BBC Pictures
Jonathan Moseley, judge of BBC's The Big Allotment Challenge, shares his floral wisdom with Emily Horton ahead of Valentine's Day
Currently satisfying our TV thirst for domestic competitiveness is The Big Allotment Challenge. Educating us middle classes as to the merits of the perfect pea, ‘erect stems’ and ‘hardening off’, BAC has got us flexing our green fingers, digging for victory and generally taking a more creative approach to the horticultural arts than merely shoving a few flowers in a vase.
Leading the way in this renaissance is floral expert Jonathan Moseley, one of three judges on BAC and a regular adjudicator at the Hampton Court Palace Flower Show.
“I’ve always been intrigued by flowers and their simplicity,” he enthuses, down the line from his Derbyshire home. “It's the fascination of being able to sow an absolutely tiny little seed, knowing that, with a bit of care and nurture, it can manifest itself as this amazing colourful plant.”
The botanic bug has long been in Jonathan’s system. Ever since childhood, in fact, when walks in the Peak District gave his love of nature ample opportunity to take hold.
“I was obsessed with growing from an early age. I had a greenhouse for my eleventh birthday!” he exclaims.
By the age of 13, his handiwork was already winning local competitions, leaving him “completely smitten with the show world”. And it's precisely this devotion to nurturing the perfect specimen that made him the ideal choice for his latest TV gig.
On BAC, Jonathan oversees the contestants as they grow their own flowers, from seed to bloom, and are then tasked with turning them into an awe-inspiring arrangement.
Now in its second series, and currently gracing BBC2 on Friday nights, the show has created a whole new flora fan base.
“It has brought flowers to a much wider audience,” reflects Jonathan. “A lot of my friends tell me that, even in the depths of winter, seeing all these wonderful flowers on the show has inspired them to go out and buy flowers to cheer up the house.”
Equally, the series has helped to raise awareness of precisely what we are buying.
“It encourages people to buy locally, which is a good message for the media to put out there. We need to look for the British label when purchasing flowers and support our own farmers here at home.
“The supermarkets have swamped the industry. They often sell flowers more cheaply than the poor florists can buy them wholesale.
“There is a huge movement quietly taking shape to reacquaint farmers with the idea of growing British flowers. Lots of farms are now diversifying, turning parts of their fields over to floral production.
“We have all these flowers coming in at the moment from Cornwall and the Scilly Isles – daffodils, larkspur, foxgloves and love-in-a-mist. All those old, romantic flowers that you remember your grandma loving are now being grown again here.”
So what suggestions does Jonathan have for us this Valentine’s Day?
“We should never not give flowers at Valentine's, however long our relationship has been going,” he asserts. “For centuries they have been symbols of romance and fertility. In Victorian times, the language of flowers (floriography) enabled secret communication between lovers, as different flowers and arrangements conveyed a variety of messages.
“We associate the red rose with passion and love, but other species have unique meanings too: a white hyancinth, for example, spells unobtrusive loveliness, while a blue hyacinth signifies constancy.”
Anything else we should know?
“The first flush of emotion should be celebrated by purple lilac, red tulips are a declaration of love and the fragrant tuberose signifies dangerous pleasure,” chuckles Jonathan. “But the real point is that giving something that you have made yourself is a very personal tribute to your loved one.”
With that in mind, I decide that I am up for the challenge – as long as Jonathan promises not to judge me on my efforts. I’m not at all sure that I would be up for the gold rosette just yet.
But let’s hope my Valentine will think so!
BBC2’s The Big Allotment Challenge, Fridays 9pm. Visit jonathan-moseley.com for Jonathan’s tour dates; @jpmoseley; Facebook: jonathan.moseley2
