Chelsea Flower Show

Starts today (for the queen anyway). Anybody else stupidly excited by a whole week's worth of programmes?

I will go one day but for now am content to sit on my sofa and watch.

 

There was some chatter in another thread:
http://gardenerscorner.co.uk/forum/...lower-show-2013-100th-anniversary-year.51729/

Don't think anyone said they were going

 

Alan Titmarsh is there today and on the TV later .. dull cloudy and wet today .. hope Queen has her brolly as she's gonna need it i think .. you have to admire these garden designers that make a show garden that looks like it's been there forever .. my garden has been there for ever and dosen't look as good as the Chelsea gardens ..

 

got it on series link, i wouldnt go though as its waaaay too busy for me.

 

Hope you've emptied the disk first!!! The "series" is 10 or 12 hours I think ...

It is SO much better since they restricted the number of tickets they sell. I remember in the old days of unrestricted numbers my Mother (who was always up for that sort of thing) taking my Father one year; they'd not been there 10 minutes when he said "I'll see you back at home" [2 hours and a train ride away] and that was that!

We have been in the "evening" (forget exactly, but I think that's after 5:30 pm) and found that much better - most people have gone home by then! and unless you dawdle at everything we find it easy to nip round in a couple of hours and see the things that spark our interest

 

Really didn't like the Sentebale garden. After seeing the trip to Lesotho and the beautiful scenery there was so much scope for a stunning garden, but I thought the grey stone and the 'modernity' of it was awful.

 

I watched for half an hour last night and got beyond infuriated.

Firstly we had Joanna Lumly promoting "sustainable" rose growing in Kenya.
Sustainable? Give me a break.
Huge areas of bush are being plowed over for poly tunnels. And because it is so dry, it's happening right on the edge of the Rift lakes. Where fertilisers and pesticides run off into the lakes and cause untold damage.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/feb/14/valentines-day-roses-kenya

http://makewealthhistory.org/2009/02/13/the-price-of-kenyan-roses-and-the-tragedy-of-lake-naivasha/
Ooh, and what's that in her hand? Water lettuce. Pistia statiodes. The most invasive water weed in almost every water way in Africa and Asia

Then we had the Lesotho garden commssioned by Royalty - Prince harry.
We get taken to Lesotho to see things "on the ground"
Willows and Poplars get pointed out, but fail to mention they are invasive weeds. At least the designer (I forget her name) pointed out that Cosmos is a weed.
Best not point out the erosion gullies in the background.

Then the garden itself. Some metal "african hut". Hmmm. Not really in the spirit of the mud huts in Lesotho. And then some steps. Not quite sure that was about.
Aloe polyphylla, THE icon of Lesotho. Nowhere to be seen.
Dieramas, Kniphofia, Gladiolus. Anyone see any in the garden? Nope. A lot of species that we grow come from the high altitude Drakensburg.
Speaking of which. Lesotho is located entirely in the Drakensburg. High, lofty mountains that dwarf anything in the UK. Not sure where that was represented in the garden.
I have been to the Southern Drakensburg. And that garden was a complete failure in capturing the spirit of it.

On the positive side, and by complete contrast, I did think that the Aussie garden showed a nice variety of native species. And was well done.

Doubt I will be watching tonight....
Rant over.....

 

Up above the Rift valley? I would have thought the climate there was ideal, no? 20C/70F all year round ...

Wunderground for Nairobi airport in 2012:



Doesn't mean it sustainable of course, but I for one would love to garden there

If the Roses are being grown down by the coast then its the wrong climate :(

 

Kristen,
I am not going to debate the pros and cons of an ideal climate for growing Roses. I have edited out my comment on suitability, or not.
Either way, one can't escape the fact that it causes a lot of environmental damage.
And then the BBC/Chelsea claims it is sustainable.

 

I apologise if you felt I was criticising what you wrote, that wasn't my intention but rather I was seeking to ask the question as to whether it was suitable or not given the lovely even temperature.

I agree. As a family we try to eat "low food miles" and I think bringing in Asparagus or Beans from Middle East or Africa is "wrong", but we buy Pineapples, heck! even Bananas and Oranges and they have high food miles.

I find that having become aware of the plight of the planet it leaves me with very difficult choices over what I buy, as much of what I need, rather than "want", has travelled a long way.