Chelsea thoughts?

[CountingCrones]

I enjoy the annual coverage, watching trends develop, seeing new plants and planting combinations.

Although I understand austerity is the reason, radical reduction in the number of show gardens is a shame as a viewer. I love to see them.

I particularly like the timber benches and masses of colour in The Octavia Hill Garden. The garden built to handle floods and heavy rains was another very striking idea.

Anyone else’s impressions? Any lucky souls visiting it?

I'm off to Chelsea today - first timer, new to gardening enthusiastically. I agree @Koulibiak I love the trends and fads, don't have to follow them but it keeps things fresh and interesting. The righteousness is very tedious - I'd put that in the new trend category too - you just learn to ignore the constant din and do what you can. I was a bit horrified by the prep beforehand - (first time I've watched the coverage) and I did find all the talk about sustainability to be utterly laughable. The amount of waste that will have been created for an event like Chelsea will never be sustainable - but there is much more work to be done. Monty Don's comments about the overall winner and the judge were a bit rude I felt - not the time and place for that discussion - he can be a bit misguided in stating his opinions, pushing himself occasionally into that tedious category.

The weather in London is looking good, I'm meeting my best friend who needs a bloody good cheer up after the year she's had and I have a feeling the champagne will flow!

I’ve been to Chelsea 3 times, the last time two years ago and I’ve decided not to bother anymore. It was absolutely heaving and I couldn’t see anything due to the scores of people there that I suspect aren’t really interested in gardening… anyway. The coverage I’ve seen is very samey and very purple. I appreciate it’s the time of year obviously. I thought when they did it in the autumn due to Covid that was lovely to see the different range of plants.
The forest bathing garden was pretty meh, also a Japanese idea I think? Chris Packham explained the autism garden much better (I saw it on Instagram).

Agree about the terrace garden idea, that’s Al I have and I’d like to see that, they’re a bit obsessed with balconies at the moment.

Do you know where you can see Chris Packham explain the Autism garden?

It's not a vintage chelsea this time is it. The forest bathing garden is pretty but there is nothing new or interesting about it. Tom Stuart-Smith's garden is more beautiful and the water aid garden is more interesting.

Still annoyed that Sarah Price's garden didn't win best show garden last year 😂

Me too @Turkeyhen ! She so deserved it.

I have to say I didn't much like Tom Stuart-Smith's garden when I saw it at Chelsea, though. Possibly not seen in its best light on a dreary day and from the side, but it was a bit... dull 😬The photos with sunshine filtering through do make it look much better.

I like green purple and white gardens with trees, I have one, but they did seem samey. I wish they would explain having water properly, I have a tiny pond, but would love to make it bigger, and to have a swale and rain chains.
Rachel de Thane showed us a “ calm” garden last night, and I hated it, made my teeth itch, horribly expensive hard landscaping - sunken area and lots of walls. Inaccessible planting, no adaptability in the design, more of a stage set than a real garden, all you could do is sit in it ,prettily. Which may be what some people want. I would like them to talk properly with the designers. The designer of one was talking about the challenge of planting on a slope, I want more of that, not gardens on top of trumpets which can only be seen from above, although I did get the meaning.

‘front and back of terraced house’ category,

Yes please!

Yes I would like this too! They've gone straight from 'huge landscaped garden' to 'we must be inclusive and appeal to people who live in flats' - missing out the majority of the population who live in small houses with a bit of garden front and back, shaded and overlooked by other houses.

House plants are fine, I have some, but they're not the same as the yearly cycle of outdoor gardening.

I thought that was poor form of Monty. Couldn't tell whether he was trying to say that she only won because she was a woman. I liked her garden too.

Monty is not as good as he thinks he is. Joe Swift, on the other hand, is the real deal.

Ula Maria is incredibly talented and her gardens are beautiful. I recommend her book for small gardens. She really seems to get the balance between hardscape and planting right, even in small spaces. She's also really nice!

The only time I have been, several years ago, was when the company I worked for exhibited there. It's definitely the best way to see the show, little and often. You can also get a sneaky look at the big show gardens before things kick off in the morning.

I don't think they have any choice, they have to address the major concerns of today - climate change, sustainability. But I think most keen gardeners are very aware of these problems anyway and are already motivated to look for positive options. I do find it wearisome to be lectured the whole time.

They (ie me) also want lovely new plants that are easy to grow, give good colour and show and don't get eaten by the sodding slugs and snails.

The National Autistic Society on Instagram. There’s a few videos.

Interesting - I just watched Monday’s programme (I’m always a bit behind) and he was off with her then, and that was before the medals were awarded. I thought he was quite condescending

I’m perplexed at the size of the balconies in the gardens there. I’ve lived in flats with balconies, and never ever had a balcony anywhere near the size of the ones there. And surely flats in blocks generally have flats above them with balconies too, so you wouldn’t have that kind of height to play with?

@ThinkingAgainAndAgain you're right, the balconies at Chelsea are huge! I suppose some people have a large balcony but it isn't typical. The ideas would translate to small gardens quite well though. I really liked the couple who did the balcony garden with those spectacular tree ferns.

I get the feeling that Monty doesn't really enjoy this presenting gig much. He looks uncomfortable and even a bit irritable, eg making snarky remarks about the judge's choice of best show garden straight after he was shown interviewing Ula Maria - it felt really off to me, even if I do agree with him. His "tickbox" remark I did not read as saying the judges had chosen a token woman, rather that they had chosen the winner based on (not particularly original but) perfect execution vs (slightly less perfect execution but) originality/interesting ideas.

I don't think he enjoys it either. I know he's famously grumpy and doesn't like people much, but a few years ago he was a lot less brusque. I reckon this is his last year on Gardener's World.

I wonder if Joe Swift might be up for the main presenting slot? He's just bought a house with a beautiful, huge garden which he's doing up on YouTube. Seems like an obvious choice, especially as Adam Frost and Francis Tophill both have small gardens they can't do a huge amount with. Or perhaps we'll just have lots of presenters without someone tying it all together.

Does anyone know why Adam moved from his place with the big garden?

I want to know why Joe has moved from urban London to a country pile! (I mean, probably the acres of land were quite appealing)

Joe is a lot older than he looks, maybe he’s thinking about his retirement?

Adam’s wife was really ill so they downsized to something more manageable so he could work less.

I’ve got a cottage garden with geums, foxgloves, salvias etc. the flowers used again and again at the Chelsea gardens are all similar. I’d like someone to do an old fashioned bedding plant garden with rows of marigolds, geraniums, hanging baskets stuffed with lobelia and petunias.

“I wish they had a ‘front and back of terraced house’ category, as this is all that the majority of gardeners have to work with. It would be so useful to get inspiration in a more practical setting.”

So true. All the social justice virtue signalling and yet it still has elitism and snobbery at the heart. Shame, as gardening is a universally wholesome and accessible hobby but Chelsea seems to celebrate the exact opposite.

I had a lovely day, great atmosphere, lovely people, I thought the planting was very traditional and safe - dare I say a little uninspiring - not sure what I was expecting but if I’d paid money for a gardener to create that planting I’d have been a bit disappointed. Liked the water garden - the design of the water collecting sculptures was amazing.

I hate all the brick concrete and wood in the gardens. I think all gardens should have a limit of non plant and soil stuff to mainly go on paths and for creating water features.
Forest bathing is a trendy con. It's just walking in the wood. When I was in the lake district last year someone charged £15 for an hour's "forest bathing" which was just a woodland walk they could have done for free. It's a gimmick. I love gardens and have an allotment but think I'd hate the crowds and restrictive viewing of Chelsea. A friend of mine went and said they have a Chelsea special rose wine though so perhaps the crowds wouldn't seem so bad then.