Why are so many BBC Gardening programmes targetted almost exclusively towards the newcomer? That’s the question being asked by many gardeners today. As Head Gardener of a garden open daily to the public I talk with gardeners of all abilities, from all over the country, who visit my garden while on holiday in County Devon, which enables me to monitor the gardening pulse of the nation.
Two Camps
So far as gardening on television is concerned the concensus appears to be equally split between two camps; that is, the relative newcomer to gardening and the experienced gardener.
The BBC is widely held to be instrumental in getting people interested in gardening, and its success in doing so is largely due to its excellent programmes directed towards the newcomer to gardening. Over many years, programme makers have focused on generating interest for would-be newcomers by suggesting – “you can get great results with gardening and getting started is easier than you think”. Their primary tools to do this have been innumerable programmes detailing how to pot plants, propagate, divide, prune and tie up plants of all kinds – vegetables, shrubs, climbers and the like.
BUT, Having established people’s interest in gardening the BBC then appears to abandon them!
At least that’s the impression of most experienced gardeners who I meet. People praise the BBC for getting them started in gardening but, as many now argue, “there’s a limit to how many gardening programmes you can watch that repeat the same things previously broadcast when I started.”
Experienced gardeners – that is, people who have regularly managed their plot for 3 years or more - now argue that ‘yes’ you showed me that – now why don’t you show what can happen next? They will also argue that even the content of most gardening magazines is largely duplicated in the second and successive years of publication. And again, much of their content is largely geared towards the newcomer to gardening.
The BBC does an excellent job in catching the flavour of Garden Shows, like Chelsea and Hampton Court but, it’s argued, the BBC’s programme makers are also being swept up with the celebrity-status of these shows rather than their gardening content. For many, watching all the ‘presenter self-publicity’ is becoming a bit of a turn-off.
Experienced gardeners want more hands-on gardening programmes. They want programmes they can get their teeth into and really learn and see new things. They love seeing new gardens, but they want to see less of the celebrity presenter and more of the gardener who created the garden. They want programmes that detail more about specific plants – like bamboo for instance. People tell me that, even if they did not show any previous interest in a specific plant genus, they are sufficiently intrigued to appreciate and share the interest and enthusiasm of someone who does.
Please view my own brief Garden Makeover photo results which highlight a garden transformation that has intrigued and excited gardeners of all abilities for years.
