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Tag Archives: Chelsea Flower Show

Day Dreaming Gardens

24 Tuesday Jun 2014

Posted by wellywoman in Garden Reviews

≈ 42 Comments

Tags

Chelsea Flower Show, Cotswolds, NGS, Rupert Golby, Stanton Court

Wood carved tree spirit

Wood carved tree spirit

According to research published over the last few years daydreaming is good for us. Drifting off into space used to be frowned upon, think of the classic scenario of the child being shouted at by their teacher for staring out of the classroom window when he/she should be answering some question on algebra. And, just as night-time dreams allow our subconscious to filter the information our brains have been exposed to during the day, it appears that daydreaming can also play an important role in learning and creativity. But, opportunities for reverie are becoming harder to find now, every waking moment is filled with some electronic device making demands on our attention. Bus or train journeys in particular used to allow for a spot of daydreaming, staring out as the world passed by. Now look around on you on one of these trips and everyone has their heads bent, eyes glued to screens of varying sizes and fingers silently sweeping by the information at their tips. Does anyone daydream any more? Well I do, admittedly this has something to do with living in a rural IT black-spot. Forget 4G, 3G would be a start. Instead of tweeting whilst I’m on a bus or train I find myself lost in my own world. Inevitably these are thoughts about work and life in general – maybe that’s why we’re all so keen to distract ourselves with Twitter, it’s more appealing than having to think about those decisions we need to make once we’re grown-ups. But, and here’s the good bit, quite a lot of the time I daydream about gardening.

Pot storage

Pot storage

Stanton Court is a garden I would describe as a daydream garden. We visited it the other weekend where it was one of twenty private gardens in the Cotswold village of Stanton that had opened to raise money for charity through the NGS. Stanton is a quintessential English village but what was really remarkable was the lack of encroachment of modern life. Looking out over the High Street from the viewpoint of one of the gardens it was striking how uncluttered it all was – no signs, no road markings, no telephone or electricity cables.

Stanton village

Stanton village

Stanton Court

Stanton Court

I thought twenty gardens in just over three hours was a little on the ambitious side so was planning to select a few must-sees, Wellyman however saw it as a challenge. We did end up seeing all twenty and went back to one of them for a second viewing but there was a touch of garden fatigue by the end of the day. The garden we revisited was Stanton Court. For me it stood out as something special. It’s easy to think that would be no surprise as the house and gardens are currently for sale for the eye-watering price of £11 million. Money doesn’t always equal good taste though, you only have to see some of the items for sale at Chelsea to realise that. The garden could have been quite bling and ‘footballer’s wife’ for that sort of price tag but it was beautiful, and I could quite easily have spent all afternoon wandering around this place. The long driveway led past an imposing manor house, built in the 17th century, and tantalised us as to what was beyond. The planting outside the staff quarters was beautiful, there were the greenhouses packed with plants and an interesting collection of cacti and succulents. Is it just me who finds other people’s sheds and greenhouses so interesting? They seem to escape the tidying up frenzy that engulfs a garden which opens to the public and they give a fascinating insight into the gardener, the tools they use, whether they’re organic or not and the plant collections close to their heart.

Stanton village church and meadows

Stanton village church and meadow

A path from the greenhouses led us to a kitchen garden. Elements were newly planted but it was easy to see how enchanting this place will be when it’s in full production. Of course I loved the inclusion of cut flowers to this area and the blackberry trained up and over an arch over one of the paths. Then there was a glimpse through a wrought iron gate to the most idyllic of views – a meadow of ox-eye daisies with the village church in the background. The meadow opened on to an expanse of manicured lawn and a pond and another path led off into a rose garden. I’ve seen a few roses garden over the years and I tend to find they promise so much more than they ever deliver. I want blowsy flowers in profusion, heady scents lingering in the air, an overwhelming sense of rosiness. Generally it’s scrawny looking plants clinging on to life and flowers that don’t even smell. Why, why, why would you ever plant a rose that didn’t smell? This time though I wasn’t disappointed – Stanton Court’s rose garden was dreamy.

Classic English border

Classic English border

Chelsea gold-medal winner Rupert Golby has been instrumental in creating a garden at Stanton Court which I think sits happily in its surroundings and compliments the buildings. I’m sure it’s not everyone’s cup of tea, perhaps a bit twee or chocolate-boxy for those who would like something more challenging, more cutting edge. For me it was simply a garden where I wanted to spend more time. It had all the elements I daydream about when thinking of my perfect garden …. well, apart from a sea view. Of course I’m well aware of the reality of owning such a garden. A space this size, there are 62 acres which come with the house, would require a certain number of staff. For me it would defeat the object of having such an amazing garden if I had to work long hours doing something else to pay staff to do the gardening. And how much compost and manure would a garden this size need? The mind boggles.

Plantign outside the staff quarters

Planting outside the staff quarters

I loved this small gravel garden

I loved this small gravel garden

That’s the great thing about daydreaming. Much as I loved Stanton Court I’m not so sure I would actually want the responsibility of owning and maintaining somewhere so vast. Of course I wouldn’t say no if someone offered it to me but I was more than happy enough to spend an afternoon there just noseying about. And now I can add a gravel garden to my garden daydreaming.

How to Survive a Flower Show

14 Monday May 2012

Posted by wellywoman in Out and About

≈ 26 Comments

Tags

Carol Klein, Chelsea Flower Show, Joe Swift, Malvern Spring Show, RHS Flower Shows, Terry Walton

Chrysanthemums

The flower show season is now in full swing, with Cardiff, the first, in mid-April and the prestigious Chelsea only a week away. This weekend was the turn of Malvern. Not too far from my home, the showground is set below the stunning Malvern Hills, which run like a spine through the Worcestershire countryside. It had been a while since our first visit, long before we had a garden of our own, so we thought it was about time we returned and on Saturday morning, under cloudless skies we set off. After a detour to buy some sun-cream. I know, would you believe it?

Cacti

‘Best in Show’ winners Cacti-growing Specialists Southfields Nursery

Flower shows are big events on a grand scale, with huge marquees where plant nurseries display their wares, creating stands to show off their plants to their best and competing for a RHS medal and the ultimate ‘Best in Show’ award. Outside the marquees you’ll find row upon row of trade stands selling everything horticultural and more besides. At Malvern there was a botanical art exhibition; talks from allotment guru Terry Walton and TV presenters Carol Klein and Joe Swift and a multitude of independent food producers with tasty treats to sample and buy. You could see stunning floral art designs and artisan craft producers from jewellers to furniture makers. For the uninitiated shows like this can seem a little daunting with so much to see and buy, it can all be a bit overwhelming, so here are a few tips on how survive a flower show.

Sweet peas

A gorgeous display of Sweet peas

Firstly, get there early to beat the crowds. Shows seem to get very busy by lunchtime. If you can get there as the gates open you won’t have to queue to get into the car park and queue to get your ticket and if you want to take photos it’s your chance to get some images without people walking into shot.

If you’ve followed my first tip then make the most popular attractions your first port of call. The show gardens and floral marquees can be hard to see once the crowds have built up. Don’t worry about the plant stands running out of stock. The nurseries come well prepared.

There are plenty of places to get some food and drink but if you want to save your money for shopping and a few extra plants it might be worth bringing some of your own sustenance. Don’t however eat your lunch whilst wandering around the plant exhibits. It’s rather off-putting to discover someone chomping on their potent smelling sandwich right near your ear, whilst you’re deciding whether or not purchase a delicate little Saxifrage. I apologise to the nursery owner for the lost purchase but I couldn’t linger. It was the equivalent of being trapped on a bus next to a Big Mac eater!!

Malvern Show Garden

Alchemy Gardens and Villagio Verde Silver-Gilt Medal Winners and their show garden Un Poco de Hogar (A Little bit of Home)

Bring some cash and a cheque book (yes they still have a use) as not all the exhibitors have access to card machines. Don’t worry if you run out of ready money though and you just can’t say no to the 8ft tall wooden giraffe, there are on site cash machines.

Carnivorous plants

Beautifully displayed carnivorous plants exhibit

You can rack up quite a bit of mileage wandering around the showground so wear comfy shoes. This is not the place to worry about fashion. The celebs who will attend Chelsea next week may turn up in the latest wedges or towering heels but I bet they won’t walk much further than the Pimms tent. Wellies maybe necessary if it has been wet as thousands of feet on muddy ground can very quickly turn it into a quagmire. Heeled cowboy boots are not recommended if the limping lady walking past us, as we were leaving, was anything to go by.

And finally, remember to enjoy the experience. Use it as a day to be inspired and to acquire some goodies. The sites are large and it takes some stamina and leg work to see everything. Pace yourself and sit and watch the world go by, and a surprising amount of extendable mops (it really is amazing what you can buy at these places). Treating it as a military campaign may not make for the most satisfying day out, certainly not for the partner of the lady who marched past me shouting to her trailing companion that the plants she wanted were over there, pulling her already laden trolley behind her. He dutifully followed with a weary look on his face and the show had only been open an hour. If you have got an extensive list of must-buys make use of the on-site porter and plant creche services.

With Chelsea, Gardeners’ World Live, Hampton Court and Tatton all still to come there are plenty of opportunities to visit a flower show this year. For more information on the RHS show programme.

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My latest book – The Crafted Garden

My latest book - The Crafted Garden

My latest book - The Crafted Garden

My Book – The Cut Flower Patch

My Book - The Cut Flower Patch. Available to buy from the RHS online bookshop.

The Cut Flower Patch – Garden Media Guild Practical Book 2014

The Cut Flower Patch - Garden Media Guild Practical Book 2014
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