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gardengal48

Gardeners' World

8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago

I don't think this show is very widely available here in the US. But I dislike most network TV and subscribe to several British TV access applications and cruising through the listings available on BritBox, I found this and was immediately hooked!!

I quite like Monty Don and the other guest presenters. I like that they address gardening issues related to both edibles as well as all manner of ornamentals. I like that they focus a segment on a specific plant type each program, make meaningful and realistic design suggestions, tour larger country house or show gardens yet still address those who do not live on estates and garden in tiny yards. And I really like that they make clear that gardening and landscaping is a process and not an overnight makeover with an unlimited budget thrown at it. And Nigel and Nellie are adorable :-)

So why can't we manage to do something similar here in the US?? Even back in the days when HGTV actually had a 'G' component, we didn't come close to the depth and quality that this show offers. Is it because we are too geographically diverse that a national show would be just too vague and generalized to be of value? Or that there isn't the interest and therefore sponsorship to support it? Or do we just generally lack the degree of gardening appreciation and knowledge that it seems like virtually any British citizen over the age of 10 possesses?

BritBox is only offering the current season so hoping there are more episode to come. But I would love to access previous seasons as well. This show has been in production since 1968!!

Comments (10)

  • 8 years ago

    yeah.. but they talk funny .. God knows what language that is .... lol


    im not very gizmo inclined ... but i tried this.. go figure ... ken


    BTW: im kinda hooked on the great british baking off show ... the original with mary ....


    https://duckduckgo.com/?q=Gardeners%27+World+videos&t=ffcm&ia=videos&iax=videos

    gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9) thanked ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
  • 8 years ago

    I have to say, I came adross a book of Don Monty`s by accident, but it got me really hooked.


    and when I discovered that he had a TVshow...


    I watch some on youtube, mostly like it,


    sometimes am amused to watch a fellow plant nerd at full enthusiasm level.


    In Germany there are some gardening telly shows, but I find them mostly painfull to watch and boring,

    and regarding the content galaxies apart


    I guess they are not that well funded


    and at times you notice that they just stuck a pretty face in front of a camera interviewing some nursery owner, not a gardening person ...




    gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9) thanked linaria_gw
  • 8 years ago

    Gardengal, I think you ask a really interesting question. I also sometimes wonder why there are no decent gardening shows in the US. Lots of people are gardening but the large regional differences that you mention might make it a better market for local gardening shows. Even then it seems unlikely to work. There was a quickly aborted attempt at such a show in my area. I enjoyed 'A Gardener's Diary' in the old days when, as you put it well, there was a meaningful 'G' in HGTV but then there used to be a meaningful 'A' in A&E and 'H' in the History channel. It seems to me that the reality shows did more harm than good and maybe a few good gardening shows fell victim to it as did the rest. I am subscribed to BritBox and had no idea that it includes the last season of 'Gardeners' World.' Now I can't wait to watch all of the episodes. Thank you for mentioning it!

    gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9) thanked vesfl (zone 5b/6a, Western NY)
  • 8 years ago

    I'm kinda hooked on Gardener's World as well. It's always got something of interest even if it does hit on some things that won't work over here.... still nice to just hear someone talk intelligently about gardening.

    There's one season which is mostly available on youtube, and the newest season can be found, but nearly all the other episodes get taken off or made unavailable to US viewers. I bet there's some tech-savy way to fool youtube into thinking you're not watching from the US but my mind just resists that kind of advice so I'm stuck just moping about it.

    I still miss the Victory Garden. They tried to pretty it up and ended up just dumbing it down until it was as dull as all the other Mcgarden shows.

    gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9) thanked katob Z6ish, NE Pa
  • 8 years ago

    YouTube is the only place I find gardening type shows, usually by the home gardeners that post them. I wish we did have something that was informational about plants and gardening in general.


    It was the original Victory Garden show that got me interested before I ever had a yard to garden in. I especially liked the gentleman who did the vegetable gardening and learned a lot from him even though his garden was in a much different climate than mine. ...Agree that later on they dumbed it down, sped it up, shorter segments, less latin names used, too much chatter with little info, etc. I lost interest.


    Sponsorship may be the answer. Here in the US the only people that matter to marketers are younger ones. Once we hit a certain age (49?) we are no longer the desirable audience. I know younger people are gardening, but mainly it's older people who have more time for it?


    (It's funny that the British Baking Show is hard to understand sometimes. My DH and I both watch it and ask each other often, "What did they just say?" We could use some subtitles, lol. And what's up with biscuits and puddings? Very different than over here :-)

    gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9) thanked sandyslopes z6 n. UT
  • 8 years ago

    Sandyslopes, I have been using closed captioning on my TV for over ten years now (hearing loss, too young to realize what it was, I thought my TV was broken, lol)--- and sometimes that's the ONLY way I'd have any idea what they're saying on the show!!!

    gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9) thanked hydrangeahead Central WI 4b
  • 8 years ago

    Haven't seen a Gardener's world. But I will be checking it out and all the ones that linaria posted too.

    I listen to Brian Minter of Minter Gardens on CBC radio here in Canada but I think you can get it online as well. He just received the order of BC award. I really like his presentation and style and real love of plants.

    https://archive.news.gov.bc.ca/releases/news_releases_2017-2021/2018IGRS0009-001495.htm

    gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9) thanked yeonassky
  • 8 years ago

    My folks were both British and with pretty strong accents they retained all their lives, even after living here in the US for many decades. So both the British accents and nearly all idioms are second nature to me :-) And watching as many Britbox and Acorn TV shows as I do, I have become very used to them. IMO, most of the presenters on Gardener's World (and the British Baking show) have extremely understandable accents.....no more difficult to follow than someone in this country with a strong regional accent. But all bets are off if it is a show that is based in Yorkshire!! Now that is really hard to follow sometimes!!

  • 8 years ago

    Thank you for the Monty Don heads up! I will watch as much as I can find. I really miss the gardening shows we used to have here. We watch British shows on WETA UK here in the DC area-mysteries, etc., but I haven't come across the gardening show. I am also a huge fan of the Great British Baking Show (have only seen the ones with Mary).

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