Although he died about 14yrs ago I still miss genial Geoff Hamilton.
He always spoke with great enthusiasm directly to YOU and inspired
confidence in all of us, enabling us to achieve what we had
previously thought impossible. He broke gardening down into simple,
easy to grasp chunks, that even the least green-fingered of us could
understand and put into practice.

Anyone remember his carry-cot cold frame, made from a cardboard box
painted white with a clear plastic cover? This device used to come
out at the start of every season, showing us how inexpensive gardening
can be if approached his way.

Cheers,
Compo in Caithness

Although he died about 14yrs ago I still miss genial Geoff Hamilton.

Seconded! Best. Ever. TV presenter.

He wrote very well too -- in fact, he wrote as he spoke: success.

John & Val, Northumberland

On 05/01/2011 10:09, Compo in Caithness wrote:
Although he died about 14yrs ago I still miss genial Geoff Hamilton.
He always spoke with great enthusiasm directly to YOU and inspired
confidence in all of us, enabling us to achieve what we had
previously thought impossible. He broke gardening down into simple,
easy to grasp chunks, that even the least green-fingered of us could
understand and put into practice.

Anyone remember his carry-cot cold frame, made from a cardboard box
painted white with a clear plastic cover? This device used to come
out at the start of every season, showing us how inexpensive gardening
can be if approached his way.

Cheers,
Compo in Caithness


Entirely agree! I watched every programme and hung on every word ..
every word was valuable. He was a true gardener's gardener, but also
new how to make gardening simple for the non-gardener. I pine for his
cheery commonsense gardening every year, but he's irreplaceable.

--
Spider
from high ground in SE London
gardening on clay

Another John wrote in news:lalaw44-
lid:

Although he died about 14yrs ago I still miss genial Geoff Hamilton.

Seconded! Best. Ever. TV presenter.

He wrote very well too -- in fact, he wrote as he spoke: success.

John & Val, Northumberland

Yes, he was a great presenter who taught and brought gardening to even the
most casual of us. He took the time to actually show us how to do it.

Baz

Oh, how I agree. Geoff was the presenter when my now husband and I bought
our first house with a garden. Having never done more than cut grass and
weed before, we hung on his every word and turned out a small veggie plot,
flourishing greenhouse and several shrubberies and beds over the first few
years. After he left and we were subjected to the gruesome Titmarsh, we
couldn't stomach the program and the garden had gone downhill ever since.
The inspitation was missing. However, I retired last year and have at least
started the recovery :-)

"Compo in Caithness" wrote in message
...
Although he died about 14yrs ago I still miss genial Geoff Hamilton.
He always spoke with great enthusiasm directly to YOU and inspired
confidence in all of us, enabling us to achieve what we had
previously thought impossible. He broke gardening down into simple,
easy to grasp chunks, that even the least green-fingered of us could
understand and put into practice.

Anyone remember his carry-cot cold frame, made from a cardboard box
painted white with a clear plastic cover? This device used to come
out at the start of every season, showing us how inexpensive gardening
can be if approached his way.

Cheers,
Compo in Caithness

On Jan 5, 1:11*pm, Baz wrote:
Another John wrote in news:lalaw44-
:

Although he died about 14yrs ago I still miss genial Geoff Hamilton.

Seconded! *Best. Ever. TV presenter. *

He wrote very well too -- in fact, he wrote as he spoke: success.

John & Val, Northumberland

Yes, he was a great presenter who taught and brought gardening to even the
most casual of us. He took the time to actually show us how to do it.

Baz

He would stand in front of a beautiful garden structure and say "Now
I'm not a joiner but I made this from simple materials and I'm going
to show you how YOU can do it too." And by 'eck he did!

In article , Sacha
writes
Indeed, he was wonderful but we must be fair to those who have come
after him, imo. None of these presenters do just as they wish -
they're scripted and directed and the general target audience is up to
the producers and programmers.


Indeed!! In fact I feel that until they change the production team we
aren't going to see a lot of differences in any time soon on the
gardening programmes. I wonder if a case could be made for putting out
programmes just for the Internet maybe with some advertising to pay for
it.
We could watch really in depth gardening lectures/podcasts/webinars via
computers rather than rely on what the media want us to see.

I might even subscribe to a service like that.
--
Janet Tweedy
Dalmatian Telegraph
http://www.lancedal.demon.co.uk

In message
Janet Tweedy wrote:

In article , Sacha
writes
Indeed, he was wonderful but we must be fair to those who have come
after him, imo. None of these presenters do just as they wish -
they're scripted and directed and the general target audience is up to
the producers and programmers.


Indeed!! In fact I feel that until they change the production team we
aren't going to see a lot of differences in any time soon on the
gardening programmes. I wonder if a case could be made for putting out
programmes just for the Internet maybe with some advertising to pay for
it.
We could watch really in depth gardening lectures/podcasts/webinars via
computers rather than rely on what the media want us to see.

I might even subscribe to a service like that.

"The Dalmatian Telegraph"! Do I recognise a quotation from "Esprit de
corps"?

Michael Bell
--

On Thu, 06 Jan 2011 19:24:06 GMT, Michael Bell
wrote:
[...]

"The Dalmatian Telegraph"! Do I recognise a quotation from "Esprit de
corps"?

Michael Bell

So glad I'm not the only one. "The Central Balkan Herald," wasn't it?
"Minister roasted in punk champagne." "Britain to buy Serbian
tit-props." And don't forget poor old Polk-Mowbray! Among the funniest
things I've ever read.

--
Mike.

On Jan 6, 4:33*pm, Sacha wrote:
On 2011-01-06 15:40:36 +0000, Janet Tweedy said:





In article , Sacha writes
Indeed, he was wonderful but we must be fair to those who have come
after him, imo. *None of these presenters do just as they wish -
they're scripted and directed and the general target audience is up to
the producers and programmers.

Indeed!! In fact I feel that until they change the production team we
aren't going to see a lot of differences in any time soon on the
gardening programmes. I wonder if a case could be made for putting out
programmes just for the Internet maybe with some advertising to pay for
it.
We could watch really in depth gardening lectures/podcasts/webinars via
computers rather than rely on what the media want us to see.

I might even subscribe to a service like that.

I think money would come into it again - royalties/repeat fees to the
presenters perhaps, that sort of thing. *There are several web sites
like Shoot which give gardening advice, if I've got that name right. *
They started a section with videos from real gardeners and nurserymen
showing how various jobs are done but I don't know how much it's looked
at. *The production team has changed, I believe. *The ones that came
here to pick up some plants for Carol to use (Brugmansias) were very
knowledgeable plants people but I don't know anything about the
executive producer. *What GW needs is a very strong 'anchor' and
definitely NOT someone beating their own personal drum about any
particular way of gardening. Present the facts, the 'how to do it' bit
and let the viewers make up their own minds. *To spray or not to spray,
that is the question. *;-)
--
Sachawww.hillhousenursery.com
South Devon- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

The problem with the spray or not spray argument is that the way
things are going there will be nothing left to use as a spray with the
way chemicals etc are being removed from the market.
Soon they will even look at spraying water

On Jan 6, 9:36*pm, Dave Hill wrote:
On Jan 6, 4:33*pm, Sacha wrote:

On 2011-01-06 15:40:36 +0000, Janet Tweedy said:

\snip\To spray or not to spray,
that is the question. *;-)
--
Sachawww.hillhousenursery.com
South Devon- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

The problem with the spray or not spray argument is that the way
things are going there will be nothing left to use as a spray with the
way chemicals etc are being removed from the market.
Soon they will even look at spraying water

I have a serious rootfly problem and used to use Bromophos, despite
being mostly organic in my approach. Bromophos was the only sure way
to protect my plants in the spring. These days I have to cover them
completely with fleece and worry that the weather will either rip the
fleece away or bake the young plants beneath (North of Scotland where
weather is a tad unpredictable). It seems like there is a panel of
'experts' sitting around a table somewhere saying "Ah, that chemical
does exactly what it says on the tin - we'd better ban it before
people start getting benefit from it" :-(

In message
Mike Lyle wrote:

On Thu, 06 Jan 2011 19:24:06 GMT, Michael Bell
wrote:
[...]

"The Dalmatian Telegraph"! Do I recognise a quotation from "Esprit de
corps"?

Michael Bell

So glad I'm not the only one. "The Central Balkan Herald," wasn't it?
"Minister roasted in punk champagne." "Britain to buy Serbian
tit-props." And don't forget poor old Polk-Mowbray! Among the funniest
things I've ever read.

Yes "the Titotalitarian order of plenty with froggings and crossed
haystacks". And such descriptions!

Michael Bell

--