Roots, Wings and Other Things

The Stuff We Love One: And just like that, we're at episode 12 and the end of season 5. Where on earth does the time go?! Summer is well and truly here with great growth in the hedgerows, vegetable patches, flower beds and wild flower meadow. With the warm sun, more light and occasional rain you can turn your back for just a moment and in that time you've got flowers (and weeds!) everywhere. It's joyful. In this episode, to wrap up season 5 Kathy and I share our favourite things from the garden and kitchen, and there's one final opportunity to win that amazing bag of goodies worth over £130. Happy summer, everyone!

The Gluts One: Gluts! So many gluts. Every summer Jez grows enough tomatoes to rival Italy's national export, and can't keep up with soups, roasting, and experimental tomato face creams. Kathy's had more cucumbers than you could poke a courgette at - and we know we're not alone! Don't despair, it's a special episode with expert advice on exciting ways to manage your glut!

The Health One: Yet again Kathy's brought food and on behalf of you, dear viewer, we're testing the commonly-banded around health benefits of fruit. In this episode Kathy and Jez plead Nigel Slater to kidnap them, Jez discloses he once weighed a baby squirrel, and a large bowl of fruit is picked apart so once and for all we can categorically know how many we have to eat for it to be good for us.

The Gadget One: Welcome to "the Gardget Show"... One of our listeners, Jim, asked about gadgets for the garden and the kitchen, which Kathy and I thought was a great idea for a special episode! Can you guess which gadget Kathy loves so much that she keeps it in her handbag, and takes it with her everywhere? She could possibly be the only person alive who does this...

The Danger One: Jez and Kathy are eating (again), and this time it's mushrooms. Fortunately Kathy knows her mushrooms but Jez's dog Woody had a very lucky escape recently. Which brings us to other dangerous things in the garden, and how to avoid them.

The Underground One: Kathy's been cooking again and if the cake was the pinnacle of the mountain, the root veg soup and homemade sourdough is the snow - or something. It's incredible, and incredibly simple, too. When things come together like this (growing and eating and enjoying) it really does make things in life fall into place. From turmeric, to plastic grass, and from underground bugs to bees wax - this was such a fun (and tasty!) episode to record!

The Cost Cutting One: Gardening can be expensive, so this week Kathy and I sat down to share some super simple ways to enjoy your outdoor space, or the joy of growing your own fruit, vegetables and flowers, both for free and for as little investment as possible. Kathy shares an AWESOME recipe for a cauliflower shepherd's pie (which was EPIC - yes, we ate it for dinner!), which has got me thinking about how simple it is to live for less if we put our minds to it. Please share your cost cutting recipes below! Congratulations to last week's winners who win a 100% cotton jute bag jam-packed with over £130 worth of goodies from True Grace Candles; Aspall's Cider Vinegar; Seed Ball; Kathy, myself, and The Really Wild Company. More chances to win coming soon, so keep listening - and don't forget to subscribe to the YouTube channel!

The Growing One: The joy of growing something is unparalleled, but this week it's a controversial one! Seeds or plugs? Expect growing tips and inspiration for your garden and vegetable patch makeover. Congratulations on this week's winners of the 2 goodie bags! Keep listening for the next opportunity coming soon!

Episode 4: In this very special edition of Roots, Wings & Other Things it's Jez's Birthday!... well, almost. We record for Monday but this year Jez's Birthday is on Wednesday but ANY excuse for more cake! AND as a special Birthday treat there's another chance to WIN one of 2 very special goodie bags full of over £130 worth of exciting products from True Grace; Seed Ball; Jez, Kathy, Ebury Publishing; Aspall's and The Really Wild Company. See Instagram (@ThatJezRose) for competition entry details!

The Nature Healing One: This week Kathy lets Jez's puppy Woody in with muddy paws, and tells everyone to remove their clothes and sit in ice cold water. What is the power nature has over us to improve health, wellbeing and our behaviour, and what can the rest of us do to benefit while Kathy has an ice bath? Watch on YouTube (@ThatJezRose) and subscribe to be the first to know of new episodes.

Episode 2: Gardening Gobbledygook. In this episode Jez Rose (@ThatJezRose) springs an unexpected quiz on co-host Kathy Slack (@gluts_gluttony) as they explore weird, bizarre and odd garden terminology. Jez has a rhubarb revelation and Kathy has a rhubarb recipe.

Episode 1: The Cake One. I'm back with series 5 and joined by my series co-host Kathy Slack for an all-new Roots, Wings & Other Things SHOW! We're a show now! Join us for the next 12 weeks wherever you get your podcasts and over on YouTube @ThatJezRose to watch Kathy and I chat all things growing, gardening, nature, tea, cake, cooking and life. Enter the competition to win over £130 worth of incredible prizes with 6 opportunities to win throughout the series!

Then & Now: The season 4 finale comes with a BIG announcement about the end of Roots, Wings & Other Things as we know it. But exciting news about the future! News about that, plus how winter forces us to face patience; choosing slow growing methods; our innate draw to be with nature, garden plans and parsnips! Subscribe to my channel on YouTube to be the first to know about the new show! Happy festive season to you all, and THANK YOU for being part of the journey!

Working through John Coutts' book has made me especially curious about him and his work, so in this episode I travelled to London to speak with Simon Toomer, Curator of Living Collections at Kew, about John, and the future of gardening. There's news about the brand new series and an update on the garden renovation, plus autumn chat!

Complicated & Simple: Nature is as simple as it is complicated, but also, aren't we, too? This month I chat with the brilliantly practical and down-to-earth Christine Walkden about the delicate topic of peat-free and keeping things simple; have an exclusive listener special offer and share my thoughts on a really big idea that could help the cost of living crisis. If you'd like to hear more episodes, please do consider donating at thatjezrose.com/donate

When is native not native? And when should we not go native?! It's a thought provoking discussion I'm having with my special guest this month; the plantsman Colin Ward from Swine's Meadow Nursery in Lincolnshire. Plus updates on the garden renovation, Jonathan the blackbird and the anxiety induced by comparing gardens. Do you get that? Let me know on Instagram. Thank you so much for listening! As you'll know, the podcast doesn't have a sponsor, which means that it's ultimately funded by me. If you like the series and you've been enjoying it so far and you'd like to hear more in the future I've made a really easy for you to make a contribution at www.ko-fi.com/roots - for all the videos that accompany this series (and more!) head over to my Youtube channel (search Jez Rose) and subscribe - there's so much new content being uploaded almost daily!

The meadow is growing! It's exciting to see the seeds finally germinating, which means I can now turn my attention to the kitchen garden - just in time for the good weather... although you watch us have the wettest summer yet now as soon I've finished it! This week I share my favourite wild seed combinations; chat fruit and vegetable plans; reveal my secret to effective pocket planting and called Gardener's World regular Nick Bailey to get his take on my plan to garden as they did in 1931. Don't forget to share your garden and nature journeys with me on Instagram @thatjezrose

Join me this episode for a wildflower meadow special! I'm back from my trip to the US, but caught covid and am finding I don't have the energy or strength to do what I want. It's frustrating, but I've now sown the wildflower meadow and some of the other meadow areas: I'll explain how to do it properly and why it can be a wonderful and cost effective solution for instant colour and biodiversity to almost any garden area!

Episode 1: It's great to be back, and to share with you my new garden: a half acre of overgrown grass. We'll need a quick tour of the garden so you can follow along, and with each area I design and begin to dig out I'll be returning to my trusty copy of Everyday Gardening from 1931 for guidance from ex curator of Kew, John Coutts. For my video diary of the garden as it unfolds, head to my YouTube channel and for regular updates on Instagram @thatjezrose and @rootswingspodcast - if you enjoy the podcast and want to show your appreciation by donating to Greenfingers, this season's podcast charity, head to ko-fi/com/roots

Season 4 launches next week - here's what's in store for this exciting season, packed full of new features! Don't forget to subscribe, follow on instagram @rootswingspodcast and subscribe to my YouTube channel for the special garden updates video diary.

It's the final episode in series 3! Where did that time go?! In a special season finale, Kathy take full advantage of the lifting of lockdown and visits our celebrity special guests in person at their incredible restaurant. Look out for something special coming very soon and you must, must, must join the podcast on instagram @rootswingspodcast - have you got your RWOT t-shirt yet? Head to jezrose.teemill.com for exclusive Roots, Wings & Other Things merchandise!

Jez's friend off the telly box, Laura Aikman, is our special celebrity guest this week as she lets us poke around her tiny London garden acquired mainly for her dog to, well, you know. Kathy comes up trumps with Vegetable of the Week and a cracking recipe to help you enjoy growing your own even more. Plus there's the usual laughs, books, dogs and allegedly harmless ribbing. Kathy still doesn't have a peg. Join us on Instagram @rootswingspodcast and head to jezrose.teemill.com for exclusive podcast merchandise!

Things take a lunar and planetary turn this week with Kathy's celebrity special guests interview. Jez reveals some shocking cooking home truths; Kathy comes to the rescue of his sweet pea disaster and there are some very special entries for Book of the Week. Jez attempts to catch Kathy out with a boring Vegetable of the Week, but it turns out she's got tonnes of exciting recipes. Of course.

This week Kathy and Jez are more excited than Bill and Ben the Flower Pot Men at the prospect of their herby celebrity special guest: none other than the Queen of Herbs, the delightful Jekka McVicar. Definitely the highlight of the episode, but there's the usual Kathy and Jez fun, too. Jez admits to have being a bit naughty; they discuss traditional sustainable farming and techniques we can adopt at home; a racy Book of the Week and a call for herb recipes (Kathy wants cocktail ones...). Join us on instagram @RootsWingsPodcast for more fun!

This week Kathy and Jez get super excited about a very special, colourful celebrity guest; celebrity florist and HBO judge Simon Lycett. There's news on Kathy's (drawn out) kitchen renovation; innovative solutions for Jez's mole problems; vegetable "husbandry"; hilarious book of the week and cut flower madness. Join the podcast on instagram @rootswingspodcast for exclusive fun and recipes!

This week Kathy and Jez chat aubergines; carrots; kitchen gardens; consider a podcast uniform; speak to former head gardener of Soho Farmhouse Anna Greenland; stimulating dogs on lead and reveal two cracking books of the week. Don't forget to subscribe, rate, join us on instagram @RootsWingsPodcast and check out the brand new podcast merchandise at jezrose.teemil.com

Welcome to Series 3! Jez Rose is joined by his new co-host and wrangler, Kathy Slack for the best series yet! Don't forget to subscribe because it's now weekly: in the first episode of the brand new series Kathy and Jez chat to cut flower and chicken aficionado Arthur Parkinson, chat aubergines, vegetable abundance and creating cutting gardens. Join us on our new podcast instagram page @rootswingspodcast and grab exclusive podcast merchandise from jezrose.teemill.com !

Series 3 launches tomorrow, Friday 6th August and I think it may well be the best series yet! What do you think? Weekly special guest interviews, Jez's peg list, book of the week, new vegetable of the week, dog chat, garden chat, tea chat, chit chat, veg plot chat, back chat… subscribe, join us on Instagram @rootswingspodcast and grab your exclusive merch at: jezrose.teemill.com

Series 3 with my new co-host Kathy Slack launches this Friday 6th August! Weekly podcasts for the summer gardening season; return of Book of the Month (now Book of the Week!); weekly celebrity special guest interviews and new features like Vegetable of the Week PLUS a new Instagram account for fun, chat, prizes and surprises: @rootswingspodcast

Very exciting news about Series 3, which launches Friday 6th August 2021! Make sure you hit subscribe and join us over on our new Instagram page @rootswingspodcast for news, prizes and episode chat!

In the final episode of series 2, professor of ecology and bumble bee expert Dave Goulson joins me as my special guest co-host! And what a fascinating end to the series! Deathwatch beetles; top tips if you're interested in beekeeping; pointless pollinators and just what is the real truth about bee decline? Plus exciting news about series 3! It's all in here in this months episode! Don't forget to subscribe and donate to ko-fi.com/roots if you can.

My friend Kathy Slack; the food writer, cook, and "vegetable queen" herself is my co-host this month for a chat and a giggle about growing your own, coping with gluts, cooking with it, and where I can put my leeks. This is one of my favourite episodes so far - let me know what you think! ko-fi.com/roots

What does Christine Walkden from BBC Gardener's Question Time do on her dining room table? You're about to find out! My guest co-host this month chats about growing plants in a bath; Helen Mirren; plants vs children; The One Show, and I ask her for advice about my little banana.

It's a snowy January episode but my guest co-host this month brings adventurous stories of rowing the Atlantic, bees, donkeys, and finding nature in the most unlikely of places! An inspiring episode and my very first person interviewed with an OBE (but it might not be best to mention it to her...), it's Sarah Outen.

It's December and my special co-host this month is Michael Perry, the self-styled plant geek... and for this special festive episode expect raunchy plant names; inspiration for winter pots; bird chat and exciting news about podcast merch! To support the podcast and my community gardening donation head to ko-fi.com/roots

Welcome back to Series 2! While Adam takes a break I'm joined by special guest co-hosts and this month it's the delightful Frances Tophill from Love Your Garden and Gardener's World and it's a fun way to kick off the new series! Hops, community gardens, axe throwing and Frances's view on "the peg"! New for this series is a simple way to donate and give back all explained - welcome to Series 2! ko-fi.com/roots

In the final episode of Season 1, and the most honest and open to date, Jez wraps up with exciting news about Season 2, but before that it's Larry Grayson, house plants, a tricky threesome, and heartbreak. A huge thank you to you all for listening, and for your support. As the world becomes a little less certain again, Roots, Wings & Other Things is preparing to reset and return even stronger for Series 2.

In the penultimate episode of the series, Jez goes it alone as Adam is away. Raw and unedited, this episode features all your favourite features plus Jez reflects on the best bits of series 1 and reveals two amazing competitions! For more details of the mead crowdfunding campaign mentioned visit: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/traditional-british-mead-recreate-the-past#/

The "after dark" special with mead that Jez completely ruined! Only Adam and Jez could get through dogs making business decisions; favourite trees; Netflix recommendations; the 'Ultra Suit' for beekeepers; the search for a sponsor; and a sneaky insight into a brand new online workshop with Jez and Adam. If you'd like to support Jez's mead crowdfunding campaign you can join in here: https://igg.me/at/britishmead This episode is dedicated to the memory of Zeus 2007-2020

Adele, Eric Clapton, black bees, Jez's mead and Ash the cat causing chaos. All that plus a very exciting announcement and you've got June's episode of your favourite podcast! Recorded while socially distanced, please continue to excuse the sound quality until we can be closer together.

A special VE Day episode recorded during Lockdown. Join Adam and Jez as they talk honeybees and ethics; 'no dig' gardening and poems. Jez presents an unread Book of the Month and desperately attempts to get Adam to focus on Album of the Month. The boys discuss independent plant nurseries; the possibility of an 'after dark' podcast, and Attitude magazine, plus the usual fun and frolics!

We found a way to record the podcast in the COVID-19 lockdown, but please excuse the slight sound issues. With Tiny Winky, Sandi Toksvig, Jennifer Saunders and Chelsea - it's all going on this month! Jez updates on the bees; Adam updates on the chilli plants and the boys flirt with the idea of Fevertree sponsoring the podcast. Jez is caught podcast cheating, plus, the raisin competition winner is announced! Stay safe - stay home.

Join Jez and Adam and a very special guest - Mrs Frost! This month the boys explore ideas for gardening indoors; how nature appears to be fixing itself,; growing vegetables; the start of the beekeeping season; growing on from seeds and how connecting with Nature is going to be more important than ever as we manage anxiety and stress ...and Adam still has issues with Jez's peg. This episode was recorded 4 days before the Government enforced lockdown due to Covid-19.

Wet February forces Adam and Jez inside to sow more seeds where Adam updates Jez on his chillis; they discuss biosecurity and together solve the environmental crisis; Adam loses control and starts "Hat of the Month"; Polly and Willow make an appearance and His Lordship has to move his car. Just like February's weather, it's a random one!

Happy new year! A little later than we'd have liked but it's an extra long one to make up for it! This episode it's seeds, bulbs and bees! We answer a listener question about dogs in gardens and ramble about soil; the global nature crisis and lack of action; exciting strawberry plants; chillis and reject New Year resolutions. It's a packed one - and an honest one.Book of the Month is Lost Connections by Johann Hari and Album of the Month is one Adam can't remember but he likes Paul Weller.

It's December and this month, with the help and distraction of Adam's cat, Jez helps Adam to split and pot on tender plants ready for next year while Adam rebels against Book of the Month. Together they discuss soil, mental health and gardening as a source of inspiration and calm, and Jez discusses his passion for people. Book of the Month is 'Man's Search for Meaning' by Viktor Frankl, and Adam's new Album of the Month is 'Who' by The Who. Happy Christmas!

This month Jez and Adam are out in the garden and their chat is about winter planting, Jamie Oliver, Bruce Springsteen and nail files. Jez (minimally) helps Adam plant a shrub in a new social BBQ area; they feed Adam’s bees and discover mistletoe on the apple tree.Book of the Month is 'Humble by Nature' by Kate Humble and 'Natural Selection: A Year in the Garden' by Dan Pearson.

Jez and Adam discuss the idea of starting a new podcast to record each month, but have no idea where to begin. Adam's new kitten makes an appearance. This months recommended book is one of Adam and Jez's favourites: 'Wilding' by Isabella Tree.