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Episode details

Radio 4,24 Jul 2026,42 mins

East Renfrewshire: Balcony Brilliance, Reluctant Camellias and Making The Most Of Moss

Gardeners' Question Time

Available for over a year

Kathy Clugston chairs this week’s Gardeners’ Question Time from Clarkston Halls in East Renfrewshire, home to one of Scotland’s oldest horticultural societies. Joining Kathy are Balmoral’s Head of Gardens Kirsty Wilson, ethnobotanist James Wong, and Birmingham Botanical Gardens’ Head Gardener Bethan Collerton. The panel tackles questions on reluctant camellias, fragrant planting for a windswept balcony, and how to transform a shady, moss-filled shared garden. Along the way, Bethan visits Glasgow Botanic Gardens’ magnificent Kibble Palace, where she joins Robert Jamieson to explore botanical links across the Commonwealth, from the Australian tea tree and towering tree ferns to remarkable araucarias from the South Pacific. Back in Clarkston, the team shares advice on improving the quality of greenhouse-grown grapes, caring for carnivorous pitcher plants, and choosing easy, quick-growing seeds for young gardeners. Producer: Alison Vernon-Smith Assistant Producer: William Norton A Somethin' Else production for BBC Radio 4 * If listening on BBC Sounds and you wish to view the plant list, please go to the Gardeners' Question Time website and open this week's episode page.

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