Sadly, it's true, Monty Don is leaving Gardeners' World

Monty Don with his dog Ned sitting on a wooden bench in the garden — (Image credit: Getty Images | Ben Montgomery / Stringer)

Monty Don's breaking news has broken our hearts. He's hanging up his gardening tools at the end of the current series of BBC Gardeners' World, after 23 monumental years of entertaining, teaching and helping the nation with his horticultural excellence.

Taking to his Instagram @themontydon this morning to announce that he will be stepping away from the show later this year, he revealed: "I have a big piece of news to share with you, because I've decided that this is to be my last series of Gardeners' World."

"I've worked with some amazing people, and it's been a joy to share my gardening life and my dogs with you, but it's time for a change."

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Monty Don, O.B.E., is one of the UK’s leading garden writers and beloved broadcasters. While he has worked on many significant projects over his thirty-year career, his most prominent posting has been as lead presenter of the BBC Gardeners’ World.

In his statement, he recalls, "I began hosting Gardeners' World 23 years ago, and for the last 16 years we've been here in the garden at Longmeadow (his impressive Herefordshire gardens), and it's been fantastic."

Looking visibly moved, he ends the short Instagram clip by saying, "So no doubt new adventures in the future, but for the moment this is the end of a chapter." It certainly is the end of a chapter, one that we were not ready for at all.

Monty Don in a garden with a spade and wheelbarrow

Monty has been presenting on the show since 2003, helping audiences tackle all manner of gardening dilemmas. From sharing his surprise advice for making Dahlias bloom bigger to his 'genius' planting tricks to help establish our own thriving plots, there have been so many wonderful takeaways from his time on the show – as we tuned in every Friday at 9p.m or watched the repeat on the Saturday morning.

After warmly welcoming his loyal audience into his beautiful garden at his Herefordshire home in 2011, we've followed not only his gardening endeavours but also the lives of his beloved dogs, who have accompanied him around his plot each episode. It genuinely feels like we're saying goodbye to a friend.

But he has said he'll never stop gardening altogether, thank goodness, so we live in hope that the next chapter involves a new TV series where we still get to enjoy seeing him in his natural habitat.

Tamara is a highly experienced homes and interiors journalist with a career spanning over 23 years. Now the Lifestyle Editor of womanandhome.com, she previously spent 19 years working with the style teams at Country Homes & Interiors and Ideal Home. With these award-winning interior teams, she gained a wealth of knowledge and honed her skills and passion for styling and writing about every aspect of lifestyle and interiors.

A true homes and interiors expert, Tamara has been an ambassador for leading interior brands on multiple occasions, including appearing on Matalan’s The Show and presenting at top interior trend forecasting events such as the Autumn Fair and Spring Fair.