Chelsea Flower Show: The David Harber and Savills garden

The Chelsea Flower Show is long gone, and the RHS have even had another show already at Chatsworth and are no doubt gearing up for Hampton Court at the start of July, but I’ve much more to share from my day at Chelsea. You might have already seen pictures of the show gardens, but today I’m starting a series of blog posts sharing my views and thoughts on them. But be warned, I’ve quite a few gardens to cover so we could be doing this for quite some time...

First up is the bronze medal winning David Harper and Savills garden with its fantastic, and striking structures.

For something so large and imposing to also have the delicate pattern was a real contrast.  It was a garden whose structures drew your eye through the space, which I learnt after the event was best viewed head on, and had much more going on than you first thought. 

The plants add colour and interest to a gravel path, and dry gardens like this fascinate me. Its openness and lightness is quite the opposite of my own garden, which you’ll know is narrow and full of trees, so more like a woodland space, but maybe it’s because it’s so different, almost the opposite that it appeals. 

Looking at the individual components of the structures, I couldn’t help but see a resemblance to grave stones, and once that thought entered my head I couldn’t shift it. Don’t get me wrong, the structure great, but his is one where it’s better to view it as a whole, rather than components.  

I caught a glimpse of turquoise and so investigated further, by moving a few steps this sculptural bench was revealed. It’s the type of piece that would look good in any season, isn’t it?

And notice how the path has changed to brick.  It’s almost like the garden equivalent of zoning an interior space to signify another purpose, and as you’d expect from a show garden at Chelsea is done, spectacularly well.

PEONIES ALMOST READY TO POP

At the very far end of the garden there was another burst of turquoise, and once again I headed round to see more, and when I did, I wondered how the local cat, or wildlife population would take to this one. I loved it, but can see this one might be a bit marmite.  

My verdict: A garden I liked and admired for its boldness and colour, but one that I can see few elements of being replicated on the same scale in domestic gardens.  

What do you think? 

Around the streets of Victoria

I knew from my previous visits to the Chelsea Flower Show that the surrounding area tends to join in and this year I heard more about the Chelsea Fringe - a festival of flowers, gardens and gardening, celebrated with a series of events that runs alongside the  more well known event.  I didn't manage to get along to any of these, but maybe next year. 

This year I travelled to Chelsea from home, and so took a different route arriving at Victoria instead of Sloane Square so I wasn't quite sure what to expect in the surrounding area, I wasn't disappointed though as the photos in this post will show, as once again the route to the Royal Hospital was bedecked with gardening goodies.

The photos above, taken outside Linley's, were the first I encountered and paid homage to bees, as well as giving a nod to the Chelsea favourite of lupins.

Other shop windows had bold and wonderful displays which were simply stunning, and clearly quite colourful.

This simple display of ferns and foxgloves made me smile as it seems I wasn't the only one enjoying them.

And further along a table full of cacti and succulents in terracotta pots caught my eye.  Simple but effective, aren't they?

Other displays almost hinted at spending more time enjoying the displays, I'm not sure if anyone taking a rest here would be welcomed or not, but it'd be a great place to stop a while.

Later in the day heading back to Victoria I took a slight detour along a row of shops, wondering what I might find.  These too were decorated, and flamboyantly so.

I mean if you're going to have a floral wreath, you might as well make it a big one hey?

Or how about pastel blooms to match the exterior of your shop.  Once again the beehives made a reappearance, but I had to hurry past this one as the cakes were calling loudly to me, but I resisted, although right now I wish I hadn't.

Not to be outdone by the giant floral wreath, there were floral hearts and more.

After a long day walking around almost every inch of the show, these windows really did put a spring in my step as I headed back to my train home.  So there's much more to Chelsea, and this year I discovered just a little bit more of it without trying, quite a find indeed...

The Edwardian Formal Garden at Hestercombe

It's about time I shared some of the photos from our trip to Hestercombe back in March. It's a garden that's been on my "to visit" list for a while, and had even got close to once before but only making it as far as the cafe after being caught in traffic unexpectedly.  Determined not to miss out again, our visit here was pencilled in for the day after our stop at the Bower Inn, so this time I was sure we'd make it into the garden. 

And despite the moody photo below, the weather spoiled us.  We were walking around the garden carrying our coats it was so warm, but little did we know that later that day we'd be dodging the hailstones at Castle Drogo.  Given the weather we've had more recently, I'm sure you can believe that.

THE SYMMETRICAL VIEW FROM THE VICTORIAN TERRACE

The moody photo above is fully of symmetry isn't it, and the silhouettes of the statues against the sky, along with the reflections in the pool make it one of my favourite photos from our visit.  Throughout the gardens there was much to explore, and like the best gardens and the best gardening advice, almost at every turn there was something new to discover.

Encircling the pool was this stone wall that also housed the more formal nooks, whose weathering added to the whole effect. 

It was the sort of garden that while formal, also was a haven for lichen, and lichen lovers like me.  I was shuffled along by MOH after taking many photos, most likely all very similar, and all equally as lovely...

LOOK AT THAT LICHEN...

The plants, especially the cheery euphorbias, seemed to be enjoying the sun as much as we were.  Seeing them here and in other formal gardens is I hope, helping see their versatility.

EUPHORBIAS ENJOYING SOME SUN

Beyond the pool, there was a view down to the pergola.  And as you'd expect there was another of these on the right-hand side of the garden.

I couldn't help but peer over the wall to the fountain below, until MOH pointed out the sign which asked people to avoid leaning over the wall.  Oops.  Hoping the sign was there for safety and not because the wall was fragile, I still took a quick step back. 

Adding these photos to this post also made me smile at the memory, but also because quite unintentionally I've managed to line the flagstones up.  If only it was planned...

The last part of the formal garden I'm going to share is the pergola, the plants had yet to spring into life, but that did mean it was easy to see the structure.

The pillars were something else, and not the usual wooden structures, but more of the stonework in circular columns as well as the alternate square columns.  Take a closer look at the photo above, it's a small detail that many might miss, and I'm sure there's some significance, but I've no idea what.

There's plenty more gardens to share from Hestercombe and I plan to do that intermingled (I love that word) with the other gardens we've visited and all the other posts I have planned.