grow, cook, eat, arrange with Sarah Raven & friends

From their resistance to deep snow and hard frosts, to long-flowering habits, hellebores are quietly spectacular plants that earn their keep in pots, borders and shady corners.
This week we’re diving into one of the true stars of the winter garden, focusing on the new varieties that bring a renewed perspective on one of the winter garden’s most generous providers, and how to keep them looking their best in the garden or in a vase.
In this episode, discover:
How to choose hellebore varieties for pots, borders and different garden conditions, from shade to full sun with Corsican types
The best new and classic hellebores for long winter colour, including Maestro, Merlin, Strawberry Moon, Bijou and the Pretty Ellen series
How to cut, condition and arrange hellebores so they stand proud in a vase for two weeks
Practical ways to prevent and deal with pests and diseases like aphids, mice damage, leaf miner and black spot
Tips on soil, compost, potting and feeding so hellebores thrive as long-lived, reliable perennials
Products mentioned:
Helleborus niger
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/helleborus-niger
Helleborus argutifolius
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/helleborus-argutifolius
Helleborus x ballardiae 'Merlin'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/helleborus-x-ballardiae-merlin
Helleborus x 'Bijoux'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/helleborus-bijoux
Helleborus x 'Guess'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/helleborus-guess
Helleborus orientalis 'Pretty Ellen Red'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/helleborus-pretty-ellen-red
Helleborus orientalis 'Pretty Ellen Spotted'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/helleborus-orientalis-pretty-ellen-spotted
Follow Sarah: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravenperchhill/
Get in touch: [email protected]
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: http://bit.ly/3jvbaeu
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest

March 2026 marks the release of perhaps Sarah’s most personal book to date, drawing from childhood love, family influence, and the evolution of one’s own gardening tastes.
In this week’s ‘grow, cook, eat, arrange’ Milli Proust joins us to discuss Sarah's new book, ‘A Year of Cut Flowers’, blending the memoir and the method to trace her family’s historic love of flora, and how it drew Sarah into the world of cut flowers.
In this episode, discover:
How childhood wildflower hunts with Sarah’s father and her life with Adam shaped her lifetime love of cut flowers
How even a small, carefully planned patch of cut flowers can fill your home with abundant, seasonal blooms
The surprisingly powerful impact of spacing and pinching on plant health, vase life and stem production
Why gardening, and especially growing for the vase, can become such a life‑enhancing practice which evolves with you
Products mentioned:
Abelia x grandiflora
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/abelia-x-grandiflora
Cerinthe major 'Purpurascens'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/cerinthe-major-purpurascens
Euphorbia oblongata
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/euphorbia-oblongata
Salvia viridis 'Blue Monday'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/salvia-viridis-blue
Helianthus annuus 'ProCut Plum' (Sunflower)
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/helianthus-annuus-procut-plum
Ammi majus
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/ammi-majus
Phlox drummondii 'Blushing Bride'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/phlox-drummondii-blushing-bride
Follow Sarah: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravenperchhill/
Get in touch: [email protected]
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: http://bit.ly/3jvbaeu
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest

The dream garden of low‑maintenance abundance is all about picking the plants that need hardly any input, just the lightest touch of editing, and they’ll give you months of shifting colour.
In the third episode in this theme with Arthur, we dive into the self-seeding annuals and biennials that bring abundant colour to the garden with very little effort. 
From forget-me-nots and violas to cerinthe, cosmos and quaking grasses, they share their favourite ‘volunteer’ plants, how to manage them, and simple ways to use them in borders and cut-flower arrangements for a truly low-maintenance, flower-filled garden.
In this episode, discover:
How to use self-seeding annuals and biennials to create a low‑maintenance, flower‑filled garden that largely looks after itself
Inspired plant recommendations, from forget‑me‑nots and violas, to grasses, nasturtiums and Californian poppies 
Practical tips on managing self‑sowers - when to let them run, and when to thin them out
Ways to weave self‑seeders into borders, pots and even cracks in paving for long‑season colour, movement and structure
Products mentioned:
Cerinthe major 'Kiwi Blue'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/cerinthe-major-kiwi-blue
Heart's Ease (Viola tricolor)
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/viola-heartsease
Anthriscus sylvestris 'Ravenswing'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/anthriscus-sylvestris-ravenswing
Cosmos bipinnatus 'Dazzler'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/cosmos-bipinnatus-dazzler
Ammi majus
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/ammi-majus
Panicum miliaceum 'Violaceum'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/panicum-violaceum
Briza maxima (Greater Quaking Grass)
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/briza-maxima-greater-quaking-grass
Nicandra physalodes
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/nicandra-physalodes
Persicaria orientalis
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/persicaria-orientalis
Nasturtium 'Ladybird Rose' (Tropaeolum minus)
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/nasturtium-ladybird-rose
Nasturtium 'Bloody Mary' (Tropaeolum minus)
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/nasturtium-bloody-mary
Follow Sarah: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravenperchhill/
Get in touch: [email protected]
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: http://bit.ly/3jvbaeu
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest

For months of scent throughout the sunnier months, there are a whole host of nostalgic stalwarts and surprising new picks that are impossible to ignore.
Every garden deserves a perfume as captivating as the 12 plants at the top of Josie and Sarah’s list this week, as they laud the dozen best flowers to sow for unbeatable aroma from April through to October.
In this episode, discover:
How to choose standout scented plants that really earn their place for perfume and looks alike
Which specific varieties Sarah and Josie regularly rely on, and what makes each one special
Practical when-and-how tips for sowing, planting, and positioning scented plants to get fragrance from spring right through to autumn
Ways to use these plants as cut flowers, including vase-life tricks and how to make small bunches scent whole rooms
How to layer scent through borders, climbers, containers, and shrubs so that every corner of the garden offers a different perfumed moment
Products mentioned:
Trachelospermum jasminoides
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/trachelospermum-jasminoides
Sweet Pea 'Matucana'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/lathyrus-odoratus-matucana
Narcissus 'Actaea'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/narcissus-actaea
Matthiola incana 'Pillow Talk'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/matthiola-incana-pillow-talk
Lonicera periclymenum 'Graham Thomas'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/lonicera-periclymenum-graham-thomas
Acidanthera murielae (syn. Gladiolus)
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/acidanthera-murielae
Follow Sarah: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravenperchhill/
Get in touch: [email protected]
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: http://bit.ly/3jvbaeu
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest

Every year, we venture out to the Netherlands in search of the most captivating dahlias, each worthy of a spot in your garden to liven up the late-summer months.
Tom Stimpson joins us again on the podcast to share their current ‘cream of the crop’, from reliable classics like ‘Molly Raven’ and ‘Adam’s Choice’, to gorgeous growers like ‘Strawberry Cream’ and ‘Princess Nadine’. 
Join us for an episode packed with garden inspiration for any colour palette, and a glimpse into how we choose our standout favourites from a field of hundreds and thousands.
In this episode, discover:
How Sarah and Tom select stellar dahlias from Dutch trial fields, and the characteristics that make truly exceptional plants
Varieties that are pollinator-friendly to bring a buzz of life into the garden
How to condition your dahlias for mighty vase life
Products mentioned:
Dahlia 'Princess Nadine'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-princess-nadine
Dahlia 'Skyfall'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-skyfall
Dahlia 'Café au Lait'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-cafe-au-lait
Dahlia 'Adam's Choice'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-adams-choice
Dahlia 'Polka'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-polka
Dahlia 'Strawberry Cream'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-strawberry-cream
Dahlia 'Honka Pink'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-honka-pink
Dahlia 'Molly Raven'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-molly-raven
Dahlia 'Labyrinth'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-labyrinth
Dahlia 'Lou Farman'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-lou-farman
Dahlia 'Break Out'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-break-out
Dahlia 'Verrone's Obsidian'
https://www.sarahraven.com/products/dahlia-verrones-obsidian
Follow Sarah: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravenperchhill/
Get in touch: [email protected]
Shop on the Sarah Raven Website: http://bit.ly/3jvbaeu
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarahravensgarden/
Order Sarah’s latest books: https://www.sarahraven.com/gifts/gardening-books?sort=newest