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Post by lugg on Jun 1, 2013 18:28:19 GMT
We had tickets for the open day. The day before the weather had been diabolically awful in London – about 6C and raining constantly. We were very lucky as the rain had cleared by Saturday morning and the sun was shining, however it was still unseasonably cold. We travelled from our hotel in Putney to Sloane Square tube station and then had a hair raising rickshaw ride through the London traffic ride to the showground. (caught the bus back) Even though it is not far I had heeded Tod’s advice to save the walking for the show ground itself. Here he is – the man who made no concessions what so ever to stop signs, turning across the traffic or tight turns around corners. [/img]   The show is held in the grounds of the Royal Chelsea Hospital originally built in 1600s by King Charles 11 for veterans and still home to veterans today , often known as “Chelsea pensioners” I think this is because the home was in lieu of a pension at one time.   [/center] Some views of the Royal Hospital buildings [/img][/center] Through the Garden Gate and then we were in the showground itself. The main avenue leading from the entry is lined with stalls selling all things to do with flowers, gardens etc. It was heaving – this was about 11am. There are lots of vendors selling garden ornaments and sculptures scattered throughout the showground. This horse caught my eye - if only I could have got it back on the train  There were various acts on the bandstand from opera to swing. It was a nice place to sip champagne or Pimms with some lunch.  Now for some of the gardens, plants and flowers. I have to make a confession first.So Sorry Tod but I failed miserably on the appointed task, so no pics of the South African garden. We asked everywhere but although received lots of directions it was never to the correct stand. Some of the guides actually were worse than useless. In fact one young lad said “ I am sorry , I know I am supposed to be a guide but I am rubbish at directions and I don’t even have a map. “ Link here to the SA exhibit; I wish I had seen it it looks beautiful. mg.co.za/article/2013-05-24-south-african-exhibitors-blooming-great-success |
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Post by spindrift1 on Jun 1, 2013 21:11:30 GMT
Nice to see the buildings off Sloane Square  Pity the weather was cold and rainy. There's a picture of a woman wearing a grey hat same as mine! I look forward to pics of the flowers in the tents. Thanks lugg. |
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Post by bixaorellana on Jun 1, 2013 22:38:31 GMT
Ooooooo ~~ despite the cold, the homicidal pedicab driver, & the crowds, this would be heaven! Did you pick me up some of those wonderful oversized flower prints? Your horse would definitely be a stellar garden feature. I am quite taken with the pumpkiny pavilion. I quite liked the look of this and wondered if I could create something similar myself. Eagerly awaiting more! |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 2, 2013 9:43:18 GMT
There must be some truly strange English gardens if people fill them with some of that statuary and then let the plants go wild all over them.
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Post by lugg on Jun 2, 2013 14:35:07 GMT
Moving on into the area where the Artisan Gardens are displayed. [/img]  [/center] I adored this Hebridean garden designed by a student based on the Isle of Lewis and a Hebridean spinners cottage. Many of the gardens / exhibits are associated with a charity who provide a brief for the garden;in this particular case it was the Motor Neurone Disease Association Does anyone know what this is ? Isn’t it lovely ? The WaterAid garden design based on an Indian home and garden. The large white vessel is for water storage - a kind of mini reservoir. There was a plethora of colour everywhere and the smell of the fragrant flowers particularly in the pavillion was heady at times. [/img]  ![]() lh3.googleusercontent.com/-NwBqqpLGfhA/UaodBl92CRI/AAAAAAAARmU/hlfi6wb91BE/s400/IMG_3567.JPG [/img]  [/center] Birmingham City’s displays attracted me. Enlightenment is a floral display celebrating the opening of the Library of Birmingham in September 2013. The display focuses on the Birmingham authors JRR Tolkien who wrote The Lord of the Rings, Annie Murray whose book Birmingham Blitz was based on life in Birmingham during World War II, and Birmingham Poet Benjamin Zephaniah's poem Nature Trail. Their literary and poetic work has inspired people from all walks of life to become interested in reading, and allows Birmingham City Council to celebrate the opening of the incredible new library facility with its modern, sculptural architecture.[/img]  ![]() lh4.googleusercontent.com/-ZcyurrzcXIA/UaocjbBcY2I/AAAAAAAARi4/WoJRfF99Szg/s288/IMG_3539.JPG[/img]Thai garden  Community garden  Veitch was one of the founders of the CFS and part of the famous Veitch family of horticulturalists  Just about every known variety of strawberry - the smell made us salivate. The Show Gardens still to come so check back. |
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Post by bixaorellana on Jun 2, 2013 15:41:57 GMT
Oh, fear not ~~ I'll be checking back! So beautiful. I love the Japanese(?) pics from the Artisan Garden section. Re: "The large white vessel is for water storage" -- those are ubiquitous here. There is one on every roof & frequently also free-standing ones like the one in your picture. Gorgeous colors & textures everywhere. The Birmingham exhibit really is ambitious and well executed. I'm sure you noticed that the baby tree next to the dinosaur head is a cypress. |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 2, 2013 18:49:09 GMT
I absolutely love the tree with the blue eyes. I think that not enough attention is paid to how magical and fascinating a garden can become at night with some interesting lighting, illuminated fountains and perhaps even some sound effects.
After all, every single day the garden will find itself plunged into darkness, while during the day sometimes it will be sunny and sometimes dreary or rainy, and it will generally not give at all the same impression. At least night time effects are stable.
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Post by lugg on Jun 4, 2013 5:17:15 GMT
Thanks guys - that is so true K2 .
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Post by lugg on Jun 4, 2013 6:01:51 GMT
OK let us now have a look at some of the show gardens Here is a link to an overview of the garden designs on display. www.telegraph.co.uk/gardening/chelseaflowershow/9870575/Chelsea-Flower-Show-2013-designs-for-the-15-show-gardens.html#?frame=2481172The Laurent-Perrier Garden -Ulf Nordfjell, won a Gold. B&Q Sentebale Forget-Me-Not Garden - Jinny Blon She drew inspiration for her garden from the mountains of Lesotho, the unusual roundhouses (Basotho) and the patterns of the national costume. Sentebale is Prince Harry's charity which supports supports vulnerable children in Lesotho. Sentebale means Forget Me Not in Sesotho, the language of Lesotho, and was set up by Harry with Prince Seeiso, the younger brother of the king, in memory of their mothers. Queen Mamohato Bereng Seeiso died in 2003. Did you spot the figures in the garden above? Finally allowed back into the CFS after having been banned for years. Actually I noticed very few. The Sentebale garden only won a silver gilt but I really liked it. The Daily Telegraph Garden - Christoper Bradley-Hole I quite liked the look of this overall but can you imagine how impractical , even impracticable, it would be to manage. RBC Blue Water Roof Garden -Professor Nigel Dunnett and the Landscape Agency .One of my favourites, gardens for urban living. Deserved its Gold imo. www.rbc.com/chelsea/I wish I could have seen the living roof from above More to come... |
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Post by bixaorellana on Jun 4, 2013 16:17:24 GMT
Oh please yes, more!
This is outstanding coverage, Lugg. Thanks so much for including the illuminating links. Even though the sketches and computer projections aren't as lovely as your photos, they & their accompanying text really help in visualizing the live versions.
What a wonderful way to show people how they can achieve dramatic but comfortable effects in home-sized gardens. I totally agree with you about the Bank of Canada display. Maybe it will inspire companies, hospitals, universities and the like to create such spaces. They're so much more open and inspiring than the usual solariums. (solaria?)
Are those wood round and pebble sculptures in the last picture on the left? Love your shot of the clay pipe living wall, which I'd admired in the link on the Bank of Canada display.
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Post by lugg on Jun 4, 2013 18:45:02 GMT
Thank you Bixa - Re round pebble and wood structure - , from a distance it looked like an insect hotel but I am not sure and have been unable to find any other info to explain if it had a purpose other than decoration
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Post by lugg on Jun 4, 2013 18:56:51 GMT
East Village Garden -Michael Balston & Marie-Louise Agius- Gold . The Olympic legacy …..Lovely garden . I posted this earlier but here it is again in the rightful context of this garden.  The SeeAbility Garden - Darren Hawkes – Silver Gilt Designed to represent eye conditions representing vision problems (cataracts, macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, and glaucoma) It is only reading more about this garden that I begin to understand how clever it is , it was also very lovely. more info at www.seeability.org/about_us/the_seeability_garden/default.aspxM&G Centenary Garden -“ Windows Through Time “ Roger Platts – Gold. Planting of modern and past favourites to celebrate the CFS centenary The Arthritis Research Garden – Chris Beardshaw - Peoples Choice and Gold Inspiring . www.arthritisresearchuk.org/arthritis-information/arthritis-and-daily-life/gardening-and-arthritis.aspxIn common with some of the other gardens “ Cow Parsley” was very much in favour. It is a wild flower that I love ( and my horses love to eat) but I spend ages pulling it up in my garden apart from near my compost . Maybe I should leave it so I have a fashionable garden . By this time we were “gardened out “ so it was time to leave , I hope that I will get back again soon. Next time though I will join the RHS and visit on another day rather than the open day , to avoid some of the crowds. A quick stop for a souvenir, in addition to the seeds & plugs we had bought, and we were on our way home. |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 7, 2013 4:55:48 GMT
I find it very interesting that so much space is devoted to wild flowers and plants at a garden show. Typically English? |
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Post by lugg on Jun 9, 2013 7:08:26 GMT
K2 wrote There definitely is an increasing interest in wildflowers, native flowers and weeds in the sense of gardens that are planted to be environmentally sensitive. I think the photos I took also maybe give an unbalanced view as there certainly were many more examples of more "traditional" horticulture than I have shown here. Is this just in the UK or the same true of other countries , I am not sure ? I asked I have answered my own question it is Bog/ Cotton Grass/ Hares Tail/Eriophorum angustifolium www.virtualheb.co.uk/bog-cotton-white-wildflowers-western-isles.htmlI do not think I have any chance of growing it in my garden. |
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Post by nycgirl on Jun 20, 2013 6:33:43 GMT
What an enchanting event. The care and creativity that goes into these displays is very impressive. That horse sculpture is indeed striking. Don't care for Lady Godiva on the Loch Ness monster.  I, also, am drawn to the fascinating Pitcher plants. They're so strange-looking, aren't they? |
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Post by bixaorellana on Jun 22, 2013 14:21:40 GMT
Oh dear ~~ I came back and admired the rest of this report, but now see I failed to comment. Fabulous event, perfectly reported, Lugg.
In the first & third pictures in #11, are the yellow flowers rhododendron? And in the second picture, in front of the callas and irises ~~ what are the lovely blue flowers, please? Is that a fourth type of flower on the extreme right, or simply a different shade of the blue ones? It's a beautiful planting.
I love your photo through the spiral Window Through Time, ditto the photo below it.
That human figure is so interesting. Any idea what it's made from?
I hope you got yourself a really nice souvenir as a reward for bringing us all this beauty!
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Post by mossie on Jun 22, 2013 15:50:30 GMT
I also must apologise for not commenting earlier, I'll make the excuse that my internet connection has been falling over a lot recently. In response to comments. Lady Godiva can ride through my garden any day of the week  A super report on a really exotic event which any gardener can benefit from attending. |
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Post by cheerypeabrain on Jun 22, 2013 18:05:29 GMT
Thanks for a smashing report Lugg dearie...excellent. I often think about attending but now I don't have to |
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Post by spindrift1 on Jun 22, 2013 18:13:37 GMT
Thanks for your report, Lugg. The Chelsea Flower Show has changed so much in the last ten years that I don't recognize it any more!
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Post by lugg on Jun 23, 2013 7:30:40 GMT
Thank you guys. No apologies needed, there is just so much to read on AP that it is hard to keep up sometimes; but such a pleasure trying  Cheery you should go, I suspect you would really enjoy it. I think though that next time I will join RHS so I do not need to go on the open day. Perhaps less people ? Mossie, that is true so much for those with an interest in gardening . However I think some people probably just set up for the day in front of the bandstand to watch the live music , drink Pimms and enjoy a picnic or some of the food on sale. Bixa . Sorry I do not know what the sculpture was made of . , ...an azalea (? luteum) - are aquilegia blue barlow |
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Pity the weather was cold and rainy. There's a picture of a woman wearing a grey hat same as mine! I look forward to pics of the flowers in the tents. Thanks lugg.
