Grow, Cook, Inspire; with gardening & cooking at it’s core

In the next instalment of the Helen's Heroines of Horticulture mini series, she speaks with Elle Hollingworth who is part of the RHS Shows Development team and is a show judge coordinator. However like so many women that Helen has interviewed a career in the world of horticulture had not always been on the cards for Elle. The global pandemic put the breaks on her travelling overseas and she had to return to her parents. Nevertheless returning home reignited a love for gardening and floral design and one thing led to another. Helen discusses with Elle her journey to the RHS, the women who inspire her and Elle also reveals an exciting new project she is working on in her local community in north London to help combat loneliness amongst the older residents where she lives. www.rhs.org.uk. Supported by Plank Bridge www.plank bridge.com. Be sure to subscribe to Grow Cook Inspire www.growcookinspire.com

Helen continues her summer mini series celebrating the Heroines of Horticulture, with her interview with the dynamic duo behind Caley Bros. Sisters Lorraine and Jodie join Helen on the podcast to discuss their journey to Chelsea, their heroines and how a family bereavement drove them to reassessing their career path. This change has resulted them growing mushrooms for a living and they made their mark at Chelsea this year by taking home a Gold medal. www.Caleybrothers.Co.uk. This special mini series has been supported by Plank Bridge, the pioneers behind the shepherd hut revival. To find out more visit www.plankpridge.com And be sure to subscribe to Grow Cook Inspire on whichever podcast platform you use. www.growcookinspire.com

In the third episode of this special mini series of Grow, Cook, Inspire, Helen is joined by the creative powerhouse Hazel Gardiner, founder of Hazel Gardiner Design, the London based floral design studio. We talk about her transition from the world of fashion journalism and the gruelling schedule of TV production and talent management to the world of floristry, after being diagnosed with a rare form of cancer. Hazel explains her drive and who influences her work as well as the challenges she has faced as being one of only a few black women in the industry. When she came onto the scene she couldn't see many women who looked like her. This series of the podcast has been supported by Plank Bridge, the pioneers behind the shepherd's hut revival in the UK. www.plankbridge.com Hazel Gardiner @hazelgardinerdesign & www.hazelgardinerdesign.com. Please do subscribe, share and review the podcast www.growcookinspire.com

Continuing this special Heroines of Horticulture podcast, Helen is joined by one one of her own heroines. In today's show Helen talks with Jekka McVicar. From the dizzy heights of Glastonbury as part of a rock band, Jekka has been at the helm of the UK's largest herb farm for almost 40 years, growing over 500 different culinary and medicinal varieties just outside of Bristol. With 62 gold RHS medals under her belt Jekka is not only a wealth of knowledge but a powerhouse for good. Generous with her time and expertise. She talks about her journey to setting up Jekka's Herb Farm back in 1984, her determination to get ahead and be seen and the struggles so many UK growers are currently facing during these unprecedented times. Plus there is chat of a new book on the horizon. This series of the podcast has been generously supported by Plank Bridge, the pioneers behind the shepherds hut revival built in the UK. (www.plankbridgecom) Jekka's Herb Fest will take place on the 30 June, 1 July & 2 July 2023. To find out more go to www.Jekkas.com. Please do subscribe to the podcast, review and share visit www.growcookinspire.com

Women have always gardened. However their journey into the professional realm of horticulture was turbulent. However there's were huge numbers of pioneering women who have have left a lasting legacy. Some of them well known others less so and their stories buried in the fire notes of history. To kick off this special series of the podcast celebrating just some of the remarkable women who are making waves in the world of horticulture, Helen is joined by the author Fiona Davison who is also Head of Libraries & Exhibits at the RHS. Fiona shares a potted history about women and gardening and discusses the revelations she unearthed while writing her new book, An Almost Impossible Thing, The radical lives of Britains pioneering women gardeners. which will be published in September 5 2023 and is available to preorder now. https://tdy.lol/ZwHnL. To find out more about all RHS events & exhibits go to www.rhs.org.uk. Plank Bridge are the pioneers behind the shepherds hut revival, built in the UK www.plankbridge.com. To find out more about Helen's work and new book go to www.growcookinspire.com

It has been well over two weeks since the dust has settled on the greatest show on earth. Now that the curtain rail has gone down for another year, Helen reflects on her highlights at this years prestigious event. She explores three of her favourite gardens; Harry Holdings School Food Matters garden, Camellia Taylor's garden titled The Natural Affinity Garden for Aspens and Tayshan Hayden - Smith's small but mighty garden Closing the Green Gap. You can find out more about each of these gardens by visiting www.rhs.org.uk

In todays episode Helen highlights the final piece of the jigsaw as she concludes her special mini series looking at the charities which have been supported by Project Giving Back, giving them an opportunity to raise awareness about their cause at the worlds greatest flower show which gets underway next week. Helen speaks with the duo Nicola and Susan of Semple Begg who are designing their first Chelsea garden for the charity The Tea Pot Trust, a charity providing art therapy for children and young people with chronic illnesses and hidden conditions. The Tea Pot Trust Elsewhere Garden will be relocated to the Royal Hospital for Children in Glasgow after the show. Helen also interviews the charity's CEO Sarah Randall, to find out more about the story behind The Tea Pot Trust, based in East Lothian in Scotland. To find more visit www.teapot-trust.org, www.semplebegg.com, www.rhs.org.uk. To find out about Helen's new book and to order a copy and find out about her book tour go to www.growcookinspire.com

In today's episode I speak with the founder and Chief Executive of School Food Matters, Stephanie Slater and garden designer Harry Holding. Harry is designing a garden for the charity School Food Matters, which will be on show at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show in May putting the charity on the map and sparking a conversation about the necessity not only to provide healthy and nutritious school meals to all children across the UK but also the need to educate children about food, and the environment around them. Something we talk about a lot about on this podcast. www.rhs.org.uk www.projectgivingback.org www.school food matters.org. www.Harryholding.co.uk Plus Helen's debut book Grow Cook Inspire, is due to be released on Thursday 20 April find out more about her first book what inspired it. You can preorder direct by going to www.growcookinspire.com

In today's episode Helen learns more about the charity Aspens and their garden, supported by Project Giving Back,which will be showcased at this year's RHS Chelsea Flower Show. She speaks with the garden designer Camellia Taylor and Aspens Head of fundraising Susan Sawyer, to learn more about how the Chelsea garden will help raise awareness around the work Aspens does supporting people with autism and learning disabilities and the long lasting legacy the garden will have once relocated to Aspens following Chelsea.

In the first episode of a new mini series, leading up to the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, which kicks off in May, Helen speaks with the CEO of the charity organisation, Project Giving Back, Hattie Ghaui. They discuss the main drive of Project Giving Back to create gardens for good causes, which will have a lasting legacy following the prestigious event, the charities involved and what are the plans beyond 2024. To find out more about Project Giving Back visit www.projectgivingback.org.uk and to find out more about the RHS visit www.rhs.org.uk.

In today's episode Helen has headed down to London on the back of ‘turnip' gate to visit a pioneering food and growing up in central London. Helen talks with Tom Walk, chef and food educator to find out more about The Hackney Food of School, which was established in 2019 by the LEAP Federation of Schools and with the support of the charity Chefs in Schools. With its own kitchen garden, bees and chicken, the school offers an immersive experience in growing and cooking real food. www.Hackneyschooloffood.com Plus Helen reveals more about the brand new Chefs in Schools Tool Kit, which has just launched. This brand new tool kit, which is free to download, will help schools snd communities to create their very own food education hubs up and down the country. www.chefs in schools.org.uk If you enjoyed listening to today's episode please do subscribe, share and review and check out Helen's new website over at www.growcookinspire.com

After a short break Helen is back from her half term vacation. This week she interviews founder of Urban Herbs, Andrew Perry. Andrew has been on the show before but is back with news of a new book and much more. She and Andrew talk about the growth of the business, digging up his front garden to grow food and how to reach out to a new audience. His debut book The Herb Gardening Handbook will be published on March the 30th. For more information visit www.urban-herbs.co.uk Plus on the garden and food edit Helen shares some news about Real Bread Week and the first Scottish Real Bread Festival, taking place at Bowhouse in Fife. Www.sustainweb.org & scotlandthebread.org. Helen also reveals the faces behind the Guardian's new gardening column and sweet peas are being sown, with hopes of towering flowering tee pees all summer long.

This week marks Children's Mental Health Week organised by the charity Place2Be. In this weeks episode of Grow Cook Inspire, Helen shares why gardening can have a positive impact on the mental health of children and young people. She also shares ways to incorporate ways to make your garden good for your well-being as well as news of a new RHS wellbeing training course for teachers. Plus Helen interviews gardener, author and master of no dig gardening Charles Dowding about his new book ‘No Dig Gardening for Children' which provides fun, practical and accessible ideas to get children growing and gardening. And to celebrate the release of this new book she will be running a giveaway over on her Instagram page @grow_cook_inspire, on Thursday the 9 Feb to win a copy of the book.

In this week's episode Helen interviews the award winning journalist, author & gardener Kim Stoddart about her new book she has written with Sally Morgan, The Climate Change Garden. We discuss how the book evolved from her own experiences of climate change and the impact it has had on her own garden. The book provides guidance and help to garden with nature in mind, and provides hope for resilient and productive gardens as well as ways to tackle eco anxiety amongst children.

Have you ever questioned why you garden and grow things? What drives you? What makes you keep returning to the soil year after year? Well, author and journalist Alice Vincent has pondered this and has been on a search for answers to discover more about why women in particular garden. In today's show Helen talks to Alice about her third book Why Women Grow, as well as the creation of her debut podcast which is by the same name. (

With Valentines Day just around the corner, Helen takes a look at just how sustainable our love for roses at this time of year really is and she also delves a little deeper into the UK's flourishing cut flower market. This week Helen is joined by flower farmers Marianne Mogendorff & Camila Romain, who are behind Wolves Lane Flower Company in North London and they are also the authors of How To Grow The Flowers, as well as Rachel Masterton of The Pretty Wild Flower Company in Dumfries and Galloway. Helen discusses with all three their pathway to flower farming, the highs and lows as well as their alternatives to roses for Valentines Day and how they are working to make wedding flowers more sustainable too. Please do subscribe, share and review the podcast.

Hello and a very happy New Year and welcome back to Grow Cook Inspire. This week we are celebrating National House Plant Week, timely as outside is grim, dark and wet. This week Helen here's from some friends of the podcast who share with us what they love about houseplants. Plus Helen interviews Sarah Gerrard Jones, author of the Plant Rescuer and all round houseplant saviour

To round up 2022 I bring you a bonus winter episode of the podcast. I'm joined by Beechgrove presenter and primary teacher Lizzie Schofield. We talk about coastal gardening on the north east of Scotland, willow weaving & being crowned Gardeners World Garden of the year.

Today's episode is the finale of series 5. I talk with the creative force that is Victoria the talent behind the Instagram account Sprout Surrey (

In today's show I meet and talk with former ballet dancer and now dance teacher and gardening writer, Andy Peasgood. We talk about his phenomenal career, and how he has found a new creative release in gardening. Having recently moved into a new build estate in Glasgow he has transformed what is a very modest space into a haven for plants and wildlife. It just goes to show you don't need acres of land to be green fingered. You can chart Andy's garden adventures on his Instagram account @andypeasgood

Today I chat with journalist and author Rhiannon Batten who has recently published her very first cook book along side Laura Rowe. The book, Rustle Up, published by Pavilion, is filled with over 80 recipes, all of which are just one paragraph long but are packed full of flavour and with minimum fuss. Tried and tested the recipes are ideal whether you are cooking for one, or feeding a growing family.

It is officially Autumn, which means it is time to celebrate all things pumpkins and that is the subject of todays show In todays episode we talk with Lucy Calder, one half of the husband and wife team behind Kilduff Farm in the heart of East Lothian and home to Kilduff's Pumpkin Festival. The dynamic duo are passionate about educating inspiring people about where there food comes from. As well as the traditional carving pumpkins they have been growing culinary varieties for a number of years. It doesn't stop with pumpkins as we discuss. We talk bread flour, apple juice, honey and their first hit out at growing dahlias along side their pumpkins.

It is no secret that the waiting lists for allotments can be incredibly long and therefore very off putting for so many people itching to grow their own. However the Scottish social enterprise Locavore has come up with a great idea. Having recently taken on the lease of an old Glasgow Council Plant Nursery in Bellahouston Park, the team are looking to build an urban farm. Within this space they have also created community growing plots for those with no garden access within the city. I caught up with community grower Carolyn Wilson to find out more and the impact it has had so far.

The podcast is back after a short break. The kids are back at school so now is the perfect time to take stick and look what has worked and more importantly what hasn't worked out in our growing spaces. I chat through my failures my agenda for the year ahead, plus I'll be taking you on a seed safari.

In todays show I chat with author & journalist Gabriella Bennett as she swaps city living for a more rural location and a change of career. After getting Covid earlier this year she decided to leave her job at The Times and embark on a new journey working in the Taybank Hotel's kitchen garden. Quite the career change! Plus with the summer holidays here, I share five ideas to help occupy children in the garden this summer, plus I chat rhubarb and potatoes. And if that is not enough I'll also share three must read books to see you through the summer holidays; Rhapsody on Green, The Well Gardened Mind and The Ballast Seed.

In today's show I chat with Daisy Desire aka The Drag Queen Gardener, live from this year's Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival. We catch up a year after she made her debut at the festival & how she is combining drag and gardening, by adding a little ‘couture to your manure'. And hear how she has dealt with the haters following her appearance on Gardeners World.

Today's episode is all about Tomatoes! I share my top tips about how to look after them plus I chat with the chef and food writer Claire Thomson, aka The 5 o'clock Apron who has just publish a brand new cook book, aptly titled, Tomato. The book is jam packed with recipes that celebrate this much loved fruit.

In today's show I interview good writer, teacher and chef Gill Meller about his fourth cook book, Outside, which celebrates everything that is great about cooking and eating in the great outdoors. We also chat about his gardening endevours.

In this week's show I chat with cook, writer, Co founder of Wahacca & Master Chef winner Thomasina Miers. Thomasina has just recently published her 8th cook book Meat Free Mexican. We talk about her love affair with Mexico, her journey into the food industry as well as her involvement in Chefs in Schools. Plus we chat about soil, a subject which comes up time and time again in the podcast, underlining it's impirtance.

In the final instalment of my RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2022 preview series I talk with Juliet Sargeant about life as a doctor before her life as a garden designer as well as the garden she has designed for Chelsea which will be the new Blue Peter Garden. The focus is on soil, the life line of our planet. She wants to excite the next generation and educate them about soil, highlighting that it is much more than dirt. The garden will be moving ti the new RHS Bridgewater Garden in Salford, following the show.

In part three of my special RHS Chelsea Flower Show preview series, I chat with garden designer Lottie Delamain. The textile garden she has designed is for the charity Fashion Revolution, funded by Project Giving. It will highlight the positive power which plants have on our clothes and make us consider what is actually in our clothes and where do they come from. This is Lottie's very first garden at Chelsea as well as her first podcast! Go listen!

In the second episode of my RHS Chelsea preview series I speak with award winning gardening designer, Polly Wilkinson. We discuss the garden she is creating for the Charity Mothers for Mothers, supported by Project Giving Back. It is titled This Too Shall Pass, and explores mental health issues and the challenges faced my women during motherhood, challenges magnified over the last two years.

This is the first episode in an exclusive new four party mini series of the podcast where I will be delving behind the scenes of RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2022 and exploring three special gardens funded by Project Giving Back, which provides funding for charitable organisations to exhibit at the show. But first I caught up with RHS Chelsea Show Manager Gemma Lake, to find out what we can expect from this years show.

A second bonus episode this week. I chat with Neil Butler from Dandelion about the inspiring project, Unexpected Gardens, which will take place throughout Scotland. Twelve gardens will be created in the most unlikeliest of places, breathing new life into communities.

In today's episode we get get to grips with all things soil and peat free compost as I chat with Tommy Dale, the man behind Caledonian Horticulture. Plus I'll be looking at what to sow in the garden as well as the benefits of companion plants. And asparagus is in the spotlight in the kitchen this week. It's a good one! Please remember to subscribe, review and share.

Welcome back. In todays show I interview Kayleigh Love, the young Dairy Farmer who featured on the latest series of the BBC's This Farming Life. She and her family have taken control of the milk they produce on their farm on the south west coast of Scotland, selling it straight from the farm gates. Doesn't get much fresher.

On today's show I talk with Lauren one half of the mother and daughter team behind Days of Dahlia, a flower farm and design studio located in Scotland. We chat about her family's roots in floristry and her move from working in the arts to growing cut flowers with her mum. If you are looking to create your own cut flower patch this year, Lauren is on hand to share her wisdom as well as some of her favourite varieties.

We've made it into March and we're sowing caution to the wind and sowing seeds with gusto. Today's guest is Joanna MacGregor, one half of Farm Ness, who also features on the fifth series of The BBC Show This Farming Life. We talk about her move from the classroom to the farm yard, her farm shop endeavours & much much more.

In today's show Helen Interviews Andrew Perry, about his journey from studying history at university to growing herbs and launching the hugely successful online shop, Urban Herbs.

In todays show Helen reminds listeners about the importance of the RSPB's big bird watch which runs from the 28th January until the 30th January. In the last 50 years the UK skies have lost 35 million birds.

In today's show we welcome The Beardy Gardener back on to the podcast. Leigh Johnstone, who is a mental health advocate and Instagram gardening sensation found solace and hope from his garden during a very difficult period in his life. He now wants to share the joy of gardening with those who don't have their own green space through the launch of The Giving Garden.

Welcome to a brand new series of Grow Cook Inspire. To kick of the New Year I am joined by gardener, author & TV presenter Frances Tophill, who's new book The Modern Gardener is due to be published this spring. We chat about intentions for 2022, perennial veg as well as her new book. We also touch on that all important question what plant or seed would you take to a desert island?!

Today I share my highlights from this years RHS Chelsea Flower Show as well as my top things to do in the garden as we slide into autumn. Plus I have a few special guests, including the Prince of gardening, Arthur Parkinson, food writer Kathy Slack and Lucy Calder of Kilduff Farm. And to round things off I have some pumpkin and blackberry recipes.

In this weeks episode we head to Aberdeenshire to visit Rora Dairy, where we speak with Jane Mackie the driving force behind the no nonsense yogurt. Plus there are great ideas for things to do in the garden and I tell you more about Radio 2's Big Bee Challenge Competition. To round things up we'll be foraging and cooking with elderflower. {www.roradairy.co.uk, https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/2qk4dDdJJdsVFmcLhZ7RwmW/how-to-enter}

Kicking off a brand new series I bring you all the latest news in food, farming and horticultural, plus I will share a fantastic conversation with Anna Lamotte, who helps run Guardswell Farm and Guardswell Grows in rural Perthshire. The team in this idyllic hideaway are not only rewilding the countryside but also their guests. You can find out more about Guardswell over www.Guardswell.co.uk or follow their journey over on Instagram @guardswellfarm & @guardswellgrows. Also I'll be sharing recipes ideas using rhubarb and for more recipe inspiration you can find me over on Instagram @helen.a.cross As ever if you can share, listen, review and subscribe to the podcast that would be brilliant.

In the fourth and final episode of my special mini series of Grow Cook Inspire to coincide with National Gardening Week I chat with Ally Mitchell, the driving force behind Ocean Plastic Pots. The commercial diver turns plastic waste from the sea and turns them in to plant pots! And if you can please do vote for Grow Cook Inspire in the podcast category of the Great British Growing Awards 2021. You can vote by following this link https://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/awards Thank you!!

We are half way through National Gardening Week and in today's episode of this special mini series I will be sharing my third inspirational story. Earlier this week I was fortunate enough to visit the Woodlands Community Gardens in Glasgow and find out how a green oasis in the middle of the city has helped to bring a community together during a very difficult year.

In the second episode of this special mini series of Grow Cook Inspire to coincide with National Gardening Week I chat with the lovely Lisa from Lisa Marie's Kitchen as she plans a garden focussing on mental well-being for Gardeners World Live later this summer.