It's a great day out and showcases excellent garden design but, more importantly, the skills of the growers who provide all those plants in perfect condition and also the landscape teams who construct them and make it all work. What's more, you can talk to people about their gardens - see pic of Matthew Wilson chatting to a spectator - and ask the experts on their stands about the plants and thus pursue something likely to succeed in your conditions.
Lots more seating for picnics thus year and the new artisans area was interesting.
I thought Diarmuid's garden was great fun, very clever and beautifully planted. i though Andy Sturgeon's planting was desperately dull and most of it not hardy so not inspirational. Cleve West's garden was gorgeous apart from that silly globe. Chris Beardshaw's was very calming and sublime but full of interesting textural detail.
I liked the Berber/Jordan garden which had texture and form and colour and life giving water, despite representing an arid region; The arid provençal garden was just a stony mess with sparse weedy plants - the sort of place that if you liked gardening and plants you'd ship in loads of muck and compost and then do a Beth Chatto dry garden inspired scheme. Most of the other gardens were buzzing with bees but not that one.
I loved the Greening Grey Britain garden which had loads of interesting ideas and plants but my favourite was the Yorkshire garden and I'm very pleased for Matthew Wilson.
The pavilion was, as always, packed with fabulous plants in perfect condition and cleverly displayed. Loved the Hillier stand which was very different from previous years. Loved all the specialists showing just roses, just clematis, just irises, just hostas and so on.
The Chelsea Flower Show is just great.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
It's great to read your opinions, Obelixx - many of which I agree with, though I think if you're criticising Andy Sturgeon for using non-hardy plants you should apply that to most of the other gardens too (aloes, banksia and leucospermum in the Maths garden, Charlie Albone's leucodendrons etc). In my garden I couldn't grow perhaps 30% of the plants I saw at Chelsea. I totally agree about the fantastic growers and landscapers, and any experts & designers I met were friendly and approachable.
As a first timer, I was a bit overwhelmed at the sheer size of the Pavilion! I'm sure I'll have missed out some good stuff, but loved the sights and scents there.
I had an amazing day, on so many levels... I had my picnic lunch sitting with my back against a large tree, next to a picnic table at which a number of people were sharing a jug of Pimm's and discussing what was to be done about "Rupert", who'd apparently "disgraced himself at Oxford..." I didn't intend to listen in but they were Loud. (How the other half live...) I was astounded by the multi-thousand-pound sculptures, though they were admittedly beautiful, and £279 boots (I was quite tempted to photograph those just to show to OH...).
A fantastic day. Roll on next year...
Since 2019 I've lived in east Clare, in the west of Ireland.
No, not a professional - photography is just a hobby. Digital cameras (mine is just a phone) are great because you can try lots of things, like photos of reflections in shiny sculptures, and just delete the ones which don't work; I've got a basic picture editor on this Chromebook which lets me crop my photos, which can improve the balance of the composition too.
Since 2019 I've lived in east Clare, in the west of Ireland.
The morning is disappearing fast because I've done nothing but browse all the lovely Chelsea photos Thank you Liri, chicky and Obelixx for sharing them with us. It really is a treat to take time to take in all the detail.
I've really enjoyed looking at all the photos and especially the sculptures and hard design features.
Good job all.
I think you should all go again next year. A friend of mine puts a pound in a sweetie jar every night and doesn't miss it. At the end of the year she treats the family to a b****y good day out!
Liri - the problem with Andy's garden is that, as ever, it's more hard landscaping than plants and this year it looked like the majority of his plants were tender and also hard to find as well as being just plain dull.
I have a few tender plants in my garden that I take into shelter for winter but the majority are hardy and good doers that come back and do their thing each year with no fuss. I went down the route of sourcing special varieties of unusual plants when we started this garden and have lost just about every single one to hard or wet winters. Waste of time and money.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
Because I garden on a shady NE slope 600ft up in the Pennines, with 60" of rain per year, my choice of plants is somewhat constrained. However, sometimes such conditions concentrate the mind. I've been able to try unusual plants but only those which enjoy such constraints - but I wouldn't expect a show garden to focus on plants which would be appropriate in my own garden. It was a pleasant surprise to find that Chris Beardshaw's garden was full of shade-lovers because it was designed for a specific destination at Great Ormond Street.
I think Andy Sturgeon's garden is best seen as a work of art. The design is paramount, and I feel that the plants are used as "paint" to decorate the design. Seen in that light, I could understand what he was doing and didn't feel short changed because it wouldn't translate to my garden - and I found the planting restful rather than dull.
Good thing we're not all the same, isn't it?
Since 2019 I've lived in east Clare, in the west of Ireland.
I loved the Provence garden! The backdrop of stone and stone walls, rock and scree, to my mind is just such a lovely natural looking environment that sets the plants off so well. I just love it and is inspirational for my own gardening.......it's kind of what I am trying to do but of course he does it so much better.
Nice photos Liri. Thanks for posting and starting this thread. It is nice and positive. You have a challenging situation in your garden. Did you come away with any ideas for planting?
Based in Sussex, I garden to encourage as many birds to my garden as possible.
I came away with several packets of seeds, Redwing - hepaticas, primulas and meconopsis - which I know will do well in my garden (assuming they grow!). And yes, I am struggling with some planting ideas... up to now I've avoided orange in my garden like the plague. However, I'm now quite tempted to include a little splash - perhaps a geum - against my grey-leaved dwarf willow (Salix boydii). There were lots of lovely plants but most of them were too tender, sun-loving or fussy for my situation.
Glad you liked the thread. It was lovely that Chicky & Obelixx posted their photos too, because none of us could photograph everything! - and we could compare notes.
Since 2019 I've lived in east Clare, in the west of Ireland.
Posts
It's a great day out and showcases excellent garden design but, more importantly, the skills of the growers who provide all those plants in perfect condition and also the landscape teams who construct them and make it all work. What's more, you can talk to people about their gardens - see pic of Matthew Wilson chatting to a spectator - and ask the experts on their stands about the plants and thus pursue something likely to succeed in your conditions.
Lots more seating for picnics thus year and the new artisans area was interesting.
I thought Diarmuid's garden was great fun, very clever and beautifully planted. i though Andy Sturgeon's planting was desperately dull and most of it not hardy so not inspirational. Cleve West's garden was gorgeous apart from that silly globe. Chris Beardshaw's was very calming and sublime but full of interesting textural detail.
I liked the Berber/Jordan garden which had texture and form and colour and life giving water, despite representing an arid region; The arid provençal garden was just a stony mess with sparse weedy plants - the sort of place that if you liked gardening and plants you'd ship in loads of muck and compost and then do a Beth Chatto dry garden inspired scheme. Most of the other gardens were buzzing with bees but not that one.
I loved the Greening Grey Britain garden which had loads of interesting ideas and plants but my favourite was the Yorkshire garden and I'm very pleased for Matthew Wilson.
The pavilion was, as always, packed with fabulous plants in perfect condition and cleverly displayed. Loved the Hillier stand which was very different from previous years. Loved all the specialists showing just roses, just clematis, just irises, just hostas and so on.
The Chelsea Flower Show is just great.
great hostas Obelixx.
I should visit Bowdens, they're only about 25 miles from here, but too pricey for a tight skinflint like me. Must take Hubby with me, he's Mr Spendy.
It's great to read your opinions, Obelixx - many of which I agree with, though I think if you're criticising Andy Sturgeon for using non-hardy plants you should apply that to most of the other gardens too (aloes, banksia and leucospermum in the Maths garden, Charlie Albone's leucodendrons etc). In my garden I couldn't grow perhaps 30% of the plants I saw at Chelsea. I totally agree about the fantastic growers and landscapers, and any experts & designers I met were friendly and approachable.
As a first timer, I was a bit overwhelmed at the sheer size of the Pavilion! I'm sure I'll have missed out some good stuff, but loved the sights and scents there.
I had an amazing day, on so many levels... I had my picnic lunch sitting with my back against a large tree, next to a picnic table at which a number of people were sharing a jug of Pimm's and discussing what was to be done about "Rupert", who'd apparently "disgraced himself at Oxford..." I didn't intend to listen in but they were Loud. (How the other half live...) I was astounded by the multi-thousand-pound sculptures, though they were admittedly beautiful, and £279 boots (I was quite tempted to photograph those just to show to OH...).
A fantastic day. Roll on next year...
You're very kind, Yarrow2.
No, not a professional - photography is just a hobby. Digital cameras (mine is just a phone) are great because you can try lots of things, like photos of reflections in shiny sculptures, and just delete the ones which don't work; I've got a basic picture editor on this Chromebook which lets me crop my photos, which can improve the balance of the composition too.
The morning is disappearing fast because I've done nothing but browse all the lovely Chelsea photos
Thank you Liri, chicky and Obelixx for sharing them with us
. It really is a treat to take time to take in all the detail.
Well said Lesley K.
I've really enjoyed looking at all the photos and especially the sculptures and hard design features.
Good job all.
I think you should all go again next year. A friend of mine puts a pound in a sweetie jar every night and doesn't miss it. At the end of the year she treats the family to a b****y good day out!
Liri - the problem with Andy's garden is that, as ever, it's more hard landscaping than plants and this year it looked like the majority of his plants were tender and also hard to find as well as being just plain dull.
I have a few tender plants in my garden that I take into shelter for winter but the majority are hardy and good doers that come back and do their thing each year with no fuss. I went down the route of sourcing special varieties of unusual plants when we started this garden and have lost just about every single one to hard or wet winters. Waste of time and money.
Because I garden on a shady NE slope 600ft up in the Pennines, with 60" of rain per year, my choice of plants is somewhat constrained. However, sometimes such conditions concentrate the mind. I've been able to try unusual plants but only those which enjoy such constraints - but I wouldn't expect a show garden to focus on plants which would be appropriate in my own garden. It was a pleasant surprise to find that Chris Beardshaw's garden was full of shade-lovers because it was designed for a specific destination at Great Ormond Street.
I think Andy Sturgeon's garden is best seen as a work of art. The design is paramount, and I feel that the plants are used as "paint" to decorate the design. Seen in that light, I could understand what he was doing and didn't feel short changed because it wouldn't translate to my garden - and I found the planting restful rather than dull.
Good thing we're not all the same, isn't it?
I loved the Provence garden! The backdrop of stone and stone walls, rock and scree, to my mind is just such a lovely natural looking environment that sets the plants off so well. I just love it and is inspirational for my own gardening.......it's kind of what I am trying to do but of course he does it so much better.
Nice photos Liri. Thanks for posting and starting this thread. It is nice and positive. You have a challenging situation in your garden. Did you come away with any ideas for planting?
I came away with several packets of seeds, Redwing - hepaticas, primulas and meconopsis - which I know will do well in my garden (assuming they grow!). And yes, I am struggling with some planting ideas... up to now I've avoided orange in my garden like the plague. However, I'm now quite tempted to include a little splash - perhaps a geum - against my grey-leaved dwarf willow (Salix boydii). There were lots of lovely plants but most of them were too tender, sun-loving or fussy for my situation.
Glad you liked the thread.
It was lovely that Chicky & Obelixx posted their photos too, because none of us could photograph everything! - and we could compare notes.