0:00:02 > 0:00:04Hello and welcome to the A To Z Of TV Gardening.
0:00:04 > 0:00:07We're on a mission to dig up the best advice
0:00:07 > 0:00:11and tips from your favourite TV garden programmes and presenters.
0:00:11 > 0:00:16So join me as, letter by letter, one by one, we explore everything
0:00:16 > 0:00:21from flowers and trees to fruit and veg, on The A To Z Of TV Gardening.
0:00:37 > 0:00:40Everything we're looking at today begins with the letter A.
0:00:40 > 0:00:42Here's what's coming up.
0:00:42 > 0:00:45Alys Fowler finds an apple tree
0:00:45 > 0:00:49that produces over 250 different types of apples.
0:00:49 > 0:00:52- You no longer have to get stuck with just kind of a cooker.- Exactly.
0:00:52 > 0:00:54Have the lot.
0:00:54 > 0:00:57Toby Buckland plants one of his favourite veg.
0:00:57 > 0:01:00You can't buy asparagus that is as tasty as the stuff
0:01:00 > 0:01:02you can pick from your back garden.
0:01:02 > 0:01:06And it's all about alliums with Alan Titchmarsh.
0:01:06 > 0:01:09Look at those dead ends on those leafs.
0:01:09 > 0:01:11This is the way they grow naturally.
0:01:11 > 0:01:14Good green leafs and as the flower spike comes up
0:01:14 > 0:01:16so they start to die back.
0:01:16 > 0:01:18Just some of the treats we have in store.
0:01:18 > 0:01:23But let's start with a fruit we consume in its millions.
0:01:23 > 0:01:28Our first A is for Apples. Here's Chris Beardshaw investigating
0:01:28 > 0:01:32just why apples are so unpredictable.
0:01:39 > 0:01:42Imagine the frustration of those early horticulturalists
0:01:42 > 0:01:43thousands of years ago,
0:01:43 > 0:01:45stumbling across an apple.
0:01:45 > 0:01:50It was the perfect fast food and yet when they sowed the seed
0:01:50 > 0:01:54what came up wasn't the same.
0:01:54 > 0:01:57In fact it was just as likely to be sour and inedible
0:01:57 > 0:02:00as it was to taste good.
0:02:01 > 0:02:06The mother tree gives birth to thousands of pips contained within the fruit
0:02:06 > 0:02:10and every single pip is genetically different.
0:02:10 > 0:02:14And just like children, most grow up to be ordinary,
0:02:14 > 0:02:19but once in a while an apple with the most delicious taste and texture
0:02:19 > 0:02:20is born.
0:02:20 > 0:02:21When you sow the pips
0:02:21 > 0:02:24you don't get the original form.
0:02:24 > 0:02:27If you sow a Bramley seed, you won't get a Bramley.
0:02:27 > 0:02:30If you sow a Braeburn, it won't be a Braeburn that grows.
0:02:30 > 0:02:33Or a Cox or a Worcester, or any of them for that matter.
0:02:33 > 0:02:35Apples require pollinators.
0:02:35 > 0:02:39That's to say, the pollen from one plant needs to be transferred across
0:02:39 > 0:02:41into the flower of another,
0:02:41 > 0:02:43and that crossing of pollen
0:02:43 > 0:02:47brings with it the most wonderful genetic exchange.
0:02:47 > 0:02:51Apples generally have 34 chromosomes
0:02:51 > 0:02:55and that means that you get 17 characteristics from one parent
0:02:55 > 0:02:58and 17 sets of characteristics from the other.
0:02:58 > 0:03:00It's part of the excitement of growing them.
0:03:05 > 0:03:08And this presented man with a real puzzle -
0:03:08 > 0:03:12how to persuade nature to reproduce exactly the same apple tree
0:03:12 > 0:03:15and fruit over and over again.
0:03:15 > 0:03:18And the solution we came up with was grafting,
0:03:18 > 0:03:21a method of cloning the original tree.
0:03:22 > 0:03:25The practice of grafting is thought
0:03:25 > 0:03:28to go back around 5,000 years,
0:03:28 > 0:03:29and to this day
0:03:29 > 0:03:32every apple tree in commercial cultivation
0:03:32 > 0:03:35is grafted in exactly the same way.
0:03:35 > 0:03:39The principle behind grafting is delightfully straightforward
0:03:39 > 0:03:42and in fact hasn't change since the Romans played around
0:03:42 > 0:03:44with gluing one plant on top of another.
0:03:44 > 0:03:48Not apples but, in their case, probably grapes.
0:03:48 > 0:03:51And they realised that plants were able to fuse together
0:03:51 > 0:03:57for the very simple reason that on any plant there is a layer of growth
0:03:57 > 0:03:59immediately underneath the bark.
0:03:59 > 0:04:02That area of green is the cambium layer.
0:04:02 > 0:04:05That's where the cell division and the cell expansion is taking place.
0:04:05 > 0:04:08It's essentially the life of the plant.
0:04:08 > 0:04:12And if you can put two of those cambium layers together,
0:04:12 > 0:04:15then the plants fuse and become one.
0:04:15 > 0:04:17First you need a rootstock.
0:04:17 > 0:04:20This is a wild form which has been cultivated
0:04:20 > 0:04:23for a particular characteristic.
0:04:23 > 0:04:27It will essentially become the driving force behind the plant.
0:04:27 > 0:04:30It will govern how much nutrient is taken up.
0:04:30 > 0:04:32It's like the sort of engine of a car.
0:04:32 > 0:04:38And the principle is to cut the head off the rootstock.
0:04:38 > 0:04:41And then to take your scion.
0:04:41 > 0:04:49This is the particular variety of apple that you're after.
0:04:49 > 0:04:54It's taken from the parent plant and it means that the genetic material
0:04:54 > 0:04:59contained within that scion is exactly the same as the parent,
0:04:59 > 0:05:05so any characteristics the parents have in terms of the flavour of the fruit, the ripeness of the fruit,
0:05:05 > 0:05:10the colour of the skin, are all contained within that piece of wood.
0:05:10 > 0:05:14And what we do is literally put that on top of there,
0:05:14 > 0:05:17and the two are then bound up with tape
0:05:17 > 0:05:21and the rootstock fuses with the scion.
0:05:21 > 0:05:23And, in fact, the genetic material
0:05:23 > 0:05:25of the rootstock remains in the rootstock.
0:05:25 > 0:05:28The genetic material of the scion remains in the scion.
0:05:28 > 0:05:31But what we end up with is a scion
0:05:31 > 0:05:36which is totally governed by the energy of the rootstock.
0:05:36 > 0:05:38And that's what gives us
0:05:38 > 0:05:42the particular vigour and height of the tree.
0:05:43 > 0:05:48we move on to Alys Fowler as she finds out about the incredible results
0:05:48 > 0:05:50you can get with grafting and cloning.
0:05:52 > 0:05:56ALYS FOWLER: I was amazed when I discovered that nurseryman Paul Barnett
0:05:56 > 0:06:00has managed to grow over 250 varieties on just one tree.
0:06:00 > 0:06:03I was eager to find out how he'd done it.
0:06:07 > 0:06:10This tree is the stuff of dreams!
0:06:10 > 0:06:14It's the most wonderful thing I have seen in a long time.
0:06:14 > 0:06:16It's looking particularly good this year.
0:06:16 > 0:06:21What possesses you to plant 250 different varieties on to a single tree?
0:06:21 > 0:06:24The nursery I used to work for had about 80 or 90 varieties
0:06:24 > 0:06:27and they would be lined out in quite a large field,
0:06:27 > 0:06:31so, not having a large field, I needed to condense it down
0:06:31 > 0:06:33into something smaller.
0:06:33 > 0:06:36So that's really why there were put on here.
0:06:36 > 0:06:37It's fantastic!
0:06:37 > 0:06:40- So each branch is a different variety, right?- Yes, it is.
0:06:40 > 0:06:43You've got Royal Gala here,
0:06:43 > 0:06:44you've got Crown Gold up here...
0:06:44 > 0:06:47And therefore it could be possible to have a tree which had cookers
0:06:47 > 0:06:50- and eaters...?- Yes, it is, yeah.
0:06:50 > 0:06:51It's very clever.
0:06:51 > 0:06:54What I get quite excited about is, if you had a tree you didn't like,
0:06:54 > 0:06:58- you have the potential to have a tree that...- Just bud or graft it over.
0:06:58 > 0:07:01Add any varieties that you like eating on to it.
0:07:01 > 0:07:04So you no longer have to get stuck with just a cooker.
0:07:04 > 0:07:07Exactly. Have the lot.
0:07:07 > 0:07:11It's amazing. I am completely in awe of it.
0:07:11 > 0:07:15Paul has worked with apple trees for 25 years
0:07:15 > 0:07:18and was happy to give me a lesson in apple budding.
0:07:21 > 0:07:24The small orchard at the bottom of his garden was a perfect place to have a go.
0:07:24 > 0:07:27But first I had to choose which varieties I wanted to grow.
0:07:29 > 0:07:31This is a lovely-looking apple.
0:07:31 > 0:07:34- Which is this one? - This is a variety called Fiesta.
0:07:34 > 0:07:35It's a lovely apple.
0:07:35 > 0:07:39Crisp, juicy and sweet.
0:07:39 > 0:07:42- Can I try it?- Yes, you can, yeah.
0:07:42 > 0:07:45Mmm! Really crisp.
0:07:45 > 0:07:48Shows quite a good resistance to pests and disease.
0:07:48 > 0:07:51Quite an easy one for gardeners.
0:07:51 > 0:07:55- Yeah, lovely.- Very fertile variety. - Lovely-looking apple as well.
0:07:55 > 0:07:58- It is.- Really pretty.- What you'd expect from an apple, isn't it?
0:07:58 > 0:08:01- Can I have one of these?- You can. - This is great. It's like being in a supermarket.
0:08:01 > 0:08:03SHE CRUNCHES
0:08:05 > 0:08:09I can see one of my all-time favourite apples here.
0:08:09 > 0:08:10PAUL CHUCKLES
0:08:10 > 0:08:11Now...
0:08:11 > 0:08:13- Good old Pitmaston Pineapple.- Oh...
0:08:13 > 0:08:16I have such fond memories of eating way too many of these.
0:08:16 > 0:08:19- It's a lovely little heritage variety.- Oh, it's beautiful.
0:08:19 > 0:08:21It's a very late one, isn't it?
0:08:21 > 0:08:24- Yeah, never gets much bigger than this either.- No.
0:08:25 > 0:08:27- Anything from memory. - Be a good one for your tree.
0:08:27 > 0:08:29You get the red of the Fiesta
0:08:29 > 0:08:31and also the yellow of the Pitmaston Pineapple.
0:08:31 > 0:08:34It's a perfect kind of one person quick eat,
0:08:34 > 0:08:35- that's what I like about this.- It is.
0:08:35 > 0:08:37Mm, perfect!
0:08:42 > 0:08:45Next, it was time to learn the magic of budding.
0:08:45 > 0:08:47First, Paul selected and cut off a healthy shoot
0:08:47 > 0:08:51from one of my chosen varieties and stripped it of all its leaves.
0:08:54 > 0:08:58- So, we've got our material.- Yes. - And this is my tree.
0:08:58 > 0:08:59Is it a good tree?
0:08:59 > 0:09:03Yeah, you've got some nice, young, vigorous growth here. It's ideal.
0:09:03 > 0:09:07You're looking for two or three nostrum shoots,
0:09:07 > 0:09:08which we've got here.
0:09:08 > 0:09:13- And about this thickness?- Yeah. - So that's the thickness of a pencil.
0:09:13 > 0:09:17Next, he prepared the area on my tree where the bud would go.
0:09:17 > 0:09:20After clearing the leaves and shoots,
0:09:20 > 0:09:23he made a 4cm-long cut with a clean, sharp knife,
0:09:23 > 0:09:27deep enough to expose the cambium layer - the green bit below the bark.
0:09:31 > 0:09:35Then Paul cut a sliver of the same length from the donor branch.
0:09:35 > 0:09:38This contained the bud of the apple I wanted to grow on my tree.
0:09:41 > 0:09:43The bud was then placed into position,
0:09:43 > 0:09:45making sure it matched exactly.
0:09:45 > 0:09:49To keep it in place, it was tightly wrapped using budding tape.
0:09:49 > 0:09:51But a clear plastic bag, secured with tape,
0:09:51 > 0:09:54would've done the job just as well.
0:09:54 > 0:09:56Well, you made that look incredibly easy
0:09:56 > 0:10:00but I know that practice is how you get good at these things
0:10:00 > 0:10:02and it's a long time. So...
0:10:05 > 0:10:09'It started well when I made the incision on the mother plant.
0:10:09 > 0:10:12'Cutting the bud was another matter, however.
0:10:12 > 0:10:15'But in the end, it seemed to fit... well, almost perfectly.
0:10:16 > 0:10:22'It would be a nail-biting six weeks to see if my graft had taken.'
0:10:30 > 0:10:32Now for the moment of truth.
0:10:34 > 0:10:39You're not looking for any great...
0:10:39 > 0:10:40change at this point,
0:10:40 > 0:10:46you just need to make sure that the bud is nice and fat and healthy.
0:10:48 > 0:10:51And it looks like it's taken perfectly.
0:10:51 > 0:10:54So let's see how the rest are doing.
0:11:04 > 0:11:06Well, so far, so good.
0:11:06 > 0:11:09And only time will tell with these grafts, but the joy about this tree
0:11:09 > 0:11:13is the fact that you have five varieties on one tree.
0:11:13 > 0:11:16So even in a small space, I get plenty to eat.
0:11:19 > 0:11:22Now, it's not every day that you hear that a spring veg can add
0:11:22 > 0:11:25a touch of class to your dining table.
0:11:25 > 0:11:28But this one can. We're at A for Asparagus.
0:11:28 > 0:11:30Here's Toby Buckland on how to grow your own.
0:11:32 > 0:11:34April is asparagus planting time
0:11:34 > 0:11:39and asparagus is one of my top five vegetables to grow.
0:11:39 > 0:11:43You can't buy asparagus that's as tasty as the stuff you can pick
0:11:43 > 0:11:45from your back garden.
0:11:45 > 0:11:47And it's expensive to buy as well.
0:11:47 > 0:11:52But more than that, asparagus is one of the few perennial vegetables.
0:11:52 > 0:11:56That means it comes back year after year,
0:11:56 > 0:11:58so you only need to plant it once.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01Because once you've got those crowns in the ground,
0:12:01 > 0:12:07they'll give you 10, 15, maybe 20 years of service.
0:12:07 > 0:12:10And tasty dinners through early summer.
0:12:11 > 0:12:14Asparagus - you can buy it in pots
0:12:14 > 0:12:18but you're always better to send off for it from a nursery.
0:12:18 > 0:12:23It arrives in the post like a present in a box.
0:12:23 > 0:12:25It's rather strange stuff.
0:12:25 > 0:12:29Because it comes as a crown, as it's known,
0:12:29 > 0:12:32with a little bud breaking at the top.
0:12:32 > 0:12:35Quite spidery, aren't they? Now, what I do to make sure they're nice
0:12:35 > 0:12:40and hydrated is pop them in a bucket to give them a drink
0:12:40 > 0:12:44while I dig out my trench and prepare the soil.
0:12:44 > 0:12:47And soil preparation is the key to success
0:12:47 > 0:12:50as far as asparagus is concerned.
0:12:50 > 0:12:54You can't have weeds. Because those roots are so spidery
0:12:54 > 0:12:58and spread out through the soil, if there's weeds,
0:12:58 > 0:13:01perennial weeds, things like dandelions and cooch grass growing
0:13:01 > 0:13:05in amongst your asparagus beds, you can't get a fork in amongst them
0:13:05 > 0:13:08to pull them out without damaging your asparagus roots.
0:13:08 > 0:13:13So it pays to leave a bed fallow, maybe covered over with some carpet
0:13:13 > 0:13:16for a summer season, before you plant.
0:13:16 > 0:13:20We'll start with a clean, raised bed, like this one.
0:13:20 > 0:13:25And because you can't dig, it always pays to fork in lots of manure
0:13:25 > 0:13:27and compost before you plant,
0:13:27 > 0:13:31because you can only mulch afterwards to improve the earth.
0:13:32 > 0:13:38Now, this trench is something like 15cm, 6 inches deep.
0:13:38 > 0:13:41And the way you plant is along a ridge that supports the roots
0:13:41 > 0:13:43when you're planting the crowns.
0:13:43 > 0:13:47And to make the ridge, you can do it by hand or by running
0:13:47 > 0:13:51a spade on its edge along the side of your trench one way.
0:13:52 > 0:13:55And then the other.
0:13:55 > 0:13:59And that just leaves a nice little pyramid of soil
0:13:59 > 0:14:00running along the middle.
0:14:00 > 0:14:03I've got an old English variety in my bucket,
0:14:03 > 0:14:06it's called Connover's Colossal.
0:14:06 > 0:14:10And it is a male and female variety of asparagus,
0:14:10 > 0:14:13that means some plants will bear berries and others won't.
0:14:13 > 0:14:17And the modern trend in asparagus is to produce plants that are
0:14:17 > 0:14:20all male, because they're more vigorous and you get thicker stems.
0:14:20 > 0:14:24But this variety, Connover's Colossal, is one of my favourites.
0:14:24 > 0:14:27I like the thin spears it produces and it's very reliable,
0:14:27 > 0:14:31and I'm planting this so it just sits on the ridge like that,
0:14:31 > 0:14:34with the roots spreading down either side.
0:14:34 > 0:14:41Now, ideally you want to give your plants 45cm between each crown.
0:14:41 > 0:14:46And just shy of a metre, a yard actually, between each row.
0:14:46 > 0:14:50You just leave those buds slightly proud of the soil surface.
0:14:50 > 0:14:52Then as they grow, you backfill even more
0:14:52 > 0:14:54until the soil is nice and level.
0:14:56 > 0:14:58Going to leave these plants to establish
0:14:58 > 0:15:02and put on lots of leaves to produce a good crop of spears next year.
0:15:02 > 0:15:05But I'll only harvest a few, because it's in the year after,
0:15:05 > 0:15:06the third year in the ground,
0:15:06 > 0:15:10the third summer that you can start taking spears in earnest,
0:15:10 > 0:15:11and then only up to midsummer,
0:15:11 > 0:15:14because you've got to leave the plants time to recover
0:15:14 > 0:15:15and get their energies back
0:15:15 > 0:15:19under the ground to produce more spears the following year.
0:15:19 > 0:15:21Lovely.
0:15:21 > 0:15:23Four more rows to plant.
0:15:24 > 0:15:27Thanks, Toby. We'll leave you to get on with that.
0:15:27 > 0:15:31Next on our journey through the letter A, we're at Allotments.
0:15:31 > 0:15:34It's time to meet allotmenteer Terry Walton,
0:15:34 > 0:15:37a green-fingered guru who shares his knowledge with millions
0:15:37 > 0:15:41of listeners over the airwaves on Radio 2's Jeremy Vine Show.
0:15:43 > 0:15:46JEREMY: 'Gather you got some weather down there, Terry.'
0:15:46 > 0:15:48'I'm standing right in front of my gooseberry bush
0:15:48 > 0:15:50'and this is always my barometer.
0:15:50 > 0:15:53'And there's little tiny little green leaves unfurling
0:15:53 > 0:15:56'and it now looks like a hazy green bush,
0:15:56 > 0:15:59'so if that's starting to grow, there's some warmth in the soil.'
0:15:59 > 0:16:02I do the Radio 2 Jeremy Vine Show once a fortnight
0:16:02 > 0:16:05and it's absolutely a pleasure to talk to him about my plot.
0:16:05 > 0:16:07My goal with the radio show is to get people out there,
0:16:07 > 0:16:11doing their allotments and having as much pleasure every day as I do.
0:16:11 > 0:16:13I was four when my father first brought me in,
0:16:13 > 0:16:14gave me a bit of ground.
0:16:14 > 0:16:16I raked and sowed a few radishes and I was thrilled
0:16:16 > 0:16:18when they came through the ground.
0:16:18 > 0:16:20I got the bug and I don't think I'll ever lose it.
0:16:20 > 0:16:22I eat well off my allotments.
0:16:22 > 0:16:27I can probably eat fresh vegetables off the plot for at least ten months of the year.
0:16:27 > 0:16:30On my allotments I've got garlic, shallots...
0:16:30 > 0:16:32This will produce a bumper crop.
0:16:32 > 0:16:33..strawberries...
0:16:33 > 0:16:35These will be some crunchy carrots.
0:16:35 > 0:16:36..beetroot...
0:16:36 > 0:16:37Look at these.
0:16:37 > 0:16:39..early potatoes.
0:16:39 > 0:16:42Now these are my pride and joy. These are my broad beans
0:16:42 > 0:16:46and these are miles ahead of anybody else in the allotments.
0:16:46 > 0:16:48We've always got something on the plot,
0:16:48 > 0:16:51irrespective of the time of year, irrespective of the season.
0:16:51 > 0:16:53We've always got something we can eat.
0:16:53 > 0:16:57May is a very busy month. There are lots and lots of jobs to do.
0:16:57 > 0:17:00Well, this is known as earthing up your potatoes.
0:17:00 > 0:17:04And this does two things - one, it creates an extra bumper crop
0:17:04 > 0:17:07of potatoes because there's more potato underground.
0:17:07 > 0:17:11Plus the fact it stops the newly formed tubers going green because
0:17:11 > 0:17:14green potatoes are a no-no, they're poisonous, you can't eat them.
0:17:14 > 0:17:17And I really do love a new potato with a knob of fresh butter.
0:17:17 > 0:17:20I'm down here about four to five hours per day.
0:17:20 > 0:17:23And I might as well throw the wristwatch away
0:17:23 > 0:17:25because, when I'm here, the time just disappears.
0:17:25 > 0:17:26I think my wife does despair.
0:17:26 > 0:17:30She's a bit more in the habit of joining me on the allotment occasionally now -
0:17:30 > 0:17:33that's the only way she gets a chance to see me when I'm awake!
0:17:33 > 0:17:36If I was ever cited in the divorce, I think it would be the allotments
0:17:36 > 0:17:38would be the other correspondent, I think.
0:17:38 > 0:17:41She says it's better than another woman, anyway.
0:17:44 > 0:17:47What I'm doing here is actually planting some lettuce seed
0:17:47 > 0:17:50and doing these cut-and-come lettuce, some red, some green
0:17:50 > 0:17:53because Anthea loves this colour on her plate.
0:17:53 > 0:17:56And a good tip when you plant any small seed is originally line
0:17:56 > 0:17:58your drill with some good compost
0:17:58 > 0:18:01because, like everything else, the soil can be a bit cold and wet.
0:18:01 > 0:18:06So I put compost in the bottom, give them a nice little blanket to start their life off in.
0:18:07 > 0:18:10And all allotmenteers worth their salt are very, very thrifty.
0:18:10 > 0:18:12The last thing you want to do is spend.
0:18:12 > 0:18:15We have a big saying - "To become a true allotmenteer,
0:18:15 > 0:18:18"what you can't beg, steal or borrow, then you may have to buy."
0:18:22 > 0:18:25A friend of mine has started work in a coffee shop,
0:18:25 > 0:18:27and she's collecting coffee grounds for me.
0:18:27 > 0:18:30And I'm told that slugs and coffee grounds don't mix,
0:18:30 > 0:18:34so I'm hoping I can protect these cauliflowers with these grounds.
0:18:34 > 0:18:36If this works, this will be truly something
0:18:36 > 0:18:39because I will then be 100% organic.
0:18:45 > 0:18:46What happened to these tomatoes?
0:18:46 > 0:18:49'There's a group of us, the old timers,
0:18:49 > 0:18:51'been here for many, many years and we meet up socially -
0:18:51 > 0:18:54'when Albie rings his cafe bell we all troop along like milking cows,
0:18:54 > 0:18:57'and we sit down there and put the world to rights.
0:18:57 > 0:18:59'We talk about gardening, we brag, we boast.'
0:18:59 > 0:19:01We can solve all the world's problems.
0:19:01 > 0:19:04We do more business in the cafe than the United Nations.
0:19:04 > 0:19:07You went off on holiday and left them abandoned!
0:19:07 > 0:19:09You've got to be careful with the stem, haven't you?
0:19:09 > 0:19:12With tomatoes you don't...
0:19:12 > 0:19:14..don't usually infect you with tomatoes.
0:19:14 > 0:19:17You never leave at the end of the day with nothing to take home.
0:19:17 > 0:19:20Everybody who has a crop failure, the guy next to him has something which has grown.
0:19:20 > 0:19:23They'll always share with you so you'll always go home
0:19:23 > 0:19:26and have a feed and that's what brings you back, isn't it?
0:19:30 > 0:19:32Allotments bring out the best in people.
0:19:32 > 0:19:35It's great to see how everyone just wants to help out.
0:19:35 > 0:19:38In fact, it's such a growing trend
0:19:38 > 0:19:42that there are over 300,000 plot owners in the UK.
0:19:42 > 0:19:45Now we are nearing the end of our journey through the letter A
0:19:45 > 0:19:49and we're looking at some flowers that belong to the onion family
0:19:49 > 0:19:50but look nothing like it.
0:19:50 > 0:19:52Our last A is for Alliums.
0:19:52 > 0:19:57And who better to turn to for tips than Alan Titchmarsh?
0:20:01 > 0:20:04Alliums will pick up the baton from the tulips
0:20:04 > 0:20:07and run with it right the way through the summer.
0:20:07 > 0:20:10And if you look across this border, you'll see they are tremendous
0:20:10 > 0:20:14for lifting a planting scheme out of the flat and dumpling, like.
0:20:14 > 0:20:17Look at these wonderful verticals that I'm getting there
0:20:17 > 0:20:21right across the path and the lawn. I could afford a few more of them.
0:20:24 > 0:20:28And, happily, I don't have to reach for my cheque book, because back in
0:20:28 > 0:20:33September last year, when our garden was woolly and bulbs were packing our
0:20:33 > 0:20:38garden centres, I bought some allium bulbs for just this eventuality.
0:20:46 > 0:20:49The trouble is, you may not know exactly where in the garden
0:20:49 > 0:20:52you want to put these bulbs just yet. Don't worry about that.
0:20:52 > 0:20:55Stick them in compost in plastic pots
0:20:55 > 0:20:59and you can take them out and plant them later on.
0:20:59 > 0:21:02The mix is half and half of soil-less, multi-purpose compost
0:21:02 > 0:21:07and John Innes No. 2, which holds onto the moisture better.
0:21:07 > 0:21:12And why can't you buy them ready-mixed? Well, you can, but...
0:21:12 > 0:21:13they never do it quite right
0:21:13 > 0:21:18and I like to mix my own because then I can feel it and smell it's right.
0:21:21 > 0:21:23Oh, all right, just call me old-fashioned,
0:21:23 > 0:21:26they'll do perfectly fine in the bought stuff.
0:21:26 > 0:21:28And there are more important things to worry about,
0:21:28 > 0:21:30like how deep you plant your bulbs.
0:21:32 > 0:21:36I'm bunging them about three inches down, giving them some protection
0:21:36 > 0:21:37from the elements.
0:21:42 > 0:21:44When you're potting bulbs up in autumn,
0:21:44 > 0:21:47drying out is unlikely to be a problem.
0:21:47 > 0:21:50What is likely to be a problem is waterlogging,
0:21:50 > 0:21:52so the best thing to do is to stand them
0:21:52 > 0:21:56right by a shed or a house wall and they'll get a bit of moisture
0:21:56 > 0:21:59from the rain but they won't get drenched and they won't rot.
0:22:06 > 0:22:10By early spring, they're well on their way.
0:22:14 > 0:22:19And now, in May, they're just about to flower. Perfect for those gaps.
0:22:27 > 0:22:30You're probably thinking when you look at this, "Goodness me,
0:22:30 > 0:22:34"he hasn't grown those terribly well. Look at the dead ends on the leaves."
0:22:34 > 0:22:36Well, this is the way they grow naturally.
0:22:36 > 0:22:39Good green leaves and, as the flower spike comes up,
0:22:39 > 0:22:42so they start to die back. But once these are planted in the border,
0:22:42 > 0:22:45and I'm not plunging them, I'm planting them,
0:22:45 > 0:22:48they'll sink down so much more that the other foliage around them
0:22:48 > 0:22:51will cover up the embarrassment of their leaves.
0:22:52 > 0:22:55I've chosen two varieties for my border,
0:22:55 > 0:22:57to stretch out the season to its maximum.
0:23:00 > 0:23:05First on stage, it'll be the tall and stately Purple Sensation.
0:23:05 > 0:23:08As handsome as a timpanist's drumstick.
0:23:12 > 0:23:16Followed a week or so later by the huge, sparkle-like blooms
0:23:16 > 0:23:19of Allium cristophii, with their metallic sheen.
0:23:23 > 0:23:26And nobody will ever know
0:23:26 > 0:23:28they haven't been growing there all spring.
0:23:31 > 0:23:34They'll take a couple of weeks to reach their full glory
0:23:34 > 0:23:37but knowing they're on their way is half the fun.
0:23:42 > 0:23:45If you're thinking of getting some alliums for your garden,
0:23:45 > 0:23:48don't forget to plant them in a sunny spot.
0:23:48 > 0:23:52Easier said than done. That's the end of our look at the letter A.
0:23:52 > 0:23:57Join us next time for more top tips from The A To Z Of TV Gardening.
0:23:57 > 0:23:58Goodbye.
0:24:06 > 0:24:09Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd