0:00:11 > 0:00:14I see a bit of a change of temperature since last week.
0:00:14 > 0:00:18- No half.- Aye, but, you know, this hedge is doing rather well,
0:00:18 > 0:00:19having been thumped over the winter.
0:00:19 > 0:00:23Yes, the hornbeam hedge, this side was cut back this winter
0:00:23 > 0:00:25and the winter before it was that side.
0:00:25 > 0:00:27Yeah, so people shouldn't be afraid to do that.
0:00:27 > 0:00:29- Don't do it all at once, though. - This is true.
0:00:29 > 0:00:31Oh, hello, welcome to Beechgrove.
0:00:31 > 0:00:33As I say, there's a lot to talk about.
0:00:33 > 0:00:35Temperature yesterday was 18, the day before it was 19,
0:00:35 > 0:00:37but I reckon it's not 10 at the moment.
0:00:37 > 0:00:39No, I know, but it has been beautiful and of course
0:00:39 > 0:00:42that's brought out all the flowers, which has been superb.
0:00:42 > 0:00:44But I've got my eye inside on the cherry.
0:00:44 > 0:00:47THEY LAUGH
0:00:47 > 0:00:51- It's doing well.- Over there, that peach is just superb.
0:00:51 > 0:00:54- Look at the colour on that.- Yeah. - Just from the blossom alone.- Yeah.
0:00:54 > 0:00:56I would grow it for that.
0:00:56 > 0:00:58Later in the programme we've got Chris with us,
0:00:58 > 0:01:02and he is redoing a job that I remember from about 30,
0:01:02 > 0:01:0540 years ago - island borders -
0:01:05 > 0:01:07and that's precisely what Chris is bringing back up there.
0:01:07 > 0:01:10- But we must get to our stations, must we not?- Off we go.
0:01:14 > 0:01:17And evergreens can create interest in the garden for 12 months
0:01:17 > 0:01:21of the year, but they can also be living works of art.
0:01:24 > 0:01:27Well, it's time to catch up with one or two ongoing jobs
0:01:27 > 0:01:30in the greenhouse and this kind of weather
0:01:30 > 0:01:32is the right time to be doing it.
0:01:32 > 0:01:34Let me start off with onion sets.
0:01:34 > 0:01:37I'm busily putting onion sets into cells like that,
0:01:37 > 0:01:39just pushing them in like so.
0:01:39 > 0:01:44At the same time, I want to scotch a bit of a myth
0:01:44 > 0:01:47that onions from sets don't keep.
0:01:47 > 0:01:49If you want to keep onions all winter,
0:01:49 > 0:01:53they have to be grown from seeds.
0:01:53 > 0:01:55Rubbish.
0:01:55 > 0:01:58My onions, I've still got several left,
0:01:58 > 0:01:59these are always grown from sets
0:01:59 > 0:02:03started at this time of the year just like that.
0:02:03 > 0:02:05The secret in keeping them and getting them like this
0:02:05 > 0:02:07all winter is driving off all the moisture,
0:02:07 > 0:02:10the excess moisture in the bulb at the time when they're maturing,
0:02:10 > 0:02:12because I think that a lot of people
0:02:12 > 0:02:15would grow better onions if they did this
0:02:15 > 0:02:17because getting young seedlings started -
0:02:17 > 0:02:20whether it's sowing them direct or sowing them in trays and so on -
0:02:20 > 0:02:24is much more difficult than this simple wee job.
0:02:24 > 0:02:25There you are. Now, then, next thing.
0:02:25 > 0:02:27A lot of people are using plugs,
0:02:27 > 0:02:28they're buying them through the post.
0:02:28 > 0:02:30These salvias, it's a new variety
0:02:30 > 0:02:33which I haven't seen before - Vista Red.
0:02:33 > 0:02:35They just come through the post, they're nicely moist,
0:02:35 > 0:02:39they're in good nick, and what would you put them into from here?
0:02:39 > 0:02:42Well, at one time you would put them into little pots,
0:02:42 > 0:02:48but nowadays we much prefer using trays, handling like so.
0:02:48 > 0:02:51Make a hole, drop it in.
0:02:51 > 0:02:54These little plugs are quite moist so they'll sit like that
0:02:54 > 0:02:56for a day or two before they need watering.
0:02:56 > 0:02:59And in the greenhouse, on the shelf, plenty light.
0:02:59 > 0:03:01Salvias love good light, that's the important thing.
0:03:01 > 0:03:04So, that's the salvias, and you'll be doing that with lots of plugs,
0:03:04 > 0:03:05different things at this time.
0:03:05 > 0:03:08Here's a bit of nonsense - when I come to plant my broad beans,
0:03:08 > 0:03:10people say to me, "Do you put them on the flat?
0:03:10 > 0:03:13"Do you put them on the side? Do you put them on their end?"
0:03:13 > 0:03:14We're going to test it out.
0:03:14 > 0:03:16Does it make any difference? I don't think so.
0:03:16 > 0:03:18But anyway, that wee tray there, they're on their end,
0:03:18 > 0:03:21all of them in that, they're in their end.
0:03:21 > 0:03:24That, they're the other way round - they're still on their end,
0:03:24 > 0:03:26the other end, all right? That one there.
0:03:26 > 0:03:30And then we've got this one which is on the flat, yeah?
0:03:30 > 0:03:33And this one, there you go, it's on its side.
0:03:33 > 0:03:37It'll not make any difference, but at least we'll prove it, perhaps.
0:03:37 > 0:03:40George, I think we need to go back about five or six months
0:03:40 > 0:03:43when we were in the fruit cage, worried about some of the fruit,
0:03:43 > 0:03:46- and decided to dig some of these pits.- That's right.
0:03:46 > 0:03:50Well, we dug four pits - two at this end, two at that end.
0:03:50 > 0:03:53What we found over the winter as we watched them was that
0:03:53 > 0:03:56one of them was extremely slow at draining.
0:03:56 > 0:03:57The other ones drained reasonably well...
0:03:57 > 0:04:00Not too bad, but the one over there by the blackcurrant
0:04:00 > 0:04:02was holding the water for much longer.
0:04:02 > 0:04:04Now, the site, as a general rule,
0:04:04 > 0:04:07we do have a bit of a problem with drainage with water.
0:04:07 > 0:04:11So, you know, one way round it is putting in proper drainage.
0:04:11 > 0:04:15Oh, but that would be very expensive and, you know, let's not go there.
0:04:15 > 0:04:18Now, the other solution would be if we built up raised beds.
0:04:18 > 0:04:20OK, drainage problems...
0:04:20 > 0:04:24- Drainage problems, but there are other problems, too.- Look at this!
0:04:24 > 0:04:27- This is rabbits, isn't it? - That's your furry little friends.
0:04:27 > 0:04:29They got in one night, or two nights, perhaps.
0:04:29 > 0:04:32How they got in we don't know, and they've ringbarked the apples.
0:04:32 > 0:04:34Now, when you look at this plant you think,
0:04:34 > 0:04:38"It's fine cos there's buds coming." Will it come back?
0:04:38 > 0:04:42So, we put clingfilm round them and that actually acted as a greenhouse.
0:04:42 > 0:04:45Even although they were damaged, they act as a greenhouse...
0:04:45 > 0:04:46So it stops it drying out.
0:04:46 > 0:04:50Stops it drying out, gives it the chance to callus through underneath.
0:04:50 > 0:04:52And what we'll do, we'll put the clingfilm
0:04:52 > 0:04:54back on those ones and see if that works.
0:04:54 > 0:04:57- So it's fingers crossed. - OK, third problem - that one's dead.
0:04:57 > 0:05:00- This one is dead. - And that wasn't a rabbit, probably.
0:05:00 > 0:05:01No, this wasn't a rabbit problem at all.
0:05:01 > 0:05:03I think it's a canker problem.
0:05:03 > 0:05:04There's good roots on that.
0:05:04 > 0:05:06Yeah, the roots aren't bad.
0:05:06 > 0:05:09So, I'm going to plant another one back in its place.
0:05:09 > 0:05:10So, you've got to think about...
0:05:10 > 0:05:13You know, we talk about rosemary plant disease.
0:05:13 > 0:05:15If we're planting in the same place...
0:05:15 > 0:05:18Because there is a problem when we plant back in a hole where
0:05:18 > 0:05:21something from the rose family has been, like an apple, a pear,
0:05:21 > 0:05:23a plum, a cherry or a rose,
0:05:23 > 0:05:26and so we're going to put some mycorrhiza into the hole there.
0:05:26 > 0:05:29That will then affect... You know, it gets right on to the roots.
0:05:29 > 0:05:32- Look at the root system on that. - It's absolutely fine.- Good system.
0:05:32 > 0:05:36- Shall I hold that?- Yeah.- Are you going to trim some of the roots?
0:05:36 > 0:05:38- I'm going to trim some of the top back, OK?- OK.
0:05:38 > 0:05:40Just taking some of these off.
0:05:40 > 0:05:42I should really hold these in my hand like that.
0:05:42 > 0:05:46It's a typical Beechgrove pruning, where we're taking them back
0:05:46 > 0:05:50because we want to have a column just like these ones there.
0:05:50 > 0:05:52So, you've got two columns.
0:05:52 > 0:05:54We've got different types of rootstock.
0:05:54 > 0:05:57- These are the extremely dwarf ones. - Yes.
0:05:57 > 0:06:01This one is dwarfing, but we're going to complicate things
0:06:01 > 0:06:06by putting in what is a slightly more vigorous form.
0:06:06 > 0:06:09They are all the same varieties, new rootstock,
0:06:09 > 0:06:11and we'll be able to work out what the vigour is
0:06:11 > 0:06:14with all the different rootstocks but the same cultivars.
0:06:14 > 0:06:18That's fingers crossed, as long as the rabbits don't get in!
0:06:21 > 0:06:24You know, there's a real chill to the breeze
0:06:24 > 0:06:26on these early spring days -
0:06:26 > 0:06:29not that anyone has told our plant material - and, actually,
0:06:29 > 0:06:33the little stream that we created through the refurbed bog garden here
0:06:33 > 0:06:35is already full of frogspawn.
0:06:35 > 0:06:37The pond has settled in well -
0:06:37 > 0:06:40this is its second season after having been completely cleared,
0:06:40 > 0:06:43and our young plantation of pines waiting to be pruned
0:06:43 > 0:06:45after they've put on a spring flush.
0:06:45 > 0:06:47And the carnivorous plants -
0:06:47 > 0:06:52they're much happier here, free of congestion and in the sunshine,
0:06:52 > 0:06:53but plenty of moisture at the root.
0:06:53 > 0:06:55This terrace, well,
0:06:55 > 0:06:58it's going to be the focus of our exotic planting this year,
0:06:58 > 0:07:02anything which looks tropical and rather sort of glamorous,
0:07:02 > 0:07:05because this is the warmest section of the garden.
0:07:05 > 0:07:09Which leaves this bed up here,
0:07:09 > 0:07:11and that requires something a bit different.
0:07:16 > 0:07:19Let me explain why this bed has to be so different.
0:07:19 > 0:07:22The big vision for it is that it becomes a harmoniser,
0:07:22 > 0:07:26an area of planting that unifies not only what is down the garden
0:07:26 > 0:07:28but is also up the garden.
0:07:28 > 0:07:32So it has to work aesthetically in many different ways.
0:07:32 > 0:07:35And it also needs to be herbaceous and grasses,
0:07:35 > 0:07:38to give us that season-long effect.
0:07:38 > 0:07:40Now, if you take herbaceous planting,
0:07:40 > 0:07:43traditionally you would produce these scallops that I've marked out
0:07:43 > 0:07:48in sand here, and you'd have your tallest plant at the back
0:07:48 > 0:07:52and you'd gradually tier down to the smallest plants at the front.
0:07:52 > 0:07:56And that's perfect, if you're viewing the border
0:07:56 > 0:07:58from effectively where you are, it's a one-sided border.
0:07:58 > 0:08:02You've got a hedge, the wall or a fence, perhaps, at the back.
0:08:02 > 0:08:05Now, as you can see, in this scenario we are viewing
0:08:05 > 0:08:07not only from the path down by the pond
0:08:07 > 0:08:10but also at that end of the garden,
0:08:10 > 0:08:11the conifers and rhodies at that end,
0:08:11 > 0:08:13and also from the conservatory up here.
0:08:13 > 0:08:17So it needs to be a much more dynamic and fluent approach
0:08:17 > 0:08:21and that's why, in our new ribbon planting,
0:08:21 > 0:08:26we're going to start with the plants at the back
0:08:26 > 0:08:29and we're going to allow that ribbon to come right to the front.
0:08:31 > 0:08:34Now, there's one other important difference between
0:08:34 > 0:08:36this ribbon style and the scallop
0:08:36 > 0:08:40and that's that in this particular approach,
0:08:40 > 0:08:45traditionally you would have one cultivar, or variety, per scallop,
0:08:45 > 0:08:47and then that would be a different plant
0:08:47 > 0:08:49and this again would be a different plant.
0:08:49 > 0:08:51In this ribbon planting,
0:08:51 > 0:08:55what we're going to do is to take three, four or five
0:08:55 > 0:08:59different cultivars of plants within any one ribbon,
0:08:59 > 0:09:03and that means they need to work hard as a community,
0:09:03 > 0:09:07and therefore there's some horticultural juggling to do.
0:09:13 > 0:09:15Of course, there's no trickery involved -
0:09:15 > 0:09:17it's all about the plants that you select.
0:09:17 > 0:09:20Now, within this ribbon plantation
0:09:20 > 0:09:22we're going to have eight different ribbons.
0:09:22 > 0:09:25Each one is characterised by one of these eight trays
0:09:25 > 0:09:29and within each tray is my community of plants.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32And the important thing is that that community comprises plants
0:09:32 > 0:09:34that will all work together,
0:09:34 > 0:09:37they all bring something slightly different to the mix,
0:09:37 > 0:09:40they're not going to compete and threaten one another.
0:09:40 > 0:09:42So, as a summary,
0:09:42 > 0:09:46what we've got is a grass to give us something willowy and airy,
0:09:46 > 0:09:49a structural plant that may well stand through winter,
0:09:49 > 0:09:51a sort of rounded herbaceous
0:09:51 > 0:09:55and then a mercurial herbaceous that will flow through and mingle.
0:09:57 > 0:10:01First thing to do is just roughly mark your area out.
0:10:01 > 0:10:03A bit of dry sand, hosepipe
0:10:03 > 0:10:06or even just scuffing with your boot will do it.
0:10:06 > 0:10:10It's just to get an idea of the types of shapes you want
0:10:10 > 0:10:12for the ribbons,
0:10:12 > 0:10:15so you get a sort of sinuous, contour-like movement
0:10:15 > 0:10:17into which you can place your plants.
0:10:17 > 0:10:22And then, round about three to five plants per square metre of planting.
0:10:22 > 0:10:24That means, with the vigour of these guys,
0:10:24 > 0:10:26they'll very quickly knit together
0:10:26 > 0:10:28so you don't have to wait a lifetime to get the effect.
0:10:28 > 0:10:31Start with the grasses -
0:10:31 > 0:10:33in this case the molinia.
0:10:33 > 0:10:36Give a bit of space between them.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40And then your structural plants, your eryngiums.
0:10:40 > 0:10:44Maybe one in the middle there so that will erupt through the grasses.
0:10:44 > 0:10:47One to mark the edge of the ribbon.
0:10:47 > 0:10:48And then, be brave -
0:10:48 > 0:10:51put large structural plants right on the edges,
0:10:51 > 0:10:54exactly the opposite of how you'd arrange
0:10:54 > 0:10:56your traditional herbaceous border.
0:10:56 > 0:11:00But then, this is adopting a very different theme.
0:11:00 > 0:11:03Then you want your mound-forming herbaceous.
0:11:03 > 0:11:06Monarda is a great example of that.
0:11:07 > 0:11:12And Scorpion, with its good purple flowers,
0:11:12 > 0:11:15will start to mingle with the purple blooms of the eryngium.
0:11:16 > 0:11:18And the saponaria...
0:11:19 > 0:11:22..will allow them to hop and skip between.
0:11:22 > 0:11:26And then finally your mercurial little candidate,
0:11:26 > 0:11:28the trifolium,
0:11:28 > 0:11:32will just scavenge around on ground level.
0:11:35 > 0:11:37There we go.
0:11:37 > 0:11:40That's a good drift through there. Let's try the next one.
0:11:53 > 0:11:56With such an enormous collection of plants to choose from,
0:11:56 > 0:11:59one of the challenges of creating a garden like this
0:11:59 > 0:12:01is to contain your enthusiasm.
0:12:01 > 0:12:04But if I had to choose my favourites in each of the categories,
0:12:04 > 0:12:07well, how about this for the grasses?
0:12:07 > 0:12:10This is Jarava ichu, the Peruvian feather grass,
0:12:10 > 0:12:12and you can see it's got good presentation
0:12:12 > 0:12:14even at this early point in spring.
0:12:14 > 0:12:18And it has the most fabulous - as the name suggests -
0:12:18 > 0:12:21feathery plumes which emerge in summer and then last
0:12:21 > 0:12:23right the way through the winter months.
0:12:23 > 0:12:24So a really cracking plant.
0:12:24 > 0:12:27You do have to search around for it, but well worth grabbing a hold of.
0:12:27 > 0:12:30And then another super plant
0:12:30 > 0:12:32that's straight out of the American prairies -
0:12:32 > 0:12:33Echinacea pallida.
0:12:33 > 0:12:36The picture on the card sells it, really.
0:12:36 > 0:12:39It stands really tall, it's got a good,
0:12:39 > 0:12:41solid basal rosette of leaves,
0:12:41 > 0:12:44and the blooms, when they emerge,
0:12:44 > 0:12:46those pendant petals are just to die for.
0:12:46 > 0:12:48It's a delight to grow in the garden.
0:12:48 > 0:12:51And it's also a good example of the fact that,
0:12:51 > 0:12:54in this style of garden, if you can opt for species
0:12:54 > 0:12:57or as close as possible to species,
0:12:57 > 0:13:00then you tend to get plans which have smaller flowers,
0:13:00 > 0:13:03which means they blend better with all of the others,
0:13:03 > 0:13:04less clashing going on.
0:13:04 > 0:13:07But also, they're resilient, they're tough.
0:13:07 > 0:13:09In terms of more mound-forming herbaceous,
0:13:09 > 0:13:13this would have to be certainly top of my list - Gaura Rosyjane.
0:13:13 > 0:13:15Now, the reason we choose this one is because
0:13:15 > 0:13:17it's very scandent in the way it grows,
0:13:17 > 0:13:20so it's brilliant at mingling as well as producing
0:13:20 > 0:13:25a bounty of white but then flushed apple blossom pink blooms.
0:13:25 > 0:13:27And don't be afraid to buy them in small sizes -
0:13:27 > 0:13:30this is a P9, a 9cm container -
0:13:30 > 0:13:34because at this time of the year, if you knock them out of the pot -
0:13:34 > 0:13:37look at that, a real zest for life.
0:13:37 > 0:13:41That is going to go in the ground and just burst into life.
0:13:41 > 0:13:47And for an edger, or a ground cover, how about Stachys Hummelo?
0:13:47 > 0:13:51Fantastic little dark green, glossy, mound-forming,
0:13:51 > 0:13:53but then, later in the summer,
0:13:53 > 0:13:57it has spikes coming out of the ground with whirls of blooms
0:13:57 > 0:14:01in a sort of rosy purple that the insects just go crazy for.
0:14:01 > 0:14:04Of course, with such a bevy of planting,
0:14:04 > 0:14:07all I've got to do now is get them in the ground.
0:14:07 > 0:14:12And it means that we can then be a little bit patient,
0:14:12 > 0:14:15wait for them to mature, come back in the summer,
0:14:15 > 0:14:18and hopefully all of these communities,
0:14:18 > 0:14:20all of these ribbons have knitted together,
0:14:20 > 0:14:22and no matter where you stand in the garden
0:14:22 > 0:14:25they're really sitting up and performing for us.
0:14:27 > 0:14:30Well, these plants after the winter look a little bit sad,
0:14:30 > 0:14:34but I want to take you back to the summertime when this whole bed
0:14:34 > 0:14:38was full of colour, it was full of half-hardy perennials.
0:14:38 > 0:14:40And the reason that I left these plants in,
0:14:40 > 0:14:42it's a Verbena Endurascape,
0:14:42 > 0:14:46it said in the catalogues that it was hardy down to -10.
0:14:46 > 0:14:49Now, the garden temperatures here only went down to -6.
0:14:49 > 0:14:51I don't think there's really any life in them,
0:14:51 > 0:14:56but what I will do is cut them fairly hard back
0:14:56 > 0:15:01and you never know, they may shoot out from the base.
0:15:01 > 0:15:03But I did take an insurance policy,
0:15:03 > 0:15:07because I've actually got a stock plant in the polytunnel.
0:15:11 > 0:15:15And here's the plant, with lots of healthy green foliage on it.
0:15:15 > 0:15:19And I've got a range of stock plants here, the half-hardy perennials -
0:15:19 > 0:15:23we've got the osteospermum with lovely daisy-like flowers,
0:15:23 > 0:15:25geraniums, argyranthemums.
0:15:25 > 0:15:28And what do I mean by half-hardy perennials?
0:15:28 > 0:15:31Well, half-hardy means that they are frost tender,
0:15:31 > 0:15:35and we've been keeping these plants in the polytunnel
0:15:35 > 0:15:38at around about 5-7 degrees centigrade.
0:15:38 > 0:15:42And perennial, well, that does mean that they should come up every year,
0:15:42 > 0:15:44but what I want to do is actually take some cuttings,
0:15:44 > 0:15:46softwood cuttings.
0:15:46 > 0:15:50And again, softwood cuttings have the ability to root really,
0:15:50 > 0:15:54really quickly, but at the same time they lose the moisture quickly.
0:15:54 > 0:15:58So the best thing is to take cuttings first thing in the morning,
0:15:58 > 0:16:01making sure that plant has been well watered,
0:16:01 > 0:16:03and then as soon as you pop them into the pot
0:16:03 > 0:16:05you should put them into a propagator
0:16:05 > 0:16:07or a poly bag over them.
0:16:07 > 0:16:13So, I've got some lovely material here that I can take a cutting from.
0:16:13 > 0:16:16They're roughly 1-2 inches in length.
0:16:16 > 0:16:22I then want to strip off about two thirds of the foliage,
0:16:22 > 0:16:26being a bit careful not to damage the stem.
0:16:26 > 0:16:29And the potting mixture that I'm using
0:16:29 > 0:16:35is just cutting compost, and I've added 50% of sharp sand
0:16:35 > 0:16:37so it will keep it with good drainage.
0:16:37 > 0:16:41Pop that then into the rooting hormone powder,
0:16:41 > 0:16:43just tapping on the side.
0:16:43 > 0:16:47Make a little hole, I think, you know, round the edge of the pot,
0:16:47 > 0:16:51and I could get maybe half a dozen of those into that pot,
0:16:51 > 0:16:53and then it will go straight into the propagator.
0:16:53 > 0:16:56And I've already got some half-hardy perennials here -
0:16:56 > 0:16:58there's a lobelia and a helichrysum.
0:16:58 > 0:17:01So, those have taken about five weeks to root.
0:17:01 > 0:17:04So there's a job for us now, to pot those on,
0:17:04 > 0:17:09and we're going to have lovely big plants by the summertime.
0:17:10 > 0:17:13Well, I'm back in the winter stem garden and, if you remember,
0:17:13 > 0:17:15we planted this last spring.
0:17:15 > 0:17:18The idea was to produce lots and lots of young shoots
0:17:18 > 0:17:20which would give us great colour over the winter period.
0:17:20 > 0:17:24Now, this one was planted at a strange angle.
0:17:24 > 0:17:29This is Salix medemii and I planted it really flat on the ground.
0:17:29 > 0:17:30What I'm going to do now is...
0:17:30 > 0:17:33Some of these shoots which have arisen from this -
0:17:33 > 0:17:36what we would call the crown shoots, which are the ones that arise
0:17:36 > 0:17:38at the corners like that and come straight up -
0:17:38 > 0:17:41these are going to be tied down, I'll tie lots of these down there,
0:17:41 > 0:17:44and then the small shoots I'll just trim back.
0:17:44 > 0:17:47And the idea is to get a hedge here which will divide
0:17:47 > 0:17:50that portion of the garden from this bit behind.
0:17:50 > 0:17:54The whole idea here was to produce a series of winter stems
0:17:54 > 0:17:57which would give us colour in the garden and interest
0:17:57 > 0:18:00right throughout the drab winter period.
0:18:00 > 0:18:03We planted it on a banking where it's going to get the afternoon sun,
0:18:03 > 0:18:06where the yellows and oranges of the sun as it's setting
0:18:06 > 0:18:09will accentuate the natural colours on the stems.
0:18:09 > 0:18:12And here we've got an absolute cracker of a plant.
0:18:12 > 0:18:15This is a thing called Salix alba Chermesina.
0:18:15 > 0:18:18It's one of the best ones for winter stem colour.
0:18:18 > 0:18:22Now, look at that. That is really shining and glossy.
0:18:22 > 0:18:23But it's done its job now.
0:18:23 > 0:18:26Winter's over, it's now spring, so what was going to happen here
0:18:26 > 0:18:28is you want to get the Anderson treatment -
0:18:28 > 0:18:30it's going to get pruned back.
0:18:30 > 0:18:33We're going to take many of these shoots back like that,
0:18:33 > 0:18:35and I'll go right round the plant and do that.
0:18:35 > 0:18:37But I won't throw these away -
0:18:37 > 0:18:40these are going to be used as cuttings.
0:18:40 > 0:18:45What I'll do is I'll take them roughly about 100mm,
0:18:45 > 0:18:47200mm long, something like that,
0:18:47 > 0:18:48and these will be stuck in round the plant,
0:18:48 > 0:18:51or maybe even make a new planting at the front there.
0:18:51 > 0:18:53So they'll go in as hardwood cuttings and that will, you know,
0:18:53 > 0:18:56just increase the volume of that brilliant stem colour.
0:18:56 > 0:19:01Now, also on the banking here we're planting one or two ivies
0:19:01 > 0:19:05to cascade down here, create ground cover and stop us
0:19:05 > 0:19:08having to do maintenance in here, weeding and things like that.
0:19:08 > 0:19:12But really, watch out for these stems next year.
0:19:12 > 0:19:14So, from winter stems to winter shapes.
0:19:14 > 0:19:18Carole visited a garden last autumn which is full of interest.
0:19:18 > 0:19:19Wait and see what she saw.
0:19:26 > 0:19:30Sharks and boats and the types of bunnies that are welcome.
0:19:30 > 0:19:33It's not what you'd expect to see in your average garden,
0:19:33 > 0:19:35but this isn't your average garden.
0:19:46 > 0:19:50Artist David Hawson thinks outside the box.
0:19:50 > 0:19:54For 40 years, he's tamed and trimmed his garden at Monymusk
0:19:54 > 0:19:58in Aberdeenshire to create his very own living artwork.
0:20:01 > 0:20:05This is the yew hedge that we planted about 40 years ago.
0:20:05 > 0:20:08We did it then because we needed some border against the road,
0:20:08 > 0:20:11so it's right at the end of the garden.
0:20:11 > 0:20:14And we have the maritime section of the hedge here
0:20:14 > 0:20:16with Captain Ahab chasing Moby Dick.
0:20:16 > 0:20:19Yes, I was going to say, that must be Moby Dick.
0:20:19 > 0:20:21And you've got this great sense of movement with it,
0:20:21 > 0:20:25because I feel like that fish wants to just jump over the archway.
0:20:25 > 0:20:27It does work, doesn't it?
0:20:27 > 0:20:30A kind of a sense of rhythm with it reflecting the arch.
0:20:30 > 0:20:33So, how did you go about forming this arch?
0:20:33 > 0:20:36I let the pillars grow up straight
0:20:36 > 0:20:39until they were about eight feet high
0:20:39 > 0:20:45and then I attached a piece of fencing wire to the main stems
0:20:45 > 0:20:50on either side and just pulled it together so it bent over like that.
0:20:50 > 0:20:55So you have to be careful that the wire isn't ringing the bark.
0:20:55 > 0:20:59Yes. So I've put it around spirally,
0:20:59 > 0:21:02so it's held firmly, but you're still going to get
0:21:02 > 0:21:04the nutrients going up to the leaves.
0:21:04 > 0:21:06Now, you said the hedge is about 40 years old,
0:21:06 > 0:21:09but how long did it take you to form the arch?
0:21:09 > 0:21:14Oh, I would guess probably about 20 years or thereabouts.
0:21:14 > 0:21:16A lot of patience, then - a lot of patience!
0:21:16 > 0:21:18And then we change to the bird theme.
0:21:18 > 0:21:24This is the avian side, all British species, some in development.
0:21:24 > 0:21:26- This is just out of the nest. - OK, that's the owl.
0:21:26 > 0:21:28And a pheasant. Here's an osprey...
0:21:28 > 0:21:31- Oh, absolutely amazing. - ..as we've got ospreys nesting.
0:21:39 > 0:21:42You might enjoy these two here, Carole...
0:21:44 > 0:21:49..because these demonstrate nicely my principal, at any rate,
0:21:49 > 0:21:53of topiary, which is to allow nature to take its course
0:21:53 > 0:21:56and suggest shapes, and then I help it on its way.
0:21:56 > 0:21:59- Hence the unlikely pairing - the pig and salmon.- Definitely.
0:21:59 > 0:22:01It's wonderful, though.
0:22:06 > 0:22:10- Now, David, this time we're looking at box rather than yew.- Yes.
0:22:10 > 0:22:14When we arrived here, we discovered that we'd got
0:22:14 > 0:22:18probably a 100-year-old box which had been used to section off
0:22:18 > 0:22:22the garden, and it had been left to grow long and leggy.
0:22:22 > 0:22:25Didn't want to take it out, didn't want to remove it,
0:22:25 > 0:22:28so I wove it, or a lot of it, into shapes.
0:22:28 > 0:22:31And are you having to still put in some wires?
0:22:31 > 0:22:34- Because, I mean, the winters, you must get a lot of snow.- Yes.
0:22:34 > 0:22:38I mean, once it had formed, then,
0:22:38 > 0:22:41because it's so squashy and doesn't have much strength,
0:22:41 > 0:22:45then I put a bit of fencing wire round the inside,
0:22:45 > 0:22:48holding the stems together to stop the snow squashing it.
0:22:48 > 0:22:51So, yes, it is quite leggy, quite open inside.
0:22:51 > 0:22:54- Does that help against box blight? - Well, I suspect it does.
0:22:54 > 0:22:57It will allow the air to flow in.
0:22:57 > 0:23:00- Do you take cuttings? - Lots of cuttings.
0:23:00 > 0:23:06The best way is to where the box has touched the ground
0:23:06 > 0:23:07and perhaps been covered with soil
0:23:07 > 0:23:10and you get these little roots coming off it.
0:23:10 > 0:23:13And if you just break those off and stick them in a pot...
0:23:13 > 0:23:15- That gives you another project. - Absolutely!
0:23:15 > 0:23:18- I've got a few more up here. - OK, what else shall we look at?
0:23:18 > 0:23:21Let's go and have a look at the railway carriage.
0:23:30 > 0:23:33Most people, David, would have a summerhouse,
0:23:33 > 0:23:37but you've got this lovely railway carriage which you do use.
0:23:37 > 0:23:39Oh, yes, certainly.
0:23:39 > 0:23:43Other than being a sitootery where we just sit out of an evening,
0:23:43 > 0:23:45- it's also a cinema.- Mm-hmm.
0:23:45 > 0:23:49Children love it because there's a train that runs round the inside.
0:23:49 > 0:23:52So it's a little delight.
0:23:52 > 0:23:54And you've got a signal.
0:23:54 > 0:23:56- Oh, yes, have a look at this. - Does it work?
0:23:56 > 0:23:58If you look up there...
0:23:58 > 0:24:00How unnecessary is that?
0:24:00 > 0:24:04But as you say, the children must love it and I think, well,
0:24:04 > 0:24:05adults, as well, loving your garden.
0:24:05 > 0:24:07But, I mean, it is great fun,
0:24:07 > 0:24:11and as an artist you've got other bit of art in the garden too.
0:24:11 > 0:24:15We've got a pair of blue mountain hare
0:24:15 > 0:24:18and a wire man.
0:24:18 > 0:24:21There's also a bicycle. Did you see the bicycle?
0:24:21 > 0:24:23- Yeah, down the bottom. - That's right.
0:24:23 > 0:24:26If you look at the relationship between the tree and the bicycle,
0:24:26 > 0:24:29you'll see that that bicycle can never move again.
0:24:29 > 0:24:31Very clever, very clever.
0:24:31 > 0:24:33Bit of an optical illusion.
0:24:33 > 0:24:35And do you do anything else with the topiary?
0:24:35 > 0:24:40Well, over Christmas we decorated so that each of the topiary animals
0:24:40 > 0:24:43- has got a red ribbon round its neck. - Oh, gorgeous.
0:24:43 > 0:24:48And I've also done some time-lapse photography using the autumn leaves.
0:24:48 > 0:24:51How long does that take you?
0:24:51 > 0:24:53Well, each one is only about a couple of hours or so.
0:24:53 > 0:24:57If you wanted to inspire somebody to start off with topiary,
0:24:57 > 0:25:00what would you suggest? What would you say to them?
0:25:00 > 0:25:03Oh, you can't really do anything wrong, give it a go,
0:25:03 > 0:25:08because if you've got a block of granite or marble to sculpt
0:25:08 > 0:25:11then your mistake are a disaster.
0:25:11 > 0:25:15But the great thing about plants is that if you're trimming it
0:25:15 > 0:25:17and you chop off something, it will grow again.
0:25:17 > 0:25:19They're all self-healing.
0:25:19 > 0:25:21Anyway, I've had a great time, it's been great fun,
0:25:21 > 0:25:25- quite inspirational, and maybe I'll give it a go myself.- I do hope so.
0:25:25 > 0:25:28It's been such fun having you. Thank you ever so much for coming.
0:25:34 > 0:25:37Well, it's time for me to remind you once again
0:25:37 > 0:25:39that we should be pruning our buddleias.
0:25:39 > 0:25:40This is Buddleia fallowiana.
0:25:40 > 0:25:44It's still a butterfly bush but it's not nearly as vigorous
0:25:44 > 0:25:46as some of the others. Nonetheless, if it's going to suit
0:25:46 > 0:25:49a small garden you want to keep it down,
0:25:49 > 0:25:53so you've got to prune back to these buds at this time of year.
0:25:55 > 0:25:58And we just work systematically through it.
0:25:58 > 0:25:59Two things I like about this job -
0:25:59 > 0:26:02one, I'm standing up, I don't have to bend,
0:26:02 > 0:26:05and secondly, I don't really have to put a lot of thought into it.
0:26:09 > 0:26:12Last week I was looking at the crocus that have been
0:26:12 > 0:26:15naturalised in the lawn and, well, with three days of sunshine
0:26:15 > 0:26:17they started to go over.
0:26:17 > 0:26:21But what it has done is brought out the lovely Scilla siberica,
0:26:21 > 0:26:22my favourite colour, blue.
0:26:22 > 0:26:26And doesn't it go well with the yellow daffodils that are
0:26:26 > 0:26:27starting to flower, as well?
0:26:29 > 0:26:31I'm back in the small space garden
0:26:31 > 0:26:33and I'm going to be sowing seeds today.
0:26:33 > 0:26:37I've measured them out with that piece of wood and just making
0:26:37 > 0:26:41little trenches, and there we are, sowing the seeds along there.
0:26:41 > 0:26:44I like putting the seeds into my hands so that I know exactly
0:26:44 > 0:26:47what I'm doing and I can feed them out and kind of space through them.
0:26:47 > 0:26:48That's beetroot that we're sowing there.
0:26:48 > 0:26:51But the next lot of seeds that I want to sow is peas,
0:26:51 > 0:26:53and that's going to be done with knuckle planting.
0:26:53 > 0:26:55There you are. Set the seeds out in a grid
0:26:55 > 0:26:58and then just press them into the soil up to the first knuckle.
0:26:58 > 0:27:01As Tommy Cooper used to say, "Just like that."
0:27:07 > 0:27:09We thought we would give you what Jim would call
0:27:09 > 0:27:12a pigeon's-eye view of the Beechgrove Garden.
0:27:12 > 0:27:15The garden is divided into distinct areas.
0:27:15 > 0:27:20Starting off is the engine room with the greenhouses and potting shed.
0:27:20 > 0:27:23Moving on to the productive area, with vegetable plots,
0:27:23 > 0:27:25polytunnels and a fruit cage.
0:27:25 > 0:27:29As you can see, the main focus of the ornamental area is the pond,
0:27:29 > 0:27:32with all the little themed gardens around it.
0:27:32 > 0:27:35It may seem a little brown at the moment,
0:27:35 > 0:27:38but we'll return over the seasons to see the changes.
0:27:42 > 0:27:44Do you fancy a piece of salad?
0:27:44 > 0:27:46Well, is this better than last week's weed salad?
0:27:46 > 0:27:48- I don't know, that's it. - Let me try some of this.
0:27:48 > 0:27:50This is continuing the salad theme. There you go, Jim.
0:27:50 > 0:27:54- Any particular...? That looks a bit like pak choi.- That's pak choi.
0:27:54 > 0:27:57- You could try some of my asparagus, George.- Is this yours? Oh!- Yeah.
0:27:57 > 0:28:01I've chopped it up because I picked my first spears on Mother's Day.
0:28:01 > 0:28:02- It's not too bad.- That's good.
0:28:02 > 0:28:04- That is nice. - That is so sweet, isn't it?
0:28:04 > 0:28:05Really scrumptious.
0:28:05 > 0:28:08And of course we've got some flowers in here, as well,
0:28:08 > 0:28:10- which you can't eat.- Well, it looks pretty, it looks pretty.
0:28:10 > 0:28:12But if you'd like any more information
0:28:12 > 0:28:15about this week's programme it's all in the factsheet -
0:28:15 > 0:28:17especially what's in the salad -
0:28:17 > 0:28:19and the easiest way to access that is online.
0:28:19 > 0:28:21Next week, what are we doing?
0:28:21 > 0:28:23Glasshouse, I think, again, but I will turn up anyway.
0:28:23 > 0:28:25- Yes, I think we're both in the glasshouse.- Oh, really?
0:28:25 > 0:28:27And Brian, bless his socks,
0:28:27 > 0:28:31is trying to grow plants which are resistant to rabbits.
0:28:31 > 0:28:35- Good luck to him. - That pak choi is soor.
0:28:35 > 0:28:37- Until next week, bye-bye. - Goodbye.- Bye.