We're continuing our January theme when, with our series of cut flower planting and growing. And these are soulless podcasts and by myself, and that's for the month of January. Now this is just to prepare you for February, March, there's nothing you really need to do in terms of seeds. I see lots of people think about seed sowing, and so on in January, but you have months, you've got to wait at the temperatures and be the daylight hours to start thinking about seed sowing. So please, please, please don't panic about seed sowing. We are running a cut flowers series of three master classes online and these kick off on the first of February. And they're free. And we'd love you to join us. And we'll be talking all about cut flowers. And you just have to go to a we'll put the link actually in the show notes. But it's cut flower masterclasses 2024 And it's a Facebook group come and join us lots in there already. Three books, lots of resources. I'm doing some lives in there on Sundays. But we'd really love you to come over. So I want to do in this one a bit of a podcast review from last year, because you do these podcasts every week. And then obviously, if you don't go back a long way or you've missed some series, you don't know what you've missed, so I thought I would have a look. So I thought you might have seen in 2024 you might have missed it. But um, he came and looked through my window and saw me jumping up and down with excitement. And also my social media posts that the cat flap podcast had made it to number four in Apple's podcast of home and garden. And that was just after the RHS and gardeners question time. It was it was mad. So hopefully you'll be able to go back and catch up on some of the podcasts because obviously we were doing 52 A week, a year, so hopefully be able to go back. Obviously more unpopular than ever you can get outside and you can listen to podcasts. I listen to podcasts when I'm out. I like it when I'm putting up or picking on I like to listen to a podcast I've got a whole host that I'm really really excited about listening to. So I thought I'd just do a review and tell you where to go if this is an area you're interested in. So if you're interested in therapeutic gardens and gardening, then do go and have a look at her ratios garden co founder and Trustee Dr. Oliver Livia chapel. Now ratios garden is an amazing charity, and it builds gardens in NHS spinal units. So really, if you think you've had a spinal injury, you can be in hospital six months or more. And it is life changing in the main. So they're building gardens across I think there are there going to be 13 across the whole of the UK in order that patients, their families, the staff can get outside because inside a spinal unit is like is a hospital ward. And it's very, very, I mean, you're looking at four walls, but getting outside and going in having a look at the gardens. I really, really urge you to go and listen to her ratios garden. Co Founder and Trustee Dr. Olivia Chappell. Then I spoke to a GP. And he's also a trustee at trustee of Greenfingers charity, Dr. Richard Claxton, and he was really interesting because he talks about therapeutic gardens. He set up a website during COVID about the gardens that are therapeutic. And you can go and have a look at that. But he's really interesting about the benefits of growing and your mental health. So absolute definite want to go and have a look at. Then following up one of her ratios, gardens, head gardeners, we followed up with that. A guy called Ashley Edwards garden therapist, his area of garden therapy, and he works in ratios, gardens, definitely worth it. And then we chatted to Bethany Harris, who's a health psychologist. She is interested in doing research, a PhD research level on therapeutic gardens and gardening and health and just not even doing gardening but sitting in your garden and taking it all on board and what that can do for your mental health. So absolutely. Going on further from therapeutic gardens if you like you've got mental health and well being so the ones that come in this area. We spoke to Helen cross and she had purpose was about mental health and gardening. She does a lot of gardening in schools. So definitely worth having a look at that. Then we spoke to Alice Vincent, who I believe does a regular newspaper article every week. So Alice Vinson and she's in gardens World Magazine. She's the author of the book Why Women Grow, which is a fabulous book, so I do recommend that. Then we go on to an area I'm really keen on is wildlife, wildlife and biodiversity. So we spoke to Helen Rogers, who's a beekeeper and honey expert, and she's actually based in North London, and has hives across London. So really, really worth it's a very entertaining podcast that one with Helen Rogers is worth catching up on that. And then my my crush Can I say that my crush on Dave Goldstone, I have a crush on Dave Golson. He's a professor. And he talks all about bees. Honestly, he's he's really so many books that are all amazing. He talks about bees insects peed the planet. It's an amazing character. And I would urge you to listen to him. And then I've also in a previous episode, I've talked about biological pest control, which is what we do here. From Tessa of ladybird plant can she talks about how all the different ways and all the different insects and how you can use biological control and perhaps one of the most unusual last year, and probably the one that took me the most was a guy called Michael canard who runs a compost club down on the coast. And he basically takes in lots of food waste, and then turns it into compost. And he runs social enterprise. And he was so interesting. And he was trying to connect football. And footballers, if you like people go to football match is I think it's a loose Lewis Yeah, there is football club. And hey, how he connects them footballers to gardening. So he has a garden area at the football club. He's a really, really into it. If you haven't listened to it. Honestly, I really recommend you go and listen to Michael canard, then there's a lot a massive area on climate change. And we all know that the climate is changing. We don't need to look at the stats anymore. We just know I read something quite recently that said that by 2050, that the UK would have the climate of Barcelona. So we would have a very Mediterranean climate so that if we're growing things now trees and so on, that we need to take into account if we're going to put apple trees in now that are going to take many years to grow. We probably should be looking at Mediterranean varieties. So that's really interesting. So, Sally Morgan's, definitely want to listen to bracing climate change. She talks about resilient gardening and how we're going to plan for the future. Marianne Boswell is one of my faves. She talks about sustainability, the environment and gardening and also what we're going to do in the future. And then I interviewed Professor Alastair Griffiths, who's a definite mask. He's the RHS Director of Science and collections. And he talks about what we're going to do about climate change. And then probably can have another crush. I've already got a crush on Dave Goulston. But I should have a crush on Dr. David Beck from Coventry University. And he's been heading heading up things like supply chains for cut flowers, and how many 1000s of miles they travel. And he's a massive researcher. So he's worth looking at by the Googling, listen to the podcast, but Dr. David back. Then there's a whole area on flower farmers if you want to become a flower farmer, there's at least four of those, go and have a listen to sue McGlasson who's one of my favourites, because she she jumped in. She did one of our growing courses many years ago, just because she wanted to grow cut flowers, and she was doing it in her garden. She then had an allotment with a friend. And then the middle of last year she put in a tender for a house, a closed bid, it was for a house on about four acres and a house. I've been to see it since it's completely and 100% derelict, and I have massive admiration for Sue. So get a chance to get over and listen to sue look at her journey and give her a little follow on Instagram. And that would be amazing. I think she called Gracie Mae flowers. But if you follow Sue McGlasson that would be amazing. Then there's lots of broadcasters writers, there's a whole area on floristry and sustainability. And then one of the most interesting ones I did last year was with dandy butcher, based in the US and they're they're trying to revolutionise floristry and try and get rid of floral foam, which we all know is desperate for the environment. And she heads up a company called phloem labs, p h o a m, and she's another one we're going to have a look at. And they are looking well they've got a product and it's out being tested by numerous head of florists at the moment. And we're looking for that to go mainstream this year. And it's an interesting product and I can't wait to get it in my hands. Then there's a whole area of flowery flowery area so you can talk about tulips we can talk about dried flowers, we can have sweet peas or peonies or croissants. dalias go and have a look at those on a flower focus that will be really lovely. And then there's a separate few few areas of of growing your own business top tips for making money as a flower farmer and so on. But you can find the entire cut flower podcast archive, and I just want to encourage you if you haven't listened to any of them to go back and pick One of interest to you. So whether it's your business or you're interested in flowers or it's floristry is your thing or you want to look at wildlife and biodiversity in the environment, or mental health, therapeutic gardens and mental health and how growing is proven to help help your mental health do go and have a listen to those. So I look forward to welcoming you over to our master classes on the first the second and fifth of February. They're all different. join the Facebook group. cut flower masterclass is 2024 and I look forward to welcoming you