Its not every day that one comes across the opportunity to meet a world icon.

Fortune came my way at the Southport Flower Show where I was afforded a private meeting with non other than UK’s number one botanist and TV personality David Bellamy OBE.

A regular visitor of the flower show, David was typically oozing with horticultural enthusiasm as a sprightly 80 year old.

He explained his delight at attending yet another successful event leaving the Southport Flower Show at the forefront in the Gardening league Table of annual showpiece events.

David first opened the show 15 years ago upon invitation. He explained how his lifelong love for botany and gardening arose from the 'Digging for Victory' war campaign in the 1940’s.

It was this plight which led to him leading a 50 years plus successful career which has led him to travel the world 21 times and go deep in all the oceans on this planet.

He said “I would have been a ballet dancer if it wasn’t for the fact that at aged 14 I grew too big and became embroiled in the Digging for Victory national programme".

When questioned about the current ecological issues he added “Honey Bees are in much decline in the UK and one of the factors is the use of chemicals and other poisons in the soil.

"This destroys not only the pests but also the beneficial organisms. Many new hybrid plants are not producing enough sugars and smells depriving bees of food.

"If there is insufficient food then the bees themselves will not return and bee populations will be reduced as a result.

" In London itself there are about 20,000 species of bees. I’ve found 6 types just here at Southport today. If you can leave a small corner of your garden for wild flowers that’s all that bees need".

He spoke of his times when visiting the worlds most bio-diverse ecological location in South America back in the 1950’s.

That was a result of two continental plates coming together. Vast areas of those rich fertile lands are now totally devoid of its trees and rich plants through deforestation.

David continued “ In my childhood everyone had a privet hedge with lots of moss.

"Amateur gardeners knew a lot of what to do with nature and the soil. My aim now is to introduce gardening and get the next generation back to working with nature".

He currently runs The David Bellamy Awards Programme which is a competition designed to encourage schools to be aware of, and act positively towards, environmental cleanliness.

I concluded our meeting by explaining that irrespective of one’s religion, all holy books whether they be the Quran, Bible, Gheeta or the Guru Grant Sahib, they all describe Heaven as a Garden.

David has been truly blessed to have lived on his heaven on earth.

Long may it continue.