My Garden

It's exciting - my favourite RHS show is just around the corner.

To my mind the Hampton Court Palace Flower Show offers so much to visitors. Many of the best exhibitors are there; it has lots of great features; and is always changing and giving something new for people to see and enjoy

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Ever since starting this blog I have been aware that some people feel I am not taking it very seriously. Well I suppose I haven’t. I have treated it as a bit of light relief…but no more. I have resolved to mend my ways and produce a down to earth blob full of interesting and useful horticultural enlightenment. The catalyst for this new and I hope improved attitude to all things virtually horticultural, is my return to Hampton Court for the second Quilted Velvet Garden of the summer. You might call it a new show resolution, but for the fact that for me, Hampton is an old friend of a show. Well, that’s honestly how it feels.

Although my first show garden was at Hampton in 2005, and this will only be my fourth year exhibiting, it seems like an eternity since that first build up, press day and show week. The reason I say that Hampton feels like an old friend is the enormous amount of hard work, stress, camaraderie, humour and emotion that has been packed into those 4 years.

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One week to go before we start at Hampton Court. My shoulder is slowly improving but a long way from its usual efficient self. The last few days have been good for resting without being bored. Several meetings and a visit to Future Gardens, which was interesting and a subject I may well return to at a later date.

One meeting I particularly enjoyed was the Chelsea debriefing with the Quilted Velvet team. I think I can safely say that the Chelsea garden was a success. Much to my surprise the vast majority of the public and press seemed to enjoy it. This, if you have any idea of my past work, is a very strange feeling and a little unsettling as I know where I am with reactions like, and I quote. ‘That’s not a garden. How ridiculous. What on earth is that about?’ And my personal favourite, ‘Well that’s interesting but not very practical for children.’ With the more positive responses I find myself waiting for the ‘but’ that as yet hasn’t arrived

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