Peter Seabrook is The Sun’s gardening editor. Sunday March 26, 2017 marks the 40 year anniversary of his first column being published in The Sun.

To mark the occasion we spoke to Peter to discuss the latest innovations in gardening, why he has embraced podcasts at the age of 81, and how Brexit could save sections of the British horticultural industry.

What are your top tips for everyday people to have a great garden?

Our eyes are our most valuable asset when it comes to achieving a good garden. We need to be looking carefully and as often as possible, because things done in good time are so much easier. Tiny weeds are easily hoed up and if left to establish become really hard work, grass cut regularly is easier and gives a better lawn, while pests and diseases nipped in the bud will not cause havoc.

Have you seen a change in the number of recreational gardeners over your career, and do faster modern lifestyles lead to a decrease in gardening?

When I started out in the working world of gardening we grew things out of necessity- planting things to eat. Then in the 1950’s, as things got gradually better, homeowners wanted colour after the grey World War 2 days. Rose planting boomed, bright spring and summer bedding was all the rage, before we moved on to shrinking garden size, low maintenance planting with heathers and dwarf conifers becoming very popular.

Modern life styles, with both partners in a family working, has changed things- we are moving into the times of instant gratification. Larger plants in full flower and cropping are being bought and should they be neglected are just replaced by new ones. Easy care houseplants are currently fashionable with succulents suddenly popular because they survive neglect.

We see excitement in the eyes of children growing seeds and plants from cuttings, so there is every promise of a resurgence to grow our own flowers, fruits and vegetables to re-green our surroundings.

Why did you choose to embrace new technology via podcasts and video at the age of 81?

It is a privilege to still be working among bright, intelligent and enthusiastic young people. I have to try and stay with them in their unbelievably fast changing world. We have a lost generation of gardeners and if we do not get a transfer of knowledge from grandparents to their grandchildren, Britain will lose the international reputation it holds as the world’s best gardeners.

It looks natural to me to use every means of modern day communication to spread the word and give more people the joy and satisfaction of greening their grey worlds.

What have been the greatest innovations and advancements in gardening during your career?

There have been so many innovations and advancements in my lifetime, from working the land with horses, to Sat Nav controlled cultivations and robots sowing seeds and taking cuttings. Electric powered machines for small gardens have made so many tasks a great deal easier. F1 hybrid plants have increased yields and flower power out of all recognition.

What does the future hold for horticulture in Britain?

Brexit could be a lifesaver for sections of the horticultural industry bringing increased home production in the nick of time. Already the falling value of the pound has encouraged retailers to buy more home-grown produce.

Advances in scientific knowledge have had, are having and will continue to bring changes and benefits. I just wish I was younger with so many exciting developments on the way.

What are your five garden essentials?