In this week's, episode, I chat to gardener, cook, writer and author, Mark Diacono. 

We talk about Mark's career and how he first got into gardening and became a foodie. We also chat about music, which is a strong theme in Mark's life, photography and Mark’s love of the written word and of course lots lots more. 

You can find out more about Mark by heading to his Instagram page or website and you must read his brilliant, Mark Diacono's Imperfect Umbrella Substack page which can be accessed via this link. 

You can also follow me on my Instagram account by clicking here.

Thank you so much for listening, and if you are able, please do subscribe/follow and if you are able please leave a review.

See you next week.

Mike

In this week's, episode of the Mic the Gardener - Gardening Podcast I chat with gardener, writer, podcaster, garden coach, and now author, Andrew Timothy O’Brien.

In his own words, Andrew says he is the owner of a too-loud laugh. I disagree, it’s great to hear the sound of people laughing in a world where there’s too much sadness and bad news, don’t you think?

I chat to Andrew about his new book 'to stand and stare' published by DK books. There's a lot of gardening advice out there. But none that invites you to think about how to be while you're in your garden. With increasingly busy lives, yet another list of chores seems like the last thing we need when it comes to our own practice of self-care and relaxation. After all, aren't these the things we wanted to escape to the garden for in the first place? What if there was a more low-intervention way to garden, some reciprocal arrangement through which both you and your soil get fed - with minimum fuss, effort and guilt on your part, and the maximum measure of healthy, organic growth for your garden?

We chat about: 

You can buy a copy of 'to stand and stare' by clicking this link.

You can get more information about Andrew by visiting his website, and you can follow him on his Instagram account by clicking here. You can also follow me on my Instagram account by clicking here.

Thanks for listening and please don't forget to follow/subscribe as there are more episodes to come. And, if you are able, please leave a review with your preferred podcast provider.

Thank you!

See you next week.

Mike

In this week's episode of the Mic The Gardener – Gardening Podcast we head back to Otis and Ben's allotment in Wimborne. 

Despite the cold, grey weather, there is plenty of activity going on on the plot as you'll hear in this episode.

But, Ben and Otis have also had their fair share of trials and tribulations to contend with, so it hasn't all been plain sailing.

If you are interested in jotting down exactly what they are growing in the allotment, at the moment, here is the list:

Thanks for joining us, and don't forget, you can follow me on my Instagram account where I am @mike_thegardener, Otis is @otisthegardener and Ben is @shortish. 

As always, don't forget to follow/subscribe and if you're able and please do leave a review for other listeners.

And I will see you as usual next week for some more gardening podcast fun.

Mike 

In this week's episode of the Mic The Gardener - Gardening Podcast, I chat with hardy geranium expert, Gary Carroll of the Cranesbill Nursery.

Geraniums are a fantastic, genre with plants that fit into so many different aspects within our gardens and indeed in containers. In this episode, Gary tells us about:

It's a fascinating episode, which will have you reaching for pen and paper before heading to the Cranesbill Nursery website, www.cranesbillnursery.com. 

You can also follow the Cranesbill Nursery on Instagram by clicking here. 

You can follow me on my Instagram account by clicking here.

Thanks for listening and don't forget to follow/subscribe, and if you are able, please do leave a review.

See you next week.

Mike

In this week's episode of the Mic the Gardener – Gardening Podcast, I chat with best-selling novelist, Erica James.

Erica's latest novel, ‘A Secret Garden Affair' has just been published and unsurprisingly is already heading towards the top of the charts.

We chat about:

And, did we really record the second half of our chat in the shower? You'll just have to listen to find out more.

You can follow Erica on her Instagram page by clicking here or head to her website www.ericajames.com.

Please don't forget to follow/ subscribe as there are still more episodes to come. And, if you are able, please do leave a review with your preferred podcast provider.

See you next week.

Mike

In this special bonus Slot From the Plot episode recorded on 29th March we head back to a cold, wet and blowy allotment for our second visit of the season to chat with Otis.

Sadly, all is not well at the allotment. And this I'm sure will be familiar to many allotmenteers who sow seeds for this seasons crops, only to find that something has got in there and nibbled their plans for successful seedlings. However, in better news, Otis tells me what has been planted, what is growing along well and what their plans are for the next few weeks.

We start this episode by reviewing the frustrating developments in the polytunnel. If you have any tips for success, especially around keeping mice away from your prize seedlings, do drop me a line and let me know, so we can share your tips on the next episode. 

You can follow us on Instagram, where I am @mike_thegardener and Otis is @otisthegardener.

We will be back here again on the slot very soon.

Thanks for listening.

Mike