93 episodes
The Garden Log Ben Dark
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- Leisure
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4.8 • 53 Ratings
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The Garden Log is an award winning podcast from Ben Dark, Head Gardener at an English country estate. Episodes begin with a review of events in the flowerbeds, meadows and woodland, before moving on to discuss horticultural matters more generally.
Ben is an ever-curious host who does not take himself, his job or gardening too seriously. A half-hour spent in his company is a half-hour spent far away from the myriad concerns of modern life.
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#93 The surprising speed of Arum italicum: featuring Proust’s Asparagus, Mahonia x media and the Aucuba fertilisation frenzy of 1865
Celebrate the return of the Garden Log with some of your favourite shrubs!
Plus mulch shovelling, cotinus and some dodgey but lovable carex
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Life in the Ruins: Mutant brambles and runaway figs in the deserted village of Campo di Brenzone
In this starling-squalled episode of the Garden Log Ben is turned away from the botanic garden and makes his way to the mountains of Italy to talk about vegetables, olives and the Villa Cimbrone
https://ko-fi.com/bendark -
Kitchen Garden Confidential
Ben tours the fruit trees of Bernstorff Slotshave, discovers a nuttery and uses it to muse on pruning, ivy, bees, wasps, dogs, figs, cliffs and trees.
https://ko-fi.com/bendark -
Bernstorff Slotshave 1: A good walk foiled
In Ben's first ever outdoor recording for the Garden Log he is driven from a historic kitchen garden to wander in search of euonymus, yew trees and friendly dogs.
https://ko-fi.com/bendark -
#89 Copenhagen: city of roses (A gardening podcast)
In this northerly episode of The Garden Log Ben discusses lime trees, hollyhocks, hedge heights and salsify and is refreshed by the Scandinavian approach to Japanese Knotweed.
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#88 Goodbye to all that
In the last episode of the Garden Log’s three-and-half-year ‘season 1’ Ben reflects on the garden and looks forward a new chapter…
www.ko-fi.com/bendark
Customer Reviews
Smoldering passionate gardening
So I don’t think he’s always talking about gardening? Oh dear! But then some of us get pretty worked up when we walk into a garden center, or open a Fall bulb catalogue!! If you aren’t a passionate gardener you may not get absorbed.
Me? I totally get it. He makes the listener visualize what he’s experienced that week. I was relieved to get the damned moldy acanthus ripped out. I love this podcast. It’s a bit exhaustive. But Ben covers a lot of territory.
I recommend a glass of wine with this podcast and dim the lights.
A Breath of Very Fresh Air!
Working on several of our properties up in the mountains of Northern California, I found and have exhausted several wonderful podcasts centered on organic growing and sustainability.
But podcasts entertain and educate me as I lug wheelbarrows of various soil types, operate the tractor, reconfigure the greenhouse and pot up hundreds of seedlings from some known donors last fall taken.
Some are from my crops as well as mystery plants. It is all an adventure and I love it, but I need input from many sources and it took a dreadful exploration into less engaging US offerings before Ben appeared.
From his first droll sentence, I was captivated. I’ll pursue the funding route for his podcasts because he is infinitely worth it. I owned and ran a great, conservation-based whale watching company on California’s Monterey Bay for many years and the Brits were some of my favorite passengers. I will say about Ben’s podcasts what they often said about our cruises:
“Brilliant!”
Men-centric ?
So far I have only listened to one episode. I like the poetic language and interesting commentary. As a professional gardener who is also a woman, I was a little put off by the consistent references to other gardeners and garden helpers who are all male... :/. I may listen to another episode and see how it goes, but that was my initial reaction. Thanks.
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