Michaela Strachan

My gardening world

Michaela is a regular presenter on BBC2’s Springwatch. Starting her career in the 1980s on morning TV shows, she became widely known as a face of BBC wildlife series including The Really Wild Show and Countryfile. Born in Surrey, she now lives in South Africa with her family, so was unable to present Springwatch in the UK this year. She hopes to be be back for this year’s Autumnwatch

How is gardening in South Africa different to the UK?

The challenge with severe drought is the biggest difference. We need to be water wise, and people can even get named and shamed in the newspaper for watering the garden! We sometimes use old bathwater on our veg plot, but do keep it away from the spinach, which can end up tasting a little soapy.

Do your children garden with you?

I worry about the boys playing online games too much – and believe that FIFA and Fortnite are actually addictive – so I’ve been encouraging them outside. One of my stepsons started by helping me pull up potatoes. He went on to set up a community project for schools, and that all started with just one potato. I think there’s something ingrained in us to enjoy growing food and feeling our hands in the soil.

When did you get into gardening?

It’s happened as I’ve got older and setting up a garden here really got me into it. I enjoyed learning from the gardeners who helped us build a terraced veg garden as well as people we meet on Springwatch. As a child back in Surrey, my brother and I were so bored being dragged around garden centres, but now I love them!

Michaela gardens with her family in South Africa

Do you have any special plants?

I planted a wild plum tree here for my dad when he passed away, as he loved his garden. I was pregnant at the time and had a plaque made for my son that read: For my Grandad, who I never met when I was alive, but now I can climb in his memory. It’s quite funny now, as my son is actually taller than the tree!

Do you get much wildlife in the garden? We put out sugar water to attract the local nectar-feeding sunbirds, which can hover like hummingbirds. But despite putting up nest boxes for bats and spotted eagle owls, we haven’t had any luck yet. I think it’s funny, given my job, and wonder: “Doesn’t the wildlife here know who I am?”

Which plants make good gifts?

Trees. Chris Packham and I recently bought a lovely big rowan as a wedding present for a mutual friend. And for my 50th birthday I asked everyone to buy me a tree. My friends and I planted them at a local school, which was fun to do together and a lovely addition to the school.

K Michaela Strachan is an ambassador for the environmental charity Earthwatch, which is offering free activities online for children aged 4-11 to learn about nature from home, at: wild-days.org