Chelsea Flower Show. Horticultural highlights at this year’s show
The Chelsea Flower Show bursts into bloom every May, and this year’s show promises to delight visitors with lush gardens and colourful floral displays which reach the heights of horticultural excellence.
Gardens inspired by the Imperial palaces of Japan, a Maltese quarry, the Yorkshire coastline and the Bermuda Triangle are among this year’s highlights.
Ishihara Kazuyuki’s stunning Gosho No Niwa is modelled on the grounds of Kyoto Imperial Palace, the former residence of the Emperor of Japan. Waterfalls cascading into a pool, surrounded by mossy banks and flanked by maple trees, evoke a sense of peace and community spirit.
The Mediterranean landscape of Malta inspired James Basson’s design for the M&G Garden 2017 was presented by the show’s sponsors M&G Investments. The garden is built in a quarry, with two Maltese limestone pillars forming the centrepiece. Yellow features strongly as the predominant colour of Maltese spring flowers.
The Welcome to Yorkshire Garden, designed by Tracy Foster, celebrates the rugged beauty of Yorkshire’s coastlines, its fine historic buildings and rich agricultural heritage. This ambitious design features a ruined abbey, chalk cliffs, a beach, and waves lapping the shore. With the help of a “trompe l’oeil” painting, the landscape appears to stretch to farmland beyond.
The Bermuda Triangle is designed by Jack Dunckley to represent an active volcanic landscape, of the kind found in Bermuda and the Caribbean. Aluminium sheeting, in the shape of a pyramid, rises up around a single palm tree. Vibrant tropical plants and markings etched into the aluminium give the impression of lava, while purple and red LED lights add to the overall effect of an erupting volcano.
For gardeners with less space, there’s the Greening Grey Britain Garden designed by Professor Nigel Dunnett. Set within an urban landscape of high-rise developments and apartment blocks, it shows how plants can be used to enhance even the smallest areas.
The 2017 RHS Chelsea Flower Show is open to RHS members on 23 and 24 May and to the public on 25 – 27 May. Ticket prices range from £41 to £100.