Peter Cundall facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Peter Cundall
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Cundall in 2007
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| Born |
Peter Joseph Cundall
1 April 1927 Manchester, England
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| Died | 5 December 2021 (aged 94) Tasmania, Australia
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| Citizenship | Australia |
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| Years active | 1969–2019 |
| Known for | Host of Gardening Australia (1989–2008) |
| Television | Gardening Australia |
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Peter Joseph Cundall (1 April 1927 – 5 December 2021) was an Australian expert in gardening and a strong supporter of protecting nature. Born in England, he became a well-known author, radio host, and TV personality in Australia. He lived in Tasmania's Tamar Valley. Until 2008, when he was 81, he hosted the popular ABC TV show Gardening Australia.
Peter Cundall also started what is thought to be the world's first gardening call-in radio show in 1967. In 2007, he was honored with the title of Member of the Order of Australia. This award recognized his efforts in protecting Tasmania's wild areas and his work in sharing gardening knowledge on TV and radio. He was also known as an environmentalist and someone who believed in peace. Many Australian gardeners knew his name. In 2008, a survey by Reader's Digest magazine showed he was one of the most trusted Australians.
Contents
Peter Cundall's Early Life and Military Service
Peter Cundall was born in Manchester, England, on 1 April 1927. He grew up in a humble home as the second of six children. Sadly, two of his brothers passed away when he was young. He went to a Catholic school, and his teacher described him as a "steady lad who tries hard." He left school at age 12, after only three years of formal learning. However, he always loved books and learning new things. He worked as a milk delivery boy and a tram conductor.
Joining the British Army
Towards the end of World War II, Peter joined the British Army's Parachute Regiment. After the war, he was stationed in many countries across Europe, including France, Austria, Germany, Italy, and Yugoslavia. He also served in the Middle East, in Egypt and the British Mandate for Palestine. During these travels, he visited many gardens and parks. This helped him learn a lot about plants and how to design landscapes in different climates. He also saw difficult things that affected him deeply during his service.
Service in Yugoslavia and Australia
In 1946, Peter was stationed in Austria. He crossed the border into Yugoslavia and faced a difficult situation, being held for a short time. However, he was later released after the British government helped him.
Eager to move to Australia, Peter joined the Australian Army in 1950. He thought he would be working as a librarian, but he was sent to Korea. There, he served as a soldier with the 3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment during the Korean War. He spent a year and a half in Japan, where he studied Japanese garden design and how to build rock gardens. He visited many famous gardens and bonsai nurseries. He also watched new gardens being built in Hiroshima, which was being rebuilt after the atomic bombing in 1945.
Peter Cundall's Activism and Environmental Work
Peter Cundall was a strong supporter of many groups that worked for peace and the environment. He often spoke at rallies and events. He was a dedicated pacifist, meaning he believed in solving problems without war. He was also a keen environmentalist.
Protecting Tasmania's Wilderness
Peter was the chairman of the Tasmanian Wilderness Society during the important fight to stop the building of the Franklin Dam. He also campaigned against the construction of the Bell Bay Pulp Mill. In 2003, he joined thousands of other Australians in a protest against Australia's involvement in the Iraq War. He continued to peacefully protest against the proposed Tasmanian pulp mill.
Peter Cundall's Gardening and Broadcasting Career
After leaving the Australian Army in 1956, Peter Cundall moved to Tasmania. There, he started his own business designing and building gardens. He created landscapes for many schools, hospitals, universities, factories, hotels, shopping centers, and private homes in Tasmania and Victoria. He was also a founding member of the Organic Gardening and Farming Society.
Starting a Gardening Show
In 1967, Peter began hosting a gardening call-in show on a Launceston radio station. In 1969, he started presenting a television gardening program for the Australian Broadcasting Commission. This show was first called It's Growing and then Landscape. It was a world-first program that focused on designing and building new gardens in Tasmania. This show later became one of Australia's most famous and long-running programs, Gardening Australia.
Studying Gardening Around the World
In 1974, Peter received a Churchill Fellowship. This allowed him to travel through the United States, Britain, and Africa. He studied organic gardening, different ways to design landscapes, how to create children's playgrounds, and how television gardening programs were made in color. He learned from TV stations like WGBH Boston and the BBC about how gardening shows were produced for different climates.
Retirement from Gardening Australia
In December 2007, Peter Cundall and the ABC announced that 2008 would be his last year on Gardening Australia. He filmed his final episode at the Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens on 18 June 2008. His last appearance on the show was broadcast on ABC TV on 26 July 2008. After leaving his regular role, he still appeared on other ABC programs to help people with their gardens.
Peter Cundall's Later Life and Family
After retiring from Gardening Australia, Peter Cundall continued to write about gardening for newspapers like the Mercury and Weekly Times, and for ABC Organic Gardener Magazine. He mostly wrote about his vegetable garden and gave advice to other gardeners.
In June 2018, Peter shared that he had been diagnosed with glaucoma when he was 87. This meant he would eventually lose his eyesight. Because of this, he retired as a newspaper columnist on 26 June 2018. However, he kept presenting on ABC Radio in northern and southern Tasmania on Weekends with Chris Wisbey until 2019. This marked 50 continuous years of presenting on radio.
Peter Cundall passed away on 5 December 2021, at the age of 94, after a short illness. He had four sons from his first marriage. He also had two sons and a stepson with his second wife, Tina, whom he married in 1980.
Peter Cundall's Awards and Recognition
Peter Cundall received many awards for his work.
- In 2006, he was named Australian Humanist of the Year.
- In 2007, he was awarded a Membership of the Order of Australia. This was for his service to the environment, especially protecting wild areas in Tasmania, and for his work in gardening on television and radio.
- In the same year, he received the Organic Federation of Australia's Lifetime Achievement Award.
- He was also the 2009 Tasmania State Recipient Australian of the Year.
- In 1994, Peter Cundall was appointed as an Envoy for the Save the Children Fund, an organization that helps children around the world.
Images for kids
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Cundall in 2007
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Peter Cundall's vegetable garden at the Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens, used in Gardening Australia
