Loading...

PODCAST

The Messed Up Gardener

Esther William (Aitken)

Hello and Welcome to The Messed Up Gardener. This podcast covers all areas of gardening from a beginner, intermediate to advanced level. It covers gardening on any budget, any space, any place. There are no rules when it comes to me, and my gardens and I do it messy. There is nothing more fun than getting your hands dirty and creating that space that gives you joy and abundance. This podcast will give tips, tricks, hacks and methodology’s to make any space work from the tiny indoor garden to the

leisure home & garden

All Episodes

16:32

Ep 194: Why Are Your Seedlings Growing Tall, Thin and...

The Messed Up Gardener ·

2026/10/03

🎧 Press Play to Listen to Today’s Episode Free Gardening Resources at the bottom of the show notes Your seedlings germinated beautifully. Everything seemed to be going exactly to plan. Then almost overnight... ...they stretched. The stems became long and thin. They started leaning toward the window. Some began falling over. Others looked pale and weak. And suddenly that tray of promising little seedlings looks as though it may never survive the journey into the garden. So what has gone

en-us

28:21

Ep 193: Is Your Mulch Helping the Garden - or Hiding...

The Messed Up Gardener ·

2026/09/26

🎧 Press Play to Listen to Today’s Episode Free Gardening Resources at the bottom of the show notes Your garden bed looks beautiful. Fresh mulch covers the soil. The weeds are hidden. Everything looks tidy and protected. But what is actually happening underneath? Is the soil staying too wet? Are slugs sheltering beside your seedlings? Or is the mulch absorbing water before it ever reaches the roots? In this episode of The Messed-Up Gardener, Esther Williams explores how mulch affects your

en-us

31:04

Ep 192: Why Flowers Appear but Fruit Never Follows

The Messed Up Gardener ·

2026/09/19

🎧 Press Play to Listen to Today’s Episode Free Gardening Resources at the bottom of the show notes Your plant is covered in flowers. The bees are visiting. Everything looks as though a bumper harvest should be just around the corner. Then the flowers fall off... ...and nothing follows. No tomatoes. No courgettes. No pumpkins. No fruit at all. So what has gone wrong? In this episode of The Messed-Up Gardener, Esther Williams takes a closer look at what actually has to happen between a flower

en-us

30:41

Ep 191: Why Your Compost Is Not Breaking Down

The Messed Up Gardener ·

2026/09/12

🎧 Press Play to Listen to Today’s Episode Free Gardening Resources at the bottom of the show notes Your compost pile is full. You’ve added kitchen scraps, grass clippings, dry leaves and cardboard. But weeks later... ...not much seems to be happening. The pile is cold. The cardboard is still cardboard. Or worse, everything has become wet, slimy and smelly. So what has gone wrong? In this episode of The Messed-Up Gardener, Esther Williams takes a closer look at what is actually happening

en-us

26:21

Episode 190: What Is Really Happening When a Plant...

The Messed Up Gardener ·

2026/08/29

A wilted plant can make us reach for the hose before checking anything else. But wilting does not always mean the soil is dry. A plant can wilt in wet soil, after transplanting, during hot weather, in cold conditions, or when damaged roots cannot move water properly. In this episode of The Messed-Up Gardener, Esther Williams takes a slightly more technical look at what wilting really means and why very different problems can create the same drooping leaves. In this episode you’ll discover: 🌱

en-us

21:38

Ep 189: What Are Yellow Leaves Really Trying to Tell...

The Messed Up Gardener ·

2026/08/09

🎧 Press Play to Listen to Today’s Episode Free Gardening Resources at the bottom of the show notes Yellow leaves have a remarkable ability to make gardeners panic. One day the plant looks fine. The next, two leaves have turned pale. Before long, you are wondering whether it needs more water, less water, fertiliser, better soil, pest treatment... ...or a respectful burial. But yellow leaves are not a diagnosis. They are a symptom. And the position, pattern and timing of that yellowing can

en-us

24:47

Ep 188: What Is Winter Really Doing to Your Garden?

The Messed Up Gardener ·

2026/08/01

🎧 Press Play to Listen to Today’s Episode Free Gardening Resources at the bottom of the show notes Winter damage does not always happen in one obvious moment. More often, it builds slowly through cold soil, wet roots, short days, wind and plants that cannot recover as quickly as they would in spring or summer. That is why winter problems are so easy to misread. A plant may still be alive, but growth has stopped. Leaves begin to yellow. Soil stays wet for days. Seedlings barely move. And

en-us

20:43

Ep 187: Before You Rip Everything Out...

The Messed Up Gardener ·

2026/07/25

🎧 Press Play to Listen to Today's Episode Free Gardening Resources at the bottom of the show notes Have you ever stood in your garden and thought... "That's it. I'm ripping everything out." Not because the garden has failed... But because it suddenly feels too messy. Too many weeds. Too many unfinished jobs. Too many decisions waiting all at once. In this episode of The Messed-Up Gardener, Esther Williams explores one of the biggest mistakes many gardeners make when they feel overwhelmed.

en-us

25:55

Ep 186: The Crops That Teach You How to Garden

The Messed Up Gardener ·

2026/07/18

🎧 Press Play to Listen to Today’s Episode Free Gardening Resources at the bottom of the show notes Have you ever noticed that some crops seem to teach you far more than they ever produce? Not because they're difficult... But because they're honest. A row of radishes can teach you about timing. A lettuce can teach you when conditions are changing. Silver beet quietly builds confidence. Tomatoes have a remarkable way of keeping even experienced gardeners humble. In this episode of The

en-us

25:56

Ep 185: What Your Garden Is Trying to Tell You

The Messed Up Gardener ·

2026/07/11

🎧 Press Play to Listen to Today’s Episode Free Gardening Resources at the bottom of the show notes Have you ever walked into your garden and immediately assumed something had gone wrong? A yellow leaf. A wilted seedling. A plant that suddenly looks unhappy for no obvious reason. It's amazing how quickly a garden can make us feel like we've failed. But what if your garden isn't criticizing you at all? What if it's simply trying to tell you something? In this episode of The Messed-Up Gardener,

en-us

24:31

Ep 184: Stop Starting Over Every Season

The Messed Up Gardener ·

2026/07/04

🎧 Press Play to Listen to Today’s Episode Free Gardening Resources at the bottom of the show notes Have you ever found yourself standing in the garden thinking… "Right... time to start again." It feels like a new season means beginning from scratch. New crops. New plans. New jobs. But what if that's not actually true? What if your garden has been quietly building on everything you've already done—even when it doesn't look like it? In this episode of The Messed-Up Gardener, Esther Williams

en-us

18:34

Ep 183: The Garden Bottleneck You Don't Know You Have

The Messed Up Gardener ·

2026/06/27

🎧 Press Play to Listen to Today’s Episode Free Gardening Resources at the bottom of the show notes Have you ever felt like your garden is working harder than it should? The plants are growing... You're putting in the effort... But somehow the results never seem to match the work. What if the problem isn't that your garden has lots of things going wrong... What if one hidden constraint is qui...

en-us

25:29

Ep 182: The Difference Between a Pretty Garden and a...

The Messed Up Gardener ·

2026/06/20

🎧 Press Play to Listen to Today’s Episode Free Gardening Resources at the bottom of the show notes What makes a garden successful? Is it the tidy paths? The beautiful flowers? The perfectly mulched beds? Or is it something else entirely? In this episode of The Messed-Up Gardener, Esther Williams explores a question that can completely change the way you look at your garden: Is your garden useful? Because while there is absolutely nothing wrong with wanting a beautiful garden, appearance and

en-us

23:25

Ep 181: Why Your Garden Should Have Jobs, Not Just...

The Messed Up Gardener ·

2026/06/13

🎧 Press Play to Listen to Today’s Episode Free Gardening Resources at the bottom of the show notes What if your garden is full of plants… but still isn’t doing enough for you? What if the problem isn’t how much you’re growing… but whether each part of the garden has a clear job? In this episode of The Messed-Up Gardener, Esther Williams explores a ...

en-us

20:32

EP 180: The Garden Maintenance Trap

The Messed Up Gardener ·

2026/06/06

🎧 Press Play to Listen to Today’s Episode Free Gardening Resources at the bottom of the show notes What if your garden isn't actually too big... But simply asking for too much work? Why do some gardens feel enjoyable and productive... while others slowly become a never-ending list of jobs? And what if the problem isn't how hard you're working... but the wa...

en-us

23:18

Ep 179: Stop Growing a Garden You Can’t Maintain

The Messed Up Gardener ·

2026/05/30

🎧 Press Play to Listen to Today’s Episode Free Gardening Resources at the bottom of the show notes What if your garden isn’t failing because you’re bad at gardening… but because it’s asking more from you than your real life can realistically give? In this episode of The Messed-Up Gardener, Esther Williams explores one of the most important but overlooked parts of gardening: maintainability. Because a lot of gardens don’t fail from lack of passion. They fail because the garden was built for

en-us

25:53

Ep 178: Why Some Gardens Feed You Regularly… and...

The Messed Up Gardener ·

2026/05/23

🎧 Press Play to Listen to Today’s Episode Free Gardening Resources at the bottom of the show notes What if your garden is growing plenty of food… but still not really feeding you consistently? What if the difference isn’t how much your garden produces… but how often it gives you something useful? In this episode of The Messed-Up Gardener, Esther Williams breaks down one of the most important shifts a gardener can make — moving from occasional harvests to regular, usable food. Because so...

en-us

26:54

Ep 177: Stop Letting Harvests Happen By Accident

The Messed Up Gardener ·

2026/05/16

🎧 Press Play to Listen to Today’s Episode Free Gardening Resources at the bottom of the show notes What if your garden is producing food… but still not really feeding you? What if the problem isn’t how much your garden grows… but whether the harvests arrive in a way you can actually use? In this episode of The Messed-Up Gardener, Esther Williams talks about why so many harvests happen by accident — and how to start turning random garden surprises into useful, regular food support. This

en-us

25:54

EP 176: The Hidden Weeks That Make or Break a Garden

The Messed Up Gardener ·

2026/05/09

🎧 Press Play to Listen to Today’s Episode Free Gardening Resources at the bottom of the show notes What if your garden isn’t failing all at once… it’s quietly losing momentum in the weeks you don’t notice? What if the problem isn’t the day you plant… or the day you harvest… but the hidden weeks in between? In this episode of The Messed-Up Gardener, Esther Williams talks about one of the most overlooked parts of productive gardening: timing. Not just planting dates. Not just seed packets. Not

en-us

23:01

Ep 175: How to grow more without more space (or effort)

The Messed Up Gardener ·

2026/05/02

🎧 Press Play to Listen to Today’s Episode Free Gardening Resources at the bottom of the show notes Hi, welcome to The Messed-Up Gardener Most gardeners think they need more space to grow more food. A bigger section. More raised beds. More containers. But what if that’s ...

en-us

209 results

Similar Podcasts

Expres Ráno

Expres FM

Sports Cards Nonsense

Sports Cards Nonsense

Acá Entre Nozz

Sonoro | Aká y Allá studiozz

Motorhome Matt

Matt Sims and Keith Gooden

21 Questions by Trivia Tribe

Mike van Acker