Episode 663- Gardeners’ World Live 2024: Inspiring Designs, Mushroom Magic & Growing for Every Space

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This week on the Veg Grower Podcast, I took you with me on my annual pilgrimage to Gardeners’ World Live at the NEC in Birmingham — for the very last time at this venue before the show moves to a new location next year. And what a send‑off it was.

Right from the moment I stepped into the Beautiful Borders, it was clear that grow‑your‑own is becoming more deeply woven into garden design. As I said in the episode, “I’m already in the beautiful borders and I can already see there’s lots of vegetables incorporated in the design of these gardens.”

From chard and strawberries to pumpkins, herbs and even buckets of potatoes, veg was everywhere — and it looked fantastic.

Lucy’s ‘Make a Meter Matter’ Garden

One of the highlights of the show was catching up with the brilliant Lucy, who created a stunning grow‑your‑own themed border built around the idea that one square metre can make a difference.

Her horseshoe‑shaped layout featured nine individual 1m² zones, each packed with ideas for different types of growers. As Lucy explained, “If you can just convert one meter of your outdoor space into somewhere where plants can thrive and grow, then that’s a brilliant thing.”

The Kids’ Growing Zones

Lucy dedicated three metres to inspiring children to grow:

• Speedy veg with egg‑head planters, quick lettuces and tactile mint
• Pizza & pasta plants including basil, rocket and the adorable Micro Tom tomato
• Smoothie ingredients like blueberries, strawberries, kale and beetroot

Her goal was simple: make growing fun, colourful and irresistible.

Urban & Rental Gardeners

Next came three metres designed for those with balconies, courtyards or tiny spaces:

• Eco‑warrior zone with coir pots, wooden labels and guerrilla‑gardening seed bombs
• Party‑goer zone complete with a mini ceramic BBQ (yes — the same one I own!)
• Gourmet zone featuring Malabar spinach, cucamelons, Japanese parsley and more

Fruit in Small Spaces

Lucy’s final three metres championed fruit — something she feels is underrepresented. She showcased:

• Beautifully trained apples
• Compact currants and strawberries
• A one‑metre forest garden of “super fruits”
• Micro‑fruit options for pots

As she put it, “Fruit is so underrated and underrepresented in the gardening world.”

Exploring the Show & New Ideas

After dragging myself away from the show gardens (never easy!), I wandered the stalls, picked up a few tools and plants, and soaked up the atmosphere. I love how these events spark new ideas — even if they make me want to redesign my entire garden.

Mushroom Growing with the K Brothers

I also sat in on a fascinating talk by the K Brothers, known for their mushroom‑growing kits. Even though I’m allergic to mushrooms, I’m always intrigued by how accessible mushroom cultivation has become.

Jodie explained that mushrooms will grow on almost any organic material: “They will grow on any organic material… books or straw or sawdust or cardboard or your old jeans.”

Their kits use hardwood sawdust for maximum nutrition, and with daily misting you can harvest mushrooms in as little as three weeks.

Plant Expert Stand with Saul Walker

To round off the episode, I caught up with Saul Walker, who shared insights from the plant expert stand. Climate change, unpredictable weather patterns and plant establishment issues dominated the questions this year.

As Saul noted, “The key with gardening is you need that stability… now that things are changing every year… I don’t know what to say sometimes.”

Aphids, scale insects and general plant stress were also common topics — all reminders of how important diversity, observation and early intervention are in our gardens.