He said garden writers, authors and broadcasters should be working with others across the industry to spread the word about the value of horticulture and encourage the next generation to get involved. It was no good working in a “bubble”.

Titchmarsh sponsors a New Talent Award, won this year by Nick Turrell for articles in The Guardian and The Daily Telegraph.

On the media, he said: “Spreading the word about the value of horticulture is vital, but so too is the way in which it is done. Infectious enthusiasm and a passion for what we do is so important, as is generosity of spirit towards young people keen to join the crusade.

“We must fire up the next generation of gardening writers and broadcasters, passing on our enthusiasm, knowledge and experience without boring them rigid or being afraid that they will one day take over.

“We are all passionate about gardening, and the more we can do to pass on our enthusiasm and wake up a new generation to the importance and fulfilment of looking after their own patch, along with the wider landscape, the better.

“I am now in my fiftieth year of gardening for a living, but am as committed as ever to promoting it as a valuable and worthwhile profession, as well as the most fulfilling of pastimes. It is vital that gardening writers and broadcasters younger than I am continue to spread the word with enthusiasm, passion and knowledge, opening the eyes of the young to a pursuit that is enriching, transforming of their surroundings and vitally important in terms of the wellbeing of the planet. Gardeners are at the sharp end of conservation, natural history, plant science and feeding the nation. It is time that more folk realised that and came out into the fresh air."