Charles Dowding, possibly the best known name in ‘no-dig’ gardening circles, has spent 44 years growing organic food the no-dig way.

A Somerset native, Charles comes from a farming family and has always had an appreciation of how soil health is directly related to our health. As Charles puts it in his own words, “I was conventional as a teenager, not questioning the world I saw. Then, in 1979, aged 20, I awoke to an awareness of nutrition and its links to food production. I had recently become a vegetarian and that led me to explore organic gardening. And the soil.”

Charles shares his no-dig journey with his 744,000 followers on his YouTube channel. He leads educational courses and workshops at his garden, Homeacres, and has published a wealth of no-dig books and resources.

This May, at The Newt, we are hosting the Great Garden Show. From the ninth to the seventeenth of May, gardeners, growers and curious visitors are invited to join a programme of talks, demonstrations and hands-on workshops exploring everything from trees and ornamentals to edible growing and biodiversity. Leading voices from the gardening world will join our own gardeners to share their knowledge, offering practical tips, fresh ideas and a deeper understanding of the craft of growing.

Before we continue, a quick invitation from The Newt. This May we’re launching The Great Garden Show – a new nine-day celebration of gardening, running from the ninth to the seventeenth of May. Across the estate you’ll find talks with leading horticultural voices, practical workshops, garden tours and hands-on sessions exploring trees, ornamentals, edibles and biodiversity. There’ll also be plenty to enjoy between the programme, from picnics on the lawn to BBQs in the garden to fresh stra

The Newt Podcast is created by the team at The Newt in Somerset and produced by Harry Coade at Sound Matters. If you enjoyed this episode, follow The Newt Podcast to enjoy more walks and talks across the estate, or better still become a Newt Member to visit our estate yourself, stay the night, or shop The Newt online. 

Your 12-month membership also gives you free entry to The Newt's 17 national and international Partner Gardens and inspirational Sister Estates.

Follow us on Instagram @thenewtinsomerset

Paul Lamb, master hedgelayer, has spent over 25 years refining and practising his craft across the West Country and, more recently, in Gower, South Wales. 

Working by hand with traditional tools, he restores and creates living boundaries that support wildlife, prevent erosion, and preserve the character of the British countryside.

His book Of Thorn & Briar and his Instagram account @westcountry_hedgelayer offer glimpses into this way of life, but his true legacy lies in the hedges he lays and the hands he teaches.

Selected subjects covered:

• If hedges could talk, what would they say about us? (02:00)
• Why do hedgerows become fractured? (03:31)
• Livestock boundaries: plant, stone or water (4:22)
• Different geographic styles & techniques of hedgelaying (05:26)
• Paul's background and what got him into hedgelaying (08:20)
• What time of year to lay a hedge (11:35)
• Ecosystem support (13:01)
• Who now wants hedges laid? (14:43)
• Dutch elm disease (21:15)
• Tools of the trade (22:53)
• How to lay a hedge properly (27:08)
• Bestselling new book: Of Thorn & Briar (35:28)
• Connection to the generations that precede us (39:53)
• The future of hedgelaying (42:14)
• What hedgelaying teaches us (43:37)
• Connection between hedgelaying and improved mental state (46:18)

This May, at The Newt, we are hosting the Great Garden Show. From the ninth to the seventeenth of May, gardeners, growers and curious visitors are invited to join a programme of talks, demonstrations and hands-on workshops exploring everything from trees and ornamentals to edible growing and biodiversity. Leading voices from the gardening world will join our own gardeners to share their knowledge, offering practical tips, fresh ideas and a deeper understanding of the craft of growing.

Before we continue, a quick invitation from The Newt. This May we’re launching The Great Garden Show – a new nine-day celebration of gardening, running from the ninth to the seventeenth of May. Across the estate you’ll find talks with leading horticultural voices, practical workshops, garden tours and hands-on sessions exploring trees, ornamentals, edibles and biodiversity. There’ll also be plenty to enjoy between the programme, from picnics on the lawn to BBQs in the garden to fresh stra

The Newt Podcast is created by the team at The Newt in Somerset and produced by Harry Coade at Sound Matters. If you enjoyed this episode, follow The Newt Podcast to enjoy more walks and talks across the estate, or better still become a Newt Member to visit our estate yourself, stay the night, or shop The Newt online. 

Your 12-month membership also gives you free entry to The Newt's 17 national and international Partner Gardens and inspirational Sister Estates.

Follow us on Instagram @thenewtinsomerset

Gaz Oakley, chef, grower and cookbook author visits The Newt ahead of cooking dinner at the Garden Café on Thursday 12th March 2026 and his kombucha masterclass in the gardens on Friday 13th March 2026.

Selected subjects covered:

• Ferments, pickles, preserves in the vaulted cellars of Hadspen House (02:00)
• Intentional house building (prioritising functional design over purely profit-driven conventional methods) (06:30)
• Nature's lavatory paper (16:10)
• The Newt's compost facility (introducing The Newt's compost-guru, Pete) (20:30)
• Veganism & deindustrialisation of agriculture (29:05)
• Fermenting rebellion in the bakery (introducing The Newt's Head Baker, Paulo) (37:25)
• Gaz's kombucha workshop (what to expect) (46:25)

This May, at The Newt, we are hosting the Great Garden Show. From the ninth to the seventeenth of May, gardeners, growers and curious visitors are invited to join a programme of talks, demonstrations and hands-on workshops exploring everything from trees and ornamentals to edible growing and biodiversity. Leading voices from the gardening world will join our own gardeners to share their knowledge, offering practical tips, fresh ideas and a deeper understanding of the craft of growing.

Before we continue, a quick invitation from The Newt. This May we’re launching The Great Garden Show – a new nine-day celebration of gardening, running from the ninth to the seventeenth of May. Across the estate you’ll find talks with leading horticultural voices, practical workshops, garden tours and hands-on sessions exploring trees, ornamentals, edibles and biodiversity. There’ll also be plenty to enjoy between the programme, from picnics on the lawn to BBQs in the garden to fresh stra

The Newt Podcast is created by the team at The Newt in Somerset and produced by Harry Coade at Sound Matters. If you enjoyed this episode, follow The Newt Podcast to enjoy more walks and talks across the estate, or better still become a Newt Member to visit our estate yourself, stay the night, or shop The Newt online. 

Your 12-month membership also gives you free entry to The Newt's 17 national and international Partner Gardens and inspirational Sister Estates.

Follow us on Instagram @thenewtinsomerset

The Newt’s Head of Food, Gelf Alderson, leads us on a journey through The Newt’s four restaurants, meeting the chefs that give them their unique identities.

This May, at The Newt, we are hosting the Great Garden Show. From the ninth to the seventeenth of May, gardeners, growers and curious visitors are invited to join a programme of talks, demonstrations and hands-on workshops exploring everything from trees and ornamentals to edible growing and biodiversity. Leading voices from the gardening world will join our own gardeners to share their knowledge, offering practical tips, fresh ideas and a deeper understanding of the craft of growing.

Before we continue, a quick invitation from The Newt. This May we’re launching The Great Garden Show – a new nine-day celebration of gardening, running from the ninth to the seventeenth of May. Across the estate you’ll find talks with leading horticultural voices, practical workshops, garden tours and hands-on sessions exploring trees, ornamentals, edibles and biodiversity. There’ll also be plenty to enjoy between the programme, from picnics on the lawn to BBQs in the garden to fresh stra

The Newt Podcast is created by the team at The Newt in Somerset and produced by Harry Coade at Sound Matters. If you enjoyed this episode, follow The Newt Podcast to enjoy more walks and talks across the estate, or better still become a Newt Member to visit our estate yourself, stay the night, or shop The Newt online. 

Your 12-month membership also gives you free entry to The Newt's 17 national and international Partner Gardens and inspirational Sister Estates.

Follow us on Instagram @thenewtinsomerset

The Newt's Head Beekeeper, Kerry Redman, lifts the lid of the Newt's hives and invites you to peek in and learn about why you should keep bees and the ethos that underpins responsible beekeeping. This episode was recorded in spring.

Key subjects covered:

• What is a honey sommelier? (03:40)
• The difference between honeys (04:10)
• Is all honey real honey? (04:50)
• Different hive design (05:15)
• Tour of Beezantium (the bee museum) (06:20)
• How do the bees maintain their hives in the Beezantium? (10:00)
• What is propolis, and how can it benefit humans (10:30)
• How to revive a tired bee (14:45)

This May, at The Newt, we are hosting the Great Garden Show. From the ninth to the seventeenth of May, gardeners, growers and curious visitors are invited to join a programme of talks, demonstrations and hands-on workshops exploring everything from trees and ornamentals to edible growing and biodiversity. Leading voices from the gardening world will join our own gardeners to share their knowledge, offering practical tips, fresh ideas and a deeper understanding of the craft of growing.

The Newt Podcast is created by the team at The Newt in Somerset and produced by Harry Coade at Sound Matters. If you enjoyed this episode, follow The Newt Podcast to enjoy more walks and talks across the estate, or better still become a Newt Member to visit our estate yourself, stay the night, or shop The Newt online. 

Your 12-month membership also gives you free entry to The Newt's 17 national and international Partner Gardens and inspirational Sister Estates.

Follow us on Instagram @thenewtinsomerset

What do the gardens of the Newt look like from an insect's eye view? We meet the Newt's resident entomologist, Tom Oliver PhD, who gives us illuminating insight into the world of insects.

Key subjects covered in this episode:

• What the job of an entomologist entails (01:10)
• The role and importance of insects in the health of the Newt's habitat (01:50)
• The life of a bumblebee queen (03:25)
• Evolution of bees (from Ant to Bee!) (07:18)
• Human activity and our effect on insects (09:00)
• Tips on what to do in the garden to encourage biodiversity (09:40)
• The sounds of bumblebees (12:20), hornets (12:45), wasps (13:25)
• How to get closer to insects (14:40)

This May, at The Newt, we are hosting the Great Garden Show. From the ninth to the seventeenth of May, gardeners, growers and curious visitors are invited to join a programme of talks, demonstrations and hands-on workshops exploring everything from trees and ornamentals to edible growing and biodiversity. Leading voices from the gardening world will join our own gardeners to share their knowledge, offering practical tips, fresh ideas and a deeper understanding of the craft of growing.

The Newt Podcast is created by the team at The Newt in Somerset and produced by Harry Coade at Sound Matters. If you enjoyed this episode, follow The Newt Podcast to enjoy more walks and talks across the estate, or better still become a Newt Member to visit our estate yourself, stay the night, or shop The Newt online. 

Your 12-month membership also gives you free entry to The Newt's 17 national and international Partner Gardens and inspirational Sister Estates.

Follow us on Instagram @thenewtinsomerset

Rupert Sheldrake PhD, Melissa Hemsley, Alice Vincent and Head of Programmes at The Newt, Arthur Cole explore how we can foster belonging, meaning and a deeper sense of place in an increasingly fragmented world.

Recorded in-front of a live audience at the Gather & Grow: Connections Festival 2025. We bring together a stellar line-up of thought leaders, writers and experts for three days of relevant, impactful discussions.

The three-day event was packed with wellness sessions, workshop tasters (for adults and children), live music, BBQs, foodie pop-ups, Sunday lunch with Ana Ortiz and Gill Meller, and an inspiring series of panel talks.

Join Hannah MacInnes (broadcaster & journalist, Times Radio, How To Academy) as she chairs the talks and introduces us to fascinating speakers:

Rupert Sheldrake PhD is a biologist and author best known for his hypothesis of morphic resonance. At Cambridge University he worked in developmental biology as a Fellow of Clare College. He was Principal Plant Physiologist at the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics in Hyderabad, India. From 2005 to 2010 he was Director of the Perrott-Warrick project for research on unexplained human and animal abilities, funded by Trinity College, Cambridge.

Melissa Hemsley is a former private chef turned food columnist, best-selling cookbook author, real food activist and sustainability champion who is passionate about spreading the power of feel-good food. Melissa's most recent book, 'Real Healthy', is available now in all good bookshops.

Alice Vincent is a writer, broadcaster and multi-platform storyteller fascinated by the often-overlooked parts of life. A career journalist, she was a writer and editor on the arts desk of The Telegraph before joining Penguin as an editor. Now a columnist for The Guardian and Gardens Illustrated, Alice has offered readers her fresh approach to nature, gardening and life in the city as a columnist for The Telegraph and The New Statesman. Alice

This May, at The Newt, we are hosting the Great Garden Show. From the ninth to the seventeenth of May, gardeners, growers and curious visitors are invited to join a programme of talks, demonstrations and hands-on workshops exploring everything from trees and ornamentals to edible growing and biodiversity. Leading voices from the gardening world will join our own gardeners to share their knowledge, offering practical tips, fresh ideas and a deeper understanding of the craft of growing.

Before we continue, a quick invitation from The Newt. This May we’re launching The Great Garden Show – a new nine-day celebration of gardening, running from the ninth to the seventeenth of May. Across the estate you’ll find talks with leading horticultural voices, practical workshops, garden tours and hands-on sessions exploring trees, ornamentals, edibles and biodiversity. There’ll also be plenty to enjoy between the programme, from picnics on the lawn to BBQs in the garden to fresh stra

The Newt Podcast is created by the team at The Newt in Somerset and produced by Harry Coade at Sound Matters. If you enjoyed this episode, follow The Newt Podcast to enjoy more walks and talks across the estate, or better still become a Newt Member to visit our estate yourself, stay the night, or shop The Newt online. 

Your 12-month membership also gives you free entry to The Newt's 17 national and international Partner Gardens and inspirational Sister Estates.

Follow us on Instagram @thenewtinsomerset

Bruce Parry, Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg, Marian Boswall & Gaz Oakley delve into the cultural momentum around nature and discuss what it all really means and why it is more relevant than ever.

Recorded in-front of a live audience at the Gather & Grow: Connections Festival 2025. We bring together a stellar line-up of thought leaders, writers and experts for three days of relevant, impactful discussions.

The three-day event was packed with wellness sessions, workshop tasters (for adults and children), live music, BBQs, foodie pop-ups, Sunday lunch with Ana Ortiz and Gill Meller, and an inspiring series of panel talks.

Join Hannah MacInnes (broadcaster & journalist, Times Radio, How To Academy) as she chairs the talks and introduces us to fascinating speakers:

Bruce Parry is an English documentarian, indigenous rights advocate, author, explorer, trek leader and former Royal Marines commando officer. He employs an ethnographic style and a form of participant observation for his documentaries. Bruce's new series of 'Tribe with Bruce Parry' was aired on BBC2 in April 2025 and is available on BBC iPlayer.

Dr Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg is a multidisciplinary artist examining our fraught relationships with nature and technology. Through artworks, writing, and curatorial projects, Daisy’s work explores subjects as diverse as artificial intelligence, synthetic biology, conservation, biodiversity, and evolution, as she investigates the human impulse to “better” the world. She experiments with simulation, representation, and the nonhuman perspective to question the contemporary fixation on innovation over conservation, despite the environmental crisis. Daisy's 'Pollinator Pathmaker' video installation for the British Library's 'Unearthed' exhibition and her 8-metre tapestry for the Design Museum can be experienced now.

Marian Boswall is a leading landscape architect and horticulturalist, was a lecturer in Historic Garden Conservation at Greenwich University for several years and is a co-f

This May, at The Newt, we are hosting the Great Garden Show. From the ninth to the seventeenth of May, gardeners, growers and curious visitors are invited to join a programme of talks, demonstrations and hands-on workshops exploring everything from trees and ornamentals to edible growing and biodiversity. Leading voices from the gardening world will join our own gardeners to share their knowledge, offering practical tips, fresh ideas and a deeper understanding of the craft of growing.

Before we continue, a quick invitation from The Newt. This May we’re launching The Great Garden Show – a new nine-day celebration of gardening, running from the ninth to the seventeenth of May. Across the estate you’ll find talks with leading horticultural voices, practical workshops, garden tours and hands-on sessions exploring trees, ornamentals, edibles and biodiversity. There’ll also be plenty to enjoy between the programme, from picnics on the lawn to BBQs in the garden to fresh stra

The Newt Podcast is created by the team at The Newt in Somerset and produced by Harry Coade at Sound Matters. If you enjoyed this episode, follow The Newt Podcast to enjoy more walks and talks across the estate, or better still become a Newt Member to visit our estate yourself, stay the night, or shop The Newt online. 

Your 12-month membership also gives you free entry to The Newt's 17 national and international Partner Gardens and inspirational Sister Estates.

Follow us on Instagram @thenewtinsomerset

Professor David Nutt, Dr. Martha Deiros Collado & Lorraine Candy explore how we can nurture resilient, connected children in a digitally saturated world.

Recorded in-front of a live audience at the Gather & Grow: Connections Festival 2025. We bring together a stellar line-up of thought leaders, writers and experts for three days of relevant, impactful discussions.

The three-day event was packed with wellness sessions, workshop tasters (for adults and children), live music, BBQs, foodie pop-ups, Sunday lunch with Ana Ortiz and Gill Meller, and an inspiring series of panel talks.

Join Hannah MacInnes (broadcaster & journalist, Times Radio, How To Academy) as she chairs the talks and introduces us to fascinating speakers:

Professor David Nutt, DM, FRCP, FRCPsych, FMedSci DLaws, is currently the Edmund J Safra Professor of Neuropsychopharmacology and Head of the Centre for Neuropsychopharmacology in the Division of Brain Science, Dept of Medicine, Hammersmith Hospital, Imperial College London. He is also visiting professor at the Open University in the UK and Maastricht University in the Netherlands. David's recent book, 'Psychedelics - The revolutionary drugs that could change your life - a guide from the expert' is available in all good bookshops.

Dr Martha is a clinical psychologist and HCPC registered practitioner with over 20 years of clinical and academic experience. A Doctorate from UCL, and an MSc in Health Psychology and Family Therapy training from the Tavistock. Martha focuses on our common humanity and the topics that are relevant in the here and now to support parents in building confidence and feel less alone. Martha strongly believes that focusing on the parent-child relationship is the key to effective change, rather than trying to modify children’s behaviour. Martha's book, 'The Smartphone Solution', is out in August 2025.

Lorraine Candy is an award-winning journalist, editor and best-selling author. She has more than three decades of experience interviewing

This May, at The Newt, we are hosting the Great Garden Show. From the ninth to the seventeenth of May, gardeners, growers and curious visitors are invited to join a programme of talks, demonstrations and hands-on workshops exploring everything from trees and ornamentals to edible growing and biodiversity. Leading voices from the gardening world will join our own gardeners to share their knowledge, offering practical tips, fresh ideas and a deeper understanding of the craft of growing.

Before we continue, a quick invitation from The Newt. This May we’re launching The Great Garden Show – a new nine-day celebration of gardening, running from the ninth to the seventeenth of May. Across the estate you’ll find talks with leading horticultural voices, practical workshops, garden tours and hands-on sessions exploring trees, ornamentals, edibles and biodiversity. There’ll also be plenty to enjoy between the programme, from picnics on the lawn to BBQs in the garden to fresh stra

The Newt Podcast is created by the team at The Newt in Somerset and produced by Harry Coade at Sound Matters. If you enjoyed this episode, follow The Newt Podcast to enjoy more walks and talks across the estate, or better still become a Newt Member to visit our estate yourself, stay the night, or shop The Newt online. 

Your 12-month membership also gives you free entry to The Newt's 17 national and international Partner Gardens and inspirational Sister Estates.

Follow us on Instagram @thenewtinsomerset

Arthur joins Eva Kruse, producer of new environmental documentary Bee Wild to record in front of a live audience at Ladbroke Hall during London Climate Action Week. In this episode, we hear from Eva on the plight of the world’s pollinators, what businesses and individuals are doing to protect them, and what we can be optimistic about. Arthur also shares more on The Newt’s biodiversity programme to protect and enhance natural habitats and bring members and guests closer to our wonderful world of insects.

The film is part of a broader global impact campaign called Bee:wild, powered by Re:wild, the nature conservation organisation co-founded by Leonardo DiCaprio. 

This May, at The Newt, we are hosting the Great Garden Show. From the ninth to the seventeenth of May, gardeners, growers and curious visitors are invited to join a programme of talks, demonstrations and hands-on workshops exploring everything from trees and ornamentals to edible growing and biodiversity. Leading voices from the gardening world will join our own gardeners to share their knowledge, offering practical tips, fresh ideas and a deeper understanding of the craft of growing.

Before we continue, a quick invitation from The Newt. This May we’re launching The Great Garden Show – a new nine-day celebration of gardening, running from the ninth to the seventeenth of May. Across the estate you’ll find talks with leading horticultural voices, practical workshops, garden tours and hands-on sessions exploring trees, ornamentals, edibles and biodiversity. There’ll also be plenty to enjoy between the programme, from picnics on the lawn to BBQs in the garden to fresh stra

The Newt Podcast is created by the team at The Newt in Somerset and produced by Harry Coade at Sound Matters. If you enjoyed this episode, follow The Newt Podcast to enjoy more walks and talks across the estate, or better still become a Newt Member to visit our estate yourself, stay the night, or shop The Newt online. 

Your 12-month membership also gives you free entry to The Newt's 17 national and international Partner Gardens and inspirational Sister Estates.

Follow us on Instagram @thenewtinsomerset