The day started with a light breakfast on arrival in The Folly, followed by an introduction to Mark and Ollie and then teas and coffees – of course! Our group then headed to explore the Kitchen Garden to take a look at everything our team are growing currently which includes various different mustards, various brightly coloured chards and oyster mushrooms. We all then enjoyed a delicious garden-inspired soft tipple followed by Mark and Ollie discussing how to start your own Kitchen Garden and top tips for growing undercover. He chats to Kirsty Wilson, herbaceous supervisor at the botanic gardens, to discover more about its 350-year-old living collection of plants and its research projects. Delving deep into specific fields of study within horticulture, Mary Jane has an extensive knowledge base on sustainable gardening practices (including permaculture), soil science, and selecting cultivars well-suited to home gardeners. Her passion isn't just limited to plants; she's a staunch advocate for holistic, eco-friendly gardening techniques that benefit both flora and fauna. The purpose of a food garden is, of course, to grow food. A garden may be to supplement a bit of your produce, grow and can a year’s worth of pasta sauce, or feed your entire family. Whatever your garden goal, planning out the food garden is a key part of success.

Our ‘grow your own’ workshops are perfect for aspiring gardeners and the more green-fingered among us. You can expect tips, our seeds of knowledge from over the years of sowing, growing, and cooking across the litter and getting hands-on experimenting with forgotten foods and exploring new ways to grow. A food garden can be anything from a few container pots on a patio to a large field of veggies. It can be a traditionally designed potager garden or an indoor countertop setup with LED plant lights. You can also surround your food garden with companion plants (for instance, evergreens make wonderful companion plants for berry bushes).Nuts include almonds, macadamia, hazelnut, and pecan. Grains include quinoa, amaranth, and oat. Culinary herbs include flavourful oregano, rosemary, thyme, sage, parsley, basil, bay, and chives. Spice plants include horseradish, ginger, garlic, and wasabi. Teas grown in the food garden include peppermint, fennel, chamomile, lemon balm, and bergamot. Now let’s discuss how to create your own healthy garden full of edible food! Designing a food garden We’ve lost 70 per cent of species in my lifetime…and we’re likely to exceed the crucial 1.5 degrees this year - and that's a massive wake-up call,” says Jane, who is Chair of Wales Net Zero 2035. “I'm absolutely passionate about the idea that if we teach young children about the value of nature, then we actually breed habits that can sustain forevermore. From the postbag, Emma and Chris chew over your gardening questions including what causes tomato leaf curl and how to regrow supermarket herbs. And you can discover more about a little weed called nipplewort.

When putting these workshops together we couldn’t think of anyone better to join us than Mark Diacono! Local to THE PIG-at Combe and with over two decades of experience pioneering Kitchen Gardening across the generations with River Cottage and Otter Farm, Mark brings a wealth of knowledge to share alongside our own PIG expertise. Fiona and Chris discuss the effect of this year’s changeable weather on their gardens and crops, looking at what’s done well and what hasn’t. This month’s delicious Organic Gardening Podcast offers 50-minutes of organic gardening advice and growing stories from our experts at the height of the harvest. She shares the benefits of permeable paths and gravel gardens for absorbing run off. And growing a short flowering lawn – with beneficial plants - for attracting insects. Fiona and Emma also discuss how low hedges of lavender and herbs can function as pollinator corridors, and which wildlife habitats can be slotted into a small garden. We're doing a lot of work conserving Scottish native flora, as well as plants that are dying out in the rest of the world,” says Kirsty. “It’s important to understand biodiversity and plant life – and the species that are struggling - so we can protect them…and raise awareness with governments.”

Here are some crop idea lists to help you plan out your own food garden. Vegetable food garden crops Chris and Fiona chat about growing potatoes for a Christmas crop and planting for the hunger gap in early spring. And discuss protecting your soil over autumn and winter with green manures. The August garden might be bursting at the seams but now’s a great time to be planning for next year. Fiona finds out more about gardening in Scotland with our new Vice President Pam Whittle CBE – including her tireless work as president of The Royal Caledonian Horticulture Society and why accessibility to gardening is key to public health.