Flowers have been used in cooking for centuries, but there’s an art to the edible flower with which many of us are yet to experiment. 

It’s this art which is central to Carolyn Dunster’s latest book - this episode of ‘grow, cook, eat, arrange’ sees Arthur Parkinson explore Carolyn’s journey with edibles, the simplest and best varieties to grow yourself, and some marvellous recipe ideas to try at home.

In this episode, discover:

• Carolyn’s first discovery of flowers being edible, and how that changed her perspective on growing
• Why it’s so rewarding to plant your own flowers in the knowledge that they’re chemical-free
• The development of Carolyn’s simple, delicious, and visually stunning recipes

Get in touch: [email protected]
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: http://bit.ly/3jvbaeu
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest

Welcome to the latest in the Be Your Own Florist Mini-Series, this time showing you how to craft a stunning display in a vase.

Any vase can be turned into a gorgeous arrangement, but Sarah shows how best to use the flared neck and wide belly of a vase like our own ‘Favourite Jade Vase’, bringing bombastic structure to your arrangement both upwards and outwards.

Products mentioned:
Favourite Jade Vase
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/favourite-jade-vase

Eucalyptus Stems
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/eucalyptus-stems

Thalictrum delavayi
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/thalictrum-delavayi

Persicaria orientalis
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/persicaria-orientalis

Dahlia 'Molly Raven'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-molly-raven

Dahlia 'Caitlin's Joy'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-caitlins-joy

Dahlia 'Burlesca'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-burlesca

Get in touch: [email protected]
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: http://bit.ly/3jvbaeu
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest

As days shorten and the cold rolls in, we’re prompted to undertake some key jobs in the garden this month, so join Sarah and Josie for October’s most important tasks in this special episode.

Sarah and Josie share the need to plant out the likes of hardy annual salad leaves, and biennials if you’ve sown them already. They also touch on the need to harvest your pumpkins and squash, plus the perfect day of the year to plant out more of your tulip bulbs and vegetables.

Get in touch: [email protected]
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: http://bit.ly/3jvbaeu
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest

Garden design is certainly a creative affair, and while Hazel Gardiner’s background was once in fashion, her floristry studio exudes inspiration from which we can all learn.

This episode of ‘grow, cook, eat, arrange’ explores Hazel’s journey from fashion to floristry, the thought process behind her own garden, and her absolute favourite plants for the garden and as cut flowers.

In this episode, discover:

• How Hazel’s background in fashion and events gives her such a wonderful eye in the garden
• The inspiration behind Hazel’s zoned, structured garden in Stoke Newington
• Evergreen plants perfect for those wanting gorgeous impact all year round
• Hazel’s must-have plants in the garden and for cut flowers, from grasses like Hakonechloa to dinner plate dahlias like ‘Cafe au Lait’

Products mentioned:
Stipa gigantea
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/stipa-gigantea
Stipa tenuissima 'Pony Tails'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/stipa-tenuissima
Cynara cardunculus (Cardoon)
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/cynara-cardunculus
Rhubarb 'Livingstone' (Everbearing)
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/rhubarb-livingstone
Hakonechloa macra
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/hakonechloa-macra
Rosa 'Rambling Rector'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/rose-rambling-rector
Cosmos atrosanguineus 'Chocolate'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/cosmos-atrosanguineus-chocolate

Get in touch: [email protected]
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: http://bit.ly/3jvbaeu
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest

Welcome to the next episode in our floristry mini-series, and in episode 3 we’ll be sharing the best way to create a gorgeous, flowing hand-tied bunch.

Join Sarah as she shows the process from the stable scaffold-like base of foliage, to the simple, delicate addition of your most eye-catching flowers, and how to use the bride-bridesmaid-gatecrasher approach to balancing them perfectly...

Products mentioned:

Pelargonium 'Attar of Roses' (Scented)
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/pelargonium-attar-of-roses

Garden Mint (Spearmint)
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/spearmint

Dahlia 'Night Silence'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-night-silence

Zinnia elegans 'Queeny Lime Red'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/zinnia-elegans-queen-red-lime

Hydrangea paniculata 'Wim's Red'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/hydrangea-paniculata-wims-red

Get in touch: [email protected]
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: http://bit.ly/3jvbaeu
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest

Town gardening often demands that we as gardeners use our spaces wisely, and Tom Stimpson’s use of pots can teach us so much about creating a vibrant ensemble in the most modest of spaces.

This episode of ‘grow, cook, eat, arrange’ takes us on a tour of Tom’s garden, brimming with inspiration for us all to plant more in pots to breathe life into compact gardens.

In this episode, discover:

• Which flowers have best transformed Tom’s space over the 20 years he’s been there into a vibrant, aromatic haven
• Tom’s use of topiary and architectural elements to create structure in his stunning garden
• The flowers with unbeatable fragrance for picking and bringing into the house

Get in touch: [email protected]
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: http://bit.ly/3jvbaeu
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest

Welcome to the latest episode in our floristry mini-series, this time bringing the best of your garden to life in a gorgeous tabletop ensemble.

Join Sarah as she demonstrates how she arranges sweet peas, erigeron, phlox and more, talking through the perfect approach to structuring them for their eye-catching moment in the limelight at any gathering.

Products mentioned:

Sweet Pea 'Erewhon'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/sweet-pea-erewhon

Sweet Pea 'Nimbus'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/sweet-pea-nimbus

Erigeron karvinskianus 'Profusion'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/erigeron-karvinskianus

Nicotiana sylvestris 'Only the Lonely'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/nicotiana-sylvestris

Cosmos bipinnatus 'Purity'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/cosmos-bipinnatus-purity

Get in touch: [email protected]
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: http://bit.ly/3jvbaeu
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest

Arthur Parkinson may be a wonderful champion for the portable nature of the potted urban garden, but it’s an exciting prospect that he has the opportunity to grow on some new land in Gloucestershire.

Between the rare breeds of hen and the lovely collection of dahlias that he’s built up, this episode of ‘grow, cook, eat, arrange’ should inspire anyone looking to keep either some delightful poultry or radiant flowers alike.

In this episode, discover:

• Arthur’s experience in Gloucester, and how he came to find the land he’s on
• The lovely, rare breeds of hen that he’s rearing to keep the poultry gene pool thriving
• How Arthur’s got some gorgeous dahlias blooming in spite of such wet ground, with inspiring ideas for standout varieties

Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest
Products mentioned:
Dahlia 'Rip City': https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-rip-city
Dahlia 'Verrone's Obsidian': https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-verrones-obsidian
Dahlia 'Tartan': https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-tartan
Dahlia 'Irish Pinwheel':https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-irish-pinwheel

Get in touch: [email protected]
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: http://bit.ly/3jvbaeu
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest

Welcome to our latest mini-series: Be your own florist - pick and arrange your own garden flowers, with Sarah Raven. 

Focused on the joys of floristry, Sarah will take you through the essential steps to bring the best of your garden to life in a vase.

This first episode is a fantastic crash course in conditioning your cut flowers, following Sarah’s 5 S’s for giving plants the most impressive vase life possible, with guidance on the vital steps like searing stem ends, sterilising bulbs, and where to pick your flowers from.

To get the most out of this episode, you watch Sarah in action over on the Sarah Raven YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@sarahraven

Products mentioned:

Dahlia ‘Penhill Watermelon’: https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-penhill-watermelon

Dahlia ‘Molly Raven’: https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-molly-raven

Dahlia ‘Night Silence’: https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-night-silence

Lilium speciosum var. rubrum 'Uchida': https://www.sarahraven.com/products/lilium-speciosum-var-rubrum-uchida

Hydrangea arborescens 'Incrediball' (Strong Annabelle): https://www.sarahraven.com/products/hydrangea-incrediball

Get in touch: [email protected]
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: http://bit.ly/3jvbaeu
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest

Welcome to the September Q&A episode of ‘grow, cook, eat, arrange’, where Sarah & Josie answer questions sent in by our lovely listeners each month. 

In this episode, Sarah shares the ideal time to mulch your dahlias and how best to tackle the task, and when to start working on forced, scented bulbs ready for Christmas. 

Meanwhile, Josie picks up questions on deciding what to cut back and what to leave on the way into autumn, plus how to spot the ideal time to start planting out your bulbs.

Get in touch: [email protected]
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: http://bit.ly/3jvbaeu
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest