Home Grown with Martha and Jamie

How can you make the food you grow last beyond the growing season? In this episode Martha and Jamie explore the Slow Food movement and the pleasure of building a homegrown pantry. From drying beans, chillies and herbs to making flavoured vinegars, pickles and sauerkraut, they share practical ways to keep using the harvest through winter. They also taste some unusual pickles, discuss the Ark of Taste and the traditional foods at risk of disappearing, and tackle a preservation-themed quiz.

If you would like to support us by pre-ordering our new books, the links are below...

Even though it's now November, there’s still plenty to do in the garden. In this Episode Martha and Jamie discuss what to sow, plant and do in what is a month of preparation. From broad beans and garlic to tulip bulbs, and which late harvests to bring in before the first hard frost. They share tips on overwintering citrus, protecting tender crops, making leaf mould and preparing greenhouses and tools for winter. There’s also a seasonal gardening quiz, Martha gets a response to her call out about Egyptian leeks, and ways to help garden wildlife as the weat...

In this week’s episode, Martha and Jamie step into the darker side of the garden! A poisonous-plants quiz takes in deadly nightshade beauty treatments, foxgloves and heart medicine, Socrates and hemlock, and hallucinogenic mad honey, before the they turn to hazards closer to home, from lords-and-ladies mistaken for wild garlic to giant hogweed and laburnum. Martha then shares the eerie tales of the Mediterranean dream fish and Datura, the mad apple. Jamie reveals the everyday foods that can harm you if they aren’t prepared properly, from kidney beans and elderberries to acorns and cassava. Finally, Martha explains pois...

In this weeks episode Martha and Jamie explore the pungent and versatile world of the allium family. From how to best grow familiar alliums such as onions, garlic and leeks, to perennial onions that can provide harvests for years. Packed with practical advice and useful anecdotes, they cover growing onions from seed or sets, overcoming common allium pests, multi-sowing to make more of a growing space, puddle planting leeks and so much more. Martha then tells the story of the special leeks she ate in Bahrain and asks listeners for help finding Egyptian kurrat and Persian tareh.

It this weeks episode Martha and Jamie are joined by two very special guests, actor Charity Wakefield and garden designer Danny Clarke, both ambassadors for the woodland trust, to explore our connection with trees, why we desperately need more tree cover, and how people can help protect existing trees and grow new ones. The conversation moves from the comfort of woodland spaces and favourite trees to the role of trees in cities, gardens, biodiversity and climate resilience.

If you would like to support us by pre-ordering our new books, the links are below and we really...

In this weeks episode Martha and Jamie share the value of planting soft fruit, and why it earns its place in a garden of any size! They discuss rooting strawberry runners, growing fruit in hanging baskets and gutters, buying bare-root plants, making tea from the leaves of fruiting bushes, unusual berries, and why ripe gooseberries deserve another chance. Martha then shares the origin of the famous Little Scarlet jam, and her experience of sowing and growing another special little strawberry variety and serving the fruit with some of her favourite recipes.

If you would like to...

October is a month of change, but there is still plenty to sow, grow and harvest in the garden. In this weeks episode, Martha and Jamie discuss what to plant this month, from garlic and field beans to winter leaves and spring bulbs, and explore how to create a winter polyculture of edible ground cover. They also discuss saffron crocuses, growing an oak from an acorn, and what to do with green tomatoes, beetroot, mangold wurzel, pears and a surprisingly productive Armenian cucumber. As always, this monthly round up episode is full of personal anecdotes, fun facts, seasonal harvests...

In this weeks episode, Martha and Jamie discuss everything spring bulbs, as well as having two exclusive announcements! A new round of Sow, Grow, Compost makes them choose between daffodils, tulips and alliums. Jamie explains how to make a bulb lasagne that will flower from early spring right through to summer. Martha considers late planting and why you should never plant tulips too early. And a wartime story about tulip bulbs in the Netherlands leads into their mangold wurzel grow-along.

If you would like to support us by pre-ordering our new books, the links are below...

In this weeks episode Martha and Jamie discuss how saving seed can be simple, satisfying and useful in gardens of every size. They give a practical introduction to saving seeds from many of the plants likely already growing in your garden, such as peas, beans, lettuce, calendula and tomatoes. They cover why we should avoid seed from early-bolting crops, useful drying and storing techniques, the history of commercial plant breeding, seed registration and the important role of home gardeners in keeping varieties alive. Martha also shares the story of Nikolai Vavilov, his international seed collection and the brave scientists...

In this weeks episode Martha and Jamie are joined by soil and compost expert Michael Kennard of Compost Club to explore all things compost and soil health. Michael explains why microbes matter, what good compost should look and smell like, How to make better compost, and where gardeners with limited space should begin. Martha also reveals her 18-month-old bokashi disaster before the group compares bokashi, wormeries, cold piles and hot composters, and asks how local Compost Clubs could keep food waste and nutrients within communities.

And If you would like to grow our seed of the...

In this weeks episode, Martha and Jamie ensure that you do not miss the second spring! the early-autumn window for sowing crops that can feed you through winter and into next year. From winter radish, cold hardy greens, and winter lettuces, to Asian greens and even quick carrots, they provide ideas for all growing spaces and contexts. There is also a practical guide to planting hardneck and softneck garlic, covering cold requirements, scapes, storage and spacing. Martha then travels back to the intensive market gardens of nineteenth-century Paris, where horse-manure hotbeds, cloches and walls helped growers crop throughout the...

In this week episode Martha and Jamie discuss what to sow, grow and do in the garden in this month of transitions. Martha investigates a mysterious tomato problem with a microscope, they explain why spiders suddenly seem to appear in September, and Jamie shares his elderberry syrup method. There is also advice on weather-resilient soil, wildlife-friendly autumn tidying and harvesting grapes, nuts and berries.

And If you would like to grow our seed of the week, or some of the other varieties we discussed, you can find the links below with 20% off your first order with...

In this weeks plot to plate episode, Martha and Jamie share the favourite ways to use August vegetable garden produce while it is at its peak. With recipes such as raw courgetti "bolognese", crisp courgette fritti, aubergine parmigiana, miso aubergine, tomato summer pudding, and mustard tomato tart, you'll be sure to find some inspiration for using up those summer gluts!

They also discuss preserving ideas too, including whole ferments, fruit leather, dried herbs and a memorable jar of cucumbers that refuses to open. Martha also introduces a herb linked to both love potions and flatulence, before...

This week Martha and Jamie explain why you may want to ditch the veg plot, and instead grow an edimental garden. The idea that a garden can be beautiful, productive and useful without separating vegetables from ornamental planting. They share beautiful simple swaps for commonly grown plant such as chard, peas and celery, plus lots of unusual plants you may not of heard of before such as perennial alliums, herbs, climbers and edible flowers. They also cover the incredible salad man Stephen Barstow and his 537-ingredient salad, ornamental plants you may not have known were edible such as lamb’s...

In this weeks episode, Martha and Jamie explore the practical things gardeners can do to support summer wildlife, particularly in spells of prolonged warm dry weather. From providing food, water and shelter, to creating breeding spaces for insects, birds and other wildlife. They look at the habitats that help natural predators thrive, including mounds, leaf litter, log piles and beetle banks for ground beetles that eat the most common garden pests 'slugs'. Small ponds, half barrels and even an old Belfast sink can become useful wildlife spaces, while avoiding pesticides remains the most important starting point. Martha investigates whether...

August is a month of abundance, but it is also a key moment for planning what comes next. In this episode, Martha and Jamie discuss what to sow, grow and do this month, and why we should keep sowing before light levels fall, while also making the most of our flowers, vegetables and fruit that at their summer peak. They also explain why wasps become more interested in sugary picnics, how to identify and treat deter spider mites, and how to grow saffron and save strawberry runners. As always, this monthly round up episode is also full of personal...

Gardening is becoming less predictable. A dry spring can be followed by a summer drought, a late frost can be followed by golf ball sized hail, and plants that once suited the local climate may struggle with new patterns. In this episode, Martha and Jamie explore gardening in a changing climate, from extreme heat and heavy rainfall to milder winters and crops that behave differently under stress. They share practical ways to cool buildings, improve drainage, reduce bolting and choose plants that can cope with less predictable conditions. From there, the conversation moves through El Niño, plants that n...

A garden can produce far more than the obvious harvest. In this episode, Jamie and Martha look at the plant parts, picking techniques and timing decisions that help growers waste less, save money and keep plants cropping for longer. From edible plant parts that supermarkets usually remove and a long-lived brassica that can be picked repeatedly, to succession sowing, relay cropping, cut-and-come-again lettuce and maximising yields from small spaces. This episode is filled with practical tips and advice, as well as the usual anecdotes and fun facts.

And If you would like to grow our seed...

Flowers can do far more than look pretty. In this episode, Martha and Jamie explore the garden as a floral apothecary, looking at the ways flowers and useful plants can become balms, teas, tinctures, scents, natural dyes and simple homemade experiments. From hardy annuals to sow now for stronger blooms next year, and colour changing teas, to how to make a simple soothing slave from calendula, and which popular garden herb Jamie uses to make nourishing hair oil this episode is packed with practical advice and projects to enable you to make the most of those blooms. The conversation...

July can feel like the point when sowing stops, but it is one of the most important months for planning autumn, winter and next spring. In this episode, Martha and Jamie share what they will be sowing growing and doing in this pivotal month in the garden, plus how to fill the inevitable gaps that begin to occur when potatoes, onions and early courgettes finish. They also cover the umbrella cucumber pruning method, tomato maintenance, garlic braiding, what to forage this month, why peanuts grow underground, and the relationship between cinnabar moths and ragwort.

And If...

Cut-flower farmer Sarah Gray of Bloom & Gray joins Martha and Jamie for a practical tour of the cut-flower calendar. From when to start hardy annuals and what to sow now, why flowers should be picked before pollination, which flowers earn their place in a productive cutting patch, and Sarah also breaks a bouquet into five useful elements and chooses her top five plants if you'd like to grow a small cut flower bouquet bed. They also discuss soil blocking for flower seeds without plastic pots, the growing British flower movement and Jeanne Baret, the pioneering botanist now recognised as t...

This week, Martha and Jamie mark midsummer by looking at the garden as a seasonal calendar. They explore the idea of growing using the Wheel of the Year, and explain why changing day length can tell plants when to grow, flower, bolt or form tubers, and how we can use that knowledge to grow better plants. There is practical advice on sowing kohlrabi, fennel, spinach, radishes and Asian greens after the solstice, plus midsummer foraging ideas with lime or linden, honeysuckle and St John's wort. Martha brings the folklore too, from bonfires and love potions to A Midsummer Night's...

In this episode, Martha and Jamie share practical ways to drought proof your garden, from mulch, compost and hydrophobic soil, to container watering tips, dense planting advise, drought-tolerant crops and wildlife support. They also explore the power of earth smiles, swales, zai pits, and what drought stress actually does to plants and how to over come it. A practical episode full of tips, personal anecdotes, and advise for building healthier soil and stronger garden systems.

And If you would like to grow our seed of the week, or some of the other varieties we discussed, you...

In this Episode Martha and Jamie are talking all about the importance of pollination! from practical ways to improve pollination in your garden, to the strange science behind flowers, bees, hoverflies and even vanilla. They'll offer practical advice for how to maximise your harvests for popular crops such as courgettes and sweet corn, and what to do with tired bees, as well as providing tips for pollinator-friendly planting, and discuss why our gardens are vital food sources for wildlife.

And If you would like to grow our seed of the week, or some of the other...

June is here, so in this episode Martha and Jamie are talking about what to sow, grow, harvest and notice in the garden this month. From swede, French beans, summer flowers and tomato leaf pesto, to Miriam Margolyes, edible hedges, bumblebee safaris and open gardens, this episode is packed with practical June gardening advice and seasonal plant stories.

And If you would like to grow our seed of the week, or some of the other varieties we discussed, you can find the links below:

Swede Mirian:

https://shegrowsveg.com/product/swede-marian/<...

In this episode, Martha and Jamie are joined by wildlife educator and urban nature advocate Lira Valencia. They explore why cities are full of incredible wildlife if you know where to look, why pigeons deserve more respect, and what the new RSPB advice on bird feeding means for gardeners. This episode is packed with practical advise, wildlife facts and lots of inspiration you can apply to any space.

And If you would like to grow our seed of the week, or some of the other varieties we discussed, you can find the links below:

With household budgets under increasing pressure: how can we grow more while spending less? In this weeks episode Martha and Jamie share practical ways to make gardening more accessible and sustainable, whilst also being less wasteful. From seed saving and propagating plants to homemade compost, DIY garden projects and turning weeds into fertiliser, they explain how to set up closed loop systems and grow more while spending less. Martha also delves into the amazing story of Terra preta, an extremely fertile, dark anthropogenic (man-made) soil created thousands of years ago by indigenous populations in the Amazon Basin. Looking at w...

In this episode, Martha and Jamie break down everything you need to know about the power of herbs. They explain what herbs actually are, how to grow them in different conditions, their go-to herbal tea recipes, companion planting combinations, and why they are some of the easiest and most useful plants you can grow. From saving money on supermarket herbs and propagating from cuttings, to supporting pollinators and using them in the kitchen, this episode if full of practical advice you can use in any space.

If you like to support Jamie's first children's, the link...

In this episode, Martha and Jamie break down everything you need to know about gardening in busy month of May. They cover what to sow, what to plant out, why you may want to walk bare foot in the garden before planting, and how to manage the shift into late spring conditions. From hardening off and common mistakes with feeding tender crops, to late spring folklore and wildlife, this episode gives you practical advice to help your garden thrive.

And If you would like to grow our seed of the week, you can find the link...

What are heirloom seeds and why do they matter? In this episode, Martha and Jamie are joined by Lucy Hutchings and Kate Cotterill from She Grows Veg. They explore the wonderful world of heirloom seeds, what makes them different, unusual varieties you should give a grow, and why flavour, diversity and storytelling matter in growing food. From storage tomatoes you can eat in winter and seeds for a changing climate, to biodiversity and the future of our food, this episode is packed with practical ideas and fresh perspective.

And If you would like to grow our...

In this episode, Martha and Jamie break discuss how to get our gardens summer ready! and how to grow heat loving fruit, veg and flowers successfully in the UK. They explain what tender plants are, how to protect them, and how to avoid common mistakes that lead to failure. From melons and cucumbers to beans, tomatoes and summer flowers such as cosmos, zinnias, sunflowers and more, they share practical advice to help you grow more food with less frustration. We will even discover the fastinating origin of the cavendish banana.

And If you would like to...

In this episode, Martha and Jamie explore the varied and intriguing world of perennial vegetables and why they are one of the easiest and most rewarding ways to grow food. From interesting ways to use classic crops like asparagus and rhubarb, to unusual perennials you may not of heard of - but will want to grow! they break down how to plant once and harvest for years, reduce effort in the garden, and build long-term growing systems.

And If you would like to grow our seed of the week, or some of the other varieties we...

In this episode, Martha and Jamie break down everything you need to know about gardening in April. From what to sow, how to grow your own utensils, and how to catch up if you feel behind, to dealing with unpredictable weather, slugs and seed starting challenges. They share practical advice on crops like beans, melons, leafy crops, tender plants and bed preparation tips, while also exploring seasonal highlights such as bluebells, things to forage for, and early harvests.

And If you would like to grow our seed of the week, or some of the other varieties...

In this episode, Martha and Jamie break down companion planting and how different plants support each other within a growing system. From additions to classic combinations such as tomatoes, basil and marigolds, to lesser know companions for productive and diverse gardens. They share their top practical tips, discover which symbiotic pairing combines to create coral reefs, and explain the biology behind plant relationships, from pest control to soil health.

If you would like to pre-order a copy of Jamie's children’s book there is a link below, thank you for your support! 💚 

https://geni.u...

In this episode, Martha and Jamie are joined by Jason Williams to explore what’s possible when growing food in small, urban spaces. From his beginnings on a balcony 18 floors up in Manchester to becoming an award-winning designer and educator, Jason shares how constraint can spark creativity. They discuss the realities of high-rise gardening, edible pond plants, and how even the smallest spaces can support biodiversity and meaningful harvests. Drawing on insights from urban systems like sponge cities in China, this episode blends practical advice with a powerful reminder: you don’t need land to grow, just the willingness to s...

In this episode Martha and Jamie discuss how to more grow food when space is limited. They share practical strategies for small gardens, balconies, patios and window boxes. Discuss succession planting, vertical growing, container layouts and crops that produce quickly in small beds. And cover projects such as worm farms, mini wildlife ponds and how to create a small but biodiverse ecosystem. Martha also explores the history of intensive market gardening in London and looks at shade-tolerant edible plants from Japan.

If you would like to grow our seed of the week, or some of the...

In this episode, Jamie and Martha discuss unusual crops they’ve grown or discovered, including unusual roots, rare herbs, lesser-known vegetables and some of their favourite unusual varieties of common crops. They discuss why some plants never become commercially popular, the origins of some of our garden favourites and why home growers have the freedom to experiment with far greater diversity. Get your note books ready, your seed wish list is about to grow!

If you would like to grow our seed of the week, or some of the other varieties we discussed, you can find th...

In this episode, Martha and Jamie step into the hopeful energy of March in the garden, that turning point where winter loosens its grip and the growing season begins to stir. They share everything you can sow, grow, and get underway right now, from hardy early crops to seeds started under cover, along with the essential jobs that set the garden up for the months ahead. They also chat through their favourite tomato varieties and what they’re choosing to grow this year, from reliable classics to flavour-packed newcomers. Beyond the practical, they explore the folklore and seasonal rhythms wo...

In this episode, Jamie and Martha break down the biggest garden pests, why they become a problem, and how to prevent them; including slugs, aphids, spider mites, wireworm, rabbits and deer. They explain why pesticides fail long term, why prevention matters more than cure, and how building biodiversity and balance can reduce pest pressure over time. With practical takeaways, fascinating facts and the their personal anecdotes from pest filled seasons past.

If you would like to grow our seed of the week, or some of the other varieties we discussed, you can find the links below:<...

In this episode, Martha and Jamie dive into the joyful, hardworking world of flowers in the vegetable garden. 🌸

From multifunctional companion plants that deter pests and boost soil health, to edible blooms that elevate both flavour and beauty on the plate, they explore why flowers deserve a central place in productive spaces. They discuss flowering vegetables and what bolting really means, share fascinating pollination facts, and unpack how attracting insects isn’t just good for biodiversity, it also increases our yields. Expect practical growing tips, fascinating facts, and plenty of encouragement to let your add more blooms...