Well, who would have thought it, a gold medal from the RHS for a crater made entirely of lettuces and an alien from who knows where and made of who knows what. It was great fun telling everyone, including the judges, that as our garden was all about perspective, and as humans simply don't possess a sense of perspective, the whole exercise was completely pointless!!

Despite this, we still got a gold medal and this in itself leads me to question whether the judges... oh no, I don't want to go there!!

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Having planted 12,000 lettuces over 3 days I have had enough. Knees, legs and back are all complaining. However, standing back and admiring our luminous green crater with its otherworldly inhabitant, I think it's been worth it. If nothing else, it's got to be the brightest exhibit at the show!

Now all we can do is to wait for the verdict of the judges and the reaction of the public. It should be fun if it ever stops raining.
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We arrived, or should I say landed, at Tatton yesterday morning at 8am Earth time! When I say we, that's me and Rob with his digger. Having marked out the site we spent the day creating the most realistic impact crater I have seen in ages!

Now I am back in Sussex preparing my garden for a film shoot that will hopefully form part of a new Alan Titchmarsh series to be broadcast on BBC2 in the autumn

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I visited Hampton Court Show on Tuesday as a visitor rather than an exhibitor for the first time in 5 years. I have to say it felt strange not to be exhibiting, but at the same time enjoyable not to have the pressure and stress that comes with creating a show garden.

The conceptual gardens were a revelation; by far the most impressive element of the show this year. The quality of both the finishing and the thinking behind the gardens was great to see. Well done to all the conceptual designers for putting on such a quality show. Truly inspiring!
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The fact that the last 6 months have been extremely dry is just starting to make an impression on the public consciousness. Gardeners of course are pretty aware of what's going on in the real world. The rest of the population, however, seems oblivious to anything that happens beyond the confines of their centrally heated homes, air conditioned cars and offices.

I have come into contact with numerous people for whom it comes as a complete surprise when they are told that it's been unusually dry. But surely it's only the last week that the weather has been fine they say, as I show them the dust like soil that they are surprised their plants are dying in. It never seems to astonish me how disconnected we are from the things that really matter

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I know it's asking for trouble to say that everything is under control, but in respect of my visionary garden at Tatton Park it seems to be true. We have dug a test crater at the nursery, 12,000 lettuce seeds have been sown by my collaborator, Derek Smith, at his nursery in Lymm, and the Alien is residing in my spare room having been created by my other collaborator, sculptor, John Humphreys.

From this you may, if paying close attention, surmised that this is a joint project bringing together several disciplines. Not sure how to describe my part, but Derek runs a first class bedding plant nursery and John is a well respected sculptor who trained and exhibits at the Royal Academy. Oh, and I had the idea

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 Well, that's it for another Chelsea; a rather disappointing silver gilt medal in the bag, but more importantly a very happy sponsor. It has been a great week for Easigrass at their first Chelsea. The reaction of the public has been universally positive, both in respect of the quality of the latest artificial grass, and the way it worked within my design.

The most common comment was where is the artificial grass; many people found it difficult to tell it from the real stuff only inches away

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 In my last post (written some time ago now) I talked about us having made a flying start. Well, it just goes to show how much can change in a day or two because after erecting the main structure and rendering it in three days, progress started to slow down. Not a lot, but one thing led to another and before you know it you're under pressure.

 It was while under pressure that I made a near fatal mistake in that I tried to stick to my schedule instead of adjusting the schedule to fit the new reality. I rushed into planting the ferns in the grotto (or should I say Kerry and Steven of the Fernatix did) before I had fully tested the rain curtain that falls across the entrance, thus making it extremely difficult to fix the inevitable leak that developed

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Our first day on site today. Arrived at 6am for a 7am start (that's when they open the gate). Perhaps one whole hour early is a little on the enthusiastic side, even for me. Still, we were first in and hit the ground running. All the preparation paid off and we made great progress. The outer shell of the structure is now up and ready for rendering tomorrow so we are on target. Another couple of days like today and I may even start enjoying it!!!

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 My new improved batch of bronze fennel looks great, although I am still concerned that they may grow too tall for the tulips in the two weeks that separate us from judgment day. This however will be managed by sending them to Burston Nurseries where they will be kept in cold store, effectively suspended animation, until we plant them three days before judging.

I should have mentioned Woodcote Green Nurseries in my last post as they were the source of the finest batch of fennel plants. Thanks to James and Lara at Woodcote; I am now sleeping much better

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Well, perhaps not quite blind but definitely a hint of panic.

With the larger gardens underway on site, the urban gardens have another week of preparations off site before it gets really serious

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Oh yes, it's rain, on demand whenever I want it!

It does, I admit, seem a little perverse that after such a long and wet winter I should want it to rain but I do

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 The Easigrass Garden is almost finished, well in kit form anyway. It is being built in the yard and then dismantled into manageable sections. From here it will be transported to the show where it will be reassembled in double quick time thus allowing us to plant well before judgement day. It's important to allow several days for the plants to settle into their new surroundings. This really makes a difference.

While I was at the Easigrass office today discussing the finishing touches with Michael, who is in charge of the construction, Easigrass MD, Anthony Gallagher, read aloud a poem by his good friend and renowned poet, John Armstrong. The poem, entitled The Orchid, was commissioned by Anthony as a complement to the garden

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How many people, I wonder, are kept awake at night worrying about work? Quite a number I suspect. However, if I narrow the question down a little to say, how many people wake in the night terrified by a vision of pink tulip petals falling onto a carpet of flowerless verbena? I may now be on my own.

Perhaps this may be just a little over dramatic, but when your reputation stands or falls on some flowers opening on one particular day in May, it’s easy to get twitchy and I am! Read More...

I am afraid it has been pointed out to me that I am guilty of hypocrisy.

In my last post I complained about the impenetrable names given to ferns at the same time as producing a garden at Chelsea with probably the longest and least catchy name ever given to a garden

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