Lock up your tubers

Posted on December 10, 2015 by onedeckpete

lock up your tubers Last weekend featured the fastest session of gardening in weeds up to me knees history! It was a quick pop out to the garden to stick something in the compost bin, feed those starving goldfish and to lift up a couple of Dahlia plants so they can be safely stored for the winter. My my my daliah The frost earlier on this month had blackened the tops so I dug them up and cut off the stalks. It was then a case of cleaning off the excess soil, letting them dry naturally upside down and then sticking them in a cool place out of frost, light and heat which was under the stairs in a paper bag. I’ll keep a check on them over the winter just in case there’s any rotting going on. Graham Porter on Radio Leeds mentioned they can be stored in a tray of dry compost or the like as well. Adam and eve I’ve heard advice to the contrary but I do remember reading that Adam the Gardener (not a real bloke just a drawing in a book, above) starting them off in the spring and separating the tubers when new shoots appear thus producing a few new plants, how good is that?

Also James Wong mentioned that the Dahlia was originally brought to Europe from Mexico as an alternative to the humble Potato. Dahlia Dauphinoise anyone? Dahlia Chips with Cod and that pickled egg? Er, no thanks.

On the bonkers for a Thursday night

Posted on March 12, 2015 by onedeckpete

Here’s a super guest mix from The Go! Team from last week’s excellent Tom Ravenscroft show on BBC Radio 6 music. A mix of all sorts of madness!

One to play very loud in the greenhouse late at night while repotting plants (with just a torch as a light source) especially when there’s a full moon. That’ll get the neighbours talking! The mix is available here.

Let sleeping chillies lie

Posted on February 22, 2015 by onedeckpete

A big shout to our good friend Phil Harmony in Berlin who produces the excellent dub night radio show. Last year we featured his great balcony garden in our “dub gardeners of the world unite” feature here.

This winter Phil brought in his Jolokia Chocolate Chilli plant and here’s a couple of pics of the state of play at the moment. I always thought Chillies were annuals but it was only last year when I was in Shannon’s Garden Centre and they showed us a couple of plants they kept indoors over the winter that I found out they’re short-lived perennials given the right conditions. Over the winter months the plant goes into hibernation mode and can look like it’s a goner but come the spring once the weather improves, the plant will begin to sprout new growth. Phil Harmony chill in hibernation_2 There’s some great information about overwintering Chilli plants on the Dartmoor Chilli Farm website here and it mentions there that they’ve had good success overwintering the Jolokia variety.

Thanks to Phil for picking an excellent tune to accompany the pictures from Kabaka Pyramid ft. Protoje called Warrior. Tune!

Nice one Phil, do send us some more pics once the plant gets going.

Barefoot gardeners of the world unite!

Posted on December 4, 2014 by onedeckpete

This week’s podcast of The Dirt is now online, and features seed swapping, an interview with The Grumpy Gardener and our feature Sounds From The South which is at 24.30 minutes in here. Tune of the week is the excellent Victor Rice dub of Dubmatix featuring Jay Douglas – Celebrate my Love.

https://soundcloud.com/dubmatix/dubmatix-celebrate-my-love-1

Robin’s revenge!

Posted on November 12, 2014 by onedeckpete

Listen to the podcast of this week’s episode of The Dirt on Fab Radio International here.

There’s some great things on the show this week including lots of talk of about Beetroot, the first of a brand new feature “blog of the week” with Agents of Field, Sounds From The South (at 26.02 mins in) is about why Beetroot is my favourite vegetable (tune of the week is Big Youth – Some like it Dread) and Amie Sagar interviews the person on the street about the shocking pictures of the new killer Robin that has now settled in the UK ready to cause aggravation! Get orf me bird bath! Ta to The Dirt for letting us reproduce the shocking photo’s they obtained here!

Guy Fawkes on Stella

Posted on October 27, 2014 by onedeckpete

Sounds from The South 13 – Nightmare in New Cross
Our contribution to The Dirt this week is a true halloween tale set deep in South London. Tune of the week is from the The Wailers with Fire, Fire. This is the last show on a Sunday night when The Dirt moves to it’s new spot on a Monday, same time, same channel. Keep it locked!

Have a listen on play again here and Sounds from The South is 7.30 minutes in. Cheers again to Si, Ricky and Paul!

The little greenhouse of terror

Posted on October 26, 2014 by onedeckpete

Tune in tonight from 6pm to 8pm for The Dirt’s Halloween special on Fab Radio International here. At around 6.15 our weekly spot Sounds From The South will feature a story about a scary Halloween party in a South London pub’s beer garden! Thanks to Maz and Marc B for getting us that invite for a night I’ll never forget!

Stomping at the savoy

Posted on October 20, 2014 by onedeckpete

Sounds from The South 12 – These boots are made for working
Our contribution to The Dirt this week is about my beloved gardening boots when I worked for the council years ago. Tune of the week is from the Carlton & The Shoes with Love me forever. Keep on stepping!

Have a listen on play again when it’s up later this week (19th October show) here (Sounds from The South is usually around 10 minutes in.) The show features The Idiot Gardener, Peat, Morissons and The Gentleman Gardener amongst lots of other stuff. Cheers again to Si, Ricky and Paul!

Heavy like dirt

Posted on June 15, 2014 by onedeckpete

Cheers to Simon, Paul and Ricky at The Dirt at Radio Fab International for having us on their “gardening show like no other” tonight and for playing Madtone’s “Compost your mind” at the start of the programme. Check out The Dirt on play again here (Go to The Dirt 15th June 2014) Madtones Compost Your Mind is at 1.36 mins, the interview is at 26 mins and the brilliant Idiot Gardener going off on one (in a very funny episode) at 43 mins. Listen in and have a laugh!

Johnny Clarke – Roots Natty Congo b/w A Roots Version (Attack)

Big up Joey Jay (brother of Norman) for playing this track on his Kiss FM Roots Reggae Show many moons ago, another production from the great Bunny “Striker” Lee. If “I am the gorgon” is showing at a cinema near you, do go as you won’t be disappointed (and you will laugh many times while watching it!)

Dirt wears white sox

Posted on June 13, 2014 by onedeckpete

Thanks to Simon Diamond of The Dirt, “a gardening show like no other” on Radio Fab International from the city of Manchester for sending us this. It’s a top 5 of tunes his guests have requested on the programme.

1. Can You Dig It? – Rap Battle (Gardener Vs Slug.) Requested by Dan Woods from ‘Can You Dig It?’ They’re South London musical comedians in an allotment themed stylee and have been on Garden’s Question Time too! Soundcloud the tune here.

2. Oddysey – Going Back To My Roots. (The original by Lamont Dozier above.) Requested by Manchester’s gardener-in-residence, Sean Harkin. The National Trust have hired him to inject some new life into the city’s green spaces and to give inspiration to people to ‘grow their own’. How good is that! I bet he isn’t nipping off early on a Friday afternoon or spending most of his working day leaning on a hoe chatting to passers-by like in my old council gardening days.

3. Jimmie Rodgers – Honeycomb. Requested by urban bee-keeper, John Mouncey. He attends to the hives on the roof of Manchester’s Art Gallery with another beekeeper fantastically called John Peel.

4. Fela Kuti – Water No Get Enemy. Requested (repeatedly!) by Paul Exall from MORFF E.M. Technology. Morff promote bokashi, natural farming and cleaning up pollution on Manchester’s waterways.

5. Rt Hon Bob Marley – Get up, Stand up. As requested by Mary Clear from Incredible Edible Todmordon. A community growers group who campaign for local food. Good on you!

Tune into The Dirt on a Sunday 6.00 – 8.00pm on Radio Fab International here.

Weeds up to me knees

Madtone, gardening and life

Category Archives: Radio Shows