The Organic Gardening Podcast

Garden Organic

Inspiration to help you garden the organic way, with advice, tips and interviews from the UK's leading organic gardening organisation, Garden Organic. Hosted by Fiona Taylor and Chris Collins.

  • 33 minutes 24 seconds
    S5 Ep13: January - Our Guests’ Top Organic Gardening Tips of 2025
    In this episode, we look back on the  exciting adventures we had in 2025, from visiting Kate Bradbury in her wildlife-friendly back garden in Brighton to exploring Huw Richards’ experimental permaculture garden in Wales. Along the way, we also spent time in a few unforgettable kitchen gardens, including Helena Dove’s Kitchen Garden at Kew.

    Across each episode, we’ve asked our guests one simple but powerful question: what’s the single piece of advice they’d pass on to gardeners? The answers have given us a wealth of expert tips, which are the perfect inspiration for setting our New Year’s gardening resolutions for 2026.
    1 January 2026, 7:00 am
  • 1 hour 3 minutes
    S5 Ep12: December - Caring for garden bats with Jo Ferguson - Bat Conservation Trust
    This month, Chris chats with Jo Ferguson, Built Environment Manager at The Bat Conservation Trust. Jo has been involved in Bat conservation for over 15 years, and specialises in urban ecology and enhancing the built environment for bats. She shares why bats are important to the ecosystem, and how you can look after bats in urban gardens.

    Also in this episode...
    We’re reflecting on the triumphs of the 2025 gardening year. Fiona and Chris share their successes, and maybe a few fails as they prepare for a new year of sowing and growing.  In the postbag, Fiona, Chris and Anton answer your questions on growing asparagus, sowing garlic and shallots, and our favourite topic, composting!  
    3 December 2025, 11:36 am
  • 57 minutes 20 seconds
    S5 Ep11: November - The botany of the kitchen garden with Helena Dove
    This month, we’re celebrating the slow beauty of autumn, from the changing of the leaves to creating colourful bulb trifles. There’s still so much joy you can get out of your garden, as we prepare for shorter days and longer nights.   

    In this episode, Fiona chats with Helena Dove, Kitchen Gardener at Royal Botanic Gardens Kew. Helena has a wealth of knowledge surrounding the physiology of vegetables, and teaches us how we can better understand the makeup of plant life.  

    In the postbag, Fiona, Chris and Emma answer your questions on using black plastic on the compost heap, how to help overwintering larvae, and how to prevent your apples from developing bitter pit.

    4 November 2025, 10:36 am
  • 1 hour 7 minutes
    S5 Ep10: The importance of heritage vegetables with Raymond Blanc OBE
    In this month’s episode, we're joined by Raymond Blanc OBE from his kitchen garden at Le Manoir aux Quat Saisons. We toured the garden, which is home to over 100 heritage vegetable varieties. Raymond talks about his own gardening heritage, and how growing with his mother and father in France influenced the direction he's taken with Le Manoir's kitchen garden. We also hear from August Bernstein, head of the Raymond Blanc Gardening School, who chats with us about the relationship Le Manoir have with our Heritage Seed Library. 

    Also in this episode: 

    Fiona and Chris catch up in the potting shed to talk about their gardening tasks for October, and Lead Horticulturalist for the Heritage Seed Library, Marcin Salnikov joins the podcast this month to answer your questions on seed saving and heritage varieties. 
    10 October 2025, 12:00 pm
  • 55 minutes 5 seconds
    S5 Ep9: September: Getting to grips with green manures – with Dr Anton Rosenfeld
    In this month’s episode, we’re diving deep in to the world of Green Manures, as Dr Anton Rosenfeld, Research Manager at Garden Organic explains how sowing these plants can be central to looking after your soil. 

    Also in this episode: 

    Fiona and Chris catch up to see how their harvests are going this year, and we answer your questions on what type of sand you can use in the garden, when not to harvest rhubarb and what to do when your potato plants result in no yield whatsoever.  

    For more advice on Green Manures visit our website: https://www.gardenorganic.org.uk/expert-advice/garden-management/soil/green-manures

    5 September 2025, 12:01 pm
  • 1 hour 5 minutes
    S5 Ep8: August - Start with Soil: Why Less is More with Juliet Sargeant
    In this month's podcast, we're joined by garden designer, broadcaster, and author Juliet Sargeant. Juliet has just released her first book, Start with Soil, in collaboration with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. She discusses the global impact of soil degradation and shares how gardeners can take control of their own soil health with simple at-home testing.

    Also in this episode...
    Fiona and Chris celebrate a summer of gardening successes (despite a few heatwaves), and Anton joins to answer your questions on banana peel water, no-dig gardening in raised beds, and whether it’s safe to use washing-up liquid in the garden.

    6 August 2025, 3:37 pm
  • 1 hour 4 minutes
    S5 Ep7: July - Discover the accidental seed heroes with Adam Alexander
    In this month’s Organic Gardening Podcast, Fiona welcomes back seed guardian and writer Adam Alexander. Adam has travelled the world gathering heritage and land race vegetable seeds and in his latest book, tells the story of our “accidental seed heroes.” The backyard growers that are doing something extraordinary, championing old varieties, and also creating new generations of fruit and vegetables. 

    Also in this episode...

    Fiona and Chris reflect on their visit to BBC Gardeners’ World Live, What they learned from our rooted in nature show garden and what inspired them. They also share tips for coping with a potential hosepipe ban, from watering priorities to keeping your compost moist.
    In the postbag, the team answers your questions on how to manage aphids, the causes behind tomato leaf curl and solve a common problem with spinach and chard plants.
    8 July 2025, 3:46 pm
  • 1 hour 1 minute
    S5 Ep6: June - An Experimental Permaculture Garden, with Huw Richards
    In this month's Organic Gardening Podcast, Fiona visits Huw Richards, in his experimental permaculture garden in Mid-West Wales. Huw gives us an insight in to the the principles of permaculture through his 7 acre garden, as we explore his linear food forest, syntropic planting, and how permaculture fits in with the organic principles. 

    Also in this episode... 

    Fiona and Chris are catching up on their planting progress after an incredibly dry spring. In the postbag, Anton Fiona and Chris answer your questions on pernicious weeds, grafted fruit trees and how to reuse your grey water.  
    3 June 2025, 1:04 pm
  • 1 hour 1 minute
    S5 Ep5: May - Grow a new garden this May, with Becky Searle
    This month, Fiona visits trained ecologist and author Becky Searle. Becky has been showing the world how to garden organically via her Instagram account (@sowmuchmore) since 2018. This year, Becky embarked on a new journey with the release of her first book “Grow a new Garden.” Fiona and Becky spoke about what ignited her passion for gardening, the role ecology plays in her garden and the importance of seed saving. 

     Also in this episode...
     
     Chris is away this month, so Fiona is joined by Jules Duncan, one of our expert organic gardeners at Ryton. They reflect on the beauty of May, and Fiona gets some germination troubleshooting! In the postbag, Jules, Fiona and Anton answer your gardening conundrums. Tackling what to grow underneath fruit trees, how to successfully grow Chayote, and we go back to basics with the do’s and don’ts of organic growing. 

    7 May 2025, 2:41 pm
  • 1 hour 6 minutes
    S5 Ep4: April - Bringing nature to urban gardens with Kate Bradbury, and a special guest joins the postbag!
    This month, Fiona visits author and garden writer Kate Bradbury, at her garden in Brighton. Kate shared her passion for wildlife-friendly gardening and the power of small actions to create meaningful change. Fiona and Kate discussed how connecting with nature, whether by planting pollinator-friendly flowers, creating habitats, or simply observing the life in our gardens, can combat eco-anxiety and create a community.
     
    Also in this episode... 
     
    It's sowing time at Chris’s Allotment, and Fiona discusses the 5 vegetables she’s growing this year. Chris, Fiona, Anton and special guest Pauline Pears answer your questions in the Postbag, sharing advice on if you should be cleaning your water butt, how to look after a pond, and vegan organic substitutes for bone meal. 

    3 April 2025, 9:43 am
  • 40 minutes 30 seconds
    Unpruned - A tour of the Beth Chatto Gardens with with Åsa Gregars-Warg
    If you enjoyed our previous podcast with Åsa Gregars-Warg from Beth Chatto’s Plants and Gardens, this extended version is well worth a listen. Join Fiona and head gardener Åsa Gregers-Warg as we take a deeper dive into Beth Chatto's pioneering approach to gardening in harmony with nature. From plant choices and soil care to adapting to climate change, this full-length conversation is packed with extra insights and inspiration for gardeners of all kinds.
    18 March 2025, 10:30 am
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