grow, cook, eat, arrange with Sarah Raven & friends

Every garden space deserves a chance to be transformed into a beautiful space which breathes, rather than constricts, and Pollyanna Wilkinson is a master of such designs.
Polly joins Sarah this week to share her no‑nonsense methods for transforming everything from boxy new‑build plots to tired, inherited gardens into layered, soulful spaces. 
In this episode, discover:
How to think like a garden designer, surveying, shaping and structuring spaces before you plant
Practical ways to transform new‑build and small gardens, or refresh an existing garden
Guidance on choosing materials and finishes that feel good underfoot, are easy to maintain, and will age beautifully over time.
How to use colour and planting layers to create a soulful, wildlife‑friendly garden with interest through the seasons
Products mentioned:
Amelanchier lamarckii:
sarahraven.com/products/amelanchier-lamarckii
Lavender ‘Munstead’: 
sarahraven.com/products/lavender-munstead
Nepeta x faassenii 'Kit Kat':
sarahraven.com/products/nepeta-x-faassenii-kit-kat
See our events: https://www.sarahraven.com/courses-events
Get in touch: [email protected]
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: https://www.sarahraven.com/
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Follow Sarah: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravenperchhill/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest

Chelsea is upon us, and among the beauty of all the show gardens lies a very special offering from Arit Anderson and Parkinson’s UK.
She’s planting with purpose in a garden which promises to reflect every Parkinson’s journey in a beautifully poignant way, and on ‘grow, cook, eat, arrange’, she walks us through the planting ethos and careful design behind one of Main Avenue’s great sights for 2026.
In this episode, discover:
How Arit is reflecting her sister Julie’s Parkinson’s journey in a meaningful Chelsea Flower Show garden for Parkinson’s UK
What Parkinson’s really is beyond the stereotypes, and why it’s so often misunderstood
How thoughtful garden design can respond to real medical challenges
Practical ideas for making any garden more accessible, sensory and restorative, whether or not you’re living with Parkinson’s
The garden’s relocation to the John Radcliffe Hospital, and how it will serve the Parkinson’s community long after Chelsea
Products mentioned:
Digitalis purpurea ‘Alba’ (White Foxglove): sarahraven.com/products/digitalis-purpurea-alba
See our events: https://www.sarahraven.com/courses-events
Get in touch: [email protected]
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: https://www.sarahraven.com/
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Follow Sarah: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravenperchhill/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest

In this episode of ‘grow, cook, eat, arrange’, Sarah Raven welcomes renowned garden designer Tom Stuart-Smith to uncover his visionary new garden for Tate Britain and how he’s reimagining it for the RHS Chelsea Flower Show. 
They explore his bold, foliage-rich planting, ingenious water features, and a remarkable new memorial garden at Badminton that promises to be one of the RHS’s most ambitious show gardens yet.
In this episode, discover:
How Tom Stuart-Smith is transforming a neglected, concrete-dominated acre at Tate Britain into a biodiverse, exotic garden
The creative and practical challenge of turning that large-scale design into a Chelsea Flower Show garden where every element is destined to be reused at Tate
The bold, foliage-led planting palette Tom has chosen – from cycads and Persian lilac to euphorbias, aspidistras and shade-loving exotics
How water, sculpture and planting come together, including a finely engineered water feature and a Barbara Hepworth sculpture from a national collection
Episode Cover Photo Credit: Eva Nemeth.
See our events: https://www.sarahraven.com/courses-events
Get in touch: [email protected]
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: https://www.sarahraven.com/
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Follow Sarah: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravenperchhill/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest

Watch the full video episode on YouTube! https://youtu.be/_T97COq6blM
Throughout Mary Berry's life, the garden has played a charming role, from her wartime childhood plot to a brand-new garden started in her 80s - it’s an essential ingredient in her life.
This week on ‘grow, cook, eat, arrange’ Mary kindly joins us to explore a lifetime of gardening, how it’s inspired her new book, and how gardening can bring joy, structure and wellbeing at every stage of life.
In this episode, discover:
How Mary’s lifelong love of gardening began in her childhood and continues to shape her daily life
Practical, gentle tips for spring gardening and successional planting
How Mary approaches designing and maintaining a garden later in life, using evergreens, hedges and topiary for structure
Everyday good habits in the garden, such as watering, deadheading, and keeping lawns neat
Order Mary’s Book:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/My-Gardening-Life-Mary-Berry/dp/0241726654
Products mentioned: 
Narcissus ‘Rijnveld’s Early Sensation’: sarahraven.com/products/narcissus-rijnvelds-early-sensation
Narcissus ‘Silver Chimes’: sarahraven.com/products/narcissus-silver-chimes
Narcissus ‘February Gold’: sarahraven.com/products/narcissus-february-gold
Phlox drummondii ‘Blushing Bride’: sarahraven.com/products/phlox-drummondii-blushing-bride
See our events: https://www.sarahraven.com/courses-events
Get in touch: [email protected]
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: https://www.sarahraven.com/
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Follow Sarah: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravenperchhill/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest

Sissinghurst is one of the country’s crowning gems of National Trust gardens, and a place in which Adam was brought up, around the beauty curated by his grandparents.
This week on ‘grow, cook, eat, arrange’, we’re delving into the centuries of legacy which led to a spot perfect for Vita Sackville-West and Harold Nicolson to create the poetic space we know and adore today, and how their vision is being revived today for generations to come.
In this episode, discover:
The remarkable story of how Vita Sackville-West turned a ruined Elizabethan courtyard house into one of the world’s most celebrated gardens
How Sissinghurst evolved through centuries – from Renaissance palace to poetic family home and garden, and all in between
The creative partnership between Vita and Harold Nicolson
What makes the white garden so magical, from its glowing night-time palette to its scented, moth-pollinated plants
How the newly reimagined Delos garden brings a Greek hillside to Kent, blending historical inspiration with modern design
Products mentioned:
Ammi majus: 
sarahraven.com/products/ammi-majus
Ammi visnaga: 
sarahraven.com/products/ammi-visnaga
Agrostemma githago 'Milas Snow Queen':
sarahraven.com/products/agrostemma-githago-milas-snow-queen
See our events: https://www.sarahraven.com/courses-events
Get in touch: [email protected]
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: https://www.sarahraven.com/
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Follow Sarah: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravenperchhill/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest