Chelsea Centennial – A Blooming Success

Some one hundred years after Britain’s Horticultural Society received its ‘Royal’ designation it organized what became the world-famous Chelsea Flower Show. Now yet another century later, the show celebrated its centennial this past May.

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It might be argued that no gardener can so designate themselves unless they have visited it at least once in their life. As Michael White wrote in The Daily Telegraph, “A day at Chelsea is the sort of fix that keeps you on a high for a fortnight and should be available by National Health Service prescription.” Or as Ringo Starr, who was also there, said of gardening: “If you look at beautiful things you get into a beautiful mood.” There were many other notables in attendance. Joanna Lumley expressed her approval of ‘guerilla gardening’ – planting without obtaining permission. Dame Helen Mirren advocated teaching gardening in schools. She also contributed one the celebrity gnomes, as did Elton John and television gardener David Domony. Gnomes have been banned from the Chelsea Flower Show for its entire existence. Whether these miniature entrants were a success is rather a matter of personal opinion. The late cartoonist Norman Thelwell rather favoured a subsidiary use for garden rollers . . .

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Media focus as ever had been on the Royals and in particular Prince Harry. In a change of pace from his past lifestyle, he had used his support of Lesotho’s Sentebale charity for poor children in that poorest of poor southern African countries, to unveil the African garden. ‘Sentebale’ means ‘forget-me-not’ and this was intended to draw attention to both the plight of the children and a remembrance of the prince’s mother, Princess Diana. It proved a magnet for the almost dozen members of the House of Windsor. Princess Beatrice said: “I think it is beautiful and love the story behind it.” If her father Prince Andrew or his brother Prince Edward contributed anything memorable it went unrecorded. Harry’s father the Prince of Wales, who is well known for his own horticultural pursuits, was suitably impressed at his son’s first venture into these realms. Harry, ever ready to tease, ribbed his father: “If there is anything here that might catch your eye we could probably come to a deal. You can't have it, but we can come to a deal.” Noticing his grandfather, the Duke of Edinburgh waiting to enter, he joked: “Looking they’re even queuing.” He went on to suggest some of the ideas might find a place at Balmoral or Sandringham. The Queen, as befits majesty was the last to arrive. After a thorough examination she apparently told Harry to send a few plants to his father’s Stumpery at famed Highgrove estate in Gloucestershire as he ‘needed a bit of greenery.’ The prince’s choice of garden designers was inspired. Jinny Bloom – and where else but England could you find such a delightfully named professional? – had put her heart into the Sentebale Garden. Unfortunately, as so often heart is not always enough. Prince Harry’s horticultural efforts were not only eclipsed by the Trailfinders Australian Garden from down under which took the ‘Best in the Show’ award, but also gold medals went to no less nine other designs. One of those was the Royal Bank of Canada’s Bluewater Roof Garden designed by Nigel Dunnett, leaving the prince with a silver-gilt token to contemplate that the path to horticultural perfection may be strewn with brambles. Not everyone though agreed that the Aussie garden deserved the supreme award. Christopher Bradley-Hole, who designed the Telegraph Garden, seemed particularly incensed. The ‘Best in the Show’ should be scrapped as being unfair, he opined. “If that garden was better than the Telegraph Garden, then I’m a Dutchman,” he said. The unfortunate opinion raised two observations: the lack of the famed British sense of fair play and what Bradley-Hole should have asked his mother. It only remains to note that Australian team member Tim Wilkinson was so chuffed at the accomplishment that he stripped to his budgies and dove into the billabong. It would seem he received not a little encouragement from his fellow team members. But there is another aspect of the Chelsea Flower Show, one that gives a major boost in financial support. The commercial booths attract a certain crowd not otherwise fanatically interested in horticulture. It was ever thus and doubtlessly will remain for time immemorial. There are two Chelsea Flower Shows, wrote Harry Wallop – another memorable name – in The Daily Telegraph, one full of tasteful show gardens, the other garish mugs and bad sculptures. In North America, we refer to ‘green thumb’ gardeners; in Britain it is ‘green fingers.’ So the nattering classes went gaga over Petra Maison’s design of “feminine and practical” gardening clothes. You too could be clothed for the garden at a mere £387 but whether you’d then be a gardener is dubious. In the land renown for its moist climate, outdoor kitchens would appear another questionable investment. Indeed, in North America, such displays have led garden show visitors to declare that they would never attend one again. Exotic statuary, even gnomes, might be a better investment. Or for mechanically minded males, following Prince Phillip and his son Prince Edward to various power tool demonstrations might be time better spent. Then there has to be the announcement by the Royal Horticultural Society of the ‘Plant of the Year.’ The winner this year went by the awe-inspiring moniker of Mahonia eurybraceata subsp. grapinensis ‘Soft Caress.’ Gardeners in coastal northwest North America know it as Oregano Grape. But this is like none ever seen by mortal horticulturists previously: long, thin anemic evergreen leaves serve as a backdrop to narrow spikes of flowers that appear to be suffering from severe jaundice. The ‘Plant of the Year’ award was only established in 2010. Give the show another century and they’re bound to come up with something better. Perhaps a garden by the Duchess of Cambridge?

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