Perennials are probably the most popular type of plant in the UK, but that wasn’t always the case. In this episode, we talk with Rosy Hardy, the Chelsea Flower Show’s most decorated female exhibitor. She has won 24 gold medals and helped many garden designers and colleagues win awards with her plants. Rosy explains how she helped make perennials popular over the past forty years and shares advice on choosing varieties that can handle our unpredictable summer weather. Later, Dan introduces an innovative plastic-free insect net made from plant fibres, and Julia recommends an unusual fruit that grows well in hot, dry summers.

Website links:

• Hardy's Cottage Garden Plants website offering over 1200 perennials grown peat-free.
• A selection of Rosy's most resilient perennials
• Rosy Hardy Gardening on YouTube
• Dan Cooper Garden
• Insectonet Plastic-Free Net
• Parker's Patch

Expertly produced by Scott Kennett at Red Lighthouse Local.

This episode was sponsored by the Plant Fairs Roadshow, which brings beautiful British-grown plants to stunning venues across the South East of England.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tucked away on the embankment, the Inner Temple Garden has a long and impressive history, including a time when it hosted what is now called the Chelsea Flower Show. In this episode, Dan and Julia chat with Sean Harkin, the Head Gardener, about how he and his team have made the garden a wildlife-friendly, award-winning space while honouring its horticultural roots. In a full-circle moment, we hear that the Inner Temple will host a brand-new plant fair on Sunday, 31st May, 2026. Dan also introduces new plant-based gardening gloves for summer, and Julia shares tips on how to do the Chelsea Chop.

Website links:

• The Inner Temple Garden website
• Advance tickets for the Plant Fairs Roadshow at the Inner Temple on 31st May 2026
• Dan Cooper Garden
• Donkey Gloves Bamboo Gardening Gloves
• Parker's Patch
• How to do the Chelsea Chop

Expertly produced by Scott Kennett at Red Lighthouse Local.

This episode was sponsored by the Plant Fairs Roadshow, which brings beautiful British-grown plants to stunning venues across the South East of England.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Britain's country estates must honour their history while looking ahead. In this episode, we talk with Jay Goddard and Mark Bobin from Borde Hill in Sussex to learn how their historic garden became home to nearly 100 champion trees and a national collection of rhododendrons. We also hear about their exciting plans for a new 'garden to plate' restaurant, which will use produce from an edimental garden designed by Anne-Marie Powell. Plus, Dan explains why copper keeps slugs and snails away, and Julia gives an update on her efforts to grow a healthier lawn as she waits for a hollow-tine aerator to arrive.

Website links:

• Dan Cooper Garden
• Copper Slug Rings
• Parker's Patch
• Borde Hill's website
• Restaurant Isca website
• More Information about the Plant Fairs Roadshow at Borde Hill

Expertly produced by Scott Kennett at Red Lighthouse Local.

This episode was sponsored by the Plant Fairs Roadshow, which brings beautiful British-grown plants to stunning venues across the South East of England.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chillies are prized for the heat and flavour they bring to cuisines all over the world. In this episode, your hosts talk to Clare Kennett of Clare's Chillies about what makes them so addictive and how to grow them successfully at home. Clare shares her top tips for success and common pitfalls when growing these fiery fruits. Also in this episode, Dan recommends a wildflower seed mix that can help restore the natural health of your soil, and Julia describes how to grow one of the chilli family's milder members, the Padron. As always, there's a list of jobs to do in your garden over the next fortnight and news of what Dan and Julia will be getting up to over the coming fortnight.

Website links:

• Dan Cooper Garden
• Wildflower Seeds for Soil Health
• Parker's Patch
• Clare's Chillies on Facebook
• Clare's Chillies on Instagram
• Plant Fairs Roadshow at Ramster Hall Gardens

Expertly produced by Scott Kennett at Red Lighthouse Local.

This episode was sponsored by the Plant Fairs Roadshow, which brings beautiful British-grown plants to stunning venues across the South East of England.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When it comes to creating gardens for the greater good, no landscape architect approaches the subject with more knowledge, passion and commitment than Marian Boswall. In this episode of Two Good Gardeners, your hosts catch up with Marian to discuss the philosophy underpinning her latest book, The Kindest Garden, and learn more about Chalk to Coast, a visionary landscape project working to create a nature recovery corridor across Kent. Also in this episode, Dan extols the virtues of bronze tools, and Julia encourages gardeners not to panic if they didn't sow seeds in March. As always, the episode concludes with a list of jobs you can be doing in your garden over the next fortnight.

Website links:

• Dan Cooper Garden
• PK Bronze Tools
• Parker's Patch
• Marian Boswall Landscape Architects
• Chalk to Coast

Expertly produced by Scott Kennett at Red Lighthouse Local.

This episode was sponsored by the Plant Fairs Roadshow, which brings beautiful British-grown plants to stunning venues across the South East of England.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, your hosts find out how Steve Edney and Lou Dowle of The No Name Nursery have created a stunning 3-acre garden-nursery that operates off the beaten track and entirely without mains services. The plant-loving partners share insights into how they garden off-grid and cultivate a wide variety of plants for sale as bare-rooted plants. Also in this episode, Julia describes how to grow your own ginger from supermarket-bought rhizomes, and Dan extols the benefits of Traditional Garden Growers, an innovative range of mulches and plant foods made principally from wool and straw. Your hosts round off with a list of jobs you can do in your garden over the next fortnight, and a reminder that the next Plant Fairs Roadshow event takes place at the Horniman Museum on Saturday, 4th April 2026.

Steve's 'must have' aster - "Doellingeria umbellata". Flat-topped aster

Website links:

• Dan Cooper Garden
• Traditional Garden Growers Range
• Parker's Patch
• The No Name Nursery

Expertly produced by Scott Kennett at Red Lighthouse Local.

This episode was sponsored by the Plant Fairs Roadshow, which brings beautiful British-grown plants to stunning venues across the South East of England.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Two Good Gardeners is back with a new series, sponsored by Plant Fairs Roadshow. In this season opener, your hosts discuss daffodils with Neil Miller, Head Gardener at Hever Castle in Kent and find out how the Astors' legacy is being continued by planting thousands of new bulbs every autumn. Also in this episode, Dan highlights an innovative frost-protection fabric that's made from plants, and Julia explains how to start onion sets in modules. Your hosts round off with a list of jobs you can do in your garden over the next fortnight, with a reminder that the next Plant Fairs Roadshow event takes place at Hever Castle on Sunday, 22nd March, 2026.

Narcissus 'Hever Castle' will be available from Taylor's Bulbs in autumn 2026

Website links:

• Dan Cooper Garden
• Biofleece frost protection fabric
• Parker's Patch
• Hever Castle

Expertly produced by Scott Kennett at Red Lighthouse Local.

This episode was sponsored by the Plant Fairs Roadshow, which brings beautiful British-grown plants to stunning venues across the South East of England.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dan and Julia look back on 2025 with a lighthearted New Year Quiz packed with laughs and unexpected revelations. Discover which fungus Dan would describe himself as, and what weed he would munch to treat gout - don't try this at home! Julia proves she knows her Niwaki, but not her onions and can't remember what lurked in her granny's drawers. Listen carefully, and all will be revealed! The episode ends with the announcement of an exciting new sponsor for Series 7, The Plant Fairs Roadshow. To find out where they'll be stopping this year, keep scrolling down.

Two Good Gardeners will return in late February/early March 2026 with eight additional episodes featuring brand-new guests and many brilliant gardening tips.

PLANT FAIRS ROADSHOW 2026

SNOWDROP & EARLY SPRING

• 1 February, 11am-3pm Hole Park, Rolvenden, Kent TN17 4JA

SPRING

• 22 March, 10:30am-3:30pm Hever Castle, Hever, Edenbridge TN8 7NG
• 4 April, 11am-4pm Horniman Museum & Gardens, Forest Hill, London SE23 3PQ
• 19 April, 10am-5pm Arundel Castle & Gardens, Arundel, W. Sussex BN18 9PA
• 26 April, 10am-3pm Ramster Gardens, Godalming, Surrey GU8 4SN
• 10 May, 10am-3pm Borde Hill Gardens, Haywards Heath, W. Sussex RH16 1XP
• 31 May, 11am-4pm NEW! The Inner Temple Garden, Temple/Blackfriars, London EC4Y 7HL

SUMMER

• 7 June, 9am-4pm NEW! Chiswick Flower Market, Old Market Place, Chiswick High Rd, London W4 2DR
• 14 June, 11am-4pm Benington Lordship Gardens, Stevenage, Herts. SG2 7BS
• 28 June, 10:30am-3:30pm EXTRA DATE! Hever Castle, Hever Rd, Hever, Edenbridge TN8 7NG
• 5 July, 12pm-5pm Parham House & Gardens, Storrington RH20 4HR
• 26 July, 11am-4pm ADVANCE PURCHASE ONLY The Serge Hill Project, Featherbed Ln, Herts. WD5 ORT

AUTUMN

• 5 September, 11am-4pm EXTRA DATE! Horniman Museum & Gardens, Forest Hill, London SE23 3PQ
• 13 September, 10am-3pm West Dean Gardens, Chichester, W. Sussex PO18 ORX
• 20 September, 10am-3pm Borde Hill Gardens, Haywards Heath, W. Sussex RH16 1XP
• 27 September, 11am-4pm Mount Ephraim Gardens, Faversham, Kent ME13 9TX

Website links:

• Dan Cooper Garden
• Parker's Patch
• Plant Fairs Roadshow

Expertly produced by Scott Kennett at Red Lighthouse Local

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.