There is, funnily enough, a showy element to this week’s blog. It is that time of the year again after all, when the media and the Garden Design world all start patting each other on the back or sniping behind the aforesaid backs. The RHS Chelsea Flower Show can bring out both the best and worst in people.
“Chelsea” is a girl’s name as well as a London district and a famous flower show and football club. Our girl Chelsea has hay fever – even when she can’t see a flower – now why is that?
Show Chelsea a flower and she will start sneezing; but many people are allergic to pollen from more than one plant species.
The London Plane trees that line the avenue at Chelsea Flower Show (a permanent feature) are known to cause grief to many visitors as this is the exact time of year when the Plane trees’ pollen brings out the sneezes and wheezes; the infamous ‘Chelsea cough’.
Trees have been something of an issue at the RHS Show this year. Some of the garden designers have trawled the world, it seems, for the tallest or widest specimens; thereby causing a few headaches for those organising the event as some of the aboricultural delights only just fit through and on site. Importing trees for a short time in this way has to raise questions about sustainability and the environment. Not just trees of course; importing Chinese slate when we have Welsh slate near to hand belongs to a similar dispute. But it is the trees that have made the headlines at this year’s Chelsea Flower Show.
At a time when London and the south east is suffering from a drought which was pretty much on the cards when this year’s gardens were being designed, was it a responsible action? Not only have the trees been imported (carbon footprint etc, etc, etc) but as they are such large specimens and have been recently transplanted they will require gallons and gallons and gallons more of water.
As someone who designs largely drought tolerant gardens – which fall nicely into the ‘easy maintenance’ brief of many of our clients – and who knows many other designers and landscapers who likewise incorporate a raft of environmentally friendly aspects into their work, one can be majorly irritated by the display of showmanship or see it as childishness.
But there are plenty of designers showing at this year’s RHS Chelsea who have not succumbed to this attitude. Their trees are native species, or sourced from nearer to home; or smaller specimens; or no trees at all, just shrubs and flowers. These, perhaps are the gardens to praise, these are the gardens that delight in showing that size is not everything…
RHS Chelsea Flower Show is an international showcase event; it should be an inspiration – for designers, creatives, and for the ‘general public’ (whoever they are!). It usually is an inspiration. The show should also be an education; and yes it is, there are gardens and displays that tell us how we can live a life that balances computers and smart phones with bee friendly outdoor spaces.
Back to those pollen laden plane trees that are making our girl Chelsea sneeze. Platanus x hispanica is found across London and other cities. It is very tolerant of pollution and of the root compaction that urban trees also have to deal with. Root compaction is a result of the amount of hard surfaces rather than soil surrounding the trees; and from the constant flow of traffic pounding the earth into a hard state. London Plane trees are deciduous, so they show a tracery of branches over the winter. With palmate, ie hand-like, leaves and a peeling bark which is its most appealing feature, this tree is not native to the UK. Colloquially known as the ‘London Plane’ it has become a largely accepted immigrant, although there is still not full agreement on its antecedents; the ‘x hispanica’ nods in the direction of one of its most likely parents, the Spanish plane tree. Flowering time? May – June, of course: just in time for the Chelsea Flower Show!
2012 is of course a patriotic year, with both the Queen’s Jubilee and the Olympics appearing on the national calendar. So in her hunt for flowers, our Chelsea is likely to make a bee-line for the Great Pavilion and probably need a sniff of Rosa ‘Queens Jubilee Rose’ and Rosa ‘Royal Jubilee’. These are obvious contenders for RHS ‘Plant of the Year’ award. Roses, also being pollen bearers, may cause an allergic reaction, as may the perfume, either to nose or skin. But hopefully, these celebratory roses, whilst scented, will not cause too many sneezes or skin itches. They are lovely looking roses and their scent promises to be good too.
Oh and while Chelsea does like her flowers, she’s also into hair styles – so let’s hear it for the Chelsea Fringe – a series of events and open gardens running from mid May – mid June.
And whether you’re seeing the Chelsea Flower Show for real, watching it on TV or your computer, Plews can help you with the view you see every day – your own garden. For ideas that are inspired not just by RHS Chelsea but also by the many wonders of the world around us, why not drop us an email and let us design and landscape you a sneeze free garden?
Related Gardening articles you may enjoy from our Award Winning Blog
Flowers called Wedding Day
May Gardens full of Scented Flowers
Is Chelsea Flower Show more eco-friendly than your garden?
Why you shouldn’t use a Garden Designer
And of course, the eBook, an extended version of the blogs RHS Chelsea 2012-16
