Monty Don walked through his Longmeadow garden with a slow, deliberate pace to film his final episode of Gardeners’ World. As autumn hues transformed the landscape into soft yellows and oranges, he greeted viewers by noting it was a beautiful day, while tempering the moment with the realistic reminder that winter is inevitable. This transition into the dormant season mirrored the end of his own journey on the show, where he has served as a presenter on and off for nearly a quarter of a century. This is as idyllic as his place will get. “But,” he warns, “we know winter will come. And death, and a final loss before regrowth, and with winter comes change. About how it won’t be long before the first frosts arrive, don is talking about gardens. Yes, there have been hard and fast instructional segments, but he has always managed to enthuse about the potential of a garden. The gentle struggle, the nurturing of life – and this is apparent during his final outing, his stock in trade has always involved enthusing about what gardens represent – the slow changes. A sense of loss suffuses the show, whatever the reason. Although we’re promised a fuller Longmeadow retrospective around Christmas, doing anything else would be crass. Under his watch, Gardeners’ World – which, in its time, could be abjectly boring – has become blissful.
Throughout his tenure, Don moved away from the more authoritative style of predecessors like Percy Thrower or Geoff Hamilton, favoring a poetic and contemplative approach. His final broadcast maintained this hallmark atmosphere, capturing the essence of the changing seasons through tasks such as pruning roses and securing tropical trees against the approaching cold. The episode also highlighted the emotional resonance of gardening, featuring a designer who found healing through her craft after being widowed, as well as stories from viewers who used their gardens to navigate personal hardships. Subtext has always been a big part of Don’s tenure on the programme.
The production treated the milestone with characteristic subtlety, avoiding grand gestures or dramatic departures. The most explicit acknowledgment of his exit—outside of the closing minutes—came during a segment on creating a bulb lasagne of layered tulips. Don noted that this specific technique was the very first project he filmed for the show back in 1989. This reflective moment underscored the stillness and peace that defined his era, a stark contrast to the often hectic pace of modern television. According to until the final few minutes, the closest thing we have to a recognition of the end is Don’s segment on making a bulb lasagne – a pot of layered tulips that prolong display – which he, Was the first thing he ever made on television, all the way back in 1989.
Don’s final hands-on segment focused on the practical care of windfall apples, emphasizing their value for eating or juicing rather than long-term storage. His lack of commercial opportunism remained evident; unlike celebrity counterparts who might leverage their fame into branded theme parks or products, Don’s connection to his work appeared purely grounded in the love of gardening. He remarked that he would continue to tend his land, dog in tow, even without a camera present. Try as we might, we are unable to stop them, things move on and.
As for the future of the programme, the episode served as an inconclusive audition for a successor. The current presenting team already shares Don’s signature style of understated wonder, suggesting that replacing him with a single figurehead might not be the most effective strategy. Many critics believe a collaborative team approach may be necessary to fill the void left by his departure.
In his closing remarks, Don kept his farewell brief and sincere. “That’s it for today, and this series,” he announced. He acknowledged his canine companion, Ned, and the evolution of Longmeadow over the years, noting that witnessing the growth of the garden and the loss of past dogs made the experience both a privilege and a pleasure to share with the audience. With a final word of gratitude and well-wishes, he concluded his long and extraordinary stint on the series.
