The ticker moves to 10,000 podcast downloads. I write to Bill, my American Podcast Marketing Associate, author of the most inspiring quote about taking new paths and following your heart as well as your head.

“WOW, WOW, WOW!!! That’s great news. I know I downloaded it 9,999 times but who did the 10,000?”

Putting out a podcast episode is very different to putting out a programme on Radio 4. With the latter, I would literally just take the programme to the Tape Library (in later years upload it) and the audience was there. With a podcast you have to build the audience from nothing. Back at the start I was told that there are many podcasts, where you could buy a tube of smarties, give one to every listener and still have some left for yourself! That’s tough because I think all podcasts are born out of someone’s passion for a subject but from the start I didn’t want to be in the ‘Smartie zone’!

So at first your listeners are family and friends and then friends of friends and friends of family and then gradually the episode starts to find its own way and strangers become listeners and then sometimes friends. So THANK YOU to each and everyone of you who has downloaded an episode of Our Plant Stories and shared it with others, between us (and Bill!) we have now reached 10.3K.

I am curious about when people listen to the podcast and I’d like to do a bit of audience research. Now this is a podcast about plants and I happen to have several rather lovely packets of seeds that I won in a competition. So as an incentive for your insights - I will randomly pick 5 comments left below and send those listeners a packet of seeds. I bet you didn’t get this with the Radio 4 audience research!

I’d love to know when and where you listen. So do you listen via the website on a Friday when this blog post lands in your inbox? Or do you have it download on your podcast app and listen on the weekend? Or do you use it as part of your commute during the week? There is nothing scientific in this method of research but I am pondering the current Friday release day and it would be good to hear from the people who open the blog post. Just leave me a note in comments at the bottom of the page.

This past week I have been deep in editing stories about Monkey Puzzle trees. There will be a plant story and an offshoot and possibly even a bonus episode! I vowed I would never have one of these trees …I now have a small one of these trees in a pot! I do not have the space to plant this tree, repeat I do not have the space to plant this tree. I know some of you have told me that you have planted peonies and passion flowers as a result of Our Plant Stories and that is just lovely. You may want to think twice or even three times about the Monkey Puzzle tree.

I look forward to seeing some comments about listening - the seeds on offer are much more garden friendly.