to put a contemporary twist on it.
:51:31. > :51:35.it's light, it's airy, it's right by those walls.
:51:36. > :51:38.we can get the fruits and we can play with things like that,
:51:39. > :51:41.somewhere that I can actually get the kids involved, you know.
:51:42. > :51:44.More than anything, I really want this garden to have,
:51:45. > :51:51.At first, I always recommend that you wait for your new garden
:51:52. > :51:56.But there is a job that will unlock the potential of your new patch
:51:57. > :52:02.For me, one of the first things you need to do when you get
:52:03. > :52:05.a new garden is really start to understand the soil.
:52:06. > :52:08.You need to know what you can grow and actually what you can't grow.
:52:09. > :52:11.So I've gone round the garden and I've collected up five samples,
:52:12. > :52:17.you can have slightly different soils and make up.
:52:18. > :52:20.But make sure when you're actually taking that sample
:52:21. > :52:22.that you're digging down a good couple of inches
:52:23. > :52:24.before you actually start to take the sample.
:52:25. > :52:29.What I like to do is pour it out in my hand...
:52:30. > :52:34.And straightaway, it starts to go into quite a firm shape
:52:35. > :52:40.which tells me instantly there's quite a lot of clay in there.
:52:41. > :52:43.So the next thing I do is start to actually run my thumb through it
:52:44. > :52:45.and now all of the sudden, I can feel sand,
:52:46. > :52:49.I can feel grit and I can feel that it's slightly silty.
:52:50. > :52:55.and that's probably had years of goodness
:52:56. > :52:57.and someone's worked that really, really well.
:52:58. > :52:59.But if I look at somewhere that's going to be the veg garden,
:53:00. > :53:02.which I don't know what's gone on in there. It's an old yard.
:53:03. > :53:05.It could have had animals in there but actually at the same time,
:53:06. > :53:07.it might have just been a storage yard.
:53:08. > :53:20.You can see, it's starting to fall through my hands.
:53:21. > :53:22.It more or less feels like the nutrients
:53:23. > :53:25.I think that's another thing as well,
:53:26. > :53:29.when you're understanding your soils - clay soil we all moan about
:53:30. > :53:31.because we think it's hard work, but actually
:53:32. > :53:34.it holds those nutrients in, whereas sandy soils - lovely,
:53:35. > :53:38.easy to dig, but the nutrients drain out, so it tells me
:53:39. > :53:42.really in reality that when the veg garden's completed,
:53:43. > :53:44.this soil is going to need a lot of work,
:53:45. > :53:47.a lot of organic matter, to really build up those nutrients
:53:48. > :53:53.and put that structure back into that soil.
:53:54. > :53:56.Whilst you're investigating your soil, for just a few quid,
:53:57. > :53:59.you can pick up a kit from the garden centre and test
:54:00. > :54:04.It's a little bit fiddly, but it's well worth doing.
:54:05. > :54:09.Testing the pH level will make sure you know what plants you can grow.
:54:10. > :54:14.My soil sample is alkaline which means I can grow an awful lot
:54:15. > :54:17.of things, but I'm going to avoid choosing those ericaceous plants,
:54:18. > :54:19.things like rhododendrons and camellias,
:54:20. > :54:26.Do you know, if I think back to that 16-year-old kid starting off,
:54:27. > :54:29.I mean, this garden's beyond my wildest dreams.
:54:30. > :54:46.To think now I'm the custodian of this space is really quite special.
:54:47. > :54:49.Adam is too modest to mention it himself, but of course,
:54:50. > :54:53.he has won many gold medals from Chelsea
:54:54. > :54:56.and is a very, very talented garden designer,
:54:57. > :55:00.so his garden is going to be something special.
:55:01. > :55:12.Because here are some jobs for the weekend.
:55:13. > :55:18.it's now a race against time to get as many as possible to ripen.
:55:19. > :55:21.And by cutting off the tops of the plant,
:55:22. > :55:25.down to the top truss with fruit on it,
:55:26. > :55:29.you'll put the energy into the green tomatoes
:55:30. > :55:35.so that they ripen as quickly as possible.
:55:36. > :55:40.from camellias, rhododendrons and azaleas,
:55:41. > :55:43.especially those growing in containers, it's important
:55:44. > :55:46.to water them well for the rest of this month.
:55:47. > :55:49.And this will ensure that the buds, which are forming now,
:55:50. > :55:58.don't drop off before they open next spring.
:55:59. > :56:02.Now, nothing affects our gardens more than the weather.
:56:03. > :56:20.Hello there. It's been another very dry week across the UK, certainly in
:56:21. > :56:25.southern areas. We are crying out for the rain. We will be in luck,
:56:26. > :56:32.certainly, on Saturday. Bringing substantial rain to the UK. We could
:56:33. > :56:41.see further heavy pulses through Wales and the West through Saturday
:56:42. > :56:47.evening. It is going to feel pretty autumnal. But rain passing out
:56:48. > :56:55.through the east by the end of Saturday night. On Sunday, a
:56:56. > :57:01.brighter day with a view showers in northern central and eastern areas.
:57:02. > :57:06.Feeling a little bit warmer as well. 18-23dC in the south-east. Next
:57:07. > :57:12.At a time of year when the garden is dominated by exotic plants
:57:13. > :57:17.from all over the world, you've got bananas, cannas, dahlias,
:57:18. > :57:21.sunflowers, fabulous orange tithonias...
:57:22. > :57:24.They all are refining and jostling with each other
:57:25. > :57:30.But there is one plant that actually I think can hold its own
:57:31. > :57:35.in the sense that it's been grown in gardens in this country
:57:36. > :57:39.since at least Elizabethan times, and it's this clematis.
:57:40. > :57:47.It's Clematis Purpurea Plena Elegans.
:57:48. > :57:53.And it will go on flowering now right into autumn and will outlast
:57:54. > :57:56.all these tender plants from more exotic countries and,
:57:57. > :58:07.But we'll be back here next week for another full one-hour programme,
:58:08. > :58:11.so join me here at Longmeadow for that.