BBC Four is set to bloom with Growing Gardens And Green Fingers, a new season of programmes celebrating the nation’s deep relationship with nature and our inimitable love of gardens.
Martha Kearney, Michael Collins, Professor Richard Fortey and a host of the country’s leading gardening and wildlife experts will travel the length of the country to uncover to uncover the secrets of Britain’s gardens.
Cassian Harrison, BBC Four channel editor, said: "When the nights shorten and Spring bursts into bloom, BBC Four will celebrate the turn of the seasons with a delightful new collection of programmes exploring the wonder of Britain’s gardens.
"From Heritage gardens to beekeeping and suburbia, BBC Four will cast a Springtime eye over Britain’s plots and plant life."
British Gardens In Time
This four-part series explores four iconic gardens. From Christopher Lloyd’s Arts and Craft Great Dixter to Georgian Stowe and from Victorian Biddulph Grange to the quintessentially English Nymans, this series brings these four glorious gardens to life.
Featuring garden designer Chris Beardshaw, historian Andrea Wulf and National Trust Head Gardener Alan Power, British Gardens In Time uncovers the rich social and horticultural history of four British heritage landscapes.
Everyday Eden: A Potted History Of The Suburban Garden
Because it’s not grand, the story of the suburban garden has barely been told - and yet 8 out of 10 people in England live in the suburbs. Writer and historian Michael Collins delivers a riposte to the urban intelligentsia who have spent a century sneering at the suburbs.
Collins’ South London pilgrimage takes him to Bexley and Bromley, Surbiton and the new promised land of Bluewater in Kent to explore what the suburban garden has meant to us and to celebrate what one contributor calls ‘their little piece of heaven’.
The Wonder Of Bees with Martha Kearney
A new four-part series follows Martha Kearney through her bee-keeping year, exploring the science, art and culture of the honey bee - the most ingenious insect known to humankind.
As a keen amateur with no training, Martha is determined to become an expert beekeeper and harvest her first ever crop of wildflower honey. BBC Four follows Martha over a year as she works with experts around the country to hone her honey making skills, learning from the best beekeepers in the world.
Magic Of Mushrooms
Mushroom enthusiast Professor Richard Fortey explores the strange and surprising science of fungi, unlocking the astonishing story of their evolution, their mysterious life cycle and their value to both the planet and us.
In a purpose-built mushroom lab, Richard and mycologist Dr Patrick Hickey investigate the secret life of fungi, revealing why they have the power to heal and kill, how mushrooms can form the biggest living organisms on earth, and why they are vital to the survival of all life on our planet.
Through field and woodland, Richard tracks down fascinating varieties of fungi and reveals why this hidden kingdom is at the forefront of research. From penicillin to poisons, environmentally friendly packaging to cancer treatments, he discovers the surprising and fascinating magic of mushrooms.
Dirt
What is it that makes this thin and fragile layer of ‘stuff’ that covers some of our planet able to sustain life on Earth? In a new science programme presented by Chris Beardshaw, we delve into the micro-world of soil to reveal what it is, how it works and why we couldn’t survive without it.
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