Alan admits he has earned a lot of criticism by kickstarting the decking trend (Image: Getty)
As the nation’s favourite gardener, has set more than his fair share of horticultural trends. He admits though that some of his innovations have come back to haunt him.
“I get it in the neck all the time for ,” Alan told The Times. “When I started doing Ground Force B&Q’s annual sales totalled £9,000. A year [later] that reached £8 million. It earned me a place in Quentin Letts’s book 50 People Who Buggered Up Britain.”
The former presenter got a sort of revenge by publishing a list of gardening faux pas, drawing inspiration from socialite Nicky Hallam, who regularly publishes his list of things he dismisses as “common.”
Alan has little time for gladioli (stock) (Image: Getty)
Don’t miss…
Alan’s own list include Gladioli, which he says ‘are fit only for church decoration,” and Pampas grass – which Alan cheekily notes “have a certain significance.”
He also takes aim at Petunias and “Large cyclamen in window-boxes. Golden conifers in window-boxes,” and indeed “Quite a lot in windowboxes actually.”
He also has little time for new-looking garden tools: “Old ones have silky smooth handles and blades and prongs that have been sharpened by years of wear and yet still have more life in them.”
Alan also takes aim at window-boxes (Image: Getty)
When it comes to items you might be buying from your local garden centre, Alan also pours scorn on plastic trug baskets, plastic water butts, plastic trellis, plastic pots and, especially plastic grass.
He describes log-roll edging, which handily defines and separates different garden areas such as flower beds, lawns, and pathways as “exquisitely naff.”
It’s not all bad news for lazier gardeners though. Alan also advises against too much digging in the garden, simply saying “Don’t.”
Rewilding isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be, Alan says (Image: Getty)
Don’t miss… [UPDATE] [BACKGROUND]
Alan is also sceptical about the current rewilding trend, saying that leaving gardens to manage themselves wouldn’t be half as good for wildlife as some of its proponents believe: “Anybody who’s studied ecology knows the ‘natural’ state of this country is covered in oak trees or brambles,” he told the Times.
“[Getting back to that state] won’t help biodiversity. Whereas with gardeners who garden responsibly, it doesn’t matter which country flowers come from, the bees and the butterflies want nectar.”
Catch Alan on Love Your Weekend with Alan Titchmarsh at 9.30am today (Sunday, February 9) at 9.30am on