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With this year's RHS Chelsea Flower Show now packed away for another year, is it time to take stock of the highlights and lowlights of this world famous show? What will be your overriding memory of Chelsea 2009. Will it be the People's Favourite - The Cancer Research Garden promoting the work...
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It seems to me that a few things slipped under the radar at this year's RHS Chelsea Flower Show. One exhibit was celebrating the 250th anniversary of the birth of one of the very first Presidents of the London Horticultural Society. This is the very same Society that was given the Royal warrant by...
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As gardeners we are all aware of the vital role that bees play in nature. We are also very well placed to do alot to support the ailing bee population. The jury is still officially out on what is the real problem affecting our honey bees, but it is clear that bee disease and pollution are playing their...
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Chelsea flower show was awash with ideas and inspiration across the showground. But most of the creativity was in the show gardens. In the Great Pavilion were plenty of other creative ideas if you took a little time to search them out. On the David Austin Roses exhibit, visitors could see hundreds of...
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Can you imagine what a huge job it must be actually organising, orchestrating and co-ordinating the world's best flower show?? In the current economic climate I'm sure that the organisers really didn't know who was really exhibiting until they actually arrived at the show ground. One exhibitor...
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The RHS Chelsea Flower Show is the launch pad for many things over the week. This year one major lawnmower company and exhibitor (Countax) invited environmentalist David Bellamy to the show to publicise their sponsorship of a new Butterfly conservation project; Butterfly World. "We've been working...
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You never quite know what opinions you'll get on the gardens and exhibits at Chelsea flower show. It can be a daunting experience, especially when talking to flambouyant characters such as presenter and garden designer James Alexander-Sinclair. I stopped him on main avenue at Chelsea with garden...
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Three different personality threads were drawn together at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show. Botanist and environmentalist Sir David Bellamy, garden designer Cleve West and Neil Lucas from Knoll Gardens have joined forces to promote the importance of natural planting and biodiversity. I chatted to Cleve at...
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One thing that's clear from this years RHS Chelsea Flower Show is that visitors are gleaning much more than information on plants that inspire them. It's a tough year for everyone and the garden designers have been working with reduced budgets to very tight briefs. There are a variety of ideas...
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Isn't it lovely when everyone has such positive things to say about something. Normally the news is full of doom and gloom but just about everybody I spoke to at Chelsea this week had only positive things to say about it. Even if it had been raining, too windy or if they were suffering from the pollen...
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Getting near the film stars at Chelsea Flower Show on Press day is a problem. Not only are they surrounded by minders and supporters and friends, but there's usually a thick layer of snappers waving large expensive cameras in their faces too which makes it a bit tricky getting even a short sentence...
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I spotted Sandi Toksvig with a new spade at Chelsea Flower Show this week, the bad news is that she told me she'd broken her old one on Sunday trying to move a rock. There needs to be a Prevention of Cruelty to Tools Trust set up somewhere that makes it unthinkable to use any garden tool for anything...
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Rolf Harris and his wife Alwen were making the most of their time at Chelsea. Alwen had bought a new coat and was modelling it down Main Avenue when I caught up with them. "We've been in the main marquee and thoroughly enjoyed it, especially orchids they were stunning, what a show, just fantastic...
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Working for the RHS is a privilege (is that enough creeping do you think?) the team I work with are experienced, knowledgeable and very sociable creatures (a bit more??) but even I (and perhaps Digger) am surprised to see, hear and read the positive reaction to Plasticine Paradise. It is though, I feel...
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You never quite know what you will see, hear or find at Chelsea Flower Show. This year celebrities were literally queueing up to donate elbow grease to water the plants on one stand in the Grand Pavillion. 'A Window of Opportunity' features a static outdoor gym, with bicycles cycling the water...
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