Gardeners World site fury at BBC

BBC bosses were today accused of "horticultural vandalism" after leaving the Birmingham home of Gardeners' World to rot.

Gardening experts estimated hundreds of thousands of pounds were spent on the purpose-built Greenacre garden, over two years after Toby Buckland was made presenter in 2008.

But the site, which is on a disused playing field between Birmingham University and Winterbourne Botanic Garden, was left negelcted after Buckland was dropped in December.

The show was moved to his replacement Monty Don's home to try to improve ratings.

A mound of earth has been left lying in the middle of Greenacre's once pristine lawn, wheelbarrows are piled with rubbish and an exotic garden planted by Buckland contains just one dead palm tree.

The wooden-framed greenhouse, which became a hallmark of the show, is completely empty and the trial beds and vegetable garden are in a bad state.

Tim Rumball, editor of Amateur Gardening magazine, accused the BBC of "horticultural vandalism."

He said: "Notwithstanding the appalling waste of hundreds of thousands of pounds of licence payers' money, they've trashed two full years of creative input.

"Making a garden should be a labour of love, not a teacher's blackboard to be scrubbed clean at the end of the lesson as though it never existed."

Viewers on BBC forums have demanded to know the cost of the site and called for it to be opened to the public.

The BBC would only say that Greenacre, which was leased for the show, was "a living set for Gardeners' World where costs were in line with other programmes of that sort."

A spokesman added: "All plants and features from the site are being recycled where possible.

"The owners of Greenacre are in discussion about how the land will be used."