search.noResults

search.searching

dataCollection.invalidEmail
note.createNoteMessage

search.noResults

search.searching

orderForm.title

orderForm.productCode
orderForm.description
orderForm.quantity
orderForm.itemPrice
orderForm.price
orderForm.totalPrice
orderForm.deliveryDetails.billingAddress
orderForm.deliveryDetails.deliveryAddress
orderForm.noItems
LIVE 24-SEVEN


90


THROUGH THE GARDEN GATE


THE RHS CHELSEA FLOWER SHOW May is a real pinnacle of plant perfection and our media horticulturalist, Camilla Bassett-Smith shares her experiences at the most prestigious gathering of them all…


The RHS Chelsea Flower Show: step back to my favourite film of 2018 and surely Hugh Jackman must have been singing about this, for surely it is the greatest flower show on earth!


My first experience here was 20 years ago, when as a student at Pershore College of Horticulture, a few of us were asked to assist our then tutor, Chris Beardshaw, in putting together his first Chelsea garden. It was on ‘Sun Street’ under cover and featured war time fruit and veg. We spent months growing and preparing and after much work, it was awarded a gold medal! I’ve been a devoted attendee ever since!


Of course, the show itself pre-dates my experience by decades, first opening in 1913 on the 12 hectare Royal Hospital site. It is and always has been the place to be if you love plants; an extravagance of colour and design and cutting edge innovation, plus the sculptures on offer are divine! Remarkably, there are still exhibitors today representing nurseries that exhibited at that very first show. Blackmore & Langdon still offer their eye-catching begonias and


delphiniums, whilst orchid growers McBeans continue to showcase their beautiful blooms over 100 years on.


For the past three years, I have had the honour of working as Horticultural Specialist for the BBC, being part of the fabulous team responsible for the many hours of BBC1 and BBC2 Chelsea television coverage. It really is a privilege to be submerged in botanical excellence and at the heart of horticulture. We spend our days during show week filming a number of items simultaneously, after having worked for months coming up with ideas, scripts, running orders and filming our 20+ pre-films offering a behind the scenes look at nurseries and garden designers at this year’s show. I’ve seen hundreds of alliums in The Netherland, luscious lupins in Cornwall and the list goes on!


In 2019, there are 11 Main Avenue gardens, with one in the Pavilion (the first time a Main Avenue Show Garden has gone under cover), designed by Tom Dixon who is making the leap from interior to garden design. (I actually purchased a Tom Dixon dandelion


LIVE24-SEVEN.COM


THROUGH THE GARDEN GATE CAMI L LA BAS S E T T - SMI TH


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100