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Dig It - Discussions on Gardening Topics

August in the Garden

Season 1, Ep. 10

August in the Garden Show Notes

 

In this episode Chris and Peter discuss National Allotments week and their drive towards sustainability helped by using water butts and mulch to conserve water.

Find out about National Plum Day, Pershore and the Vale of Evesham including the Victoria Plum and how it grows and fruits on North facing walls.

We discuss Waspinators and wasp traps to keep the wasps away from your Tea and cake! They also share the difference between High Tea and Afternoon tea.

August is the time to check your potatoes for Blight. Find out what to do if you have it and how to check whether your potatoes are ready to lift. Garlic, shallots and onions are nearly ready for harvest too and we have a tip on how to get the bulbs to mature.

Learn of the benefits of the Hozelock Growbag Waterer for growing tomatoes and using good fertilizers like Phostrogen to stop blossom end rot.

There’s still time to plant Lettuce - lollo rossa, Radish – French Breakfast,  and for next year it is now time to plant your, Spring onions – White Lisbon, Spring Cabbages Offenham Spring, Swiss Chard – Bright Lights, Pak Choi. We discuss how to use Cress seeds to mark out your rows of slow sprouting vegetables like Parsnip and have the bonus of delicious Cress seedlings.

In case you haven’t yet seen it the informative Whartons rose video is well worth a watch (discussed in more detail in our Celebrating Roses podcast)

 

Chris and Peter discuss their favourite fruit, the Strawberry, and the Strawberry Alpine.

It’s time to start taking softwood cuttings from semi hardy plants like Argyranthemum just in case your specimen plants get killed off by harsh winter frosts and we explain how to use rooting powder and gels and what to plant your cuttings in, including the benefits of mixing in some Perlite or Vermiculite.

 

Buckingham Palace Gardens are open until the 19th Sept and we chat about what the gardens have to offer. Other gardens to visit more local to you and across the country can be found at National Gardens Scheme.


Peter's Broad bean Dip recipe:

250g - 300g of shelled (or frozen) broad beans

3 or 4 cloves of Garlic

25 ml of olive oil

retain a small amount of water the beans were cooked in

Sprig of Rosemary

Listen to the episode to find out how to make the dip.


Music by Chiltern Music Therapy

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  • 2. For the love of Chillies, with Jason Breed

    58:19
    The temperature rises in this edition of Dig It as Peter Brown and Chris Day chat with passionate chilli grower Jason Breed. Jason, a seed specialist from Moles Seeds, gives a full rundown of the growing of these popular fiery fruits, a look at what makes chillies so hot, plus some insightful advice on getting the best from your plants and using them in the kitchen. Chilli peppers are varieties of the berry-fruit of plants from the genus Capsicum, which are members of the nightshade family Solanaceae, cultivated for their pungency. Chilli peppers are widely used in many cuisines as a spice to add ‘heat’ to dishes. There are many health benefits associated with chillies too. The Scoville Scale is a measurement of pungency (spiciness or ‘heat’). Jason famously created a Chocolate Chip Chilli Cookie featuring Habanero chillies at the Garden Centre. Products mentioned: Products derived from chillies including sprays for bears, elephants (using barriers of chilli plants) and as an effective squirrel deterrent. Use Vermiculite at seed sowing time. Use a decent seed and cutting peat-free compost such as Levington’s. LED plant lights to help growth. Hydroponic systems lend themselves to chilli production. Use Organic contact sprays for caterpillars, greenflies, flea beetles, sawflies and whitefly control. Fertilisers including Chilli Focus Premium Liquid Concentrated Fertiliser. Chilli varieties mentioned: ‘Apache’, ‘Quick Fire’ (30k on the Scoville scale), F1 hybrid, is the fastest maturing chilli available from seed with the prolific fiery red fruits produced in as little as 50 days from sowing. ‘Red Air’ (Bird’s eye type, Scoville Scale 70-80k), ‘Red Flame’ (Cayenne type, 30-50k), ‘Rocky’, a Jalapeno hybrid, 8k and ‘Santana’ (hybrid Anaheim, 2.5-3.5k).Open pollinated types include Scotch Bonnet, Habanero and Tabasco, where seeds can be successfully saved from these plants. Guinness World Records declares Pepper X as world’s new hottest chili pepper. A garden axe would be Jason’s essential castaway item. The latest Guinness World Chilli eating record. Useful linksChillies available from the Garden Centre including Padron Chilli Pepper and De Cayenne, South Devon Chilli Farm and Chilli Ranch. Jason also mentioned a Bedfordshire commercial chilli grower. Our thanks to Chiltern Music Therapy for supplying the music.
  • 1. March '24 in the Garden

    52:30
    The traditional starting point for many gardeners - Easter - falls early this year, so there’s much to be getting on with. Dig It’s Peter Brown and Chris Day bring us the latest events, news and topical advice for the month.Plants mentioned: Forsythia, Snowdrops, Winter Aconites, Narcissi, Ulmus wredei, Buxus, Euonymus Jean Hugues and Green Spire, Daffodils, Dahlias, Gladioli, Freesia, Tuberous begonias, Sunflowers, Zinnia, and Cosmos. Veg plug plants, seeds of Cabbage, Tomatoes, Runner beans, Courgettes, Squashes, Rhubarb varieties Timperley Early, Glaskin’s Perpetual and Victoria. Onion Stuttgarter Giant, Hercules F1 and Centurion F1.Products mentioned: Garden hoe, Compost mulch, Hotbin Composter and potato polybags.What’s onTuesday 2nd March The Woodland Trust, our charity of the year will be joining us at the Garden Centre.Tuesday 2nd - 10th March: Philadelphia Flower Show at the Pennsylvania Convention Centre, Philadelphia, USSunday 17th March: Rare Plant Fair at The Bishop's Palace, Wells, Somerset, 10am - 4pm.20th -24th March: Melbourne International Flower & Garden Show, Royal Exhibition Building & CarltonWednesday 20th March: Orchid Day at the Garden Centre with Manos Kanellos, 11am-3pm.Saturday 23rd March: Digby Hall Plant Fair, Sherborne, Dorset. 10am-2pm. Free admission.Saturday 23rd – Sunday 24th March: Falmouth Spring Flower Show. This historic show features 100 classes, expert talks and activities.Monty Don’s Spanish Gardens on BBC iPlayerNewsTV Dr Amir Khan's thoughts on gardening and mental healthA new study by the University of Surrey’s Global Centre for Clean Air Research highlighting useful evergreens which are best to clean the air.Plant Heritage are asking gardeners across the UK to search for any rare or unusual plants in their Threatened Plants of the Year 2024 Competition.New naturally resistant Elms are planted in Scotland.Help for hedgehogs as robotic lawn mowers create a new safety concern.Garden Centre highlights extent of current retail crime and violence.A garden planned for Queen Elizabeth.A call to arms from Monty Don encouraging shoppers to buy peat-free.Lichens on the International Space Station.Stink bug causes chaos Down Under.Name your plants from Westland research.Seiont Nurseries embrace peat-free production.A new magnolia discovered in northern Honduras.Garden resilience is set to change Sheffield Park and Gardens in major re-vamp.Floral clock to be restored at Weston-Super-Mare.Brogdale; One of the world’s largest fruit tree collections sold.Blueberry blues as scientists reveal the secret of its colour.Welsh gardeners are offered £20 vouchers to remove Cotoneaster horizontalis.Time to get spotting with the RHS Bumblebee Trust survey.Celebrating 125 years of the HTA.Mr Plant Geek is the host for the new RHS Urban Show in Manchester. Dig It’s top 5 top selling composts of last season. Top seller Jack’s Magic All Purpose Improved, 2nd The Gardeners Multi-Purpose from Westland 3rd Levington Multi-Purpose plus John Innes, 4th Miracle-Gro Peat Free Compost and 5th Westland New Horizon All Plant CompostOur thanks to Chiltern Music Therapy for supplying the music.
  • 24. The Orchid Expert Peter White

    58:10
    In this edition of Dig It Peter Brown and Chris Day chat with orchid supremo Peter White. Peter began growing orchids in 1980 and he has received many awards including RHS Gold medals for his orchid displays at RHS shows and he is a qualified judge of the RHS Orchid Committee. He is currently involved in the breeding of miniature Cymbidium and miniature Phalaenopsis. Peter White is a popular speaker on orchid growing and has supported Buckingham Garden Centre over many years.Plants mentioned: Cymbidiums, Phalaenopsis ‘Sogo Yukidian’, Kalanchoe, Echeveria, Streptocarpus, and Saintpaulia (African Violets).People, places, and products mentioned: Peter took us back to the large orchid collection at Aynho Park House, with his mentor gardener and orchid enthusiast Ted Humphris. Between 1938 and 1965 Ted showed plants he had grown to the Royal Horticultural Society’s Shows at Westminster, and he won 25 awards. Ted’s most famous plant was an orchid, Cattleya Portia which Peter discusses. Ted tended it for almost 50 years, and the second time he exhibited it at Westminster in November 1948 there were over 520 blooms, making it the biggest orchid in the world (at the time). Ted wrote two books: Garden Glory about his life as a gardener, and Apricot Village, a more general book giving snapshots of life in Aynho during Ted’s lifetime.Solihull Orchid Society.Orchid Judging and The British Orchid Council.RHS Orchid Committee. The Dutch company Floricultura are the biggest propagator of orchids with the largest laboratories in the world. The 23rd World Orchid Conference and the 20th Taiwan International Orchid Show. Orchid Focus Repotting Compost and Orchid Focus Bloom and Orchid Focus Grow fertiliser. Make sure you use a fertiliser on your orchids which contains no urea (Uric nitrogen). Use clear pots for Phalaenopsis - so light gets to the roots and you can observe the roots easily.For cymbidiums use Chempak® High Nitrogen Feed - Formula 2. A soluble rapid growth feed which gets leaves and stems off to a strong start in summer and then follow with a Tomato Feed in autumn. Houseplant Compost, Vermiculite, potting grit. Opti flora – producers of extra-large and special Phalaenopsis. Dibleys Nursery – streptocarpus specialists. The Dutch Flower Auction in Aalsmeer, Netherlands.How dyed blue orchids are created on YouTube.Peter’s Orchid accessories website.Desert Island mentions: Phalaenopsis and a decent Swiss army knife with plenty of gadgets!Our thanks to Chiltern Music Therapy for supplying the music. 
  • 23. February '24 in the Garden

    52:10
    It’s February and the garden is starting to awake. In this edition of Dig It Peter Brown and Chris Day bring us the latest events, plants and people making the headlines as well as some topical advice on getting the best from your garden this month.What’s on1st - 29th February: Snowdrop season at Waterperry Gardens featuring over 60 different snowdrop varieties. Gardens open 10am - 5pm.3rd February: Graft and Grow Day at Buckingham Garden Centre and held in conjunction with The Mid-Shires Orchard Group, 10am - 4pm. Scion wood swap, fruit tree grafting demos, rootstocks, and fruit trees to buy and much more.3rd February - 10th March: Explore RHS Wisley's glasshouses for their annual Houseplant Takeover with the theme 'Plants Before Time'.8th February - 1 May: Danger and Desire: The Seductive Power of Orchids. Exhibition at RHS Wisley.Saturday 10th February: ‘Golden and Delicious - Edwardian Gardens’ A lecture by Caroline Holmes. Writtle University College, Writtle. 11.30am - 13.30pm.Top selling potatoes in 2023 1st Charlotte (2nd early) 2nd Desire (main) 3rd Kestrel (2nd) 4th Cara (main) 5th Arran Piot (1st).Plant mentions: Arbutus unedo, Betula (Himalayan birch), Broad beans, Dogwoods including ‘Midwinter Fire’ (Cornus) Hardy orchids, Fargesia (clump forming bamboo), Hedera (ivy), Mahonia, Mentha (mint), bedding Geraniums, Garlic, Sweet peas, Lettuce, Chinese money plant, Sansevieria Cylindrica Braided and Witch Hazel (Hamamelis).People, places and product mentions: Ashridge Forest, Gertrude Jekyll, Edwardian Garden style, Georgian Parks and Gardens Round-Up weedkiller, Kathy Brown’s Garden featured on BBC Gardeners’ World, Landscape weed-suppressing fabric, Melcourt peat-free composts, houseplants fill one of the Malvern Garden Buildings at the Garden Centre, Nest boxes, Tim Chafor, Composted Bark and Hot Bin Composting.NewsDormice under threat from wetter weather and climate change.Bamboo is the new Japanese knotweed.Kew experts predict horticultural trends Grapes in, apples out – RHS predicts garden trends as climate changesBumper year for British wine growers as output almost doubles.Dutch growers benefit from increased energy subsidies.The Dutch Flower Association acknowledges peat-free growing medium for the first time.First skatepark incorporated into a Chelsea Flower Show garden sparks debateA Tasmanian garden wins the world’s ugliest lawn competition (video)DEFRA launches Forest of the National competition with the overall winner receiving £10m to fund their project.The RHS launches an AI chatbot called Chatbotanist to provide advice for members through their phone or PCOldest fungal plant named after children’s book author and illustrator, Beatrix Potter.Biochar start-up Earthly Biochar has come up with a government-funded project that’s setting out to help save Britain's ash trees.New Mr Fothergill’s wildlife seed mix launched by BBC Children in Need.New findings suggest flowers are evolving to self-pollinate2023 was a record year for the National Garden SchemeOur thanks to Chiltern Music Therapy for supplying the music
  • 22. Val Bourne, a natural approach to organic gardening

    01:06:04
    In this episode of Dig It Chris Day and Peter Brown chat with Val Bourne - a lifelong gardener and award-winning garden writer whose name will be familiar to readers of The Telegraph, Country Life, Gardens Illustrated, Amateur Gardening and Saga magazine amongst others. As well as writing and lecturing, Val is an organic hands-on gardener and by her own admission a committed plantaholic.Plants mentioned: Agapanthus, Artemisia, Antirrhinums, Aquilegia, Aster, bee orchid, Daphne Bholua, Camassia, Cosmos, Foxgloves, flowering cherry trees, Dahlia, Dierama, Lonicera fragrantissima (winter honeysuckle), Hellebores, hardy ferns, Narcissi, Nasturtiums, Paeonia, Pears, Penstemons, Rose Champagne Moment, Rose Wildeve, Red trefoil, Yellow Rattle, Phlox, Snowdrops, Trilliums, Whitebeam, Winter sweet and Zinnia.People, places and products mentioned: Aphids, Buglife, Adam Henson, Ann-Marie Powell (garden designer), Long tailed bees, caterpillar control in salt water, earwigs, Blackspot, Hook Norton Brewery, Ground beetles, Thames Valley radio programme Dig It (no longer broadcast), ladybirds (two, seven spot, meadow species), Book English Pastoral by James Rebanks, Jennifer Owen (zoologist) and her book Jennifer Owen - Wildlife of a Garden: A Thirty-year Study (published by RHS). Andrew Halstead, retired RHS Principal Entomologist. Rothamsted Research Station, Cedric Morris garden at Chelsea, and No Mow May.Val’s desert island tool - Cobra headed weeder tool. Castaway plant Amsonia, the eastern blue star plant.Val’s book’s The Living Jigsaw, (Kew Publishing), The Natural Gardener: The Way We All Want to Garden, (Francis Lincoln) plus Val’s 10 Minute Gardener’s range of books covering vegetable, fruit, Grow your own and flower growing.Our thanks to Chiltern Music Therapy for supplying the music.
  • 21. January '24 in the Garden

    52:12
    The month of resolutions, new starts, and big dreams for the coming year. Peter Brown and Chris Day take time to delve into some of the talked about trends of 2024, plus the usual mix of gardening news, events, and gardening advice for the month ahead.What’s onMonday 1st January Sir Harold Hillier Gardens Guided Tour. Romsey, Hampshire.Thursday 18th January: Rose Pruning Masterclass with Michael Marriott at Borde Hill, Haywards Heath in West Sussex. Saturday 20th January: National Tulip Day in the centre of Amsterdam, 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm. Saturday 27th January: Talk ‘Puzzle Pictures’, 2.30-5pm organised by the Buckinghamshire Gardens Trust and to be held at Aylesbury Methodist Church and Centre.26-28th January: RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch.27-28th January: Houseplant Weekend at RHS Garden Bridgewater.Saturday 3rd February: Buckingham Garden Centre’s Graft and Grow Day featuring fruit tree grafting in conjunction with The Mid-Shires Orchard Group. 10am - 4pm.Looking to get out and about? There’s plenty of great winter gardens around the UK to visit on the Great British Gardens website.Dig It top 5 selling trees of 2023 Sharing the top slot Malus ‘Aros’ and Cotoneaster ‘Cornubia’, joint 2nd place with Malus ‘Red Obelisk’ and Prunus ‘Amanogawa’ and in the third place Acer ‘Brandywine’.As we start the year, here’s our followers top most popular guest podcasts to date. Top slot is No Dig with Charles Dowding, in the second slot is Cottage Gardening with Rosy Hardy. In third position The Queen of the Herb’s Jekka McVicar followed by Cherry growing with Vikki Grainge and at the 5th slot Composting with Rod Weston.NewsEnd of the line for peat composts at Evergreen after 22 years.Arit Anderson, in her new book, highlights a range of garden trees that can stand up for our changing climate.Scientist calls for new ways to understand plant durability in recent RHS talk.Low-level offenders will clean up graffiti and plant trees instead of being sent to prison as ministers try to solve major overcrowding crisis in UK.Global action to save Aussie ‘living dinosaur’ tree. International conservation charity Plantlife secures £80,000 campaign target to increase lichen research.UK bans giant rhubarb after study finds popular garden plant is invasive species.Plant fossils are remains of ancient baby turtles.The Young People in Horticulture Association (YPHA) reach a membership milestone of over 700 members.Peach Fuzz is Pantone colour of the year. A velvety gentle peach whose all-embracing spirit enriches mind, body, and heart. Expect to see plenty of peach tones and hues this year! 2024 is the year for Edimentals. Garden ornament turns out to be live bomb.Plant mentions: Box, Cyclamen persicum (large florist cyclamen), Broccoli, Purple and white sprouting broccoli, Globe artichoke, Reindeer moss, Mixed Native Hedging, Gunnera maculata, Honeysuckle hedging, Pansies, Swiss Chard, Chinese lanterns, Lettuce ‘Lollo Rossa,’ ornamental grasses, Pea ‘Feltham First’ and ‘Meteor,’ Geraniums (from seed), Liliums, autumn fruiting raspberries, strawberry runners, and seed potatoes.Product Mentions: Kelkay trends for 2024, terracotta pots, lawn aerator, mower service, Haxnicks Fleece jackets and organic winter wash.Our thanks to Chiltern Music Therapy for supplying the music. 
  • 20. Alan Sargent - Confessions of a Great Gardener

    54:34
    In this edition of Dig It we chat with multi-award-winning Garden Designer and Landscape Contractor Alan Sargent, a Fellow of The Institute of Horticulture and Founder of The Association of Professional Landscapers. Alan Sargent is a proper landscape gardener who over the past five decades has won countless awards, including over sixty Royal Horticultural Society Show Garden medals at Chelsea, Hampton Court, Tatton Park and Gardeners’ World Live.Alan’s latest book, Confessions of a Gardener, helps support the fantastic charity Perennial - the Gardeners’ Royal Benevolent Society. £4 will be donated to Perennial. You can order it here.Product mentions: Consider a Hydrological survey which documents the source (inflow), route, and flow (outflow) of springs, brooks, streams, rivers, and culverts. The report also notes water depths, seasonal flooding, and the significance of surface water runoffs on your land and beyond. Lasers for levels rather than water levels. Butyl pond liner, Bradstone paving and stone, Porcelain, Indian sandstone paving, importance of permeable materials for drainage.Plant mentions: Palm trees, wildflowers, and re-wilding to help attract birds, bee friendly plants for pollinators and Japanese maples.People mentions: Alan Titchmarsh - mentor to Alan, Peter Seabrook, Prince Phillip Duke of Edinburgh, Princess Alexandra, Patron of Action for Blind People as well as being President of Sightsavers. Garden designers Robin Williams, Mark Gregory, who has been involved with 99 gardens at the Chelsea Flower Show, with a total of 160 show gardens for the RHS, making him the most medalled garden builder within the RHS. Peter Rodgers, garden designer. TV presenter and botanist Dr David Bellamy. Peter Rodgers, garden designer.Desert island tool: A Swiss army knife.Alan Sargent’s website Landscape Library (educational resource)The Association of Professional Landscapers (APL, Find a Landscaping Professional) The Professional Garden Consultants Association The Chartered Institute of HorticultureOur thanks to Chiltern Music Therapy for supplying the music.
  • 19. December '23 in the Garden

    45:19
    Dig It hosts Peter Brown and Chris Day look at the latest news, views, and gardening tasks to keep you busy, plus the Dig it top 5, and some ideas for getting out and about this month.What’s on7 – 11 December Winter Flower Week at the Garden Museum, London. Five floral designers transform the Garden Museum into an environmentally friendly floral winter wonderland.Friday 8th December, 12 noon – 4pm at the Garden Centre we have a wine tasting event with our good friend Tim Chafor from Chafor Vineyard Estate, Gawcott.The RHS are running Glow Events at their gardens at Wisley, 4pm - 9pm, Hyde Hall (5-9pm) in Essex and at RHS Rosemoor (4.40- 8.30pm). Visit the RHS website for details.Dig It top 5 - spring flowering bulbsNo 1 Narcissi 'Tête-à-tête, No 2 Amaryllis ‘Dancing Queen’, No 3 Narcissi Mixed 1.5kg bag, No 4 Hyacinth ‘Early Forcing’ and at No 5 Tulip ‘Purple Rain’.A ‘lunar halo’ was spotted in the night skies in late November and Peter managed to capture the phenomenon which is caused by the refraction of moonlight from ice crystals in the upper atmosphere. // LINK TO PETERS PHOTO //NewsAdam Frost will be at the Gardeners World Live Show in June 2024 with his Chef’s Table Garden.Greenpeace freedom of information request highlights the huge waiting lists for allotments.Nearly half of species are threatened according to new Kew research findings.Peat not mentioned in the King’s Speech.The RHS publish a list of peat-free nurseries.A new chilli Pepper X is now a new Guinness world record breaker.A new chapter at Hillier Nurseries.Treadstone wins the GIMA Award in the Category Sustainability Champion for their Treadstone Rope TrellisCandide, a dedicated social networking app for plant and garden-lovers, closes on the 7th December.A taster of the 2024 Chelsea Flower Show Gardens.The RHS open their first standalone shop, The Plant Space at Bluewater Shopping Centre in Kent.Gardeners’ World presenter Sue Kent highlights specific Garden Heritage Seed varieties from Garden Organic. Sue visited Garden Organics earlier this year.Horticulture sector needs urgent safeguards, reports House of Lords committeeSir David Attenborough donates Easter Island seeds to Kew‘Darwin’s oak’ to be felled to make way for Shrewsbury bypassEast Anglian Fens were covered in yew trees 4,000 years ago, study findsThe entire population of Kenya has been given the day off to plant trees Mentions: Sir Harold Hillier Garden, famed winter garden, in Romsey in Hampshire is well worth visiting. The Garden Centre will be donating 50p per Christmas tree sold this year to the charity Ripple Africa who actively promote sustainable tree planting in Malawi.Product mentions: Winter wash fruit trees and bushes with Growing Success Winter Wash, tree ties, tree shelters, check your stakes, insulate outdoor taps against frost, Secateurs Eversharp, Wolf Secateurs or Felco. WD40, Blade sharpening tool/stone. Christmas tree stand with a water reservoir.Plant mentions: Abies nordmanniana, English Oak, Bluebell, Dandelion, fruit trees and soft fruit.Our thanks for Chiltern Music Therapy for supplying the music.
  • 18. Creating a Terrific Terrarium with Dr Manos Kanellos

    45:22
    The trend for terrarium gardening grows each year, with more people than ever creating miniature enclosed indoor growing spaces to enjoy at home. Terrariums are simple to make, easy to care for and rewarding to have. In this episode Peter Brown and Chris Day chat with Dr Manos Kanellos who takes us through the history, the selection of plants and planting to create your own display.Main pointers: Location, terrariums (open or closed), types of plants best suited to light levels and careful consideration to the way you place your plants. Plant in layers starting with height and then choose plants to bulk out the display as well as covering the soil. Try and theme your display – all green, variegated or add splashes of colour in the way of plants or props.Plant mentions: Open terrariums Cacti and slow growing succulents, where possible try and use the same group of plants, plus air and carnivorous plants. Flowering plants such as Saintpaulia and Kalanchoe are better in open terrariums.Closed terrariums: Adiantum, Pteris and Nephrolepsis ferns, Fittonia, Helxine soleirolii, Begonia rex and Peperomias. The only orchid Manos would suggest for growing in a terrarium is the Jewel orchid (Ludisia discolor).Product mentions Any glass containers are suitable as long as they are large, grit, gravel or clay granules provide the drainage, an escape for water, activated carbon charcoal helps with the filtration and absorption qualities of the compost, peat-free potting mix, BBQ tongs for handling cacti, special tools come into play if using the old fashioned thin necked carboys or green bottles, a small watering can with a rose or large spoonful of water to help settle in new plants. Houseplant Focus plant feed. Decorative stones, slate, or moss to provide a terrain to your plants. You can add characters likes decorative animals, Buddhas, fairies, dinosaurs or even LEGO characters to help create a story. Fungus gnats (sciarid flies) control - use small yellow sticky traps or carefully spray with SB Plant Invigorator and Bug Killer.Desert Island plant and tool: A palm maybe Beaucarnea recurvata, the elephant's foot or ponytail palm and a mobile phone!The book, Terrariums: A Beginners Guide is an authoritative and detailed guide to terraria by Manos Kanellos and is available from all good Garden Centres.Our thanks to Chiltern Music Therapy for supplying the music.