Gardeners' World Season 51 Episode 18 Episode 18

Episode 18 of Gardeners' World season 51 is a delightful blend of practical gardening advice and inspiring garden tours. The episode begins with a visit to the beautiful Arley Hall gardens in Cheshire, where presenter Carol Klein meets head gardener Gordon Baillie to learn about the art of topiary. Gordon demonstrates how to clip and shape box hedges into intricate patterns, and shares tips on maintaining healthy and attractive topiary plants.

Next, presenter Mark Lane heads to the Cotswold Wildlife Park to explore their newly created horticultural display, which features a range of exotic plants from around the world. Mark talks to the park's horticulturist about the challenges of creating an authentic tropical environment in the heart of the UK.

Back in the studio, presenter Monty Don focuses on the importance of dead-heading to encourage continued flowering in the garden. He demonstrates the technique on a range of summer flowering plants, including echinaceas and dahlias.

In the next segment, we join presenter Joe Swift in Edinburgh, where he meets a community of urban gardeners who have transformed a disused plot of land into a thriving garden. Joe speaks to the gardeners about the rewards and challenges of communal gardening, and offers some advice on how to build a successful community garden.

Moving on to a different kind of gardening, presenter Adam Frost visits a lavender farm in Norfolk to learn about the process of harvesting and distilling lavender oil. Adam talks to the farmers about the different varieties of lavender grown on the farm, and gets his hands dirty helping with the harvesting and processing of the crops.

Finally, we return to Arley Hall, where we join presenter Arit Anderson for a masterclass in creating a long-lasting cut flower bouquet. Arit shares some expert tips on selecting and arranging flowers to get the most out of your blooms, and demonstrates how to create a beautiful and fragrant bouquet that will brighten up any room.

Overall, episode 18 of Gardeners' World season 51 is a fascinating and informative mix of practical gardening advice and inspiring garden tours, touching on a diverse range of topics from topiary and tropical plants to communal gardening and flower arranging. Whether you're a seasoned gardener or just starting out, there's something here for everyone to learn and enjoy.