The Secret History of the British Garden

On his journey through four hundred years of Britains garden history, Monty Don arrives in the 18th century, an age that gave rise to the landscape garden, created on a scale that had never been seen before. Using Lancelot Capability Browns first commission - Croome Court in Worcestershire - as his base, Monty sets out to investigate what inspired and influenced this gardening revolution. Along the way, he visits the landscape garden of Rousham, designed by the maverick William Kent, and Stanage Park, designed by the marketing genius Humphrey Repton. Monty discovers how these great landscapes were created, from revealing the Georgian clay recipe that revolutionised garden sculpture to discovering the secrets of mowing with a scythe. He also sees how the present Duke of Devonshire is cutting down trees to restore his park to its 18th-century design.

The concluding fourth episode, now in the 20th century, sees Monty examining the profound effect that two world wars had on attitudes to gardening. Today gardening is one of Britain’s most popular pastimes, and the horticultural industry is worth over nine billion pounds annually . Monty reveals the pioneers who led this gardening revolution.