Plan A Visit To The Chelsea Flower Show
Visitors to the prestigious Chelsea Flower Show in May will be able to see extraordinary floral and garden exhibits at the Chelsea Hospital grounds in London.
The annual Chelsea Flower Show has been a highlight of the horticultural calendar since 1913. We take a look at the best things to see and do at the Chelsea Flower Show, including special events, relaxing gardens, and international exhibits.
Fragrant Gardens
Some of the gardens at the Chelsea Flower Show are dedicated to flowers and fragrance.
A Perfumer’s Garden in Grasse by L’Occitane reflects the renaissance of the perfume industry in Grasse, the global capital of perfume. The garden will demonstrate the history of perfume making, alongside the emerging, ecologically sensitive perfume industry in Grasse.
The Fragrance Garden from Harrods is inspired by the process of ‘scent creation’, and celebrates over one hundred years of perfume at Harrods with inventive exhibits.
Flowers abound in the Runnymede Surrey Magna Carta 800th Anniversary Garden, which marks the anniversary of the historic Magna Carta. Visitors can enjoy medieval style gardens, complete with water features and climbing plants, and take in beautiful scents of raised floral beds.
Places of Peace
There are many places to relax and contemplate life in the Chelsea Flower Show.
A special garden for reflection is the Breakthrough Breast Cancer Garden, which is dedicated to women fighting the disease. The garden takes the shape of a DNA helix, with a ribbon of pink flowers, white stemmed trees, a sculpture by Rick Kirby and rippling water pools.
The Thinking of Peace by Lace Landscapes garden is a place for contemplation, with plants meant to reflect the feelings associated with peace – joy, stability, gentleness and benevolence. There’s also a special ‘rain of weightless happiness’ feature which evokes the feeling of warm rain in sunshine.
An emotive garden designed to reflect the feelings of grief and loss is The Time In Between by Husqvarna and Gardena. The garden has special plants designed to celebrate life, a water feature representing the emotions of bereavement, and a calm place to sit and think of loved ones.
Sentebale, the charity founded by Prince Harry and Prince Seeiso, brings a special garden called Sentebale – Hope in Vulnerability to the Show, which aims to raise awareness of their mission of providing healthcare and education to vulnerable children in Lesotho.
Themed Gardens
There are dozens of other gardens at the 2015 Chelsea Flower Show, many of which take on a special theme.
There’s the Dark Matter Garden for the National Schools’ Observatory, which depicts the effect of dark matter on light through inspired structures and planting design.
A small-scale representation of the breath-taking Chatsworth Garden can be seen at The Laurent-Perrier Chatsworth Garden, inspired by Chatsworth’s ornamental trout stream and rockery.
The important Edo period in Japan is represented in Edo no Niwa – Edo Garden by Ishihara Kazuyuki Design Laboratory, which features a closely linked garden and house.
Special Events
As well as beautiful gardens, the Chelsea Flower Show has events, shops, cafes and exhibitions to enjoy. Highlights include:
- The RHS Discovery Zone, which helps to showcase plant science from around the world
- The Thrive exhibit, promoting the link between plants and wellbeing
- Miracle-Gro’wers Learning Journey from Compost to Kitchen exhibit, highlighting how important and easy it is to grow tasty fruit and veg at home, with healthy eating suggestions
- The RHS Chelsea Concert by Twilight, on Friday 22 May 2015, featuring fantastic jazz music from around the world
The flower show has fantastic restaurants, cafes and open air food courts to purchase refreshments, and is easy to get to with London’s public transport system.
The Chelsea Flower Show 2015 takes place from 19 to 23 May 2015. Many dates are already sold out, however it is worth checking the RHS website to see what is still available.
What plants and features would be in your dream garden?
Rachel - Silversurfers Assistant Editor
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