0:00:02 > 0:00:04Britain has a long and proud gardening heritage.
0:00:04 > 0:00:08And a passion for plants that goes back centuries.
0:00:08 > 0:00:11But all is not well in our once green and pleasant land.
0:00:11 > 0:00:15- Front gardens paved over. - Our lawns lacklustre.
0:00:15 > 0:00:19And rare wild flowers on the brink of extinction.
0:00:19 > 0:00:22- So we need you - To help us
0:00:22 > 0:00:25- In our campaign - To help rediscover
0:00:25 > 0:00:27Our passion for gardening.
0:00:27 > 0:00:30We're going to give you the best gardening tips.
0:00:30 > 0:00:36And reveal the British gardens that will quite simply take your breath away.
0:00:37 > 0:00:40- It's time to plant. - And prune.
0:00:40 > 0:00:41And sharpen your shears.
0:00:42 > 0:00:46Let the Great British Garden Revival begin.
0:01:26 > 0:01:30On tonight's show Tom Hart Dyke champions the house plant
0:01:30 > 0:01:34but first I'm on the cottage garden campaign trail.
0:01:36 > 0:01:39What do you think of when you think of a British garden?
0:01:39 > 0:01:43Surely it's a cottage garden brimming with flowers,
0:01:43 > 0:01:47overflowing with vegetables, the trees dripping with fruit.
0:01:49 > 0:01:51But there's a problem.
0:01:51 > 0:01:54We're in danger of losing some of those cherished plants
0:01:54 > 0:01:58and forgetting the whole ethos of cottage gardening.
0:01:59 > 0:02:02Though it's sometimes seen as dated and time-consuming,
0:02:02 > 0:02:05I believe this unique style of British gardening
0:02:05 > 0:02:09is not only easy but has never been more relevant.
0:02:09 > 0:02:12So come along with me, Carol Klein,
0:02:12 > 0:02:15on my Great British Cottage Garden Revival.
0:02:20 > 0:02:22On my revival I'll be in Nantwich
0:02:22 > 0:02:26to get people excited about their cottage gardens.
0:02:26 > 0:02:28I love cottage gardening!
0:02:29 > 0:02:32I'll discover a breathtaking garden in Yorkshire
0:02:32 > 0:02:35growing a rich array of plants.
0:02:35 > 0:02:37As a gardener I come into this place
0:02:39 > 0:02:42and I just feel so excited by it.
0:02:42 > 0:02:47And I'll be showing you just how easy it is to start your own cottage garden at home.
0:02:48 > 0:02:52All along those roots there are little nodules, little bumps,
0:02:52 > 0:02:56and each one of those is capable of producing a new shoot.
0:03:03 > 0:03:06This is the garden at East Lambrook Manor in the heart of Somerset.
0:03:07 > 0:03:12By many this is seen as the home of the British cottage garden and you can see why.
0:03:13 > 0:03:17One of the most influential gardening writers of the mid twentieth century,
0:03:17 > 0:03:22Margery Fish, planted and cared for this garden for 30 years.
0:03:23 > 0:03:27She showed a whole generation of gardeners how easy it was
0:03:27 > 0:03:29to achieve a wonderful laidback style
0:03:29 > 0:03:33and she shared with them her overwhelming love of plants.
0:03:33 > 0:03:37Margery Fish's garden personifies what most of us mean
0:03:37 > 0:03:41by a cottage garden but none of it was conscious.
0:03:41 > 0:03:43None of it was deliberate.
0:03:44 > 0:03:49It was much more a question of an attitude of bringing plants together
0:03:49 > 0:03:53and putting them so they informally mingled and mixed.
0:03:54 > 0:03:57She loved new plants but more than that
0:03:57 > 0:04:02she loved to reintroduce things which had almost gone out of cultivation.
0:04:02 > 0:04:03Were almost lost.
0:04:03 > 0:04:07And she put them all together in this most wonderful melee.
0:04:09 > 0:04:12Since Margery died the garden has had several owners.
0:04:12 > 0:04:17All of them have made sure that the garden reflects her principles and ideas.
0:04:19 > 0:04:22The current owner is Mike Werkmeister
0:04:22 > 0:04:26who took on the mantle of East Lambrook in 2008.
0:04:27 > 0:04:29It's a very English style of gardening.
0:04:29 > 0:04:32It's gardening on a human scale which is why so many people who come here
0:04:32 > 0:04:35can identify with this garden
0:04:35 > 0:04:37and they take ideas away from this garden
0:04:37 > 0:04:40which they wouldn't from a more formal garden.
0:04:40 > 0:04:42No, it's very, very inclusive, isn't it?
0:04:42 > 0:04:46I mean, you just look at it and think, oh, you know,
0:04:46 > 0:04:49I'd like my garden to be like this.
0:04:49 > 0:04:51And you look at this and you think I could do this.
0:04:51 > 0:04:53It's experimental and it's great
0:04:53 > 0:04:56because it lets you express yourself, doesn't it?
0:04:56 > 0:04:58You can do anything with anything
0:04:58 > 0:05:01and then you suddenly find these lovely plant combinations,
0:05:01 > 0:05:04some of which are planned and some of which plan themselves
0:05:04 > 0:05:06cos we let things seed here.
0:05:06 > 0:05:08Yeah. Margery Fish did that, didn't she?
0:05:08 > 0:05:10She did that. She did exactly the same.
0:05:10 > 0:05:11She let plants seed.
0:05:11 > 0:05:13She let plants do what they wanted to do
0:05:13 > 0:05:17which is why it has this sort of magical nature about it.
0:05:17 > 0:05:23Margery Fish's informal style wasn't based on the large elaborate borders of country estates
0:05:23 > 0:05:27but rather the small practical productive gardens
0:05:27 > 0:05:32that have graced rural homes up and down the country since the 15th century.
0:05:36 > 0:05:39To visit one of these quintessential cottage gardens
0:05:39 > 0:05:42I want to take you to the breathtaking Lake District.
0:05:44 > 0:05:47We couldn't really have a more beautiful day or a more beautiful setting for this.
0:05:48 > 0:05:52Mountains are in the background. It's misty. It's glorious.
0:05:52 > 0:05:56It's the perfect setting to go and have a look at a cottage garden.
0:05:57 > 0:06:02In the hills by Windermere you'll find what for millions of people around the world
0:06:02 > 0:06:05is the epitome of a British garden.
0:06:06 > 0:06:10Heavily featured in some of the most famous children's books ever written,
0:06:10 > 0:06:13this garden belonged to Beatrix Potter.
0:06:19 > 0:06:20Come on.
0:06:20 > 0:06:25I tell you what, the first time you come into a garden, and I've never been here before,
0:06:25 > 0:06:27it's so exciting, isn't it?
0:06:28 > 0:06:29This is Hilltop House,
0:06:29 > 0:06:33where Beatrix Potter lived for over 30 years in the early 20th century.
0:06:35 > 0:06:39But I'm here to see the garden filled with plants
0:06:39 > 0:06:41mingling and mixing together.
0:06:42 > 0:06:46Alchemilla, masses of it. Marjoram, miles of it.
0:06:46 > 0:06:49And look at this. This is that soapwort.
0:06:49 > 0:06:52They actually used this for washing their clothes
0:06:52 > 0:06:56long before all those soap powders and everything were invented.
0:06:56 > 0:06:58It's typically cottage garden.
0:07:00 > 0:07:03These classic cottage garden plants not only feed you
0:07:03 > 0:07:05and help you wash your clothes,
0:07:05 > 0:07:09but they also attract pollinators and keep pests away.
0:07:11 > 0:07:14Today the house and garden are run by the National Trust
0:07:14 > 0:07:18and they've included some real cottage garden heroes.
0:07:19 > 0:07:20Lovely phlox.
0:07:20 > 0:07:24I think phlox typifies what you mean by a cottage garden plant.
0:07:24 > 0:07:30My mum gave me a big chunk of a white phlox which my granddad had given her
0:07:30 > 0:07:32and who knows who gave it to him
0:07:32 > 0:07:34and these things come down the generations, you know,
0:07:34 > 0:07:37swapped between family, neighbours and friends.
0:07:39 > 0:07:42You get a wonderful sense of tradition in this garden.
0:07:43 > 0:07:47I'm meeting Liz Hunter-MacFarlane, the House and Collections Manager.
0:07:47 > 0:07:50It's an iconic view, isn't it?
0:07:50 > 0:07:51It is absolutely.
0:07:51 > 0:07:54You can recognise the garden from some of the books, can't you?
0:07:54 > 0:07:55It featured quite a lot.
0:07:55 > 0:07:59That's right. The garden's almost like an extra character in some of the stories.
0:07:59 > 0:08:01The plants really kind of get involved
0:08:01 > 0:08:05and of course there's that beautiful iconic view looking up the garden path
0:08:05 > 0:08:07that's in the start of The Tale of Tom Kitten.
0:08:09 > 0:08:11Despite its cultural significance,
0:08:11 > 0:08:14this garden was given over to food production during the war
0:08:14 > 0:08:15and then grassed over.
0:08:15 > 0:08:19A common occurrence with cottage gardens of the time.
0:08:20 > 0:08:22But Hilltop's been through its own revival
0:08:22 > 0:08:27and today it's been put back to something Beatrix Potter would have recognised.
0:08:28 > 0:08:32We have been left a huge selection of photographs
0:08:32 > 0:08:33by Rupert Potter, Beatrix's father.
0:08:33 > 0:08:36They were taken around 1908, 1912,
0:08:36 > 0:08:39and they show us not just what was growing in the garden
0:08:39 > 0:08:42but where it was growing and the particular varieties.
0:08:43 > 0:08:47Would she have loved dappling around amongst these plants?
0:08:47 > 0:08:49- You just get that feeling from it. - Absolutely.
0:08:49 > 0:08:54We've got some wonderful letters of Beatrix's that tell us exactly what she was up to.
0:08:54 > 0:08:58She actually confessed that she'd stolen something from every garden in the village,
0:08:58 > 0:09:01just about, including some honesty.
0:09:02 > 0:09:08Nicking plants or at least taking cuttings was a well-worn cottage garden tradition.
0:09:08 > 0:09:12- So have you got a garden? - Yes, we have, in the Cotswolds.
0:09:12 > 0:09:14- And is it a cottage garden? - It is.
0:09:14 > 0:09:17Do you ever steal things cos you know that Beatrix Potter...
0:09:17 > 0:09:19- Oh, I never steal. - Certainly not!
0:09:20 > 0:09:24Well, you're not a true cottage gardener then, are you?
0:09:24 > 0:09:25Maybe not.
0:09:27 > 0:09:30Of course it was the stories that were set in this garden
0:09:30 > 0:09:35that attract over 100,000 visitors from around the world every year.
0:09:35 > 0:09:37Look, here's the veg garden.
0:09:37 > 0:09:41Can't you just imagine Peter Rabbit climbing through the gate?
0:09:41 > 0:09:43Look at it.
0:09:45 > 0:09:48They would have brought in things like these evening primroses.
0:09:48 > 0:09:52Wonderful things which bring in pollinating insects too.
0:09:53 > 0:09:57If you companion plant, if you put plants together like that,
0:09:57 > 0:09:59you get less pests, less diseases.
0:09:59 > 0:10:01You certainly don't need to use chemicals
0:10:01 > 0:10:04and you use every inch of space
0:10:04 > 0:10:06and things just grow happily together.
0:10:08 > 0:10:11I do organic gardening so I do put my flowers with my vegetables
0:10:11 > 0:10:13to keep the bugs off them.
0:10:13 > 0:10:17So a spot of companion planting which is pure cottage garden, really, isn't it?
0:10:19 > 0:10:24I think gardens like this have become rarer
0:10:24 > 0:10:26and yet I feel now
0:10:26 > 0:10:29that people yearn for this kind of reality.
0:10:30 > 0:10:33You can wander around and do a bit of gardening
0:10:34 > 0:10:37without it being a question of keeping those edges straight
0:10:37 > 0:10:39and cutting that grass.
0:10:39 > 0:10:42I mean, no grass here, is there?
0:10:49 > 0:10:51Cottage gardens like Hilltop
0:10:51 > 0:10:55would certainly have inspired Margery Fish at East Lambrook Manor
0:10:55 > 0:10:59and there's no doubt that this garden has inspired me.
0:10:59 > 0:11:01I love cottage gardens.
0:11:01 > 0:11:04I always wanted one
0:11:04 > 0:11:08and eventually when we moved to North Devon I got one
0:11:08 > 0:11:12and one of my major inspirations was Margery Fish.
0:11:12 > 0:11:15I read every single word she wrote.
0:11:15 > 0:11:16I devoured her books.
0:11:19 > 0:11:22Eventually we got the opportunity to come here.
0:11:23 > 0:11:25I came with my mum and my two daughters.
0:11:25 > 0:11:28Imagine how I felt.
0:11:28 > 0:11:31I was surrounded by all those plants I'd read about.
0:11:33 > 0:11:37In many ways that visit and these plants have defined the way I garden.
0:11:39 > 0:11:42To have your own cottage garden all you need is a love of plants
0:11:42 > 0:11:46and I want to introduce you to some of my favourites now.
0:11:51 > 0:11:55The kind of plants that you see all around East Lambrook now are just the sort of plants,
0:11:55 > 0:12:00in fact, in some cases the very same plants that Margery Fish grew.
0:12:00 > 0:12:04They really answer that category of cottage garden plants.
0:12:04 > 0:12:07They're things which are robust, strong,
0:12:07 > 0:12:11really close to the plants as they grow in the wild.
0:12:11 > 0:12:14They don't need huge amounts of care and attention,
0:12:14 > 0:12:16they just get on with it.
0:12:16 > 0:12:18And what's more they get on with each other.
0:12:19 > 0:12:23Look at this glorious little aster. This is one called Little Carlow.
0:12:26 > 0:12:30It looks nothing now but in a few weeks' time the whole thing
0:12:30 > 0:12:34will be smothered with the most beautiful bright blue flowers.
0:12:34 > 0:12:38The butterflies will come down and suck its nectar
0:12:38 > 0:12:42and doesn't it look just the job with this glorious Rudbeckia.
0:12:45 > 0:12:47Big bright yellow stars.
0:12:47 > 0:12:50Tough as old boots, this plant.
0:12:50 > 0:12:54There are annuals. Things like Cosmos that you can just sprinkle in
0:12:54 > 0:12:56and let them mix and mingle.
0:12:58 > 0:13:01There are tender perennials too like your dahlias.
0:13:05 > 0:13:08This is what a traditional cottage garden is all about
0:13:08 > 0:13:12but there are cutting-edge cottage gardens too.
0:13:13 > 0:13:15Cottage gardens are always evolving
0:13:15 > 0:13:20and I've come to West Yorkshire to see one of the most up-to-the-minute examples.
0:13:21 > 0:13:24I've been itching to explore it for years.
0:13:24 > 0:13:28Look at that! I think I'm going to love what's in here.
0:13:31 > 0:13:34Oh! (GASPS)
0:13:38 > 0:13:41Oh, it's beautiful! Look at it!
0:13:43 > 0:13:44(LAUGHS)
0:13:45 > 0:13:50It just greets you and involves you straightaway. I'm going.
0:13:50 > 0:13:52This is Dove Cottage.
0:13:52 > 0:13:58A nursery and garden that challenges all those dusty preconceptions of a cottage garden.
0:13:58 > 0:14:01This is what my revival's all about.
0:14:01 > 0:14:02Look underneath.
0:14:03 > 0:14:08You go under here and here's this whole new set of treasures.
0:14:08 > 0:14:14These little Sanguisorba heads, little bobbly heads in a big thicket of Yarrow
0:14:14 > 0:14:15and they're all sort of pushing forward
0:14:15 > 0:14:18but they're not pushing each other of the out of the way.
0:14:18 > 0:14:21They're just saying we love living together.
0:14:23 > 0:14:25Look at the way they've used this grass.
0:14:25 > 0:14:27There's so much movement and dynamism
0:14:27 > 0:14:30and energy about the whole place, isn't there?
0:14:31 > 0:14:33It's magical.
0:14:34 > 0:14:36It's not just the planting combinations
0:14:36 > 0:14:38that give this garden its wild beauty.
0:14:39 > 0:14:44The garden is clearly allowed to take control of its own destiny.
0:14:44 > 0:14:49Look at this. All these separate little gardens that have created themselves.
0:14:49 > 0:14:55Eryngium, Sea Hollys and these beautiful knobbly heads of Verbascum.
0:14:55 > 0:14:57Aren't they marvellous?
0:14:57 > 0:15:00As a gardener I come into this place
0:15:00 > 0:15:04and I just feel so excited by it
0:15:04 > 0:15:06but I think anybody would.
0:15:06 > 0:15:08I think if you came into this garden
0:15:08 > 0:15:11and you'd perhaps never gardened before
0:15:11 > 0:15:14and all you've got is a little patch, you'd want to do it.
0:15:14 > 0:15:20You'd want to achieve this sort of thing and you could do it.
0:15:20 > 0:15:22That's the point.
0:15:23 > 0:15:26This inspirational space was planted by Kim and Steven Rogers
0:15:26 > 0:15:31over 16 years ago when Steven gave up being a butcher
0:15:31 > 0:15:33and became a cottage gardener.
0:15:33 > 0:15:35What do people think of the garden?
0:15:35 > 0:15:38They're usually surprised.
0:15:38 > 0:15:39They don't expect to open that gate
0:15:39 > 0:15:43and see what they see with the tall perennials and grasses.
0:15:43 > 0:15:48It's got this sort of very simple plants that you would find in a cottage garden
0:15:48 > 0:15:51and then it's got newer plants that you wouldn't normally see
0:15:51 > 0:15:52but they still fit in well together
0:15:52 > 0:15:54and they still have this wilder look
0:15:54 > 0:15:58and it's all about the insects and everything else that goes with a cottage garden.
0:15:58 > 0:16:01So where do you think cottage gardens are going then?
0:16:01 > 0:16:04Well, hopefully in the same direction that we're going with our garden.
0:16:04 > 0:16:07Which is live and let live
0:16:07 > 0:16:09and accepting that plants are going to fall over
0:16:09 > 0:16:12and once you start looking with a different pair of eyes
0:16:12 > 0:16:14instead of wanting everything to stand up perfectly
0:16:14 > 0:16:16and have a gap between everything
0:16:16 > 0:16:20then it starts to come and it's taken us a while.
0:16:20 > 0:16:25If you were trying to tell somebody about how to create a garden with that sort of feel,
0:16:25 > 0:16:27that lovely cottagey feel, what would you say?
0:16:27 > 0:16:30Well, a lot of the plants have got to be good self seeders
0:16:30 > 0:16:33so that the garden gets a life of its own
0:16:33 > 0:16:35so it's not as contrived then.
0:16:35 > 0:16:39There's all this spontaneity of plants.
0:16:39 > 0:16:41Do you know plants have their own personality?
0:16:41 > 0:16:43They want to do their own thing.
0:16:43 > 0:16:45- They make you smile. - (ALL LAUGH)
0:16:45 > 0:16:48They do! And you can tell them, you're lovely.
0:16:54 > 0:16:56I'm back at East Lambrook
0:16:56 > 0:16:58to show you one of the most intimate ways
0:16:58 > 0:17:01to form a relationship with your garden's plants.
0:17:02 > 0:17:03Growing them from seed.
0:17:04 > 0:17:07Watching your seedlings grow into tall proud plants
0:17:07 > 0:17:10will transform the way you see your garden.
0:17:16 > 0:17:21The first step when you grow from seed is collecting it from your own plants.
0:17:21 > 0:17:23All you need is a paper bag.
0:17:23 > 0:17:27It's best done on a dry day to ensure your seeds don't get wet.
0:17:27 > 0:17:31This is an Eryngium. It's a sea holly and it's from South America.
0:17:31 > 0:17:33You can't divide it.
0:17:33 > 0:17:35You can't take cuttings from it.
0:17:35 > 0:17:37The only chance you've got of making more
0:17:37 > 0:17:39is to collect the seed
0:17:39 > 0:17:44and if you look here right in the top, in the apex of the plant,
0:17:44 > 0:17:46the apical bud,
0:17:46 > 0:17:50and that's the one that in almost every case sets seed first.
0:17:51 > 0:17:54When the plant is ready to shed its seed,
0:17:54 > 0:17:57that's the minute you jump in and collect it.
0:17:57 > 0:18:02This is just falling apart now. All those separate seeds.
0:18:03 > 0:18:08As long as they stay cool and dry you can keep your seeds in paper bags for months.
0:18:10 > 0:18:13This is an incredibly beautiful plant.
0:18:13 > 0:18:16It's called Dierama pulcherrimum
0:18:16 > 0:18:18and pulcherrimum means very beautiful.
0:18:19 > 0:18:25These lovely seed heads are proceeded by big drooping pink flowers.
0:18:25 > 0:18:27As the seed pods swell,
0:18:27 > 0:18:32they get heavier and they bring these lovely arching stems closer to the ground.
0:18:34 > 0:18:37All these have started to open up.
0:18:37 > 0:18:40That paper casing is pulling back
0:18:40 > 0:18:44and inside you can see all these wonderful little bronzy seeds.
0:18:44 > 0:18:48That whole stem there is full of ripe seed
0:18:48 > 0:18:53so the best way to do it is just to gently pull it off.
0:18:53 > 0:18:56It would make good earrings really, wouldn't it?
0:18:58 > 0:19:02And every single one of those is going to make a new plant.
0:19:04 > 0:19:06Just like cottage garden plants,
0:19:06 > 0:19:10your seeds will come in all sorts of glorious shapes and sizes.
0:19:12 > 0:19:15There are so many plants that you can grow from seed
0:19:15 > 0:19:17like this beautiful sweet pea.
0:19:17 > 0:19:20This is Lathyrus latofolius.
0:19:20 > 0:19:21It's one called Pink Pearl.
0:19:21 > 0:19:25So it's a sweet pea with these lovely pink flowers
0:19:25 > 0:19:29which have obviously been smothering it all summer long.
0:19:29 > 0:19:32But it's a perennial so it'll come up every single year.
0:19:35 > 0:19:37I'm looking for stuff that's like that
0:19:37 > 0:19:39so the seed pods are brown and ripe.
0:19:40 > 0:19:42They're just about to burst
0:19:42 > 0:19:45and if you actually look inside one of them
0:19:47 > 0:19:52you can see it's totally full,
0:19:52 > 0:19:56just like a pea pod of these lovely little seeds.
0:19:56 > 0:19:59They're still a bit green but they're on their way to being brown.
0:20:00 > 0:20:03Seed collection is a wonderful way to get to know your plants
0:20:03 > 0:20:06and a great excuse to get into the garden.
0:20:13 > 0:20:16Once your seeds are collected you don't have to plant all of them.
0:20:16 > 0:20:18You can swap them with other people.
0:20:19 > 0:20:23I've come to Cheshire to visit the spiritual home of the Cottage Garden Society.
0:20:23 > 0:20:27A society which has seed swapping at its heart.
0:20:28 > 0:20:33Clive Lane and Angela Winfield have been exchanging seeds for the last 35 years.
0:20:33 > 0:20:37So why did you feel the need to have the Cottage Garden Society?
0:20:37 > 0:20:42In the early 80s there was a style called easy maintenance gardens
0:20:42 > 0:20:45and lots of cottage gardens in villages were uprooted
0:20:45 > 0:20:48and we started to lose the cottage garden plants
0:20:48 > 0:20:52so we decided that we should form the Cottage Garden Society
0:20:52 > 0:20:56and erm...swap plants.
0:20:56 > 0:20:59- Promote the cause. - Promote the cause, yes.
0:20:59 > 0:21:01This has really been our life's work.
0:21:01 > 0:21:06Preserving the plants and conserving them
0:21:06 > 0:21:09but it really needs people to carry the torch forward now
0:21:09 > 0:21:12to ensure that the plants live on
0:21:12 > 0:21:15rather than just as pictures in a book.
0:21:17 > 0:21:21We're taking some of the society's seed to the Nantwich food and drink festival
0:21:21 > 0:21:25to see if there's an appetite for growing plants from seed.
0:21:31 > 0:21:37Oh yay! Oh yay! Oh yay!
0:21:38 > 0:21:41Visitors to Nantwich here today,
0:21:41 > 0:21:47we have the Great British Seed Swap, part of the Cottage Garden Revival.
0:21:47 > 0:21:49Come along and join.
0:21:49 > 0:21:52It is your heritage.
0:22:00 > 0:22:02So are you a gardener, John?
0:22:02 > 0:22:04Er, runner beans are my favourite.
0:22:04 > 0:22:06Now you can put some flowers with them.
0:22:06 > 0:22:07Right. Lovely.
0:22:07 > 0:22:09- What are you going to have? - I'll have a lucky dip.
0:22:09 > 0:22:12You pick me five out. I'll have them growing.
0:22:12 > 0:22:15No problem. I'll shout at them if they don't grow.
0:22:15 > 0:22:18No, just ring your bell. (LAUGHS)
0:22:19 > 0:22:22- Are you gardeners?- I've got my sunflowers. Got my buddleias.
0:22:22 > 0:22:24And the butterflies and everything.
0:22:24 > 0:22:27I love to see wild flowers. I want to see more.
0:22:27 > 0:22:29Right, so here's your opportunity.
0:22:31 > 0:22:33I always have some of these in my bag.
0:22:33 > 0:22:35What, empty seed packets?
0:22:35 > 0:22:38Well, they're just little envelopes and what I do, if somebody's got some seeds
0:22:38 > 0:22:41I'll say, "Oh, could I have a few of those?"
0:22:46 > 0:22:49You've grown the biggest sunflower in your class?
0:22:49 > 0:22:51In your class or the whole school?
0:22:51 > 0:22:54- Um, er, the class, I think. - Yeah.
0:22:54 > 0:22:55How big was it?
0:22:55 > 0:22:58Erm, about two metres.
0:22:58 > 0:23:00That's absolutely enormous, isn't it?
0:23:00 > 0:23:02It's higher than I can reach I bet.
0:23:03 > 0:23:05(LAUGHS)
0:23:05 > 0:23:07What I'm after is a glass of your wine
0:23:07 > 0:23:10swapped for a couple of packets of seed.
0:23:10 > 0:23:13All right then! That seems fair trade to me.
0:23:13 > 0:23:15- Here's to your seeds. - Thank you very much.
0:23:15 > 0:23:19So what's so great about growing stuff from seed, do you think?
0:23:19 > 0:23:20They always remind me of other people.
0:23:20 > 0:23:22That buddleia is Sylvia.
0:23:22 > 0:23:25It's not just a thing that actually attracts all the butterflies.
0:23:25 > 0:23:27- It's Sylvia. - You're lovely.
0:23:27 > 0:23:29Oh, thank you, Carol. So are you.
0:23:31 > 0:23:34I love cottage gardening! I do.
0:23:34 > 0:23:36I do. That's not a lie.
0:23:36 > 0:23:39And remember with the Cottage Garden Society
0:23:39 > 0:23:43you're not just having seeds, you're gaining friends too.
0:23:43 > 0:23:45- Oh right. - Yes.
0:23:47 > 0:23:49Well, my hair's a bit flattened
0:23:49 > 0:23:53but everything else including my spirits is really uplifted
0:23:53 > 0:23:55because it's been such a splendid day
0:23:55 > 0:24:00and everybody seems to be willing to espouse the whole idea
0:24:00 > 0:24:02of this way of gardening.
0:24:07 > 0:24:08I'm back at East Lambrook,
0:24:08 > 0:24:12this stunning two-acre example of a cottage garden.
0:24:14 > 0:24:17But not all these plants would have been grown from seed.
0:24:17 > 0:24:19Some would have come from cuttings
0:24:19 > 0:24:22and that's another crucial cottage garden activity.
0:24:30 > 0:24:34Well, growing stuff from seed is wonderfully productive
0:24:34 > 0:24:39but you can never ever guarantee just how your seedlings are going to turn out.
0:24:39 > 0:24:44If you want to make sure that a plant is exactly the same as its parent
0:24:44 > 0:24:46then you've got to do it vegetatively.
0:24:46 > 0:24:49All that means is you're producing a clone of a plant.
0:24:49 > 0:24:52Something that's identical to its parent.
0:24:52 > 0:24:53Well, you can do that with cuttings
0:24:53 > 0:24:57but you can also do it with some plants with roots.
0:24:58 > 0:25:02Now I've dug up these two beautiful big fat chunks of acanthus.
0:25:02 > 0:25:04You've got to remember when you're doing these
0:25:04 > 0:25:07that you must have them the right way round.
0:25:07 > 0:25:09So the top of your cuttings
0:25:09 > 0:25:11and you'll take several from here
0:25:11 > 0:25:13must always be the end of the cutting
0:25:13 > 0:25:17which was closest to the crown of the plant.
0:25:17 > 0:25:19The point at which the plant meets the earth.
0:25:19 > 0:25:23Apart from that it's so straightforward
0:25:23 > 0:25:27and all you do is take a chunk of this.
0:25:27 > 0:25:30Something about 4cm long or so.
0:25:30 > 0:25:31Something like that.
0:25:33 > 0:25:37And then all you want to do is push this into the compost
0:25:37 > 0:25:41so the top is completely flush with that compost.
0:25:44 > 0:25:46You just cover the top with grit
0:25:48 > 0:25:52and the idea of doing that is just that you stop weed seeds growing,
0:25:52 > 0:25:54you retain the moisture underneath.
0:25:54 > 0:25:58If you've got somewhere warm to keep them then that's the best place
0:25:58 > 0:26:00but they will root eventually, even outside.
0:26:03 > 0:26:05Now there's another sort of root cutting
0:26:05 > 0:26:09where it really doesn't matter which way up they go
0:26:09 > 0:26:11because they're going to be horizontal.
0:26:11 > 0:26:14So they're just going from left to right or east to west
0:26:14 > 0:26:19and it's an ideal way of propagating things like this Japanese anemone.
0:26:20 > 0:26:23This is one called Andrea Atkinson.
0:26:23 > 0:26:25A beautiful white one.
0:26:26 > 0:26:27Now if you just examine the plant
0:26:27 > 0:26:30you'll find that amongst these very fine fibrous roots
0:26:30 > 0:26:33there are some thicker ones like that
0:26:33 > 0:26:36so if I delve into this
0:26:36 > 0:26:39I'm going to find quite a lot of separate roots.
0:26:39 > 0:26:42There's a nice piece. Look at that. That's ideal.
0:26:42 > 0:26:45Now all along those roots there are little nodules,
0:26:45 > 0:26:47little bumps,
0:26:47 > 0:26:50and each one of those is capable of producing a new shoot
0:26:50 > 0:26:54so you're just exploiting what the plant does in nature anyway.
0:26:55 > 0:26:57So just take off a few pieces.
0:26:59 > 0:27:03To transform these dainty roots into bold new plants,
0:27:03 > 0:27:05simply cut them into 4cm lengths.
0:27:06 > 0:27:09Press them down onto the surface of some damp compost.
0:27:09 > 0:27:12Cover them with grit and put them somewhere nice and warm.
0:27:14 > 0:27:17If you haven't got a greenhouse your kitchen windowsill will do.
0:27:19 > 0:27:22Never mind all that washing up liquid and all that stuff.
0:27:22 > 0:27:24Get something important in there
0:27:24 > 0:27:28and as long as you try and emulate nature
0:27:28 > 0:27:33and do exactly what the plant does in the ground.
0:27:34 > 0:27:38So for big thick roots, roots going downwards vertically.
0:27:38 > 0:27:43The ones that creep along the ground just under the surface, then horizontally.
0:27:43 > 0:27:47It's so straightforward, it really is.
0:27:47 > 0:27:49Anybody can do it.
0:27:58 > 0:28:00I hope my revival has caught your imagination.
0:28:00 > 0:28:05There's so much diversity in the plants you can have in your new cottage garden
0:28:05 > 0:28:09and in a single species there can be a huge diversity.
0:28:10 > 0:28:13This is Surrey and the home of Robin Middleton.
0:28:13 > 0:28:18He's created a dynamic cottage garden which has focused on just one plant.
0:28:18 > 0:28:19The Salvia.
0:28:19 > 0:28:24What I absolutely love about Salvias is that they come in every colour of the rainbow.
0:28:24 > 0:28:27There is even a Salvia with black flowers
0:28:27 > 0:28:30and there are a few rare ones with yellow flowers.
0:28:32 > 0:28:33I don't have a favourite Salvia
0:28:33 > 0:28:36because if you ask me every day I'll change my mind
0:28:36 > 0:28:39but I can show you one or two now which I absolutely adore.
0:28:39 > 0:28:42These are some of the taller Salvias which I have.
0:28:42 > 0:28:45They start flowering in July right until the frosts.
0:28:45 > 0:28:48They've been here for ten years in this garden.
0:28:48 > 0:28:51Cut them back in the winter and wait for them to come up in the spring.
0:28:51 > 0:28:52Anyone can grow these.
0:28:53 > 0:28:56Robin started growing Salvias over 20 years ago
0:28:56 > 0:29:00and he's amassed one of the largest collections in the country
0:29:00 > 0:29:04with over 140 different varieties.
0:29:04 > 0:29:07I'm trying to create a modern cottage garden
0:29:07 > 0:29:12and I think Salvias complement the traditional cottage garden plants very well indeed.
0:29:14 > 0:29:16I feel I have a role in the conservation of Salvias
0:29:16 > 0:29:20due to the fact that some of them are becoming extinct.
0:29:20 > 0:29:23If they do become extinct in the wild,
0:29:23 > 0:29:28I'm very happy to grow them myself and to share them with other enthusiasts.
0:29:29 > 0:29:33Protecting our cottage garden plants for future generations
0:29:33 > 0:29:36is just one of the compelling reasons
0:29:36 > 0:29:40for us to take another look at this exciting and simple way of gardening.
0:29:45 > 0:29:48Cottage gardening isn't just a style of gardening.
0:29:48 > 0:29:50It's almost a way of life.
0:29:51 > 0:29:57It's all about friendship, about sharing plants, experiences, associations.
0:29:58 > 0:30:01I hope that the places we've been to,
0:30:01 > 0:30:04the people we've met and the plants we've seen
0:30:04 > 0:30:10will inspire you to take part in the Great British Cottage Garden Revival.
0:30:13 > 0:30:16Stay with us for another garden revival.
0:30:22 > 0:30:28I am surrounded by some of the most exciting and diverse plant life on our planet
0:30:28 > 0:30:30and although many of these species and varieties
0:30:30 > 0:30:32are not able to survive in your garden
0:30:32 > 0:30:36a lot of them will thrive in your home.
0:30:36 > 0:30:39House plants like the cheese plant and rubber plant
0:30:39 > 0:30:42have suffered an image problem over the past few decades.
0:30:43 > 0:30:46We were once a proud indoor gardening nation
0:30:46 > 0:30:49but today our sales of plants like these
0:30:49 > 0:30:51are amongst the lowest in Europe.
0:30:51 > 0:30:54I want us to fall back in love with the array of plants
0:30:54 > 0:30:56we can all grow in our homes
0:30:56 > 0:30:59and a tradition that goes back generations.
0:30:59 > 0:31:02So I want you to join me, Tom Hart Dyke,
0:31:02 > 0:31:06in my Great British House Plant Revival.
0:31:08 > 0:31:12As part of my campaign I'll be visiting one of our most famous house plant nurseries.
0:31:12 > 0:31:14I literally have tingles.
0:31:14 > 0:31:18Everybody in the UK should have a house plant like this.
0:31:18 > 0:31:20Something so bonkers.
0:31:20 > 0:31:24I'll uncover an awe-inspiring collection of house plants in East Sussex.
0:31:25 > 0:31:28To be totally blown away like this for me is quite unusual.
0:31:28 > 0:31:32As well as showing you how simple it is to grow begonias.
0:31:32 > 0:31:35Easy as pie. Anyone can do it.
0:31:49 > 0:31:52This is the home of the Royal Horticultural Society.
0:31:52 > 0:31:55Good old Wisley Gardens in leafy Surrey.
0:31:55 > 0:31:59The gardens were originally laid out in 1878
0:31:59 > 0:32:02but I'm here today to see a rather exciting addition.
0:32:07 > 0:32:08And this is it.
0:32:08 > 0:32:12A space-age glittering cathedral to indoor gardening.
0:32:13 > 0:32:18It contains one of the most important indoor plant collections in the world.
0:32:23 > 0:32:25If you think house plants are dated and boring,
0:32:25 > 0:32:27reminiscent of your granny's sideboard,
0:32:27 > 0:32:32then this incredible building is where I'll be basing my campaign to hopefully change your mind.
0:32:33 > 0:32:35This to me is house plant heaven.
0:32:35 > 0:32:38Just look at this wonderful glasshouse.
0:32:38 > 0:32:41It's the equivalent to ten tennis courts in size
0:32:41 > 0:32:44and for me it brings back memories
0:32:44 > 0:32:46of travelling abroad and seeing plants in the wild.
0:32:46 > 0:32:52Because it was at the age of seven that my influential gardening granny gave me my first house plant.
0:32:52 > 0:32:54Actually here from the garden centre at Wisley
0:32:54 > 0:32:57and from that one house plant I've never looked back
0:32:57 > 0:33:02and expanded my collection in travelling abroad to far-flung climes.
0:33:03 > 0:33:06As a plant hunter I've seen many of these plants growing in the wild
0:33:06 > 0:33:10but just as big a thrill is seeing them growing in my own home
0:33:10 > 0:33:14and that's a joy I want more of us to experience.
0:33:19 > 0:33:22Sadly the house plant is not as loved in Britain as it once was
0:33:22 > 0:33:27and we're put to shame by countries like Denmark and Norway
0:33:27 > 0:33:31where people are five times more likely to buy an indoor plant
0:33:32 > 0:33:34and that's just not good enough.
0:33:35 > 0:33:37If my revival is to succeed
0:33:37 > 0:33:41I need to find out why these wonderful plants have lost their popularity
0:33:41 > 0:33:44and to rediscover their proud history.
0:33:52 > 0:33:53I'm a plant hunter.
0:33:53 > 0:33:54I've been to all corners of the globe
0:33:54 > 0:33:56seeing plants in their native habitats.
0:33:56 > 0:34:00But for anybody interested in the outdoors, including plant hunters,
0:34:00 > 0:34:05this amazing house in north-west Kent is a gardener's pilgrimage.
0:34:05 > 0:34:07It's a gardener's graceland
0:34:07 > 0:34:10because this was the home of Charles Darwin.
0:34:13 > 0:34:15Charles Darwin is best known as a naturalist
0:34:15 > 0:34:19but he spent five years as a plant hunter in the 1830s
0:34:19 > 0:34:22when house plants were in their heyday.
0:34:23 > 0:34:25Travelling the world he would find exotic plant specimens
0:34:25 > 0:34:28that he could bring back for people to grow indoors.
0:34:32 > 0:34:35This greenhouse is stuffed full of a huge diversity of house plants
0:34:35 > 0:34:40and is where Darwin changed the way we saw the natural world forever
0:34:40 > 0:34:42and I can't wait to explore it.
0:34:44 > 0:34:47Look at all the orchids. They're fantastic.
0:34:47 > 0:34:49And then here all these lovely sundews, the Droseras,
0:34:49 > 0:34:54through to all of these lovely other insectivorous plants including the Sarracenias.
0:34:56 > 0:34:59Darwin is credited with introducing many varieties of orchid into the UK
0:35:02 > 0:35:07but this one holds some traumatic plant-hunting memories of my own.
0:35:08 > 0:35:09When I was kidnapped 13 years ago,
0:35:09 > 0:35:12during our captivity, on the day I was going to be executed,
0:35:12 > 0:35:14on June 16th, I'll never forget it,
0:35:14 > 0:35:17at five minutes to 12 of the year 2000,
0:35:17 > 0:35:18this just turned 14-year-old said,
0:35:18 > 0:35:25"You've got five hours, mate, before we blow your...star...star...head off,"
0:35:25 > 0:35:28and the minute he turned around to me I thought, right, I need orchids to distract me,
0:35:28 > 0:35:30the thought of being executed
0:35:30 > 0:35:33and these were the first orchids I saw hanging from the trees around the camp
0:35:33 > 0:35:36where me and my friend were looking for these orchids.
0:35:36 > 0:35:38We should never have been in this place.
0:35:39 > 0:35:41Wow.
0:35:41 > 0:35:46The first flowering Stanopea I've seen since that time.
0:35:46 > 0:35:48Absolutely amazing plant.
0:35:50 > 0:35:52I didn't expect to see that today at Charles Darwin's place.
0:35:54 > 0:35:58It was my passion for plants that got me through that harrowing experience
0:35:58 > 0:36:01and I believe it is a passion I shared with Darwin
0:36:01 > 0:36:04and the huge number of Victorian plant collectors.
0:36:09 > 0:36:12I'm meeting Christine Lalumia, a design historian,
0:36:12 > 0:36:15who I'm hoping can give me an insight into the relationship
0:36:15 > 0:36:18between Victorians and their indoor plants.
0:36:19 > 0:36:22For the Victorians, were house plants important to them?
0:36:22 > 0:36:26Absolutely essential because when you brought a plant indoors
0:36:26 > 0:36:28you were bringing nature indoors
0:36:28 > 0:36:30so it was thought to be pleasing
0:36:30 > 0:36:34to have lots and lots of green living material in your room
0:36:34 > 0:36:39and the Victorians took an enormous amount of time tending these.
0:36:39 > 0:36:42Christine, I'm on this revival to get the house plant up and running again.
0:36:42 > 0:36:43To get them more popular.
0:36:43 > 0:36:48Is there something we can learn, a key thing that we can learn from our Victorian past?
0:36:48 > 0:36:50Well, there a lot of things we can learn
0:36:50 > 0:36:55but I think probably one of the best is giving something time to flourish.
0:36:55 > 0:36:58House plants are meant to be things that you care for
0:36:58 > 0:37:01over a long period, develop a relationship with,
0:37:01 > 0:37:04and they grow and grow and get better and better with time.
0:37:04 > 0:37:07People don't want to spend that amount of thought,
0:37:07 > 0:37:08that amount of effort
0:37:08 > 0:37:12so cut flowers or other decorative solutions
0:37:12 > 0:37:14are often chosen and it's a great shame.
0:37:17 > 0:37:20To find out how house plants are faring in the 21st century
0:37:20 > 0:37:23I'm heading to the front line of my campaign.
0:37:24 > 0:37:26This is Woodcote Green in Surrey.
0:37:26 > 0:37:29One of the largest garden centres in the country.
0:37:30 > 0:37:33It's a massive 30-acre plot
0:37:33 > 0:37:36so I'm expecting big things from the house plant department.
0:37:38 > 0:37:41It's an awful immediate response to have
0:37:41 > 0:37:45but you do get a little crestfallen once you've seen this collection here
0:37:45 > 0:37:47considering the huge size of the garden centre.
0:37:50 > 0:37:53To find out why this collection is so uninspiring
0:37:53 > 0:37:56I'm meeting Head of Plant Sales, David Beard.
0:37:57 > 0:38:00We did used to have a lot larger house plant section
0:38:00 > 0:38:03but we used to have a lot of plants that would sit there for months and months.
0:38:03 > 0:38:06Plants that people didn't know what they were.
0:38:06 > 0:38:09Didn't know what to do with them and in the end we'd have to reduce them
0:38:09 > 0:38:12or even worst-case scenario throw them away.
0:38:12 > 0:38:14We're very much supply and demand
0:38:14 > 0:38:17so if someone wants something we'll get it
0:38:17 > 0:38:21otherwise we'll just try and treat the core section of houseplants.
0:38:23 > 0:38:26With garden centres shrinking their houseplant collections
0:38:26 > 0:38:30surely there has never been a better time for my revival.
0:38:36 > 0:38:38Back at the grandeur of the glasshouse at Wisley
0:38:38 > 0:38:43I'm reminded of the diversity of plant life we can grow in our homes.
0:38:45 > 0:38:47Anyone that thinks house plants are boring
0:38:47 > 0:38:49clearly hasn't been here.
0:38:50 > 0:38:53I'm meeting the glasshouse team manager Peter Jones
0:38:53 > 0:38:58to find out which plants he thinks should take centre stage in my revival.
0:38:59 > 0:39:02So, Peter, why do you think we need to revive our love of house plants?
0:39:02 > 0:39:05I think it's so important to have something green in our lives.
0:39:05 > 0:39:07I think it's just healthy for a human spirit
0:39:07 > 0:39:10to have that extra bit of life quality in our living spaces.
0:39:10 > 0:39:14And what plants, being surrounded by such a diverse range of plants here,
0:39:14 > 0:39:18what plants do you recommend as being relatively easy to grow?
0:39:18 > 0:39:20Perhaps a good group of plants which should be mentioned
0:39:20 > 0:39:24and brought more into the forefront is, say, tillandsias and the epiphytes.
0:39:24 > 0:39:26These are commonly called air plants, aren't they?
0:39:26 > 0:39:31Yeah, these kind of wonderful plants here survive off the moisture in the air
0:39:31 > 0:39:33so they would be living on trees in the rainforest
0:39:33 > 0:39:35where there would be high humidity
0:39:35 > 0:39:37but we can take those kind of adaptations
0:39:37 > 0:39:41and have them in our living space so something like this would be...
0:39:41 > 0:39:44- You mounted them on your cork oak bit of bark there.- Exactly.
0:39:44 > 0:39:47Something quite nice and interesting that you could have in your bathroom
0:39:47 > 0:39:49and I mean look at the diversity in shapes you can get.
0:39:49 > 0:39:53- Look at this.- Flower spike!- You can get this amazing great red flower spike.
0:39:53 > 0:39:56I think that's something that people shouldn't be afraid of trying in their home.
0:39:56 > 0:39:59Peter, I can see why you so love air plants.
0:39:59 > 0:40:00They're so diverse, aren't they,
0:40:00 > 0:40:04but for me as a child I've been interested especially in the cacti
0:40:04 > 0:40:08and your collection here is mind boggling.
0:40:09 > 0:40:12Cacti are crucial players in my revival
0:40:12 > 0:40:16and there's an incredible range with over 1500 species.
0:40:16 > 0:40:21In the wild some are capable of growing as tall as a five-storey building.
0:40:22 > 0:40:26These awe-inspiring plants can survive in some of the world's most inhospitable conditions
0:40:26 > 0:40:29so your front room should be no problem.
0:40:30 > 0:40:31I mean, the one we've got here.
0:40:31 > 0:40:33One of the Opuntia microdasys, isn't it?
0:40:33 > 0:40:35- Oh, yeah, yeah. - They're just fantastic.
0:40:35 > 0:40:36Quite spiny.
0:40:36 > 0:40:39These little hairs here but so easy to propagate.
0:40:39 > 0:40:43You've got to be so careful with those spines cos once they stick in they don't want to pull out.
0:40:43 > 0:40:45They can be quite pesky.
0:40:45 > 0:40:47Hence the bit of newspaper here.
0:40:47 > 0:40:50I mean, what I love about them, look, in just what, 30 seconds,
0:40:50 > 0:40:52a bit extra just to allow
0:40:52 > 0:40:56for not getting spiked with a bit of newspaper here.
0:40:56 > 0:41:00Whacking them in there. Putting it on this end where I made the cut here.
0:41:00 > 0:41:02It's callused over a little so it's dried a bit
0:41:02 > 0:41:06and carefully, right, Peter, in the centre.
0:41:06 > 0:41:07Is that right? In the centre of the pot.
0:41:07 > 0:41:11In it goes like that. Three inches in the compost there. Something like that.
0:41:11 > 0:41:15It'll produce some roots and before you know it, it will start forming new pads just on the top of that.
0:41:15 > 0:41:19It's important to keep the moisture completely dry, isn't it? You're not watering at all, are you?
0:41:19 > 0:41:22We're not watering because at this stage it hasn't got any roots.
0:41:22 > 0:41:24It's got no way of taking up any moisture.
0:41:24 > 0:41:27The only thing that could possibly happen is that water would sit there
0:41:27 > 0:41:30so you want to leave it as dry as possible to be perfect.
0:41:32 > 0:41:34It can take up to two months for you to see roots
0:41:34 > 0:41:36protruding from the bottom of a pot
0:41:37 > 0:41:41and then you'll know you've created another cactus for your collection.
0:41:51 > 0:41:52I'm on my way to North Wales
0:41:52 > 0:41:56to visit one of the few indoor plant nurseries in the country.
0:41:56 > 0:42:00Dibley's Nursery is a family-run business
0:42:00 > 0:42:04specialising in one of the most awesomely diverse house plants
0:42:04 > 0:42:05available to us in the UK.
0:42:05 > 0:42:07A stonking favourite of mine.
0:42:07 > 0:42:10The African Streptocarpus.
0:42:11 > 0:42:15The streptocarpus is the perfect house plant for my revival.
0:42:15 > 0:42:19This long-flowering brightly coloured plant from South Africa
0:42:19 > 0:42:22is also known as the Cape primrose.
0:42:23 > 0:42:27I've seen them growing in the wild and they are absolutely glorious.
0:42:27 > 0:42:31But this is the biggest collection I have ever seen.
0:42:31 > 0:42:33The diversity of flower colour here.
0:42:33 > 0:42:36The tens of thousands of flowers
0:42:36 > 0:42:39that are out now is just gobsmacking.
0:42:40 > 0:42:42The nursery has been going for 40 years
0:42:42 > 0:42:48and in that time they have amassed a jaw-dropping 24 Chelsea Flower Show gold medals
0:42:48 > 0:42:50for their incredible plants.
0:42:51 > 0:42:54I'm meeting a legend in the house plant world,
0:42:54 > 0:42:57Lynne Dibley, to find out the secret to her success.
0:42:59 > 0:43:01I think cos we're always introducing new varieties.
0:43:01 > 0:43:03We breed all new varieties every year
0:43:03 > 0:43:07and introduce some really good long-flowering varieties,
0:43:07 > 0:43:11easy-flowering varieties and that's how we keep going.
0:43:12 > 0:43:14Lynne is continually revitalising their collection,
0:43:14 > 0:43:17offering people something new and exciting.
0:43:18 > 0:43:21We crossed one of our hybrids which flowers only in the winter
0:43:21 > 0:43:23with one of our summer-flowering varieties
0:43:23 > 0:43:27and fortunately we ended up with something which is Crystal Ice
0:43:27 > 0:43:29which flowers 12 months a year.
0:43:29 > 0:43:32It's one of the few plants you'll ever find that flowers non stop.
0:43:32 > 0:43:36- And it's the main reason why it's so popular.- Yeah. Definitely.
0:43:37 > 0:43:39The streptocarpus might take up most of Lynne's time
0:43:39 > 0:43:43but she's also trying to bring back some of our forgotten house plants.
0:43:43 > 0:43:45Like these triumphant Gloxinias
0:43:46 > 0:43:49but there is another plant related to the streptocarpus,
0:43:49 > 0:43:52a fellow gesneriad that I'm hoping Lynne can show me.
0:43:52 > 0:43:55Ever since I've walked in your wonderful glasshouses today
0:43:55 > 0:43:59I've been dying to have a peek at... hopefully you've got it.
0:43:59 > 0:44:03- Something called Sinningia leaucotricha.- I certainly have.
0:44:03 > 0:44:05I've got a really nice specimen I can show you.
0:44:06 > 0:44:09I literally have tingles. I can't take this.
0:44:09 > 0:44:11It is absolutely glorious.
0:44:11 > 0:44:14That's it. Not in flower unfortunately.
0:44:15 > 0:44:18But that is the core that it grows from.
0:44:18 > 0:44:22- Look at that. How old is that? - That's probably about ten to 12 years old.
0:44:22 > 0:44:24It's like a rock face or something.
0:44:25 > 0:44:27Is it house plant worthy? Is it quite easy to grow?
0:44:27 > 0:44:32Yeah. It's exceptionally easy to grow. It's just unfortunately people don't know it.
0:44:32 > 0:44:37It's not a plant that you find very often in the garden centres or written about.
0:44:37 > 0:44:41They are just so many plants out there that are excellent house plants that people don't know about.
0:44:42 > 0:44:46Everybody in the UK should have a house plant like this.
0:44:46 > 0:44:48Something so quirky.
0:44:48 > 0:44:49Something so unusual.
0:44:49 > 0:44:52Something so bonkers.
0:45:00 > 0:45:02I'm back at the glasshouse at Wisley
0:45:02 > 0:45:05which helps draw nearly one million visitors every year
0:45:05 > 0:45:09to the Royal Horticultural Society's flagship garden.
0:45:12 > 0:45:15Underneath this glass roof there are 5000 different plants
0:45:15 > 0:45:20and I'd love them to inspire you to start your own collection.
0:45:21 > 0:45:26Some house plants are so easy to grow and even more fun to propagate
0:45:26 > 0:45:29so why not start your house plant revival in your home
0:45:29 > 0:45:31by spreading some botanical love
0:45:31 > 0:45:35and give free plants away to your friends and your family?
0:45:37 > 0:45:42The perfect plant is a house plant that was first introduced to British gardeners in the 1860s.
0:45:44 > 0:45:49It was an instant hit with its colourful foliage and delightful flowers.
0:45:49 > 0:45:51Please meet the begonia.
0:45:58 > 0:46:01Begonias make such spectacular house plants
0:46:01 > 0:46:03and they're relatively easy to grow.
0:46:03 > 0:46:07Where they originally come from in parts of north-east India and South Africa
0:46:07 > 0:46:11they grow as woodland plants so they're used to low light levels
0:46:11 > 0:46:15and this is ideal for a lot of household situations.
0:46:15 > 0:46:17The other brilliant thing about them
0:46:17 > 0:46:21is they're easy to propagate from leaf cuttings.
0:46:21 > 0:46:25So easy. Easy as pie. Anyone can do it.
0:46:28 > 0:46:32There are different ways to propagate begonias from leaf cuttings
0:46:32 > 0:46:35but for me this is the simplest and most effective.
0:46:35 > 0:46:39The first step is to cut a leaf right at the top of the stem.
0:46:39 > 0:46:41Flush with the base.
0:46:42 > 0:46:44Look at the venations underneath here.
0:46:44 > 0:46:48So spectacular and its these venations, these leaf veins,
0:46:48 > 0:46:51that are critical in taking a begonia leaf cutting
0:46:51 > 0:46:57and you're always cutting through at least one main vein.
0:46:58 > 0:47:03It's from these veins that you are going to have your new little begonia babies.
0:47:07 > 0:47:11Here, if you like, is your postage stamp of a begonia leaf cutting.
0:47:11 > 0:47:15I'm going to put it right at the edge of the compost and the plastic pot
0:47:15 > 0:47:19and I'm putting it in lengthways about an inch,
0:47:19 > 0:47:22half an inch, into the compost.
0:47:24 > 0:47:27This white fluffy stuff in with it is called perlite
0:47:27 > 0:47:29which adds drainage but also air
0:47:29 > 0:47:35which is crucial for the success of these plants growing away.
0:47:44 > 0:47:47I'm just going to do a last little tap down to stabilise them.
0:47:47 > 0:47:49A little push down and one, two, three.
0:47:49 > 0:47:54Put the label in the pot so you know which type of begonia it is.
0:47:55 > 0:47:57Give them a good old soak.
0:47:58 > 0:48:01Rain water, tap water no problem at all but not too much.
0:48:01 > 0:48:05Just a little splash and dash of water.
0:48:05 > 0:48:10The last thing to do, which is so crucial, is get the plastic bag.
0:48:10 > 0:48:14If you don't do this you'll find that the moisture still coming through the leaf
0:48:14 > 0:48:18will mean these plants will completely and utterly dry out and shrivel up and die.
0:48:18 > 0:48:20You've got to cover them in the bag.
0:48:21 > 0:48:24Once covered, place the pots somewhere warm and bright
0:48:24 > 0:48:26but not in direct sunlight.
0:48:27 > 0:48:31In eight to ten weeks you will see new leaves begin to sprout.
0:48:45 > 0:48:49If you're still undecided as to whether it's time for a house plant revival in your home
0:48:49 > 0:48:52then I have one more compelling argument.
0:48:58 > 0:49:03It's time to take my revival to the big city where I'm meeting this man.
0:49:04 > 0:49:07Dr Craig Knight is an occupational psychologist.
0:49:09 > 0:49:11Measuring productivity in the office,
0:49:11 > 0:49:16he has found that a few plants on your desk could make a big difference to your business.
0:49:16 > 0:49:21We're very interested psychologically in why people are put to work in spaces like this.
0:49:22 > 0:49:24Because business thinks this is a great idea
0:49:24 > 0:49:27because there is nothing to distract you in this work surface
0:49:27 > 0:49:31and when we've run studies we've found that this is the worst space
0:49:31 > 0:49:35you can put people in to work in terms of wellbeing and productivity.
0:49:35 > 0:49:38What have the results shown by you placing them on the desks?
0:49:38 > 0:49:44We installed £10,000 worth of plants in a firm very close to where we are now
0:49:44 > 0:49:48and we increased productivity by 15 per cent on one work floor,
0:49:48 > 0:49:53which means that £10,000 worth of plants, if that was replicated across the year,
0:49:53 > 0:49:57would be worth one to five million pounds of increased revenue.
0:49:57 > 0:50:01With such huge financial rewards in foliage
0:50:01 > 0:50:05maybe we should all make our environments a little greener.
0:50:14 > 0:50:16Craig, what a transformation!
0:50:16 > 0:50:17A bit different, eh?
0:50:17 > 0:50:22Look at this place. I mean, 20 minutes ago sitting at this office desk I wouldn't be seen dead
0:50:22 > 0:50:26but now, I never thought I'd say this,
0:50:26 > 0:50:28but I can feel the grey matter whizzing around
0:50:28 > 0:50:30and productivity going through the roof.
0:50:30 > 0:50:34Can we convince office workers just passing by
0:50:34 > 0:50:36to have a house plant on their desk?
0:50:36 > 0:50:39Why don't you try a few people and see what they say?
0:50:39 > 0:50:43At your place of work do you have any house plants at all?
0:50:43 > 0:50:45- No, I don't think we do. - No, I don't.
0:50:45 > 0:50:47It's actually pretty, pretty plain.
0:50:47 > 0:50:51House plants are supposed to also increase wellbeing
0:50:51 > 0:50:54and 15 per cent more of your productivity at work.
0:50:54 > 0:50:5815 per cent? Wow. OK. Certainly worth looking into.
0:50:58 > 0:51:00Sometimes, you know, I just tend to space out
0:51:00 > 0:51:03and without a plant I don't know what I'm going to do.
0:51:03 > 0:51:07Could you take that under the cover of darkness with a balaclava with a nice big slit
0:51:07 > 0:51:09so you can see just about where you're going, sneak it in.
0:51:09 > 0:51:13Floor 15 or whatever it is in that building over there on to your office desk
0:51:13 > 0:51:16and see what anybody says in the morning? Would you consider that?
0:51:16 > 0:51:18That would be a great idea, yes. Definitely.
0:51:19 > 0:51:21I'll help you tonight.
0:51:24 > 0:51:27I'm really chuffed. I've convinced quite a few people
0:51:27 > 0:51:32to get a houseplant on their empty office desk but have I convinced you?
0:51:39 > 0:51:43I'm sure you're itching to get hold of some life-affirming indoor plants
0:51:43 > 0:51:47so I've come to the UK's largest web-based house plant supplier
0:51:47 > 0:51:51and opened a door to a brave new world of indoor gardening.
0:51:53 > 0:51:57Oh my golly gosh, what a selection of house plants!
0:51:57 > 0:51:59Absolutely awesome.
0:52:00 > 0:52:03The revival is not just underway in a small way,
0:52:03 > 0:52:05it's underway in a mega way.
0:52:05 > 0:52:07This is fantastic.
0:52:14 > 0:52:16Mexico. India.
0:52:16 > 0:52:19The codiaeum, classic Indonesian plants, these.
0:52:19 > 0:52:23Dracaena draco. The blood dragon tree.
0:52:23 > 0:52:27The Stags Horn fern, Platycerium bifurcatum.
0:52:27 > 0:52:29I've seen these in the wild in north-east Australia
0:52:29 > 0:52:33and it brings back plant-hunting-filled memories.
0:52:34 > 0:52:36Its absolutely breathtaking.
0:52:39 > 0:52:42To be totally blown away like this for me is quite unusual.
0:52:44 > 0:52:45This is quality.
0:52:49 > 0:52:52This feast of foliage and flowers has been put together by Paul Thomas.
0:52:52 > 0:52:57Mate, honestly. The finest collection I have seen for years.
0:52:57 > 0:53:02I've spotted quite a few plants from Australia, the Metrosideros pohutukawa.
0:53:02 > 0:53:05You're really pushing boundaries to getting people to know
0:53:05 > 0:53:07that there's a huge diversity available for people.
0:53:07 > 0:53:09- It's really exciting. - Absolutely, yeah.
0:53:09 > 0:53:12Well, in every house there's a wide diversity of areas
0:53:12 > 0:53:14and there's no such thing as a bad house plant,
0:53:14 > 0:53:16there's just the right plant for the right space.
0:53:17 > 0:53:20People really want to bring greenery and something inside
0:53:20 > 0:53:25especially if you haven't got a garden, which three million households in the UK haven't.
0:53:26 > 0:53:29Many of the plants here can be used as strong interior statements
0:53:29 > 0:53:33but Paul also carries a lot of the house plant classics.
0:53:33 > 0:53:34Here we have the peace lily.
0:53:34 > 0:53:38One of the most well-loved house plants instantly recognisable.
0:53:38 > 0:53:45Actually one of the plants chosen by NASA to test plants' capacity to take toxins out of the air.
0:53:45 > 0:53:49I mean, the indoor environment has been proved to be five to ten times more polluted
0:53:49 > 0:53:50than the exterior environment.
0:53:50 > 0:53:53So if you've got the windows closed over the winter
0:53:53 > 0:53:57these toxins do build up and plants take them out.
0:53:57 > 0:54:01So, Paul, house plants aren't just great to look at for foliage and flowers etc,
0:54:01 > 0:54:04they actually are good for you, literally, aren't they?
0:54:04 > 0:54:07Literally they are very good for you.
0:54:07 > 0:54:11What do you think in your opinion is the singlest thing
0:54:11 > 0:54:13that will help to get this revival on the road?
0:54:13 > 0:54:18People need to recognise that they can keep them alive.
0:54:18 > 0:54:22If you go away every two weeks and you forget about plants, there's a plant for you.
0:54:22 > 0:54:25If you water it every day, there's a plant for you.
0:54:25 > 0:54:30If you've got a freezing cold hallway where the wind comes through, there's a plant for you.
0:54:30 > 0:54:33It isn't to do with you killing it. It's just picking the right thing.
0:54:33 > 0:54:36So no one's get any excuse whatsoever.
0:54:36 > 0:54:37- No, not at all. - Brilliant.
0:54:47 > 0:54:51For the final chapter of my revival, I'm back at Wisley.
0:54:51 > 0:54:56Here all the plant specimens on show are in impeccable condition
0:54:56 > 0:55:00but what happens if one of your house plants is feeling a little under the weather?
0:55:02 > 0:55:06Well, I've invited some poorly plant patients down to my pop-up plant surgery
0:55:06 > 0:55:09to show you how easy it is to care for your plants.
0:55:16 > 0:55:17- Hello, Doctor. - Good afternoon to you.
0:55:17 > 0:55:19Please have a seat.
0:55:19 > 0:55:23My first patient is a sickly citrus with a common complaint.
0:55:24 > 0:55:28It's a classic case of one of the worst pests for house plants, sir,
0:55:28 > 0:55:29and that's mealybug.
0:55:30 > 0:55:35Mealybugs are a sap-sucking pest that will drain your plants of energy.
0:55:35 > 0:55:37But have no fear. There is a cure.
0:55:38 > 0:55:42Diluted mentholated spirit applied with a cotton bud should do the trick.
0:55:43 > 0:55:46They hide deliberately in the cracks of the nodes here.
0:55:46 > 0:55:50This is the best and most practical and most satisfactory way of at least reducing
0:55:50 > 0:55:52the population on your citrus here.
0:55:53 > 0:55:58I find it extraordinarily therapeutic but I'm a bit odd, sir.
0:55:58 > 0:56:01The weirdest plant doctor on the planet.
0:56:01 > 0:56:05My next patients are a family of cacti grown from seed.
0:56:05 > 0:56:07Now then, tell me about this. What have you got here?
0:56:07 > 0:56:11Well, this is a 12-year-old cacti. Well, there are three of them.
0:56:11 > 0:56:15They've never flowered and they're still quite small.
0:56:15 > 0:56:16Should they grow larger?
0:56:17 > 0:56:23These are upright ceri cactus, this comes under a type of cactus called a patchy cereus.
0:56:23 > 0:56:27- They tend to flower after about 30 to 50 years of age.- Oh.
0:56:27 > 0:56:28(LAUGHS)
0:56:28 > 0:56:31The second bit is it tends to flower at about 30 feet tall.
0:56:34 > 0:56:37Right. What I would suggest is to re-pot all three of these
0:56:37 > 0:56:40into different pots in a similar compost that you've got
0:56:40 > 0:56:45and the sunniest spot that you can in your house or conservatory and let them grow away.
0:56:45 > 0:56:48- With a bit of potting up they're going to fly away.- OK!
0:56:48 > 0:56:50In 30 years' time!
0:56:51 > 0:56:54The final patient through the door of the surgery
0:56:54 > 0:56:57is a peace lily that has discoloured leaves.
0:56:57 > 0:56:59Always a sign that things are not right.
0:56:59 > 0:57:04Have you got it close to a sunny windowsill or against the glass?
0:57:04 > 0:57:07It did used to be for a while.
0:57:08 > 0:57:11They are woodland plants. From plants of south-east Asia.
0:57:11 > 0:57:13A lot of the spathiphyllums
0:57:13 > 0:57:17and I would say is when you're growing them in household conditions indoors
0:57:17 > 0:57:19is to keep it away from direct sunlight.
0:57:20 > 0:57:26- Do you have it in a pot or a saucer? - Yes, it sits in a ceramic pot.
0:57:26 > 0:57:29I think it's a bit of over watering as well. Hence the tip died back.
0:57:29 > 0:57:30Solution, easy.
0:57:30 > 0:57:34From around the base of the pot do your watering not from overhead
0:57:34 > 0:57:38and let it drain through in the sink for ten minutes before putting it into your saucer.
0:57:38 > 0:57:41- Will prevent water building up at the bottom.- Oh good. Thank you.
0:57:41 > 0:57:44- Has that been of some help? - Yes, definitely.- Fantastic, madam.
0:57:44 > 0:57:47- Thank you. Thank you very much. - Thank you for coming.
0:57:55 > 0:57:57I've always been passionate about house plants
0:57:57 > 0:58:02but now I'm convinced even more than ever the need for all of us to rediscover them.
0:58:06 > 0:58:08I hope my revival has given you the confidence
0:58:08 > 0:58:11to engage with the world of indoor gardening.
0:58:12 > 0:58:14These are the plants that inspired Darwin
0:58:14 > 0:58:18and I have no doubt they will inspire you too.
0:58:18 > 0:58:23And that's a feeling that never, never, ever goes out of fashion.
0:58:23 > 0:58:29So let's make luscious leaves and exotic blooms cool once again.
0:58:30 > 0:58:32Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd