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Garden Folklore - Don't trust the Fairies!
Liza Frank joins Mollie for a good old chinwag about garden folklore. Liza has written a fascinating book called Everyday Lore which explores the myths and legends surrounding your plants, your garden and those little visitors you may or may not encounter. If you think fairies are kind, gentle souls that flutter around your rose bushes saving butterflies from your bird bath, then you may be shocked. It's said they sacrifice a human every 7 year. Find out how to stop yourself becoming their next victim. This podcast might just save your life...
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151. Giant vegetables with Neil Hands
29:13||Season 1, Ep. 151A lovely catch up with a lovely man. We met giant vegetable grower Neil Hands on the podcast last year. Mollie has a chat with Neil to see how the continual heatwaves have been affecting the growing season in the run up to the giant veg championships in September. We also get a rather unusual tip for unbending the end of a bent leek...🤣
150. Plums, polyculture and an appearance from The House Plant Band!
56:07||Season 1, Ep. 150Another very jolly episode. Mollie visits farmer Steve at his heritage plum orchard in Pershore to see how the trees and the crop have fared this summer. Darren has lots on polyculture this week too. Learn how to future proof your garden and plot not only to conserve water but how to actually pick the right plants to grow going forward in to a new era of gardening.The Hose Plant Band make a welcome return with a good old sing song too. Warning...Darren provides several manly interjections!
149. Explaining Hügelkultur
51:13||Season 1, Ep. 149Darren explains Hügelkultur, Hügelkultur (meaning "mound culture" in German) is a centuries-old gardening and permaculture technique where raised beds are built by piling logs, branches, and woody debris at the base, and layering them with compost, turf, and soil. It seems to be just what our plants need to survive these drought conditions! Hear a bit of Mollie's chat with Soil acoustics, a new and exciting branch of ecoacoustics – the science of listening to sound made by the natural world. The full podcast on Soil Acoustics is coming soon!.
148. Flying Any Day soon!
01:00:08||Season 1, Ep. 148Mollie catches up with Paul Hetherington from the charity Buglife to discuss the effects of the continuing heatwaves on our insects in the garden. It's also Flying Ant Day soon too, although they await the rains which we of course don't have at the moment! Darren suggests 20 heat tolerant and drought resistant plants for your garden and hear a very merry Mollie chatting to her festival friend about winning in Petersfield in Bloom :0)
147. Gardening in a heatwave
55:05||Season 1, Ep. 147As we enter yet another heatwave in 2026, how are your plants coping? Darren has plenty of tips to try and keep everything alive. Mollie has a chat with Georgie Guernsey from the Packington Estate about being the new home of Gardener's World Live, exciting times ahead!
146. Meet Joffrey Watson The Chainsaw Bloke
43:19||Season 1, Ep. 146Mollie meets Joffrey Watson, a UK chainsaw sculptor, who creates bespoke wooden sculptures from fallen trees using chainsaws and wood tools. Based in Shropshire, Joffery is also a town crier! A fascinating and funny guy. A pleasure to introduce you to Joffrey...
145. Gardener' World Live debrief
01:01:19||Season 1, Ep. 145It's all over for another year! We have a look back at the show and have a chat with Kate from The Folklorian Garden and also Stan from Craighouse Cacti to find out what they won and how they found the show. We also hear how one of the groups had their van stolen the night before the show which had all of the plants and sculptures for their display. What happened next was nothing short of astounding. Find out more, just press play!
144. Behind the scenes at Gardener's World Live
45:53||Season 1, Ep. 144Mollie heads off to the NEC as the build begins for the show gardens at GWL 2026. Meet show Director Bob Sweet and hear from Alice as well as Kate Patrick who has designed the Folkorians garden. The feature garden this year is called The Evolution Garden and it's been designed by Prof. Alice Roberts and Dr. David Stevens and our very own Darren has the job of planting it! All goes swimmingly until a digger hits a water pipe and then it turns in to the wrong kind of swimming!
143. An eclectic pod! John Edward and Aquaculture seaweed
48:33||Season 1, Ep. 143Psychic medium John Edward has a chat with Mollie ahead of his UK dates in September. We chat about how nature, gardens and trees demonstrate that energy never dies, it just changes form. We also meet Aqua culture, a fabulous company who transform waste seaweed into powerful, natural fertiliser that feeds plants, enriches soil, and helps regenerate our environment.