Shepton Mallet Snowdrop Festival: Anaerobic Digestion, Apple Maggots and 鈥奝yramid Orchids
Should you mulch, feed, or leave snowdrops? What's better - anaerobic digestion or aerobic digestion? How do I get rid of apple maggots? Peter and the panel have all the answers.
Snowdrops - do you mulch, feed, or leave them alone? What's the difference between anaerobic digestion and aerobic digestion? How do I get rid of apple maggots?
Peter Gibbs and the GQT team of experts return to Shepton Mallet to solve various gardening conundrums. On the panel this week are house plant guru Anne Swithinbank, pest and disease expert Pippa Greenwood, and garden designer Matthew Wilson.
Later in the programme, Anne Swithinbank and Dominic Weston discuss all things snowdrops ahead of Shepton Mallet's upcoming snowdrop festival.
Producer: Daniel Cocker
Assistant Producer: Rahnee Prescod鈥�
Executive Producer: Carly Maile
A Somethin' Else production for 麻豆社 Radio 4
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Plant List
Questions and timecodes are below. Where applicable, plant names have been provided.
Q 鈥� Snowdrops鈥o you mulch, feed, or leave them alone? (01鈥�46鈥�)
Q 鈥� Should I cover my compost heap to encourage anaerobic digestion, or should I leave it open to the air for aerobic digestion? (05鈥�41鈥�)
Q 鈥� I鈥檝e inherited some very large and very old salvias,鈥奾ow hard should I cut them back? (10鈥�08鈥�)
Q 鈥� We have two mature Bramley apple trees which are infested with worms 鈥� is there a way to prevent the moths from settling? (14鈥�19鈥�)
Feature 鈥� Anne Swithinbank and Dominic Weston discuss Shepton Mallets upcoming Snowdrop Festival and provide some advice on how to establish them successfully. (20鈥�07)
Dominic Weston 鈥�
Galanthus 'Magnet', snowdrop 'Magnet'
Galanthus 脳 hybridus 'Merlin', snowdrop 'Merlin'
Galanthus听'S. Arnott', snowdrop 'S. Arnott'
Q 鈥� I鈥檝e been carefully nurturing two lovely spindle trees in pots,鈥奀an I trim them and safely leave them in pots? (24鈥�58鈥�)
Matthew Wilson 鈥�
Euonymus听alatus听'Compactus', compact winged spindle
Q 鈥� How do I encourage pyramid orchids to flower in my garden? (29鈥�18鈥�)
Q 鈥� What planting would the panel suggest for the windy sides of my house? (33鈥�31鈥�)
Anne Swithinbank 鈥�
Ilex听aquifolium, common holly
Ilex听脳听altaclerensis, highclere holly
Pittosporum
Pittosporum听tenuifolium, tawhiwhi
Matthew Wilson 鈥�
Acer campestre, field maple
Allium听'Gladiator', allium 鈥榞ladiator鈥�
Allium 'Ambassador', allium 'Ambassador'
Tulipa 'Jan Reus' (3), tulip 鈥楯an Reus鈥�
Tulipa 'Paul Scherer' (3), tulip 鈥楶aul Scherer鈥�
Tulipa 'Queen of Night' (5), tulip 'Queen of Night'
Tulipa听saxatilis听(15), candia tulip
Veronicastrum听'Apollo', culver鈥檚 root apollo
Q 鈥� 鈥奍 have a suspicion that if snowdrops bloomed later and were not the herald of the end of winter, they would not have a cult following. Does the panel agree? (37鈥�58鈥�)
Broadcasts
- Fri 14 Feb 2025 15:00麻豆社 Radio 4
- Sun 16 Feb 2025 14:00麻豆社 Radio 4
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Podcast
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Gardeners' Question Time
Horticultural programme featuring a group of gardening experts
