• Responsibilities of a garden consultant
• Japanese Knotweed
• Design and Build
• Contracts
• Legalities of being a designer
• Public liability and employers liability
• Case Studies
• Appointing a head gardener
• Artificial grass

Joff can be contacted at [email protected]

His website is www.joffelphick.co.uk

In this episode Joff goes to the Malvern Autumn Show where he talks to Vanessa from garden boot makers Poddy and Black. He learns about traditional trug making from Robin at The Thomas Smith Trug Shop and then talks to Marsha O'Mahony who has written abook 'The Scratch of the Hop' about hop growing and picking in the midlands.

At Glee he chats with Annabelle Padwick from Life at No 27. Bumps into Lee Connoly aka The Skinny Jean Gardener, before talking with Elliot Webb from Urban-Farm-it. He rounds off the show with an update from an old friend of the show Linda Petrons from the amazing children's charity Greenfingers.

This episode is a veritable butterfly extravaganza. Joff talks to a wide range of people about butterflies, plants they need, and their specific habitat requirements. 

Joff meets Tricia Atkinson at Prinknash Abbey and has a tour of the nectar garden hearing about all the plants that are recommended for both the adult butterfly and the larvae.

He spoke to ex national chairman of Butterfly Conservation Maurice Avent ten years ago and recorded their conversation on his battered old minidisc recorder. Thankfully the recording still exists and Maurice was able to tell him all about the history and habits of the Pearl Bordered Fritillary. Chris Tracey from the Gloucestershire branch is an expert on this declining species and showed Joff around the site she maintains to encourage it to breed and increase its population.

Daneway Banks in Gloucestershire is one of the few UK strongholds for the enigmatic Large Blue Butterfly. Sue Smith Chairperson of the Gloucestershire branch of Butterfly Conservation met him there and told him all about the incredible life cycle of this once extinct species. www.butterfly-conservation.org

Joff Elphick visits the Malvern Plant and Garden Fair and discusses Restios with Ray Rowe of Sunray Plants. Andrew from international charity Plantlife talks about their work and Rob Hardy of Hardy's Cottage Garden Plants talks about his Frilly Knickers (yes really!!) and the range of plants he has on offer.

Joff also has a final chat with his gardening chum Geoff about the time consuming and often expensive task of staking plants. 

Many thanks to the sponsor of the show mywindowbox.com  

In this episode Joff travels to the big smoke and takes the tube to Islington where he visits The Garden Press Event at the Business Design Centre formerly the Horticultural Halls. He speaks to his favourite charity Greenfingers. The people behind the app and podcast Candide. Horty legends Rob and Rosie Hardy from Hardy's Cottage Garden Plants. James Mc Donald from Plant Surge demonstrates his unique watering aid and Steve Ratley from Henchman extolls the virtues of their highly popular tripod ladders.

In this episode sponsored by MY WINDOW BOX Joff travels to Worcestershire in the UK to experience The RHS Malvern Autumn Show. With hundreds of exhibitors it has more than enough to fill a whole day and plenty more for members of the family who might not put horticulture at the centre of their lives. 

Joff has a great time and is extremely impressed with the organisation of the show which was very well attended on a bright though blowy day.

Joff speaks to exhibitors about collecting old lawnmowers, groundsmanship, allotments, a record breaking collection of perry pears, and speaks to a charity, Herefordshire Growing Point, that has been offering horticultural therapy at a large number of sites around the country for over 30 years.

In this episode sponsored by MYWINDOWBOX Joff visit the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham to attend Glee-The UK's leading garden and outdoor living trade shoe.Set in huge halls and with over 500 exhibitors Joff had a busy day and walked over 8km!

Joff talks to Charlotte from Natural Grower who offers organic and vegan fertiliser products and soil conditioners which are a by product of her renewable energy plant.

He then discovers a company called Prongcroft a British self-start company from Nottingham who have developed an ingenious weeding and cultivating tool and a gardening kneeler/apron.

GoldLeaf Gloves are well known and loved in the horticulture industry. Launched in 2004 and endorsed by the RHS Joff talks to Kelly Cooney who explains the full range.

David Kelly represents VivaGreen who have a range of compostable and biodegradable products. Joff talks to David about MossOff a safe biodegradable method of controlling moss on your lawn and hard surfaces.

Melcourt Industries are well known suppliers of sustainable composts, mulches, and aggregates. Beverley Moseley spent some time with Joff to explain the large range that they offer.

Super sharp Japanese steel garden tools are the hallmark of Niwaki who also supply tripod ladders and other interesting Bits and pieces. Stewart Willes knows the range intimately and runs through the advantages of some of the secateurs and other tools they have available.

In this episode sponsored by MYWINDOWBOX Joff talks to Henry Robinson who looks after the National Collection of rambler roses in the UK. In a beautiful garden overlooked by his early 19c home Henry presides over 150 varieties of rambling roses. We explore the gardens looking at individual rose varieties while discussing pruning, care, and maintenance regimes. Henry opens the garden every year usually in the last month of June. Visit www.moorwoodroses.co.uk

In this episode sponsored by MYWINDOWBOX Joff travels to London to visit the old Horticultural Halls in Islington where the annual Garden Press Event is held for all members of the Horticultural Press to come along and look at products old and new. 

Joff talks to Johanna of Stone Globe Lights, a beautifully made range that are designed to blend in whatever your local stone and whatever the time of day or night. 

Simon from Willow Wand has an interesting product comprising woven willow wands that can be planted in pots or open ground to make an attractive quick growing topiary feature

Hugh Frost showed me the product range from Grazers. This liquid formulae is applied to plants to prevent pest damage and has no effect on the the food chain or the garden ecosystem.

Neil Urry from Vegepod has travelled 12,000 miles to bring us his raised vegetable growing platform. With its hinged hood and integrated irrigation system it's popular throughout the world.

The final product I look at is the Hotbin composting system. Cheryl describes how it's constructed from a hardwearing and efficient insulating material and breaks food and garden waste down into compost in record time. Because of the heat generated kitchen scraps can also be added.

Thank you to everyone for their time.

Also mentioned

Garden Press Event

Garden Media Guild

In this episode sponsored by mywindowbox Joff Elphick talks to poet, songwriter, author, and nature lover Pam Ayres. 

We talk about her 2018 bestseller 'The Last Hedgehog' and discuss the plight of our most loved and only spikey garden mammal.

Pam kindly recites the book as well as part of another poem that she wrote way back in 1972.

Ways of encouraging hedgehogs are discussed as well as how to plant up your garden to create a wildlife haven. 

Sarah Wilson from the Roots and All podcast tells us about her show and I catch up with my old gardening chum Geoff Carr to talk about a new piece of equipment that I find invaluable in the garden.