RHS CHELSEA SHOW GARDENS HIGHLIGHTS FOR 2010

The crème de la crème of the garden world will be wowing visitors at RHS Chelsea Flower Show2010. Leading designers such as Tom Stuart-Smith, Tom Hoblyn, James Wong and Andy Sturgeon have drawn inspiration from literature, romance, the Far East and the Fynbos of South Africa, promising gardens to delight visitors. In contrast,the Eden Project and Leeds City Council gardens draw on influences closer to home including local communities and the British landscape. Here are some of the highlights of RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2010:

'The Places of Change’ garden by the Eden Project, will be the largest RHS Chelsea Show Garden ever built. It features five designated zones: crops and food; floristry and leisure; medicine and health; industry and manufacture which act as a metaphor for the hidden treasures that lie within communities and the most unexpected places. Eden’s Paul Stone is coordinating a team of experienced and novice garden designers on the project. These include amateur designers from the UK’s homeless centres.

Robert Myers, who has won four Gold medals and the RHS People’s Choice 2009 accolade, returns for a sixth time. ‘Enlighten’ is the theme of his design for Cancer Research UK. Robert has designed an ornamental, urban roof garden which celebrates the increased understanding of the causes,diagnosis and treatment of cancer, offering a beacon of hope.

Tom Stuart-Smith, who has won 9 Gold medals and 3 best in shows, will create for Laurent-Perrier a visionary garden of romance and elegance that offers a private, intimate space for entertainment or quiet reflection. The centre piece of this modern garden will be a bronze Pavilion designed by award winning architect Jamie Fobert.

James Wong brings the exoticism of the Far East to RHS Chelsea Flower Show for Tourism Malaysia. His inspiration comes from the traditional ‘kampung’ (Malay village) way of life. Elements of this rural idyll will be transposed to create a chic courtyard garden in urban Kuala Lumpur. The diverse planting will mix edible crops with rare pitcher plants, endangered bat lilies and unique orchids.

A re-creation of a section of the Leeds Liverpool Canal is the central feature of Leeds City Council’s The Hesco Garden. The design highlights the link between the natural landscape and public recreational space. This is demonstrated by an innovative planting scheme using hardy annuals, showing their versatility for  gardeners with their extensive season stretching from early spring to the autumn.

Thomas Hoblyn’s design for Foreign Colonial Investment Trusts celebrates Voltaire’s eighteenth century classic, Candide. Set in a Turkish smallholding, it depicts the eponymous hero’s journey across oceans and rapids represented by two pools linked by a scalloped flowform. A risqué sculpture series depicts Candide’s love quest, Cunegonde, and her transformation from a precocious girl to a social climbing courtesan, thorough a series of lusty ‘thought bubbles’.

Phillipa Pearson and Jonathan Denby’s design for South Lakes Hotels The Victorian Aviary Garden moves forward a hundred years to the nineteenth century. The aviary is the central feature of this Cumbrian garden now used as an informal outdoor room with its two side wings planted with shrubs for year round interest. The aviary theme is reflected in other areas of the garden with a bird-themed mosaic path. The box edged borders combine late Victorian planting styles with a more modern approach.

Andy SturgeonAndy Sturgeon's design for The Daily Telegraph Garden is a contemporary gravel garden influenced by the Maquis shrubland of the
Mediterranean, the Chaparral of California and Mexico, the Matorral of Central Chile and Fynbos from the Southern Cape. Spaces within the garden are created by Cor-ten steel screens with linear natural stone paths leading to a courtyard dominated by a stately cork oak. The sound of water creates a contemplative,spiritual space.  Andy Sturgeon said: “The planting brings an exotic atmosphere that is tempered with more familiar English garden plants which light up the garden with colour.  The result is a garden that feels like it is from somewhere else yet nowhere specific.”

The Children’s Society Garden designed by Mark Gregory has been inspired by The Children’s Well-Being report. The survey of nearly 7,000 10 – 15 year olds revealed that what made children most happy were their family,friends and having freedom of choice. The garden reflects this need with a covered lounge seating area where families can unwind and relax around a safely designed fire pit.

Details of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show sponsors, M & G Investments garden will be announced next week.

IN THE GRAND PAVILION

'Adventures in Gardening' is the working title for Hillier at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2010.
In partnership with The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company.

“Gardening is an Adventure is our message for Chelsea 2010,” says Andy McIndoe, designer of the Hillier Chelsea exhibit and Managing Director of Hillier Nurseries. This year’s Hillier garden at the heart of the Great Pavilion will comprise a series of interlinking gardens inspired by the colours and imagery of Venice, Morocco, the Himalayas, the water’s edge and woodland glades. It will re-awaken the sense of gardening as a voyage of discovery andgive the gardening public fresh inspiration to take home.

Aiming for their 65th consecutive RHS Chelsea Gold medal, Hillier have joined forces with The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company to share Real Garden Advice from Real People, a project to gather tips and advice from those with more experience of the gardening adventure. A Secret Garden Diary Room forms part of the Hillier exhibit and visitors to Chelsea will be invited to divulge on film their gardening tips from the Throne of Knowledge or consult the Oracle on the Couch of Consultation.

Date:           Tuesday 25 – Saturday 29 May 2010

25-26 May
    RHS members only
27-29 May
    RHS members and non-members

Time:
           25-28 May    8am-8pm
29 May 
       8am-5.30pm (sell off starts at 4pm)

Venue:
         The Royal Hospital, Chelsea, London, SW3

Ticket hotline:        0844 209 1810 
      www.rhs.org.uk/chelsea
Ticket prices
range from £14 - £49 for RHS members, £19 - £45 for non-members.
All tickets must be bought in advance.

RHS show information:   020 7649 1885