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jan_on

No G in HGTV!

jan_on zone 5b
10 years ago

This was the subject of a recent thread on the perennial forum, and many posters remembered fondly the 'good old days' when American (and Canadian) gardening programs proliferated. They seem to be a rarity now.

One responder provided links to some British gardening shows on YouTube. That's not a resource I have ever made much use of - that has changed - I'm now a great fan of Alan Titchmarsh and Monty Don and the many beautifully filmed gardens. 'Around the World in 80 Gardens' is a great fix for cabin fever while we wait...

Kudos to the BBC. (Great accents too!)

Jan

Here is a link that might be useful: Great BBC gardening shows

Comments (18)

  • calistoga_al ca 15 usda 9
    10 years ago

    Those of us which also subscribe to Netflix can also get some of the old garden programs. I am now looking at an old Roger Swain series. I had forgotten how informative they were. Al

  • beverlymnz4
    10 years ago

    This was a major complaint of mine when we got cable, (only 2 years ago). I wanted HGTV and now I wonder why. There are some fun home improvement shows, but I really wanted a good gardening series. I see I'm not the only one. By the way, we are turning off our cable this summer for 4 months. At $70 a month for 4 months, lets see, thats about 14 hostas of the newer variety, more if I buy some oldies but goodies.

    Beverly

  • bkay2000
    10 years ago

    Yes, I totally agree. I don't even look to see what's on it anymore.

    I feel the same way about the Food network. I wonder why I wanted it.

    bk

  • hostanista
    10 years ago

    Totally agree with you Jan! They should simply drop the "G" from HGTV and stop pretending.

    Always liked Alan T. and thanks for that great link to the BBC garden shows. I know what I'm doing this evening!

    Remember "Gardener's Journal" with Kathy Renwald? What a lovely show that was.

  • ilovetogrow z9 Jax Florida
    10 years ago

    Yes I do remember the show. PBS is not doing much better. There is still "the Victory Garden' and the narator has a British accent. I want to garden here. I do not pay for cable as it is hosta money and well frankly there is nothing good on ever. When I was at my sisters we watched HGTV and they were selling homes in Italy? I knew my money was well spent elsewhere. I do miss the garden shows. Even the Canadian ones. Youtube is one of my biggest source for info. You want it it is there. I remember the show where Kathy redid the entryway between apartmennts. I will have to check out these other shows.

  • in ny zone5
    10 years ago

    I agree, I remember those great garden shows on HGTV. I was regularly watching them, they were a high point of my days. For many years now I only see that they have home shows, and rarely watch it. There is no more gardening in it, what a shame.

  • gogirlterri
    10 years ago

    I used to go to HGTV as soon as I turned on my tv. I particularly liked the crazy guy from Arkansas. Now I don't even check the listings anymore. There is N E V E R anything on it I wish to see. It makes Victory Gardening exciting.
    Theresa

  • tepelus
    10 years ago

    I stopped watching HGTV years ago when they took the G out of their programming.

    Karen

  • pagrdnr
    10 years ago

    I miss gardening shows too. There was one called 'gardening by the yard' that was fun. I am sick of all the home improvement shows that took over. That is just tv in general I guess....it's all reality shows and competitions, not much good stuff anymore.

  • MadPlanter1 zone 5
    10 years ago

    And even the shows where they redo a garden it's all outdoor kitchens, patios, and firepits. BBC used to carry an Allan Titchmarsh show where they surprised someone by redoing their garden. Loved that one, it had some gardening and real D-I-Y tips.

    The Travel channel is just as bad. No travel at all, just food. I used to love the programs about National Parks. Now I get some guy eating disgusting stuff.

    I bookmarked the link for future rainy days, looks good!

    HDNet has now been turned into a manly man car channel, but they used to show a wonderful series about great gardens in England, might have been gardens of the National Trust. They were so good! Wonder if they're out on the net somewhere.

  • almosthooked zone5
    10 years ago

    I agree and cancelled out that channel some time back. It has so many reruns and never seem to get anything new. After seeing this post I contacted their site and but they never even had the decency of a lame answer. Maybe if they get more emails or comments they may have to do something about it.. just a thought that may help

  • hostafreak
    10 years ago

    Yeah,I know what you mean! I still have that old tape of George Shmid,and Philip Little from years back,when DVR's weren't even a word! I mean,who needs a fire pit! If it gets that cold outside,I go inside where it's warm. And who needs all that hard-scaping? Phil

  • don_in_colorado
    10 years ago

    You know it's bad when 'Ancient Aliens' is one of the better shows on cable these days...sigh....

    Don B.

  • User
    10 years ago

    I draw the line at the multi-million $$ ROOMS, not just the HOUSE. And yes, the proliferation of life-style channels is not to my taste. I suppose prisons and ice road trucking and gold mining in the cold parts of the world, and ax men and artificial reef building (that's an Alabama show, BTW) and pawn shop stars, and "pickers" might be of some interest, but how about something like GARDENING..... yeah, I agree.

    I know there are fans of golfing on this forum, but to me that is about as exciting as watching paint dry. Yet golf has its own channel. Gardening is a bunch more active than golfing, so what's the problem I'd like to know. Don't gardeners spend as much money as golfers?

  • don_in_colorado
    10 years ago

    A reality show; featuring felonious TRUCKERS serving time in a PRISON made out of ICE in ALASKA, and they have to MINE FOR GOLD as forced labor...!! Ratings galore!!!

    Mocc, you're a genius! :)

    Don B.

  • beverlymnz4
    10 years ago

    OK you guys can joke, but those computerized toilets scare me.

  • don_in_colorado
    10 years ago

    I have never seen a computerized toilet, Beverly; I admit I'm getting the creeps just imagining what it could be.

    Don B.

  • User
    10 years ago

    Ummmm, Don, I think YOU are the genius for linking all those into one blockbuster show.

    Me, I'm the sort who gets a message and then assumes it is a brilliant idea....like the time I heard that in California they were making the offshore drilling platforms/rigs look like condos. That's what they SAID.

    What I HEARD was, they were turning the offshore rigs into condos. My mind went galloping with that, seeing the cranes lowering folks to the deck of a ferry to go into town to work....And on the rig itself an ATM machine, a 24 hour restaurant, even a grocery store, beauty/barber shop, a day care, and an all-age school with guest teachers from the university system, or else with video classrooms. Oh yeah, and a pharmacy that flies in the meds via chopper.

    Well, that's what I HEARD, and my imagination took a giant leap forward. I could see trees....especially palm trees like in MISTER ROBERTS....fresh water via reverse osmosis, solar power supply.

    But sadly, they only put big canvas covers over the ugly business part of the rigs, with squares like windows drawn and cut into it, but with one production platform, I saw it set up like a real (small) tropical island with a sandy beach and a couple of palm trees and a tiki shack covering the ugly production wellhead etc. As long as it was out of sight, nobody seemed to care. Duhhhh.