Rich Pickings

This week, Renaissance Man Mark Diacono (writer, gardener, garden designer and most recently author of Spice) joins Nina and Jo on a journey though time and how the ****** we got anything done. Taking in a new twist on Brandy Alexanders and a quick dash around the mulberry tree, meeting film stars and whether or not it’s ok to tascalate, this episode meanders through gardening, recipes, the Beatles and yes, Duran Duran again, in the way that only it knows best. Join us for cocktails and plan your kitchen garden plant choices at the same time, without worrying about any of it very much at all.

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Welcome to this new episode of Rich Pickings. There’s yet more controversy, this time about worm-tickling and whether or not Nina’s biscuit choice actually is a biscuit. There’s a furry rodent theme (sorry in advance) with one-eyed squirrels and dubious groundhogs, and there’s even a short discussion about the dreaded pruning, in which we do acknowledge both the possible dullness of the debate and the over-complicatedness of the task itself.

But never fear, we soon shake ourselves out of this, and into ponderings on how much a worm weighs. You have been warned. Discover that we don’t know our equinoxes (Imbolc is between winter and spring, we really do know that!) Find out what biscuit actually has made it this week, and Who We Should Be More - it’s an old faithful this time; can you guess who it might be ...?

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Jo and Nina are back with a vengeance as they take stock of this year's RHS Hampton Court Garden Festival. A pottering through gardens swerves into a conversation about manservants, the gowns of academics and the sleep-inducing qualities of The Lord of the Rings.

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This week, the sap is rising in a pre-festive special. The Easter bunny and Gwyneth Paltrow, a new idea for a wellness book, and are Creme Eggs smaller than they used to be.

Please do rate this podcast on Apple or Spotify. And.... follow now so that you never miss another episode!!! Next episode out at Easter.

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This week, Jo and Nina are joined by all-round good egg James Alexander-Sinclair. Big hugs and juggling, party tricks, taxidermy and truckloads of Jaffa cakes are just the tip of the iceberg. Is he a Renaissance man? Is it ok to make a garden out of rubber and chains? And why you should probably keep your dog on a lead in the middle of town. Listen to find out how James, the original biscuit blogger, went from being Father Christmas in Harrods to RHS Ambassador for garden design. There’s plenty of life-skill training, including how to eat a selection box, judging clients on the quality of their biscuits, and Monty Don’s hands.
Get full access to The Gardening Mind at jothompson.substack.com/subscribe

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.