My Garden

One of my favourite areas of Hampton Court Palace Flower Show - although I'm not clever enough to understand it - are the conceptual gardens. A series of gardens that 'push the boundaries of garden design' - which is, I guess, why I can't understand them!

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As I mentioned before, Hampton Court Palace Flower Show is my favouritte RHS show, and so the excitement reached a peak as I entered the showground from the Stud car park.

First stop the Press Tent to top up on cold water. I really admire flower show exhibitors who have to battle through all the elements - rain, wind and heat etc. - without complaining, or complaining much. And it's amazing what the plants have to put up with and tolerate during the show too. I think both will be topping up with water on a regular basis if the heatwave continues

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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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Well, that's it for another year. I've finished mopping up the bits & pieces needed for the online show coverage and I think it's time to go home. I just hope the car's cruise control can steer me home!

Michelle & Dean are beavering away in the office working on the rest of the show coverage - including the live video clips - so there'll be more going up on the site during the day

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One of the exciting spectacles at this year's show is the first ever Thai Floating Market to appear in the UK.

It's a colourful sight with floating market boats, Thai girls dressed in traditional dress and a whole host of Thai cooking ingredients and souvenirs

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Sorry I haven't posted earlier today than now - it has been one (two?) of those days.

Yesterday, due to unforeseen circumstances (mainly the weather), the Online team got a bit behind in our live coverage of the show. This meant staying on the showground longer than planned then working away in our hotel rooms until late last night

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Day two, and I arrived at 8am to start gathering some more information and news stories. The gardens in the Daily Mail Pavilion looked nearly finished and well worth a picture or two. You can see them in the Photo Gallery.

In the floral marquees things, as expected, weren't so well developed. It doesn't take so long to put most of the displays together, so they rarely look finished at this stage of the build up. In fact, the marquees more resemble builders' yards than floral marquees - compost, plants, trolleys, gravel, wheelbarrows - you name it - all over the place. There's a picture of the guys from Fernatix in the Photo Gallery to prove it.
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Having taken far too long to get here - traffic congestion on the M25 (now there's a surprise) - I finally arrived at the Hampton Court Palace Flower Show (hereafter just called 'the show' as it's too long a name to keep referring to it!). I love this show - even more so than Chelsea. There's lots of space, you can buy plants and there's always something new and innovative to see; this year I'm looking forward to the Climate Dome, the Growing Tastes exhibitions and the Thai floating market.

First job - get some pictures for the photos section of My Garden; they're all posted up for you to see. Read More...