Popular BBC TV and Radio presenter Jason Mohammad admits not having a lot of time to spend working in his own garden but adds, “I have lovely gardening memories as a child. We had a big back garden of our own and lived next door to my grandparents. Granddad was a very keen gardener and got us to do lots of work for him. He had a massive veg garden and we used to do all the harvesting, I remember picking beans and peas and digging up potatoes, getting stinking dirty of course,” he laughs. “There was a big lawn we played football on and a big greenhouse that was full of tomatoes and marrows, I’ll always remember the amazing smell.”
The cheerful Radio Wales Phone-in presenter continues, “I do grow my three favourite herbs, thyme, rosemary and curry leaves and I am the Chef of the house, I love cooking.”
“I’d love to grow more herbs and salad leaves as well as veg. As a kid, I remember eating at my Nan and Granddads and my parents was always brilliant at this time of year. My favourite meal is still new potatoes straight out of the garden with loads of butter and a chicken salad. Though my most amazing taste memory is probably a tomato I had when on holiday in Sardinia; I have never tasted anything so lovely, it was like eating a totally different food.”
Jason continues by confessing to be a ‘bad touch’ in the garden, “I manage to kill a lot of things though I have got a lovely clematis that’s my pride and joy and I take full credit for planting and looking after it. I do like the garden to be neat and tidy and look nice. Mum made some lovely hanging baskets for us last year. Even those needed a lot of looking after, though they did survive and looked gorgeous. I don’t think I’ll have quite so many this year and I’ll use the spare brackets for candles in lanterns.”
The doting Dad of three, Lili, Max and Poppy continues, “My own garden is overrun with children’s toys; trampolines and slides. It is literally like a playground, so I can’t do much. I think gardening is hard work. Even though I love being outdoors and keeping fit, I play footie twice a week and cricket, I would rather relax in my garden than work in it. With three young children and being so busy in work, any spare time I get to spend in the garden is spent watching the kids play and listening to the Test Match Special.”
“But even though I don’t have the time or space to do much gardening now, I’d like to think I’ll do more later. Hopefully in a few years, I’ll be nipping down to my allotment with my flat cap on,” he teases.
You can join in with Jason at midday every week day on his BBC Wales Radio Phone In.
Taken from Lynne Allbutt's column Green Scene in the Western Mail (Media Wales) 19th June 2010