I'm sure all gardening programmes are closely associated with seasonal flowers, trade, tools and feeds.. Remember Beechgrove showing us all the gadgets for growing tomatoes .. or seed trays with jiffy pellets or seed tapes.. I remember someone saying certain show exhibited all the plants and whatnots from Althons .. I, for one, am glad that the programme is not tied to commercial sponsorship, unlike those from other channels.
Beechgrove is on BBC as well so I don't understand your comment about commercial sponsorship. If you remember, Beechgrove also showed that most of the gadgets for tomato growing aren't worth having. Of course gardening programmes are "closely associtated with seasonal flowers..." It would be a bit pointless to have a programme about spring bulbs in the middle of summer.
Years ago I'm sure they did a programme on modern designers own gardens. That was absolutely fascinating. I still remember cleve west's garden with its water and stepping stones. Would love to see something like that again. Stately homes are all very well but good gardens on a domestic scale are even better. I love to see how other people do their gardens - a bit like peeking into their living rooms at dusk when the lights are on!
'Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement' - Helen Keller
And that surely is where good producers provide a balance through the series. I don't think GW is the place to have a complete programme devoted to one garden, there have been other series doing that sort of thing.
Even many experienced gardeners aren't experts on everything. From a person perspective, I'm just trying to get back into veg growing after many years. Everything I once knew is long forgotten, so basic is what I want there. I don't understand the annual obsession with Monty cutting back his grapes. They could just use the same clip from previous years.
Joe Swift for beginners? Nooooooo. He rotavated a weed infested plot! And di odd shaped beds for the arty look rather than production. Loads of scathing comments at the time from other people on that site and plenty more when he abandoned it in a state after filming finished.
I'd like to see Monty be thorough. This would cover basic info for beginners - sometimes a useful reminder for old hands - but also mentioning stuff useful for more experienced gardeners such as hardiness, soil, propagation, likely pests etc. He could also suggest people research their plants or at least assess theirown gardening conditions before rushing off and buying and making expensive mistakes.
I also get the feeling he does what he feels is good on teh day so it all looks unplanned which is probably how most people garden - as and when they can - but for real success you need a plan and some structure and a view of the end results.
I like Adam but I agree the photography wasn't great and the borders looked messy but then I also don't like them to look too manicured. A blend of harmonious and striking is good or you get complacent.
The vine pruning was good for us. I made OH come in and watch it as he is now OIC grape vine and has a history of black thumbs..
As I said, it's a good relaxing half hour with a suitable drink.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
I think the GW producers have done a pretty good job over the years balancing the needs of the beginner with those of the more experienced gardener and bringing us interesting 'magazine' articles. The only really dire time was after Monty's illness when we had some really poor presenting and misguided articles (the above item featuring Joe Swift comes into that category).
I know some people enjoyed the programmes to visit the far flung places many of our 'common' garden plants come from. I didn't - but I'm sure I've enjoyed other articles which were not popular with others. It's all swings and roundabouts and at least giving us an hour long programme will allow for a bit more in depth coverage of some items.
My real gripe is that there is a 50 year archive of earlier programmes and hours and hours of TV schedules to fill. Most of us now have access to recording devices or Catch Up TV. Wouldn't it be good to have reruns of all the Geoff Hamilton programmes? - perhaps even the AT ones (although I'm not a huge fan). Maybe even some of the really early ones for interest.
Times, views, chemical controls all change but the fundamentals of gardening remain the same. I can't believe there is not an hour a week (2am on Mondays????) when they could not broadcast these for us to record and watch at leisure.
Last edited: 12 March 2017 10:31:44
Heaven is ... sitting in the garden with a G&T and a cat while watching the sun go down
Agree with Obelixx, Joe Swift is the epitome of how not to do it especially for beginners. Monty explained he was showing us how he pruned his Grapes because he got it wrong last year, he like most of us admits their mistakes we all make them. The Beth Chatto section for me was wonderful but then I always did like her approach to gardening which was her trade, those of us who have to earn a living outside of the garden can only take parts and shape them to our own needs or wants.
GW for me is about right, the mix of sections nicely weighed and I agree Monty goes with what the weather is like on the day as we all would, there will be a plan A and B probably a C in case they are snowed in on the day, I know that setting up the gear, the preparation the rehearsals and retakes take hours then you move locations and do it all again well we did, it took hours. Give the technicians their due plus the Producers and Directors don't forget the interviewers, it takes a full team many hours to put your half hour on Screen I think they do a good job.
Geoff H's GW is certainly well worth repeating, especially if they can do it at the appropriate time of year for each episode but they were made by an outside broadcaster so may not be available to the Beeb. Or maybe the Beeb just doesn't think we need any more gardening......
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
As a beginner I do watch GW, but it is about as relevant to my gardening as watching the Six Nations is to my rugby playing. It does appear at times that unless you own a stately home you may as well forget it. Adam seems to have scored a massive place in Lincolnshire to make over, and Monty's greenhouse looks bigger than my actual house. I don't mind these things though, it is wallpaper for a Friday evening after a long week. The bits that do annoy me are the supposed "helping out the city dweller" items. Last year there was a woman going along to terraced houses in South London to do a basic make-over of a small front yard. They never say how much they spend on the plants, but the number and quality that she put in could probably have paid the deposit on a house with a garden. I'd love a proper gardening programme dedicated to the beginner (on a budget), but I think GW should concentrate on satisfying it's core traditional audience first rather than trying to broaden it's appeal.
“Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm.” Winston Churchill
Paul, at times it is not even relevent to us old timers who gardened from a time producing food was more needed than growing flowers though we did. Having watched garden programmes from the earliest ones where dressed in Sunday best complete with tie cuff links and jacket they would proceed to double dig a vegetable plot, it was not the way we did things. GW does show beginners various beginners needs, Carol with her cuttings and potting, Monty seed sowing pruning how to plant out which is an art not dig a hole and drop it in, Beth Chatto's right plant right place. Some of it is eye candy to make our mouths water some instructional as any ballanced programme should be. What I see is suddenly people with an open space have decided naff decking paves and gravels cover area's that could produce food. Be it a vegetable patch raied beds or even buckets and boxes surely that is a better way.
Only my opinion Paul among the many you will read on here but "hey" we are all entitled to one.
I know we old f*rts keep banging on about Geoff Hamilton but that is because (for many of us) he really was the person who taught us how to garden. His garden at Barnsdale was much larger than most of us can dream of (5 acres) - but he built it from scratch and divided it into several much smaller gardens (each with it's own theme) which were of a much more relevant size to most of us.
He grew a lot of stuff from seed and cuttings (the cheapest way for any gardener to build a stock) and loved making ornamental bits and pieces for the garden out of recycled or cheap bits and pieces. More famous inventions were the 'large boulders' and the 'stone trough' made from polystyrene / cement and (I think) car sealant. Looked really good once they'd weathered in...
He also did lots of DIY (fences / paths etc) in the garden which was useful to learn.
You can get a box set of 3 series of his programmes from Amazon for £7.50. I recommend them highly.
Posts
Beechgrove is on BBC as well so I don't understand your comment about commercial sponsorship. If you remember, Beechgrove also showed that most of the gadgets for tomato growing aren't worth having. Of course gardening programmes are "closely associtated with seasonal flowers..." It would be a bit pointless to have a programme about spring bulbs in the middle of summer.
Years ago I'm sure they did a programme on modern designers own gardens. That was absolutely fascinating. I still remember cleve west's garden with its water and stepping stones. Would love to see something like that again. Stately homes are all very well but good gardens on a domestic scale are even better. I love to see how other people do their gardens - a bit like peeking into their living rooms at dusk when the lights are on!
And that surely is where good producers provide a balance through the series. I don't think GW is the place to have a complete programme devoted to one garden, there have been other series doing that sort of thing.
Even many experienced gardeners aren't experts on everything. From a person perspective, I'm just trying to get back into veg growing after many years. Everything I once knew is long forgotten, so basic is what I want there. I don't understand the annual obsession with Monty cutting back his grapes. They could just use the same clip from previous years.
Joe Swift for beginners? Nooooooo. He rotavated a weed infested plot! And di odd shaped beds for the arty look rather than production. Loads of scathing comments at the time from other people on that site and plenty more when he abandoned it in a state after filming finished.
I'd like to see Monty be thorough. This would cover basic info for beginners - sometimes a useful reminder for old hands - but also mentioning stuff useful for more experienced gardeners such as hardiness, soil, propagation, likely pests etc. He could also suggest people research their plants or at least assess theirown gardening conditions before rushing off and buying and making expensive mistakes.
I also get the feeling he does what he feels is good on teh day so it all looks unplanned which is probably how most people garden - as and when they can - but for real success you need a plan and some structure and a view of the end results.
I like Adam but I agree the photography wasn't great and the borders looked messy but then I also don't like them to look too manicured. A blend of harmonious and striking is good or you get complacent.
The vine pruning was good for us. I made OH come in and watch it as he is now OIC grape vine and has a history of black thumbs..
As I said, it's a good relaxing half hour with a suitable drink.
I think the GW producers have done a pretty good job over the years balancing the needs of the beginner with those of the more experienced gardener and bringing us interesting 'magazine' articles. The only really dire time was after Monty's illness when we had some really poor presenting and misguided articles (the above item featuring Joe Swift comes into that category).
I know some people enjoyed the programmes to visit the far flung places many of our 'common' garden plants come from. I didn't - but I'm sure I've enjoyed other articles which were not popular with others. It's all swings and roundabouts and at least giving us an hour long programme will allow for a bit more in depth coverage of some items.
My real gripe is that there is a 50 year archive of earlier programmes and hours and hours of TV schedules to fill. Most of us now have access to recording devices or Catch Up TV. Wouldn't it be good to have reruns of all the Geoff Hamilton programmes? - perhaps even the AT ones (although I'm not a huge fan). Maybe even some of the really early ones for interest.
Times, views, chemical controls all change but the fundamentals of gardening remain the same. I can't believe there is not an hour a week (2am on Mondays????) when they could not broadcast these for us to record and watch at leisure.
Last edited: 12 March 2017 10:31:44
Agree with Obelixx, Joe Swift is the epitome of how not to do it especially for beginners. Monty explained he was showing us how he pruned his Grapes because he got it wrong last year, he like most of us admits their mistakes we all make them. The Beth Chatto section for me was wonderful but then I always did like her approach to gardening which was her trade, those of us who have to earn a living outside of the garden can only take parts and shape them to our own needs or wants.
GW for me is about right, the mix of sections nicely weighed and I agree Monty goes with what the weather is like on the day as we all would, there will be a plan A and B probably a C in case they are snowed in on the day, I know that setting up the gear, the preparation the rehearsals and retakes take hours then you move locations and do it all again well we did, it took hours. Give the technicians their due plus the Producers and Directors don't forget the interviewers, it takes a full team many hours to put your half hour on Screen I think they do a good job.
Frank.
Geoff H's GW is certainly well worth repeating, especially if they can do it at the appropriate time of year for each episode but they were made by an outside broadcaster so may not be available to the Beeb. Or maybe the Beeb just doesn't think we need any more gardening......
As a beginner I do watch GW, but it is about as relevant to my gardening as watching the Six Nations is to my rugby playing. It does appear at times that unless you own a stately home you may as well forget it. Adam seems to have scored a massive place in Lincolnshire to make over, and Monty's greenhouse looks bigger than my actual house. I don't mind these things though, it is wallpaper for a Friday evening after a long week. The bits that do annoy me are the supposed "helping out the city dweller" items. Last year there was a woman going along to terraced houses in South London to do a basic make-over of a small front yard. They never say how much they spend on the plants, but the number and quality that she put in could probably have paid the deposit on a house with a garden. I'd love a proper gardening programme dedicated to the beginner (on a budget), but I think GW should concentrate on satisfying it's core traditional audience first rather than trying to broaden it's appeal.
Paul, at times it is not even relevent to us old timers who gardened from a time producing food was more needed than growing flowers though we did. Having watched garden programmes from the earliest ones where dressed in Sunday best complete with tie cuff links and jacket they would proceed to double dig a vegetable plot, it was not the way we did things. GW does show beginners various beginners needs, Carol with her cuttings and potting, Monty seed sowing pruning how to plant out which is an art not dig a hole and drop it in, Beth Chatto's right plant right place. Some of it is eye candy to make our mouths water some instructional as any ballanced programme should be. What I see is suddenly people with an open space have decided naff decking paves and gravels cover area's that could produce food. Be it a vegetable patch raied beds or even buckets and boxes surely that is a better way.
Only my opinion Paul among the many you will read on here but "hey" we are all entitled to one.
Frank.
Hi Paul
I know we old f*rts keep banging on about Geoff Hamilton but that is because (for many of us) he really was the person who taught us how to garden. His garden at Barnsdale was much larger than most of us can dream of (5 acres) - but he built it from scratch and divided it into several much smaller gardens (each with it's own theme) which were of a much more relevant size to most of us.
He grew a lot of stuff from seed and cuttings (the cheapest way for any gardener to build a stock) and loved making ornamental bits and pieces for the garden out of recycled or cheap bits and pieces. More famous inventions were the 'large boulders' and the 'stone trough' made from polystyrene / cement and (I think) car sealant. Looked really good once they'd weathered in...
He also did lots of DIY (fences / paths etc) in the garden which was useful to learn.
You can get a box set of 3 series of his programmes from Amazon for £7.50. I recommend them highly.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/DVD-Blu-ray/Geoff-Hamilton-Collection-40th-Anniversary-Gardeners-World/B000R343M6/ref=pd_sbs_14_t_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=8N6YVFT8EBPXDAZYDXAY
They're probably also available on You Tube but I've not looked.