Peter Cundall, the much-loved former host of the ABC television programme Gardening Australia, has died aged 94, The Guardian reports.

Mr Cundall, who featured on the public broadcaster for almost five decades, died in Tasmania on Sunday.

“On Sunday 5 December 2021, Peter Cundall passed away peacefully after a short illness, surrounded by his family,” his family said in a statement.

Mr Cundall hosted his last Gardening Australia programme in 2008. But he continued his talkback radio segment until 2018 – a stint that had stretched back to the 1960s.

Former ABC managing director Mark Scott was among those who paid tribute on Sunday describing Mr Cundall as a “lovely, warm and generous man”.

ABC news breakfast presenter Michael Rowland described it as a “sad day for all gardening lovers”.