Pollinators and hidden heroes

Gardening with the RHS

Royal Horticultural Society

Home & Garden, Leisure, Hobbies

4.4 • 654 Ratings

🗓️ 27 May 2021

⏱️ 28 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

"Come fly with me, let's fly, let's fly away..." This week we're gardening with winged visitors in mind as we talk all things pollinator. However, there's more to pollinating insects than just bees, as the Natural History Museum's Senior Curator, Erica McAlister explains. "Having a cuppa tea and a chocolate brownie? You wouldn't be having any of that in your beautiful garden if it wasn't for the flies," she says. Who knew such humble creatures could be so important? Garden designer Humaira Ikram shares tips on how to create a pollinator-friendly plot and in the latest part of our grow-your-own series, Sylvia Travers of RHS Garden Bridgewater offers tips on growing all kinds of beans. Plus, as part of our Hidden Horticulturists series, grower Abra Lee tells the inspirational story of Edmond Albius, a young slave boy who worked out one of the biggest botanical mysteries of his day – how to pollinate the vanilla orchid. As Abra says, "It's so empowering to hear these stories, and you're able to look at yourself and know you are capable of great things".

Transcript

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0:00.0	Get your tickets for the greatest show in Earth at an RHS garden near you.
0:06.4	Where nature puts on an unforgettable performance of colour and fragrance to delight your senses.
0:13.2	Inspire your gardening adventures and entertain your own little stars.
0:17.4	Race you, let's go.
0:19.5	Catch Springs finest scenes while you can at an RHS garden near you.
0:24.0	Book tickets online for discounts, plus under fives go free and under 16s of five pounds.
0:30.1	Hello Spring, roll on summer with Garden Man.
0:33.0	The outdoor furniture superstore is now online with loads in stock from sofa sets to day beds to
0:38.2	sunlangers and plenty more that can be delivered for free this summer when you visit
0:42.4	gardenman.com.uk slash podcast.
0:48.5	Today we're focusing on a vital part of any garden environment.
0:57.3	We know that they're really important for a lot of our crops, chocolate, tea.
1:02.1	So we're really just scraping the tip of the iceberg in our knowledge of how important these little things are.
1:08.5	Without them, we'd be lost.
1:10.7	We won't have apples.
1:12.2	You know, that's as simple as it can be.
1:14.0	You know, you don't have the fruits and the plants that will come from them.
1:17.8	Wandering around outside without anything to look at or eat sounds bleak to me.
1:23.5	Have you guessed what we're talking about yet?
1:28.3	Pollinators, from flowers to the fruit and veg we eat, they're an invaluable part of the garden ecosystem.
1:33.3	Of course there are different ways pollination happens, including rain, wind and insects,
1:39.3	but as wild bees and other insect pollinators are in decline,
	...

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