Gardeners' Corner

Gardeners’ Corner looks at the life of Queen Elizabeth II through the lens of all things gardening. David Maxwell chats to those who met her at great gardening events, he visits Northern Ireland’s official royal residence at Hillsborough and explores what her favourite flower, Lily of the Valley, says about her. Also on the programme, Cherry Townsend tells David why sowing now can save you money and get next year’s garden off to a good start.

How can you garden if you only have a yard? The answer is to garden on the vertical! This week, presenter David Maxwell chats to Ann Fitzsimmons about her new living wall. She maintains it with a fork and spoon from the cutlery drawer and manages to grow both flowers and herbs. In Magherafelt David meets the youngest competitor in the Garden of the Year TV series on Channel 4. Just how has 28 year old Philip Stewart created a top class cottage garden while holding down a full time job? Also on the programme, a return to Airfield Estate where Colm O’Driscoll says a simple low maintenance border can be created with just three plants and expert Claire McNally will be in studio to take questions live. Contact the programme on gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk

Just a few minutes walk from Ireland’s largest shopping centre, a garden provides a quiet place in the city. A haven for wildlife and place to learn about our food, Airfield Estate in Dundrum was left in trust to the people of Ireland by trailblazing sisters Letitia and Naomi Overend. They understood the importance of people self sufficient and sustainable, an ethos that continues today under head gardener Colm O’Driscoll. In this programme, David Maxwell has a tour with Colm and finds about the Totally Terrific Tomato festival. Also in the programme, David finds out from expert grower Charles Holmes what makes the perfect Dahlia and he chats to wildlife gardener Kate Bradbury about her new book encouraging us all to plant a tree for the planet. Contact the programme on gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk

With late summer approaching David is joined in studio by Reg Maxwell to take questions on everything from sickly tomatoes to Oh la la clematis. He finds out about the Old Mill garden in Helen’s Bay which is being lovingly restored alongside an abandoned walled garden and Tony Kirkham picks his top tree for August. Contact the programme on gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk

Allotments across the country are burst with flowers and produce right now and in National Allotments Week, Gardeners’ Corner visits two. David Maxwell heads to Ards where Amy Kelly has her plot. He also meets some of her neighbours who grow Willow for weaving and exotic crops like the African Horned Melon. In the north west, Helen Mark visits Ballymagowan community allotments which as well as producing healthy fruit and veg, is also a sanctuary for some. In studio, Ciaran Mulholland will bring his fruit and veg growing expertise and organic gardener Klaus Laitenberger will join David from somewhere in Europe as he takes the long road home to Ireland from his epic vegetable odyssey. Contact the programme via email – gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk

At the end of a week of record temperatures, David Maxwell chats to Ann Fitzsimmons about making our gardens more resilient. David also visits the Ravine project at Knockbracken Healthcare Park which gives horticultural opportunities to young adults facing mental health difficulties. In Killinchy, Lesley Simpson and Moira Concannon have been gardening together as neighbours for decades – so just what makes this perfect partnership work? And in Stoneyford, David meets Joy Gordon who has transformed her outside space into a place to remember her husband who was tragically killed in a car accident 2 years ago.

David Maxwell visits Ireland’s largest gardening festival in Dublin’s Phoenix Park. At Bord Bia Bloom he’ll meet designers, growers and tour some of the 19 show gardens. Also on the programme, David finds out what’s happening in the gardens at Hillsborough Castle to mark the jubilee and what exactly is the ‘tree of trees’. Garden expert Ann Fitzsimmons will be in studio to answers questions and she’ll be planting up a platinum planter. Contact the programme on gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk

David Maxwell brings highlights from the Show Gardens to the new All About Plants gardens

Can weeds be useful? This week David Maxwell meets Becky Cole at Broughgammon Farm near Ballycastle. She considers some weeds free food and uses others for their useful herbal properties. Down in Slane, County Meath, Rosie Maye has a selection of attractive plants that can give those problem weeds a run for the money - Lamium, Lady’s Mantle, Euphorbia robbiae are top of the list. Also on the programme, Helen Mark visits the historic Drenagh Estate in Limavady where the gardens are being tamed after decades as a jungle and the Chelsea designer who is creating a ‘high maintenance’ garden for spinal patients in Belfast. Contact the programme on gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk

The weekly gardening programme for keen gardeners with the latest advice, news and visits to gardens large and small around the province. Presented by Helen Mark.

A childhood fantasy has become a reality for Rosie Maye who has spent 20 years transforming the three acres around her home near Slane in county Meath. Without any formal training Rosie aka The Insomniac Gardener on social media, has created a woodland garden, an ornamental meadow and a Mediterranean courtyard among the ruins of old farm buildings. In this week’s programme, David Maxwell finds out how she filled the space with year round colour without breaking the bank. Also on the programme, how a group of women in north Belfast have transformed unused parking spaces into an urban oasis and what’s going on at Ards allotments in National Gardening Week. All that and the experts will be taking questions live. Contact the programme on gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk

A special Gardeners’ Corner live from Garden Show Ireland 2022 in the grounds of Antrim Castle Gardens. David Maxwell will be joined by Diarmuid Gavin, Klaus Laitenberger, Cherry Townsend and Ann Fitzsimmons who will take questions from an invited audience. Also on the programme, as the big reveal of Randalstown’s RHS funded community garden approaches, David gets a sneak peak at a unique garden on a viaduct. gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk

William Robinson started life as a garden boy in Ireland but went on the become one of the most famous gardeners of all time. His ‘wild gardening’ style is still widely referenced today and in this special programme presenter David Maxwell is joined by Donegal gardener Brendan Little to explore Robinson’s life and legacy. At Gravetye Manor, Robinson’s home in Sussex, they meet head gardener Tom Coward who has brought the gardens back to life following a period of neglect. Robinson expert, Judith Nesbitt, describes his character and the mystery surrounding his early years. Also on the programme, a visit to the home and garden of Robinson’s friend of 50 years, the prominent Victorian gardener, Gertrude Jekyll and David takes Brendan on a trip down memory lane on a visit to the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

Tune into BBC Radio Ulster’s Gardeners’ Corner this Saturday morning when Helen Mark finds out what seasonal tasks are being done on some coastal allotments, Amy Kelly looks for to the transformation to come in her garden and a very special community garden gets the royal seal of approval.

Have you ever heard of onions that can walk? David Maxwell finds out all about them from organic grower Klaus Laitenberger. April showers bring plenty of growth in the garden including to plants often considered weeds, but wild garlic and nettles can also provide a tasty lunch as David finds out when he pops in with Ann Fitzsimmons. Also on the programme, garden designer and BBC Gardeners’ World presenter Adam Frost on his new book and the ‘King of Trees’ Tony Kirkham opts for a Cherry as his tree for April. David will also be joined by Claire Woods and Brendan Little who will take on gardening questions live – gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk

David meets Omagh man Brian Duncan who has been breeding daffodils since the 1960s and has been awarded one of horticulture’s greatest honours. He becomes one of only 63 people who can wear the Victoria Medal of Honour. Also on the programme, why Erodiums or Stork’s bills deserve a place in your garden. And a visit to the Folk Museum where Irish Garden Plant Society members are doing what they can to create a living museum and a refuge for endangered Irish plants. All that and the experts will be taking questions live – gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk

Have you ever heard of a mechanical garden? Well Antrim is getting Northern Ireland’s first, and this week David Maxwell chats to designer Diarmuid Gavin about his plans for the space. It’s being created to mark the Queen’s platinum jubilee and the return of Garden Show Ireland. Also on the programme, Klaus Laitenberger on the tempting taste of home-grown tomatoes and Cherry Townsend on the importance of planning ahead with pots of bulbs. David will also be putting questions to the experts including why one listener’s orange crocuses keep vanishing. Get in touch by email – gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk

David Maxwell heads to Bundoran on St Patrick’s day where organic gardener Klaus Laitenberger is planting potatoes ‘Leitrim style’. He demonstrates his old Irish method of covering the seed potatoes with freshly dug turfs, showing how an area of lawn could easily provide a crop of spuds this season. Also on the programme, with seed sowing gathering pace in the garden, Amy Kelly explains why it makes sense to try heritage and heirloom varieties. They may have fallen out of favour with the supermarkets, but she says their taste, and the fact that you can save seed for next year, make them a good value choice. David visits Augher Central Primary School as part of the BBC’s ‘Little Green Fingers’ project. Teachers, pupils, volunteers there are transforming a neglected school garden into a wildlife haven and outdoor learning area. And how do you tell if that old packet of seeds at the back of the drawer is worth sowing?

In this week’s programme, David Maxwell travels to the National Botanic Gardens, Kilmacurragh in county Wicklow. The country cousin of the gardens at Glasnevin in Dublin, Kilmacurragh covers over 100 acres and enjoys a mild maritime climate where rhododendrons and Chilean exotics flourish. David walks through the crocus lawn with head gardener Seamus O’Brien and gets a sneak peak behind the scenes at a newly acquired historic walled garden. Also on the programme, Tony Kirkham chooses Arbutus unedo, also known as the strawberry tree, as his ‘tree of the month’ and Ciaran Mulholland is pruning trees at his garden at the foot of Slemish mountain in county Antrim. David will also be putting questions from listeners to expert Brendan Little including how much wheat you need to grow to produce a home grown loaf.

David explores a secret walled garden close to Belfast where globe artichokes are on the menu. Hidden Huntley is one of the 19th century ‘linen houses’ of Lagan Valley and it’s been home to Antonia Malcolm’s family since the 1920s. But there is trouble in paradise as Box blight has wiped out an important element of the gardens structure. Still, there is more than enough soft fruit to go around and rhubarb is being ‘forced’ – David finds out what difference it makes. Also on the programme, a visit to Ciaran Mulholland’s garden at the foot of Slemish where he’s dividing snowdrops ‘in the green’, work continues at Glenarm on the new woodland garden and meet the robots that garden. Get in touch with the experts on gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk