The Dirt: the gardening podcast from Grow Your Own magazine

Simon says: Be persistent, be determined, and keep at it

The GYO team chat to Simon Toomer from the National Trust about ‘first attempts in learning’, why horsetail appealed to him as a youngster, and his proudest moment at the National Trust. As well as this, Simon answers your burning gardening questions, the team chat plot sabotage, surprise harvests, and why you should never throw a brick on a string into a tree... yes, really! 
🛍 We’re delighted to bring you this special mini-series of The Dirt in association with the National Trust, and you can get 10% off everything in its online shop, from gardening tools and accessories, to books, stationary, clothes, toys, food and drink and much more. Simply use the code ‘NTGROW10’ at checkout when you visit nationaltrust.org.uk/shop until 31 Dec 2020.
🌱 Don’t miss our special offer exclusively for listeners of The Dirt – you can get seven issues of Grow Your Own magazine for just £29.99 (that’s £11.94 off!) by calling 0800 904 7000 and quoting ‘GPOD7’, or visiting http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gpod7 – where you’ll also find the full terms and conditions. 
Do you have a question you’d like us to put to Simon? If so, get in touch on thedirt@growfruitandveg.co.uk, or say hello on social media! 
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Best bits: our favourite moments from series 2

We’ve had a total blast recording series 2. It has been jam-packed with gardening successes, funny failures, useful hacks and inspiring lessons... so, this week, Laura and Blake sit down to choose some of their highlights from all 14 episodes! We hope you’ve loved listening – don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe and we’ll see you all soon for more The Dirt antics. 
🌱 Don’t miss our special offer exclusively for listeners of The Dirt – you can get seven issues of Grow Your Own magazine for just £29.99 (that’s £11.94 off!) by calling 0800 904 7000 and quoting ‘GPOD7’, or visiting http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gpod7 – where you’ll also find the full terms and conditions. 
Could you be a future guest star of The Dirt? If you have some funny garden fails or easy growing hacks get in touch on thedirt@growfruitandveg.co.uk, or say hello on social media! 
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If there’s a gardening ‘longcut’ I’ll usually take that, says Anne Swithinbank

Gardening legend and GYO columnist Anne Swithinbank joins the team for the final episode of the series! She shares her triumphs and frustrations from the kitchen garden this year and reveals that she usually ends up taking the longest route possible to gardening success. Plus, we discuss the RHS campaign that is championing an autumn of growing. 
🌱 Don’t miss our special offer exclusively for listeners of The Dirt – you can get seven issues of Grow Your Own magazine for just £29.99 (that’s £11.94 off!) by calling 0800 904 7000 and quoting ‘GPOD7’, or visiting http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gpod7 – where you’ll also find the full terms and conditions. 
Could you be a future guest star of The Dirt? If you have some funny garden fails or easy growing hacks get in touch on thedirt@growfruitandveg.co.uk, or say hello on social media! 
ⓣ Twitter https://twitter.com/gyomag 
ⓕ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/growyourownmag 
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We’ll get better results if we question things more, says Charles Dowding

Man of the moment, Charles Dowding, has just won three gold medals at the Great British Growing Awards 2020, so it seemed only right that we gave you another chance to enjoy his no-dig advice and expertise from when we interviewed him last year. Plus, Blake, Rose and Dan catch up on the current horticultural headlines and September gardening jobs that you need to know about this week! 
🌱 Don’t miss our special offer exclusively for listeners of The Dirt – you can get seven issues of Grow Your Own magazine for just £29.99 (that’s £11.94 off!) by calling 0800 904 7000 and quoting ‘GPOD7’, or visiting http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gpod7 – where you’ll also find the full terms and conditions. 
Could you be a future guest star of The Dirt? If you have some funny garden fails or easy growing hacks get in touch on thedirt@growfruitandveg.co.uk, or say hello on social media! 
ⓣ Twitter https://twitter.com/gyomag 
ⓕ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/growyourownmag 
ⓘ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/growyourownmag 

Feel the fear, do it anyway – and reap the rewards, says Natalie Osborn

Laura’s boss Natalie drops in for this week’s episode to fess up to a truckload of nightmare anecdotes from her Essex allotment. We’re talking ‘alien kohlrabi’, ‘zombie asparagus’, ‘carrots with willies’ – and a whole lot more! Plus, if you love a freebie, you won’t want to miss a couple of Natalie’s best money-saving gardening hacks. 
🌱 Don’t miss our special offer exclusively for listeners of The Dirt – you can get seven issues of Grow Your Own magazine for just £29.99 (that’s £11.94 off!) by calling 0800 904 7000 and quoting ‘GPOD7’, or visiting http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gpod7 – where you’ll also find the full terms and conditions. 
Could you be a future guest star of The Dirt? If you have some funny garden fails or easy growing hacks get in touch on thedirt@growfruitandveg.co.uk, or say hello on social media! 
ⓣ Twitter https://twitter.com/gyomag 
ⓕ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/growyourownmag 
ⓘ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/growyourownmag 

The benefits of gardening come in ways you can’t imagine, says Mike Thurlow

This week's guest, Mike Thurlow, discusses his eureka moment when it comes to organic gardening - which came thanks to a mishap with growing carrots! He also tells us about his yearly routine for growing show-stopping onions from seed, the wonderful act of picking and eating a sun-warmed peach straight from the tree, and why gardening is such a great stress-buster.
🌱 Don’t miss our special offer exclusively for listeners of The Dirt – you can get seven issues of Grow Your Own magazine for just £29.99 (that’s £11.94 off!) by calling 0800 904 7000 and quoting ‘GPOD7’, or visiting http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gpod7 – where you’ll also find the full terms and conditions. 
Could you be a future guest star of The Dirt? If you have some funny garden fails or easy growing hacks get in touch on thedirt@growfruitandveg.co.uk, or say hello on social media! 
ⓣ Twitter https://twitter.com/gyomag 
ⓕ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/growyourownmag 
ⓘ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/growyourownmag 

Our community project was so beneficial during lockdown, says Naomi Schillinger

Naomi Schillinger makes the case for front garden growing, perennial herbs, Jerusalem artichokes, the importance of community spirit, and plenty more on this week’s episode of The Dirt. Plus, the GYO team dig into why plants and gardening can bring such comfort to people in a variety of ways. 
🌱 Don’t miss our special offer exclusively for listeners of The Dirt – you can get seven issues of Grow Your Own magazine for just £29.99 (that’s £11.94 off!) by calling 0800 904 7000 and quoting ‘GPOD7’, or visiting http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gpod7 – where you’ll also find the full terms and conditions. 
Could you be a future guest star of The Dirt? If you have some funny garden fails or easy growing hacks get in touch on thedirt@growfruitandveg.co.uk, or say hello on social media! 
ⓣ Twitter https://twitter.com/gyomag 
ⓕ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/growyourownmag 
ⓘ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/growyourownmag 
 

I’m completely slug-phobic, they give me the heebie-jeebies, says Pauline Madden

Pauline spends much of her time inspiring the students at Sudbourne Primary School in Brixton to grow fruit and veg and she’s here to reveal the successes, fails, shortcuts and lessons she’s learned along the way. Find out about the uplifting community project she became involved with during lockdown, her best recipes for quality homemade compost, the sneaky ways she saves money in the garden, and how a phobia of slugs hasn’t stopped her love of gardening. 
🌱 Don’t miss our special offer exclusively for listeners of The Dirt – you can get seven issues of Grow Your Own magazine for just £29.99 (that’s £11.94 off!) by calling 0800 904 7000 and quoting ‘GPOD7’, or visiting http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gpod7 – where you’ll also find the full terms and conditions. 
Could you be a future guest star of The Dirt? If you have some funny garden fails or easy growing hacks get in touch on thedirt@growfruitandveg.co.uk, or say hello on social media! 
ⓣ Twitter https://twitter.com/gyomag 
ⓕ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/growyourownmag 
ⓘ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/growyourownmag 

You should never garden in slippers, says Julietta Watson

Since moving from Kent to Northern Ireland, Julietta Watson has had to overhaul her gardening habits to suit a slightly wetter climate – but she’s taking it all in her stride! She joins the team to discuss her fussy guinea pigs, creating a hugelkultur bed, and how much she LOVES soil! 
🌱 Don’t miss our special offer exclusively for listeners of The Dirt – you can get seven issues of Grow Your Own magazine for just £29.99 (that’s £11.94 off!) by calling 0800 904 7000 and quoting ‘GPOD7’, or visiting http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gpod7 – where you’ll also find the full terms and conditions. 
Could you be a future guest star of The Dirt? If you have some funny garden fails or easy growing hacks get in touch on thedirt@growfruitandveg.co.uk, or say hello on social media! 
ⓣ Twitter https://twitter.com/gyomag 
ⓕ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/growyourownmag 
ⓘ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/growyourownmag 

Don’t be a stickler for the rules and always ask questions, says Rob Smith

This week’s guest Rob Smith confesses that there are just some crops that he can’t get on with growing, plus he’s got a couple of handy gardening hacks that you’ll want to try out! Plus, the team catches up over a cuppa to brainstorm ideas for Blake’s summer glut of tomatoes! 
🌱 Don’t miss our special offer exclusively for listeners of The Dirt – you can get seven issues of Grow Your Own magazine for just £29.99 (that’s £11.94 off!) by calling 0800 904 7000 and quoting ‘GPOD7’, or visiting http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gpod7 – where you’ll also find the full terms and conditions. 
Could you be a future guest star of The Dirt? If you have some funny garden fails or easy growing hacks get in touch on thedirt@growfruitandveg.co.uk, or say hello on social media! 
ⓣ Twitter https://twitter.com/gyomag 
ⓕ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/growyourownmag 
ⓘ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/growyourownmag