Easy ways to transform your garden this Easter

Easy ways to transform your garden this Easter

Author: BBC Radio Ulster March 30, 2024 Duration: 56:44

As the Easter break begins, Gardeners’ Corner has some easy ways to transform your garden space. David Maxwell is joined in studio by expert gardener Brendan Little who has suggestions on how an uninspiring front garden can be transformed into a low maintenance garden with interest and colour through the year. Also joining David is city gardener, Grace Loughrey, who knows how to transform the smallest of spaces with easy to find plants. Holidays are a great time to visit gardens and Kilmacurragh in south County Wicklow will be welcoming many this Easter weekend. The gardens are undergoing a major expansion programme and on this latest visit head gardener Seamus O’Brien gives David privileged access to some of the new areas under development and he also gets to see how the future of the Wollemia pine (once thought extinct) has now been secured. Also on the programme, the new trail at Belfast’s Botanic gardens dedicated to John Templeton sometimes called the ‘father of Irish botany’ and Huw Richards on his new book ‘The Self-Sufficiency Garden’. Contact the programme on gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk


Tune into Gardeners' Corner from BBC Radio Ulster for a weekly dose of practical wisdom and quiet inspiration rooted in the soil of the province. Host David Maxwell guides each episode with the ease of a knowledgeable friend, sharing the latest horticultural advice and seasonal news you can actually use. This isn't just theory; the podcast actively explores, taking you on audio visits to thriving plots and personal havens, from expansive estates to modest backyards, revealing the unique stories they grow. You'll hear firsthand from those who tend them, gathering tips that work in real gardens. It’s a consistent resource for anyone with a trowel and a bit of earth, whether you're nurturing a windowsill herb box or planning a perennial border. The conversation is always grounded, focused on the tangible joys and challenges of growing things. Listen for a genuine connection to the gardening community and a deeper understanding of your own patch, all delivered with the trusted quality of BBC Radio Ulster. Each episode feels like a welcome break, a moment to think about what's possible just outside your door.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 685

Gardeners' Corner
Podcast Episodes
Coffee grounds, sweet pea and Matthew Wilson [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:21
In this week’s programme, presenter David Maxwell is joined by Averil Milligan and Reg Maxwell to answer listeners gardening questions including what to do with coffee grounds and ash in the garden, and the importance of…
Misbehaving squirrels, yacon and Christine Walkden [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:36
Presenter David Maxwell is joined by Jim Bradley and Ann Fitzsimons to answer listeners’ seasonal gardening questions. Klaus Laitenberger chats about winter in the vegetable garden and the wonder crop that is yacon! Also…
Snowdrops, whiskey barrels and greenfinches [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:28
David Maxwell and his guests deliver some winter gardening inspiration including; a trip to self-confessed galanthophile Maurice Parkinson’s garden to discover all shapes and sizes of snowdrop, why have greenfinches beco…
Gardeners’ Corner at Christmas [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:36
Presenter David Maxwell is joined by Brendan Little and Cherry Townsend for some festive gardening fun. How to bring outdoors indoors this Christmas, gifts for gardeners and Christmas herbs will all be on the menu, and t…
Poinsettia, houseplants and olives [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 58:45
David Maxwell presents the weekly gardening programme. As Christmas approaches, David chats to Sean Grimes about Poinsettia – he grows 250 thousand of them in 8 acres of glasshouses outside Dublin. Also on the programme,…
Climbing roses, winter veg and Matt Biggs [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 59:40
David Maxwell brings a mix of seasonal gardening advice. He’s joined by Claire Woods and Reg Maxwell who will take on listeners winter gardening conundrums. Also on the programme, Barbara Pilcher on what she’s harvest th…
Christmas Trees, Winter Harvests and Lighting Up the Garden [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:26
David Maxwell gets into the festive spirit with Christmas trees as well as finding out how to brighten up the winter garden with some strategically placed lights. David will also find out why it’s not a good idea to igno…
Growing saffron, winter bird care and Bunny Guinness [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 55:10
David Maxwell brings you more gardening inspiration for autumn. This week he’s joined by Averil Milligan who is planting some fruit trees and bushes, Ann Fitzsimons is considering a tree for winter interest and Bunny Gui…
Seeds of hope from Hiroshima, Monty Don and compost worms [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:19
This week, presenter David Maxwell speaks to Monty Don about his life and garden. He also finds out why seeds from the survivor trees of Hiroshima are being brought to Northern Ireland 75 years after the atomic bomb. Dav…
Tulips with Sarah Raven, air plants and lawn care [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:13
In the first gardening programme of November, presenter David Maxwell talks to his guests about planting tulips and he interviews to the queen of cut flowers Sarah Raven. With plenty still to do in the garden before wint…