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In this special seasonal edition of the Loving Your Garden podcast, John Stirland and I sit down to reflect on the gardening year just gone – and look ahead to what comes next.

As is customary at Christmas, we're joined by the renowned garden designer David Stevens (22 Chelsea medals, including 11 Golds) for a relaxed, thoughtful conversation about how gardens evolve over time – through trial and error, changing seasons, and growing confidence.

From drought and erratic weather to winter interest, shrubs as the backbone of a garden, moving plants (yes, even at the “wrong” time), and choosing trees for small spaces, this is a conversation grounded in experience rather than theory. There’s plenty here for newer gardeners, and just as much for those who’ve been digging for decades.

If you’ve ever planted everything you like and only later realised it doesn’t quite work… you’re among friends.

Link to the Video with illustrated plants and garden design here:

https://youtu.be/ru_LEJgaRhY


☘️ Topics include:
– How gardens evolve year by year
– Why shrubs matter more than fashion
– Choosing plants for winter interest
– Moving plants with confidence
– Trees and structure in small gardens
– Planning a garden around how you use it

Whether you’re listening with a cup of tea over Christmas or planning for spring, we hope this episode keeps you inspired.

💬 Got a question for John? Or fancy sending us some fan mail? Drop us a line: [email protected]

📘 Join our thriving Facebook group: LYG on Facebook

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Struggling to get wildflowers growing in your garden? You’re not alone! 🌿
Gardeners are often surprised at how challenging it can be to grow wildflowers successfully, so we've been chatting to Dr Ana Attlee, co-founder of Seedball, to find a simpler solution to creating a haven for wildlife.

In this podcast, horticulturist and broadcaster John Stirland joins Loving Your Garden Founder Rod Whiting, along with Ana, to share a simple, proven method for growing wildflowers - perfect for beginners or anyone looking to attract more bees, butterflies, and birds to their garden.

Ana explains how their innovative approach removes the mystery from wildflower cultivation, helping gardeners of all levels achieve quick, effective results.
We also discuss the best spots and soil conditions for wildflowers, easy tips to encourage wildlife and colour in your garden

✨ And there's a 20% discount on Seedball products for Loving Your Garden subscribers. 

💬 Got a question for John? Or fancy sending us some fan mail? Drop us a line: [email protected]

📘 Join our thriving Facebook group: LYG on Facebook

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It's been an interesting Summer! It started with drought, then the rains came, and as the nights begin to draw in, it's turned unseasonably cool. Signs of Autumn are already showing, certainly in my East Midlands garden (UK). After a relatively quiet spell, the transition to Autumn is a busy time for gardeners and our resident horticulturist, John Stirland, suggests some jobs to consider, such as creating a compost pile and scarifying the lawn. Twenty minutes in John's company is always an education and never a minute wasted, so enjoy!

💬 Got a question for John? Or fancy sending us some fan mail? Drop us a line: [email protected]

📘 Join our thriving Facebook group: LYG on Facebook

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As the sun turns up the heat, so do the challenges in our gardens. In this summer edition of the Loving Your Garden podcast, I’m joined by our resident horticulturist John Stirland and award-winning garden designer David Stevens for a lively and practical chat about gardening through the warmer months.

We explore clever ways to keep your plants happy during hot, dry spells, how to water wisely, and what to plant right now for colour and resilience. Whether you’re battling parched borders or planning a summer refresh, this episode is packed with tips to help your garden thrive through the heat, with design tips from an eleven-time RHS Chelsea gold medallist.

Check out the chapters if you’re short of time – but we reckon you’ll want to hear the whole thing.

Watch the video version: https://youtu.be/OyWh8uJ-qn0

💬 Got a question for John? Or fancy sending us some fan mail? Drop us a line: [email protected]

📘 Join our thriving Facebook group: LYG on Facebook

📬 Sign up for our free gardening newsletter: LYG Newsletter

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This might just be our best episode yet from LYG HQ!

Steve Fives is officially Loving Your Garden’s most engaging member – with more views, comments, and conversations than anyone else in the group… including me, and I run the place!

Steve’s garden is something you have to see to believe, so if you’d rather watch this episode, head over to our YouTube channel: Watch on YouTube

But don’t go just yet – Steve’s also a brilliant speaker, and this conversation on creating lawn envy is well worth a listen. He explains how he took over a tired, uninspiring garden and transformed it with lush lawns and a selection of palm trees, more at home in the Caribbean than Cheshire. Alongside our resident horticulturist, John Stirland, Steve shares lots of practical tips for anyone wanting to give their garden that wow factor.

Check out the chapters if you’re short of time – but we reckon you’ll want to hear the whole thing.

💬 Got a question for John? Or fancy sending us some fan mail? Drop us a line: [email protected]

📘 Join our thriving Facebook group: LYG on Facebook

📬 Sign up for our free gardening newsletter: LYG Newsletter

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With UK gardens bursting into colour, this is a beautiful time of year — but it’s also a busy time, preparing the garden for the seasons ahead.

In the second half of our conversation with Gardener and Broadcaster Martin Fish and our own John Stirland, we cover:

• Pest control, notably slugs and snails
• Growing your own food
• Container gardening
• Getting the best from roses
• Effective watering
• Peat-free compost
• Plus, an important Health and safety tip for keen gardeners

Thanks to Martin Fish for his time. Martin has an excellent Facebook site and YouTube Channel called Pots & Trowels - links here: 

https://www.facebook.com/search/top?q=pots%20%26%20trowels

https://www.youtube.com/@PotsTrowels

Now that we have fan mail, please text in some feedback. Also, take advantage of John's fifty-plus years of experience in professional horticulture and send in any gardening questions you may have.

To watch videos of shorter sections of our podcast, visit our LYG YouTube channel:
https://youtu.be/P_IbqkOzSSY

If you've not yet visited our LYG Facebook site, here's the link: https://bit.ly/3oIzVr9

And to sign up for our free subscription newsletter - it's here: http://eepurl.com/iP4Wd2

To contact Loving Your Garden, perhaps with questions for John, it's:
[email protected]

Send us a text

The new gardening year is well underway, and our Loving Your Garden Facebook group is bursting with colourful spring blooms and a real sense of excitement as our gardens awaken from their winter slumber.

So, what better time to get stuck into those all-important early-season jobs? To help us on our way, we’ve called on two seasoned pros — our resident horticulturist John Stirland and his long-time friend, RHS judge and fellow horticulturist Martin Fish, who many will remember as John’s TV co-host.

In this two-part special, John and Martin share expert advice to set you up for a successful season.

Part One dives into:

• Soil preparation
• Spring planting essentials
• Lawncare tips — including scarifying, aerating, top-dressing, overseeding, and feeding

Part Two will follow next week — don’t miss it!

Thanks to Martin Fish for his time. Martin has an excellent Facebook site and YouTube Channel called Pots & Trowels - links here: 

https://www.facebook.com/search/top?q=pots%20%26%20trowels

https://www.youtube.com/@PotsTrowels

Now that we have fan mail, please text in some feedback. Also, take advantage of John's fifty-plus years of experience in professional horticulture and send in any gardening questions you may have.

To watch videos of shorter sections of our podcast, visit our LYG YouTube channel:
https://youtu.be/P_IbqkOzSSY

If you've not yet visited our LYG Facebook site, here's the link: https://bit.ly/3oIzVr9

And to sign up for our free subscription newsletter  it's here: http://eepurl.com/iP4Wd2

To contact Loving Your Garden, perhaps with questions for John, it's:
[email protected]

Send us a text

If you've resolved to growing more cut flowers in '25 then you'll find Roz Chandler from Field Gate Flowers an interesting guest. Roz talks about starting her cut flower farm 15 years ago almost by mistake and now runs a successful business growing, displaying and teaching floral horticulture. She has some useful tips for starting a cut flower garden and we also get around to discussing peat-free compost including the two brands Roz swears by and how climate change will have a major impact on how we garden (see Chapters for specifics).

Now that we have fan mail, please text in some feedback. Also, take advantage of John's fifty-plus years of experience in professional horticulture and send in any gardening questions you may have.

To watch the video of our podcast, visit our LYG YouTube channel:
https://youtu.be/P_IbqkOzSSY

If you've not yet visited our LYG Facebook site, here's the link: https://bit.ly/3oIzVr9

And to sign up for our free subscription newsletter which this month features more of our Winter Plant suggestions, horticulturist Paul Maxey's demonstration of taking hardwood cuttings and a guide to building a hotbox from fresh manure, it's here: http://eepurl.com/iP4Wd2

To contact Loving Your Garden, perhaps with questions for John, it's:
[email protected]

Send us a text

It's become a thing for multi-award-winning garden designer David Stevens to drop in over Christmas with our resident horticulturist John Stirland over a glass of sherry for a gardening chinwag. The result is always educational as these two stalwarts trade wisdom and a few laughs.  The wisdom includes suggestions for Winter interest in an all-year-round garden, some garden design tips, a discussion about gifts for the gardener who has everything, and the one garden tool that neither of our experts could do without.

To watch the video of our podcast, visit our LYG YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/1oGPrvNO1Kk

Now that we have fan mail, please text in some feedback. Also, take advantage of John's fifty-plus years of experience in professional horticulture and send in any gardening questions you may have.

If you've not yet visited our LYG Facebook site, here's the link: https://bit.ly/3oIzVr9

And to sign up for our free subscription newsletter which this month features more of our Winter Plant suggestions, horticulturist Paul Maxey's demonstration of taking hardwood cuttings and a guide to building a hotbox from fresh manure, it's here: http://eepurl.com/iP4Wd2

To contact Loving Your Garden, perhaps with questions for John, it's:
[email protected]

Send us a text

11 Times RHS Chelsea Gold Medallist (and LYG member), David Stevens, has designed a few gardens in his long career (understatement). Enough to earn him 26 RHS medals and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Society of Garden Designers. In this short video (link below), David outlines 8 key steps to consider before embarking on a garden makeover that will save you time, effort, and tears. He finishes by outlining a postal design service* that makes his knowledge and expertise surprisingly accessible.   
                                                                                                                          *Promo
David Stevens Website: https://david-stevens.co.uk/
David Stevens Email: [email protected]

You can watch this interview with accompanying images on our YouTube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCE7j8D7HCZXg-V6OyRdZxYg

Now that we have fan mail, please do text in some feedback. Also, take advantage of John's fifty years plus experience in professional horticulture and send in any gardening questions you may have.

If you've not yet visited our LYG Facebook site, here's the link: https://bit.ly/3oIzVr9

And to sign up for our free subscription newsletter which this month features a peat-free fact sheet, advice on growing (and getting rid of Bamboo) and John Stirland's demo of taking softwood cuttings (there's still time) it's here: http://eepurl.com/iP4Wd2

To contact Loving Your Garden, perhaps with questions for John, it's:
[email protected]