:00:22. > :00:28.There's a distin theme this year. From Alice's adventures, we have
:00:28. > :00:32.spent the week in a gardening wonder land. We are here today and
:00:32. > :00:40.tomorrow with full one-hour programmes, bringing you the very
:00:40. > :00:46.best from the Hampton Court Flower Show. I tell you, it's very good.
:00:46. > :00:51.Joe and Rachel are looking at medal winners in the large show gardens.
:00:51. > :00:56.I feel like Cathy in Wuthering Heights up here. I have been re-
:00:56. > :01:00.visiting the work so of of our greatest poets in a series of
:01:00. > :01:05.gardens inspired by them. It is the about the killing of the
:01:05. > :01:11.Jabberwocky. Alys Fowler has paid a visit to the
:01:11. > :01:16.floral marquee, to seek out some of the legend dri stories behind some
:01:16. > :01:26.of our favourite flowers. marquee is packed with incredible
:01:26. > :01:42.
:01:43. > :01:46.plants. This year, it rivals the Hello, welcome to the 2011RHS
:01:46. > :01:50.Hampton Court Flower Show. The medals have been awarded and
:01:50. > :01:55.obviously the normal upsets and surprises, but on the whole, I
:01:55. > :01:59.think tough, the medals. Possibly. There are three Gold Medals this
:01:59. > :02:03.year in the large show garden category. That is two more than
:02:03. > :02:09.last year. Some of the silver-gilt people may feel aggrieved. It means
:02:09. > :02:17.the judging has been of a high standard. The winner is a goody.
:02:17. > :02:22.Habit the floral marquee? Plenty of -- Hapbt the floral marquee?
:02:22. > :02:31.Plenty of medals in there. Paul Harris wanted a gold and got a
:02:31. > :02:35.bronze, but the public loved him. They loved the conceptual gardens.
:02:35. > :02:40.This one got a silver-gilt. She is still pregnant, carrying twins.
:02:41. > :02:46.had the babies yet? Not yet. One of the interesting things about the
:02:46. > :02:51.show gardens is they have a message, a plea to plant more apples in our
:02:51. > :02:57.gardens to a passionate plea to stop world poverty. The fact that
:02:57. > :03:01.designers seemed able to express these beliefs through the medium of
:03:01. > :03:04.horticulture is in itself very interesting. After the medals were
:03:04. > :03:14.awarded, Rachel and Joe went along to see if the messages had reached
:03:14. > :03:24.
:03:24. > :03:31.designer. It is about older people getting their heads around the
:03:31. > :03:35.internet and getting lost. Clues are in the planting. The monkey
:03:35. > :03:40.puzzle tree and this wire netting plant. That tangle of confusion and
:03:40. > :03:45.the internet, literally, I it comes over very well. I quite like this
:03:45. > :03:50.hedge at the back, the way it is lumpy and bumpy, it is not
:03:50. > :03:57.perfectly trimmed. It has a brilliant texture. It might be
:03:57. > :04:02.indicative of woolly thinking. draws the eye up - it was as if
:04:02. > :04:06.that was there especially. This backdrop you get at Hampton court
:04:06. > :04:15.is unique to this show. It sets off the show gardens a treat. This one
:04:15. > :04:20.got a silver medal. This garden, Diamonds and Rust, by
:04:20. > :04:24.Tony Smith, whose work we are more familiar with. The thought process
:04:24. > :04:28.is deep with Tony's work. This is about time. We are sitting on a
:04:28. > :04:31.Pyramid here, which represents thousands of years. There are hills
:04:31. > :04:35.which are geological structures obviously, which represent millions
:04:35. > :04:39.of years. Then, in the middle we have these chimneys, which are
:04:39. > :04:43.man's influence on the landscape. They are hundreds of years old.
:04:43. > :04:49.There are some really clever ideas behind the garden. If you knew
:04:49. > :04:55.nothing about the concept it still really works. I love this sort of
:04:55. > :04:58.dark satanic mill here and these soft hills - very beautiful. I feel
:04:58. > :05:05.a bit like Cathy in Wuthering Heights up here. The public are not
:05:05. > :05:10.allowed up here. We are privileged. Have you noticed how the turf is
:05:10. > :05:14.alive - it's getting full of mushrooms!
:05:14. > :05:22.The Naked Garden is about transparency. The plants are
:05:22. > :05:28.growing without soil in oxygenated, oxygen-rich water. Everything is
:05:28. > :05:35.made from see-through plastic or glass.
:05:35. > :05:40.This garden will go on to form part of the courtyard at a hospice after
:05:40. > :05:47.the show. It is a calming space. It is also cheerful and uplifting. You
:05:47. > :05:55.have the oranges there and that lovely magenta of the cosmos. And
:05:55. > :06:05.the pavilion has an Asian feel to it, it reflects the diversity of
:06:05. > :06:12.
:06:12. > :06:17.the Leicester area. It is a lovely It is so graphic. There's an
:06:17. > :06:23.important message behind it. have the world of haves and have
:06:23. > :06:27.nots. Trying to deliver the message for world vision, who work in 100
:06:27. > :06:30.countries worldwide to create child welfare through health and
:06:30. > :06:34.education. How does that narrative work in the garden, with the dome
:06:34. > :06:39.and then the hole in the water? have a concave dome, which
:06:39. > :06:44.represents half the children in the world live in poverty, and then the
:06:44. > :06:48.convex stone is the children in prosperity. Then the reflection in
:06:48. > :06:52.the water, the world in harmony. becomes more intriguing. I really
:06:52. > :06:59.like the screens as well. It is about everything sharing the whole
:06:59. > :07:01.vision. In reality people only get glimpses why they are the haves and
:07:01. > :07:06.have-nots. Nobody can see the reflection apart from a couple of
:07:06. > :07:11.points in the garden. That is what we should all aim for.
:07:11. > :07:21.Beautiful planting. You got a gold - a brilliant garden.
:07:21. > :07:28.
:07:28. > :07:34.designers have based their gardens specifically on individual poems.Ly
:07:34. > :07:39.come back to look at some later. -- I will come back to look at some of
:07:39. > :07:48.them later. The Reverend Charles Dodgson, better known as Lewis
:07:48. > :07:53.Carol. The tales of Alice Through The Looking Glass provide an
:07:53. > :07:57.influence for many of the exhibits here.
:07:57. > :08:01.In 1865, when the book was published, standard roses were at
:08:01. > :08:08.the height of their popularity. You can see them within the pictures in
:08:08. > :08:11.the book. Since then, they've gone in and out of fashion. There's one
:08:11. > :08:21.exhibiter here at Hampton who reckons there could be a standard
:08:21. > :08:34.
:08:34. > :08:39.rose for everybody, using a stem. Some people call them tree
:08:39. > :08:43.roses because they are in fact a miniature tree. It's a tree that
:08:43. > :08:46.you can manage. You just give it one hard prune a year and it will
:08:46. > :08:54.always keep its shape. A better look, the standard rose can grow
:08:54. > :08:59.for 20-30 years. They were becoming unpopular in the
:08:59. > :09:06.80s and 90s, mainly because the varieties selected were often too
:09:06. > :09:11.tall growing and there was a lot of wind damage. Also the heights the
:09:11. > :09:16.graphs were being done made them flower at seven feet high sometimes.
:09:17. > :09:20.We have reduced the height of the stem. They used to be graphed at
:09:21. > :09:26.700 centimetres. We have brought that down by a foot. Therefore, you
:09:26. > :09:36.can then plant them into pots and still have a flowering plant at eye
:09:36. > :09:37.
:09:37. > :09:43.level. This is a -- what we produce our standards from. We buy the
:09:43. > :09:48.stems in from Holland, plant them by hand in March time.
:09:48. > :09:55.We leave them to grow. Normally by the end of June, early July, they
:09:56. > :10:00.are ready for budding. This is what we call bud wood,
:10:00. > :10:03.which is taken from the previous year's roses in the field, which
:10:03. > :10:07.are roses you would associate as garden roses with flowers on them.
:10:07. > :10:12.What we have to do in the shed is remove all the thorns. When you do
:10:12. > :10:19.the budding you cannot wear gloves so, you need a good clean stem that
:10:19. > :10:26.will not prick your fingers. We take the bud wood to a cut into the
:10:26. > :10:36.stem and pull it down. Then we remove the wood behind the eye.
:10:36. > :10:37.
:10:38. > :10:44.Then we have to make a T--cut on to the stem. We get the eye from the
:10:44. > :10:49.stem and put it into the cut. Then we cut off at the bottom, leaving
:10:49. > :10:56.the eye in the stem. We do this process four times. We put four on
:10:56. > :11:00.because we want to end 7 with a -- up with a standard with two
:11:00. > :11:06.branches, one on each side of the stem to become a first-quality
:11:06. > :11:16.plant. Then we put a patch over the eye. The reason for the patch is to
:11:16. > :11:18.
:11:18. > :11:27.keep out the dust, not let it dry out and also to keep out rain.
:11:27. > :11:35.This one here is Flower Power. It is a nice patio, pro-fuesly flowers
:11:35. > :11:44.and has a delicate scent. This is a quarter-standard. It is on a
:11:44. > :11:50.shorter stem. It creates a different interest in the heights.
:11:50. > :11:54.This has one long blush of colour lasting six to eight weeks. The
:11:54. > :11:59.cascades get longer as you leave them to grow throughout the summer.
:11:59. > :12:04.Planted like this you can create that romantic feel.
:12:04. > :12:08.The purpose of grafting at this height and Victorian times may have
:12:08. > :12:12.been to protect the dignity of the lady of the house. By having them
:12:12. > :12:17.at this house she would not have to bend over to smell and tend her
:12:17. > :12:25.roses. In the Alice In Wonderland book
:12:25. > :12:31.they talk about painting roses. We want to include striped roses. This
:12:31. > :12:36.is called Brush Strokes. It has red and yellow stripes, produces lots
:12:36. > :12:46.of flowers on the head and is extremely healthy. You either love
:12:46. > :12:59.
:12:59. > :13:04.or hate striped roses. At Hampton magnificent on the display? Can you
:13:04. > :13:08.graft any variety in that way? can put any rose on a standard stem.
:13:08. > :13:13.In practise we need to stick to shorter varieties. All that will
:13:13. > :13:19.happen if you have a tall one on a standard is they will get wind
:13:19. > :13:27.damage and probably flower at six or seven feet rather than eye level.
:13:27. > :13:31.What are you particularly proud of this year? Our new introduction
:13:32. > :13:37.Truly Scrumptious. It flowers into December, even through the hard
:13:37. > :13:43.frost. We have lovely pink and apricot tones. I love how the
:13:43. > :13:49.colour is reflected in that deep purple stem. For a hybrid it is a
:13:49. > :13:53.small flower, so neat as well. Very, very pretty. You have captured the
:13:53. > :14:00.whole Alice theme with your red and white roses. It looks a treat.
:14:00. > :14:03.Thank you. Chris and Margaret are not the only
:14:03. > :14:12.rose growers embracing the theme this year. All the big nurseries
:14:12. > :14:17.are back with a hint of fantasy and a host of new offerings.
:14:17. > :14:21.New from Harkness Roses is this lovely shrub which is named after a
:14:21. > :14:27.famous actress. It is very reminisce sent of the old hybrid
:14:27. > :14:31.musks. It grows to about a metre, one metre 20 in height. It is broad,
:14:31. > :14:38.so it has a domed shape and works very well in the mixed border. It
:14:38. > :14:41.has a lovely colouring. The way it bleaches as it grows, as it matures
:14:42. > :14:46.from this delicate peach and opens through a creamy yellow and becomes
:14:46. > :14:56.paleer as the time goes on. Best -- paler as the time goes on. Best of
:14:56. > :14:58.
:14:58. > :15:01.all, from this distance, a You have been aregarded -- awarded
:15:01. > :15:06.this lovely vase? That's right. We are very, very proud.
:15:06. > :15:11.Now, what is it that you look for in a rose to get that sort of
:15:12. > :15:15.accolade? You want to look at the amount 6 colours, the fragrance,
:15:15. > :15:19.the health, how it grows, how it looks in the garden.
:15:19. > :15:24.What is it about the rose, apart from the fact it looks stunning
:15:24. > :15:28.here, that makes it so special? Most of the time it has shown
:15:28. > :15:33.really, really good performance. The rose is exact, and really,
:15:33. > :15:39.really healthy and the sheer Flower Power it flowered all the year
:15:40. > :15:49.through. You should have called it Unstoppable! It would have been
:15:49. > :15:55.very apt! New this year from David Austen Roses is Wool tonne Old Hall.
:15:55. > :16:01.It is a good, upright shape and a knock out fragrance. It was not
:16:01. > :16:10.looking its best for Chelsea, but here you can see it in its full
:16:10. > :16:15.glory at Hampton Court. There is a new rose at the show,
:16:15. > :16:22.gloirgloirgloir and 'Katie's Rose', a double with intense -- 'Norfolk
:16:23. > :16:29.Glory' and 'Katie's Rose', a double with dark green glossy fowliage.
:16:29. > :16:33.P&O epo are showcasing this, "Camelot" With wonderful, rich pink
:16:33. > :16:40.flowers. It is very pretty. It grows to about three metres in
:16:40. > :16:45.height. It has this lovely glossy foliag and the stems are plyable,
:16:45. > :16:55.so you can wrap and train them around a pergola and arch. It
:16:55. > :16:57.
:16:57. > :17:01.should make a for a really good garden feature.
:17:01. > :17:08.Pococs are also showing 'Pure Poetry', aptly named. Look at the
:17:08. > :17:13.colour in the purple, and it opens and it fades to the magenta. I
:17:13. > :17:18.think that the shape is misleading. It has the traditional pointed bud
:17:18. > :17:23.and then it opens up to this broad flower, packed with petals. Luckily,
:17:23. > :17:27.the stems are strong to support the heavy blooms. In the garden it can
:17:27. > :17:31.be used in containers, in the bedding and in a mixed border
:17:31. > :17:35.situation, but it is also very good for cutting. It lasts well in a
:17:35. > :17:43.vase, so I recommend growing some for that. It is yet another
:17:43. > :17:46.highlight in what is for me, truly a wonderland of roses.
:17:46. > :17:55.The influence of Lewis Carroll is found all over the -- over the show
:17:55. > :18:03.this year. I'm in the Poet's Garden. This is a garden based upon Lewis
:18:03. > :18:11.Carroll's poem, Jabberwocky. This terrible beast, the jaber wok
:18:11. > :18:15.is slain. What I like about this, is that this garden, made by Kid's
:18:16. > :18:20.Company, seems to celebrate not just the poem, but also their
:18:20. > :18:28.experience. These are children with all kinds of problems, but it comes
:18:28. > :18:32.through and it is fun. Yvonne Matthews's garden is based
:18:32. > :18:36.on Lord Byron's poem, Love's Last Adieu.
:18:36. > :18:46.Whereas in the 21st century we are rather uncertain how to handle
:18:46. > :18:55.
:18:55. > :18:59.death, this uses the poem to create upon a poem by Rudyard Kipling
:18:59. > :19:04.called My Boy Jack a lament to his son killed in the First World War.
:19:04. > :19:11.The First World War theme is picked up by the poppities, the grass and
:19:11. > :19:21.the graves made out of the bay. It is a tribute to the graveyards
:19:21. > :19:22.
:19:22. > :19:28.where so many of the young men who died in that war were buried.
:19:28. > :19:33.Jane Tomas has designed a garden based upon the poem of Shelly's
:19:33. > :19:38.Mont Blanc. It is ambitious with 40 tonnes of rock. Based on four sides
:19:38. > :19:48.with a waterfall. As you move around a wood lank section and then
:19:48. > :19:57.
:19:57. > :20:03.is based on a poem by William Wordsworth. It is a simple dity who
:20:03. > :20:08.are three lads, who build a stone building and the wind knock it is
:20:08. > :20:13.down and they build it again. That is at the core of the early 19th
:20:13. > :20:18.century row monthcism, but there is a message that is pertinent. There
:20:18. > :20:22.is juniper growing. Juniper was common in the Lake District when
:20:23. > :20:29.William Wordsworth was writing, but it is not there at all anymore. It
:20:29. > :20:36.is telling us in the to overlook our own endangered native plants.
:20:37. > :20:41.The final garden is made by Barry Chairmaners, based on his life long
:20:42. > :20:46.love the of the sea and also on the poem by John Keats, On The Sea.
:20:46. > :20:51.That is where Barry went, to the Isle of Wight, following in the
:20:51. > :20:53.foot steps of the poet to seek inspiration.
:20:53. > :20:58.It keeps eternal whisperings around Desolate shores, and with its
:20:58. > :21:08.mighty swell. Gluts twice 10,000 caverns, till the spell of Hecate
:21:08. > :21:13.
:21:13. > :21:19.leaves them their old shadowy sound. I'm doing one of the English poet's
:21:19. > :21:24.gardens, based on a sob et by John Keats called On The Sea. I wanted
:21:24. > :21:29.to do a garden about the sea, not presented as a coastal garden, but
:21:29. > :21:35.a garden that provokes images of the sea and of a summer storm. For
:21:35. > :21:40.me, the sea, in much the same way that Keats writes in his sonnet is
:21:40. > :21:48.about washing away the mundane stresses and strains of everyday
:21:48. > :21:52.life. Just clearing your head completely.
:21:52. > :22:01.Oh ye! Who have your eye-balls vexed and tired, feast them upon
:22:01. > :22:05.the wideness of the sea. I really get the sense of,ing down to the
:22:05. > :22:10.sea, everything being alleviated and you are left with the hypnotic
:22:10. > :22:14.sense of watching the waves. As a child we spent a lot of time down
:22:15. > :22:19.at the beach in the summer holidays. We had a beach hut. I remember
:22:19. > :22:25.playing with my brother, running along and seeing how close we could
:22:25. > :22:35.get to the waves, splashing up and down as they fell on to the
:22:35. > :22:40.promenade. I've come to have a look at how the
:22:40. > :22:44.wild flowers are growing here in a monks all of the grass. Obviously
:22:44. > :22:54.they are really low down and hugging the ground to keep out of
:22:54. > :22:57.
:22:57. > :23:02.the wind. There is lots of d arcrossgarotta. They are lovely
:23:02. > :23:06.little plants. Quite pinky, but when they come out to flower, they
:23:06. > :23:13.come out quite white and frothy. It would be nice to include some of
:23:13. > :23:23.these on tonne of the cliff areas. That tides in with the flowers at
:23:23. > :23:26.
:23:26. > :23:31.the back of the sea garden. There is lots of this bird's foot
:23:31. > :23:37.trefoil, but it is on the more grazed down areas. I'm not sure if
:23:37. > :23:41.we would include it on the top of the cliff. Even here there is still
:23:41. > :23:44.stitchworth growing. That is something that I would like to
:23:44. > :23:48.include. It take as bit of time to recreate
:23:48. > :23:54.a really wild area of planting, but I find it really quite fun to put
:23:54. > :23:57.the plants in such a way that they look like they have been sewed by
:23:57. > :24:02.nature. In fact that genre laets really to the rest of the garden.
:24:02. > :24:08.The rest of the guarden is about plants that would self-seed and a
:24:08. > :24:18.garden that would in fact be, at least, in part, be redesigned by
:24:18. > :24:26.
:24:26. > :24:31.nature each year. Now, I last saw you by the seaside,
:24:31. > :24:36.planning out your planting for the cliff-top. Did that work out OK?
:24:36. > :24:41.Have you got the plants you needed? Well, as you can see I've gone for
:24:41. > :24:46.a chalk life. I think when people think of the Isle of Wight they
:24:46. > :24:49.will think narrally of chalk. So what I have on the top is chalkland
:24:49. > :24:52.planting. There are hair bells, just high
:24:53. > :24:58.enough so that there is this dramatic professional.
:24:58. > :25:03.OK. To what extent did the poem limit you or direct you, or did it
:25:03. > :25:07.just provide inspiration? It has evolved a little bit in that I
:25:07. > :25:12.injected my personality. For me it is a summer storm. This is one of
:25:12. > :25:17.the storms where myself and my brother would run along the rom
:25:17. > :25:22.inadequate and the great waives were would be crashing to the front
:25:22. > :25:28.and we would be daring to see how we could get closer and closer to
:25:28. > :25:33.all of this water coming down above our heads. It is carefully planted
:25:33. > :25:39.but you were saying that you like things to set seed? To go op off on
:25:39. > :25:43.their own? I really enjoy when a plant turns up somewhere, you think
:25:43. > :25:46.well, let's give that a go. Another one is somewhere near and suddenly
:25:46. > :25:52.there is a plant association that you never thought of trying. That
:25:52. > :25:56.is the real joy of gardening. Why did you decide to use mirrors
:25:56. > :26:01.along the edge? To recreate the wideness of the sea that Keats
:26:01. > :26:05.talks about. So there is a little bit of distortion in them that adds
:26:05. > :26:12.to the watery storm, the effect I was looking for.
:26:12. > :26:16.I love the way that the grasses of -- and the white, and the idea of
:26:16. > :26:23.you and your little brother running along the sea as children, that
:26:24. > :26:29.will stay with me. Thank you very much.
:26:29. > :26:33.The floral marquee here at Hampton Court is the largest of all of the
:26:33. > :26:39.floral markis. We will be catching up with some of the 92 exhibitors
:26:39. > :26:45.there later on. However, there are lots of other nurseries displaying
:26:45. > :26:47.their wares elsewhere in the show. Here is a whole cluster of them
:26:47. > :26:55.each with their individual display. Joe has been there to visit them.
:26:55. > :26:59.This is the Total ally Planting areas. Where the nurseries put
:26:59. > :27:04.together their plants and you can come sand see the plants here and
:27:04. > :27:10.buy them on the spot. It is Totally Plants! Back here at Hayloft Plant
:27:10. > :27:13.Ltd, there is a box of Goodies. Look at this, this is stacked so
:27:13. > :27:18.high! Now they are famous for the plug plants that they send out in
:27:18. > :27:23.the spring. Here they have grown them on, potted them up into nice
:27:23. > :27:27.big pots and they are looking fantastic. Just waiting for the
:27:27. > :27:33.plantaholics to snap them up! This is the Coblands Nurseries Ltd stand,
:27:33. > :27:37.look at it, it is beautifully planted. So bright and colourful, I
:27:37. > :27:43.wish I had brought my sunglasses, but you can't beat the silvers and
:27:43. > :27:52.the blues together. This is so tactile. The cat mince
:27:52. > :27:56.and the lovely deep purpley blue salvia at the book. A lovely come
:27:56. > :28:04.binnation there. If you have not got the sun, they have everything
:28:04. > :28:11.here, they have laid out the exhibits, look at this, "I love
:28:11. > :28:16.chalk", I love clay" And look at this, Annabelle, that is beautiful.
:28:16. > :28:24.With hostas next to it, and ferns at the book. You can see how a
:28:25. > :28:29.corner of your garden could come together. A plant emporium! Grasses
:28:29. > :28:33.come into their own later in the season. Hampton Court is the
:28:33. > :28:39.perfect chance to start to show people how to use grasses, as a
:28:39. > :28:45.screen to look through. A container plant, to cover an unsightly wall.
:28:46. > :28:50.Have you new varieties? We have one over there, that is Short Stuff. It
:28:50. > :28:53.is a nice short selection we have been working on.
:28:53. > :28:57.It does not always flower in the UK, but we are pleased with this one,
:28:57. > :29:02.it is shorter, so it will flower each year.
:29:02. > :29:07.You have the grasses next to more grass, but they work brilliantly
:29:07. > :29:17.with other plants? It is with the other plants that they are so
:29:17. > :29:25.
:29:25. > :29:29.effective. With the person eenials of the special water garden
:29:29. > :29:38.category. Now water is incorporated into a lot of the show gardens.
:29:38. > :29:47.This is beautifully planted with water lillies. We have this Texts a
:29:47. > :29:50.-- Texas Dawn. We have Lucida, that pink. Black Princess, that dark,
:29:50. > :29:56.sexy red - a really nice colour. That is a taste of some of the
:29:56. > :30:05.nurseries out here. And the fantastically imaginative displays
:30:05. > :30:14.they put on, using their own plants. Alys Fowler has been at the show
:30:14. > :30:18.this week. It was great to catch up with her. We met up in the small
:30:18. > :30:23.show garden. The last time we worked together was at Berryfields.
:30:23. > :30:27.A long time ago. Here, at Hampton court, what have you seen that has
:30:27. > :30:32.particularly caught your eye? small gardens have impressed me so
:30:32. > :30:36.much this year. The design is so well executed, the ideas are clever
:30:36. > :30:42.t planting perfect. The bar has definitely been raised. I was
:30:42. > :30:48.walking past here the other day and stopped in my tracks on this garden
:30:49. > :30:53.and thought, that's lovely. I thought, it's heathers, I don't
:30:53. > :30:58.like heathers. I had to review my world order of plants and how they
:30:58. > :31:02.can be used. It is a gift. You cannot ask for more than that.
:31:02. > :31:07.these gardens a as the same thing, which is leaving enough space. They
:31:07. > :31:12.have all edited so you can go into the gardens and get lost. Which is
:31:12. > :31:16.your favourite? I am going to be a little contrary and say I love the
:31:16. > :31:20.Bulgarian garden. That is completely mad. There's something
:31:20. > :31:27.charming about this man's love of Bulgaria and the fact he's made all
:31:27. > :31:31.these pots himself. I am touched by his dedication. You walk around a
:31:31. > :31:36.show like this and you find these bits of gold that strike a chord
:31:36. > :31:43.with you, even if other people might not see it in the same light.
:31:43. > :31:50.Yes, there are always some. Alys Fowler will be in the small gardens
:31:50. > :31:54.and the Floral Marquee. If there is anything you want to know about the
:31:54. > :31:58.show or Hampton court, you can go to our website:
:31:58. > :32:06.You will get information there and also you can read Rachel's blog
:32:06. > :32:13.about roses. Now, all of these gardens, whether
:32:13. > :32:20.big or small are based upon a story and a theme. The Floral Marquee,
:32:20. > :32:26.every plant has a story to tale. This was named a passion flower who
:32:26. > :32:33.took it to represent the passion of Christ, including the thorns and
:32:33. > :32:43.the wounds in his side. It has been brought to Hampton court by Jane
:32:43. > :32:47.
:32:47. > :32:53.Lyndsay, who has over the years, built up a remarkable collection.
:32:53. > :33:00.Every plant tells a story. And the most fascinating story related to
:33:00. > :33:08.the passion flower is the legend. It is always based on caerulea. The
:33:08. > :33:14.ten apos tells are represented by the ten petals. The five wounds are
:33:14. > :33:22.symbolised by the five stamens here and the three nails by the three
:33:22. > :33:30.stigmas. The crown is represented by the filaments and the trinity by
:33:30. > :33:39.this three bracks finally the purity by the white of the flower
:33:39. > :33:44.and heaven by the blue of the flower.
:33:44. > :33:49.As nice as the legend of the passion flower is, we move on to
:33:49. > :33:57.the harsh realities of nature and the passion flowers in the wilds of
:33:57. > :34:02.South America are a food plant for the butterfly. The passion flowers
:34:03. > :34:10.have built up with their own self- defences.
:34:10. > :34:14.On this one here, this is a final example of the egg mimicing glands.
:34:14. > :34:20.These represent the false eggs of a butterfly. So the butterfly comes
:34:20. > :34:24.to lay their eggs, they think, oh, no, something has laid on there.
:34:24. > :34:34.They move on to another plant. This is how they have evolved with their
:34:34. > :34:37.
:34:37. > :34:41.own plant defences. Passion flowers come in all shapes,
:34:41. > :34:47.sizes and colours. This is a good example of the sizes you can get.
:34:47. > :34:51.You have alata here, which is brightly coloured and this one here,
:34:51. > :34:56.which is also a species and probably the tinniest of all the
:34:57. > :35:04.passion flowers. And this shows how different they are, but have the
:35:04. > :35:14.same characteristics. This grows beautifully as a house plant, keep
:35:14. > :35:23.
:35:23. > :35:29.it at 18-24 inches. It is a pretty climber. They have a long flowering
:35:29. > :35:34.period. Most climbers you may have a set period of flowering. These
:35:34. > :35:39.will start around April or May or if the weather warms up. They will
:35:39. > :35:44.go on until Christmas. Even though you will not have an abundance of
:35:44. > :35:48.flowers you will have flowers for seven or eight months of the year.
:35:48. > :35:52.When one pops out you get the wow factor because they are such an
:35:52. > :35:58.intricate flower. Well, you have certainly achieved
:35:58. > :36:03.the wow factor. I hope so. beautiful display. There are your
:36:03. > :36:10.passifloras. People will want to know which ones they can grow in
:36:10. > :36:15.the outside. There are only true which are hardy, this one here, the
:36:15. > :36:19.caerulea gives good coverage. Flowers from the middle of the
:36:19. > :36:26.spring until the autumn, even up to Christmas in the Christmas is right
:36:26. > :36:32.-- if the weather is right. It will produce fruit. Then you have a pure
:36:32. > :36:36.white flower, that thrives in semi shade. It is very happy in semi
:36:36. > :36:42.shade. Very useful. Not as rampant. It keeps a better shape. What about
:36:42. > :36:46.if you want to try something else which is not a passion flower, but
:36:46. > :36:55.is hardy enough to grow in the UK. One of my favourites is this one
:36:55. > :37:00.here, it is evergreen, it produces a ready floilage in the summer. It
:37:00. > :37:05.really is a firm favourite of mine. If you want a bit of colour, I know
:37:05. > :37:10.this one here is not hardy. If it is a mild winter and in a very
:37:10. > :37:14.sheltered aspect they will survive the winter. Really best pot-grown,
:37:15. > :37:19.taken outside for the spring. End of September, October time, then
:37:19. > :37:25.you will have a mass of flowers throughout the summer. And worth it
:37:25. > :37:33.for that extra effort? Definitely. There are lots of Roman tick
:37:33. > :37:43.histories surrounding many of the plants here -- Roman tick histories
:37:43. > :37:46.
:37:46. > :37:54.packed with incredible plants, from romantic flowers to unusual trees
:37:54. > :38:01.and sh rucks. This year, it -- shrubs. This year, it rivals the
:38:01. > :38:06.best of them. I love orchid displays like this. They show you
:38:06. > :38:10.immense variation. Many people grow this because they are easy to grow.
:38:10. > :38:15.Equally easy and less obvious are vandas. When they are high draited
:38:15. > :38:19.they are green and when they are thirsty they go white. Once white
:38:19. > :38:25.you soak them in water for 20 minutes. You get these
:38:25. > :38:31.extraordinary, rather outrageous blooms.
:38:31. > :38:38.Conifers were first popular rised by the Victorians who brought them
:38:38. > :38:43.to grow in rockeries. This offers a sea of oasis in colour. You see
:38:43. > :38:47.there is a variety in texture. The wonderful thing about this display
:38:48. > :38:54.is it is all container-grown. If you don't have a garden but want to
:38:54. > :39:00.grow trees, then perhaps these are for you.
:39:00. > :39:10.This is a display you might not expect to find in the Floral
:39:10. > :39:12.
:39:12. > :39:16.Marquee. In evolutionary terms the gingko is used for medical reasons.
:39:16. > :39:20.It is said to improve your memory. The female tree produces a nut
:39:20. > :39:24.which smells horrible, but tastes divine and improves digestion. Most
:39:24. > :39:31.people think of this as being a huge tree. It is often used as a
:39:31. > :39:41.street tree. Here, in this display, there is variation. This small one
:39:41. > :39:44.
:39:44. > :39:50.can spend its life in a pot. I make no bones about the fact I am
:39:51. > :39:56.crazy about violas, as is Roger Chapman. They were a favourite of
:39:56. > :39:59.the Victorians. We this one here, it is a variety which during
:40:00. > :40:05.Victorian times people would bring into the gardens. It is the mother
:40:05. > :40:10.of all the plants you see here today as far as breeding is
:40:10. > :40:15.concerned. It was called different names in Victorian times. One name
:40:15. > :40:19.was "kiss me at the garden gate." They flower through to September.
:40:19. > :40:23.The public come along and smile at these plants during this week. It
:40:23. > :40:31.makes my job well done. If you want to fall in love, come and see the
:40:31. > :40:36.violas. Sue, you are the Director-General
:40:36. > :40:42.of the RHS. You have been for nearly a year. Yes. One thing I
:40:42. > :40:46.have often wanted to ask is, Hampton Court, biggest Flower Show
:40:46. > :40:52.in the world. Fabulous, really high content of gardens, plants. A lot
:40:52. > :40:58.of people see it as Chelsea's little brother. They are siblings,
:40:58. > :41:03.for sure. Very different. Chelsea is in a historic ground. Here we
:41:03. > :41:08.are ten miles outside of London, in acres. It is a spectacularly
:41:08. > :41:12.beautiful setting w the space for people to see their own gardens and
:41:12. > :41:17.imagine themselves in their own gardens. Is there a deliberate
:41:17. > :41:20.policy to make this more geared towards people's experience of
:41:20. > :41:26.gardening, rather than the aspirational side of Chelsea?
:41:26. > :41:33.the highest peak of horticulture. We have a variety between the small
:41:33. > :41:38.gardens, we have the conaccept tuel gardens which are off -- conceptual
:41:38. > :41:43.gardens which are off the wall. We have the normal, normally
:41:43. > :41:46.brilliant gardens, the Floral Marquee, the roses and everything
:41:46. > :41:51.else Hampton Court is known for. Hampton Court is connecting to
:41:51. > :41:55.people, in terms they understand through their back gardens, do you
:41:55. > :42:00.feel the RHS is connecting to people in terms they understand?
:42:00. > :42:05.There is a perception that the RHS, as an organisation, is a little bit
:42:05. > :42:13.stuffy, a little bit old fashioned, a little bit formal, whereas, if
:42:13. > :42:16.you look around you, gardeners are not like that. Nobody at the RHS is
:42:16. > :42:20.like that. That is the perception that we are working very hard to
:42:20. > :42:24.try and change. We want to be more open, much more accessible. We want
:42:24. > :42:28.to be relevant to everybody. And that means whether you live, well I
:42:28. > :42:36.am from Yorkshire, whether you live in the north of England, whether
:42:36. > :42:40.you live in the Channel Islands, wherever you live, whatever type of
:42:40. > :42:45.garden you have, the RHS is for you, our science, our community work. We
:42:45. > :42:48.want to reach out to everyone in this country who loves gardening.
:42:48. > :42:54.Sue mentioned that we are all getting more and more interested in
:42:55. > :42:59.growing our own. The RHS show is reflecting that. This year the RHS
:42:59. > :43:09.have commissioned Anita Foy and John Wheatley to create a large
:43:09. > :43:09.
:43:09. > :43:13.garden which celebrates our very British edible growing heritage.
:43:13. > :43:21.We've been given the opportunity to build the most challenging garden
:43:21. > :43:24.that we have ever had put in front of us. It comprises vinets which
:43:24. > :43:29.introduce different elements of edible plants that people can grow
:43:30. > :43:38.or pick in the UK. The site for the Edible Garden is nearly half an
:43:38. > :43:43.acre. It is, in show terms, it is enormous. We try and give people
:43:43. > :43:47.the opportunity to see these plants in a context that they can actually
:43:47. > :43:53.grow them and also to demonstrate how they can be used.
:43:53. > :43:56.One of the main reasons for coming to Kent today is to look into a
:43:56. > :44:04.plant that is absolutely gorgeous to look at, but really hits you in
:44:04. > :44:10.the nos trils as well, and that is -- nostrils and that is lavender.
:44:10. > :44:14.We are here to see Caroline Alexander, who has been helpful on
:44:14. > :44:24.advising us on the correct varieties and talking us through
:44:24. > :44:25.
:44:25. > :44:30.the usage of lavender. We grow 110 miles of lavender. Kent is a great
:44:30. > :44:36.place to grow lavender. We have the right soil type here. It is a very
:44:36. > :44:40.poor soil, very stoney. Lavender is a plant that originated from the
:44:40. > :44:50.Mediterranean regions. It has adapted to specifically dry
:44:50. > :44:59.
:44:59. > :45:04.conditions. And the oil from it is ago is ta variety you have gone
:45:04. > :45:11.for? There are so many different types you could have gone for?
:45:11. > :45:15.Producing a wowing effect, we have to go for a flowering type. We have
:45:15. > :45:19.gone for this because it will be out in flower and it grows in pots.
:45:19. > :45:24.Which is important in creating a guard no-one a short period.
:45:24. > :45:34.If you want to use lavendar in cooking you need this type. This
:45:34. > :45:35.
:45:35. > :45:41.one is folgate, although at the show, we are using hidcote, but it
:45:41. > :45:45.is one that many gardeners relate It is a lovely colour and they are
:45:45. > :45:48.great to use in cakes or to coat chick no-one the barbeque. There
:45:48. > :45:58.are so many different ways to use Maiflt.
:45:58. > :46:04.It is glorious! -- magnificent. Yes, it is glorious! We could not
:46:04. > :46:07.come to Kent, without looking at your wonderful hops, because of
:46:07. > :46:11.beer production in the UK, the national institution, we have to
:46:11. > :46:16.have them in the garden. Right, absolutely. I have to thank
:46:16. > :46:20.you for the biggest challenge of my horticultural career, you did warn
:46:20. > :46:24.me growing in pots and containers, a deep-rooted plant will be a
:46:24. > :46:29.challenge. That is why ours at Hampton Court will not be as tall
:46:30. > :46:33.as these today. Well, you may be lucky, they can do
:46:33. > :46:38.six inches a day if they really get going.
:46:39. > :46:44.We have having stilt walkers, I understand that was the traditional
:46:44. > :46:52.way of tending the framework for the hops? Whfrpblgts you have the
:46:52. > :46:59.gardens and the hops, they are up to 1ft, 18ft in the air, you needed
:46:59. > :47:03.a man on stilts to do the framework. It will be fun to see.
:47:03. > :47:07.The RHS Edible Garden future is a fantastic opportunity to showcase
:47:07. > :47:15.some of the very basic thing beings British growing that people can use
:47:15. > :47:21.and get ral value from. -- And get real value from.
:47:21. > :47:26.You said you wanted to see a real stilt walker in your own hop garden,
:47:26. > :47:30.there you are. Didn't she look fantastic! And the
:47:30. > :47:35.hops are a considerable size, really. I agree.
:47:36. > :47:41.Are you happy with the way it has turned out? I think it is fantastic.
:47:41. > :47:46.It has competed my expectations. It is almost not gardening? No. We
:47:46. > :47:49.were really hoping to convey just what a wide variety of plants that
:47:49. > :47:53.are edyibl. That it is not just about fruit and vegetable. That
:47:53. > :47:57.there are many other things that we can grow ethat go into food
:47:57. > :48:01.production and that we can eat. What is the feedback from the
:48:01. > :48:11.public? Fantastic. They seem to love it. So it is great, so far, so
:48:11. > :48:15.good. John, nice to see you and lovely to
:48:15. > :48:20.see the garden, especially the lavendar it is looking good, isn't
:48:20. > :48:25.it? It is fantastic. We worked hard to get it right for the show, it's
:48:25. > :48:28.achieved what we set out to do. Also good to see a vineyard like
:48:28. > :48:33.that, lavendar, a vine yard, we are all over the Mediterranean here?
:48:33. > :48:38.That is correct. We are raising expectations to what you can do in
:48:38. > :48:42.this country now. I'm optimistic, I think we are going to see a whole
:48:42. > :48:47.new generation of gardeners and to encourage people that plants are
:48:47. > :48:52.not just good as thetically, but that they have other purposes. That
:48:52. > :48:58.is what we set out to do here. We want the garden to look great, but
:48:58. > :49:06.to have a good go at growing the new crops and to have fun gardening
:49:06. > :49:10.with them and eating them I think you have created the
:49:10. > :49:14.message! I hope so. There are ten separate areas in the
:49:14. > :49:20.garden. In this part of the garden there is
:49:20. > :49:24.a large pond. Of course, ponds are perfect for attracting all forms of
:49:24. > :49:30.wildlife into the garden. Around the garden there are reeds that
:49:30. > :49:34.keep it nice and clean and willows that bring in the light and help
:49:34. > :49:38.the soil. Behind the pond we have an area
:49:38. > :49:43.which showcases food for free. So you can forest through the
:49:43. > :49:49.countryside and find all sorts of food in our native hedgerows, so
:49:49. > :49:53.Hazel where you get nuts from. Nettle to make tea or pies from and
:49:53. > :49:56.blackberries, of course. There is nothing better than walking down a
:49:56. > :49:59.country lane and finding a black box recorder that is ripe and
:49:59. > :50:05.eating it. This has been beautifully done and it feels like
:50:05. > :50:07.it's been here forever. Alistair has been to visit the
:50:07. > :50:13.inspirational flower and vegetable garden.
:50:13. > :50:20.It is obviously why I like this informal space so much. The mixture
:50:20. > :50:30.of lovely edyiblles and cut flowers. It is done in such a beautiful way.
:50:30. > :50:31.
:50:31. > :50:36.7 It moves in the yellows, the ochres and then it becomes so
:50:36. > :50:40.wonderful with all of this food packed into such a small space.
:50:40. > :50:44.Whether you want your vegetables to stand to attention or put a kale
:50:44. > :50:54.amongst the rose, there is so much ipbsz separation here and lots of
:50:54. > :50:54.
:50:54. > :50:59.ideas to try out at home. This is a really good edible garden.
:50:59. > :51:05.And finally, Rachel takes a look at the cider orchard which looks as
:51:05. > :51:10.though it's been here for years. Well, this area represents a
:51:10. > :51:15.traditional orchard. So there are plenty of fruit trees, there are,
:51:15. > :51:20.of course, apples, pears, but also Medlars and quinnss and cherries.
:51:20. > :51:26.There are nuts here too, walnuts and haze elnuts, fantastic. In
:51:26. > :51:30.amngs the trees there are active bow hives, so there are bees here
:51:30. > :51:37.and also bee-keepers, not just looking after the bees, but if you
:51:37. > :51:41.are thinking of keeping bees for the first time, they can advise you
:51:41. > :51:44.on that. Also a cider press, wonderful. I think that John and
:51:44. > :51:49.Anita have done an incredible job in this garden. Packing so much
:51:49. > :51:53.into the space. Whether you have room for a single tomato in a pot
:51:53. > :51:56.or a cherry tree, the garden showcases what we can grow in this
:51:56. > :52:01.country. There are 11 small gardens at
:52:01. > :52:05.Hampton Court this year, many of which offer romantic settings
:52:05. > :52:10.within an urban environment. Chris Beardshaw has been looking at some
:52:10. > :52:17.of them, starting with a garden that has more than a hint of 89
:52:17. > :52:21.prehistoric. -- of the pre-historic. Romance is
:52:21. > :52:30.best played out in a convincing theatre. There is little more
:52:30. > :52:33.convincing in hard landscape turns than in these wonderful steps.
:52:33. > :52:39.Apparently, these are a waste product from the quarry. They date
:52:40. > :52:44.back to a period of time, as recent as 65 million years ago! And that
:52:44. > :52:49.is exactly the same point in history when many of our flowers
:52:49. > :52:54.plants started to evolve and emerge. One of the oldest and still
:52:54. > :52:58.remaining flowering plants is on the garden, the magnolia. It relied
:52:58. > :53:02.on beetles to pollinate the flowers. They could not fly into the flowers
:53:02. > :53:12.but crawled up the stems, chewing their way through the base of the
:53:12. > :53:20.petals and then ate the Nectar and pollen within the bloom.
:53:20. > :53:26.Hethners a garden, it is maybe a -- hethers in a garden, it is Mable a
:53:26. > :53:31.slightly unusual sight, that is why this green wall of wint ter
:53:31. > :53:41.flowering hethers is such a wonderful sight.
:53:41. > :53:44.
:53:44. > :53:49.Glrb The -- the subtle use of these
:53:49. > :53:57.heathers as an edging plant in place of the rose mayy, the
:53:57. > :54:05.lavendar, the thyme, as long as there is an acid soil rich in this
:54:05. > :54:11.matter, why not use the heathers to tickle your garden paths! For me,
:54:11. > :54:14.show gardens are at their maximum intensity and integrity when filled
:54:14. > :54:18.full of design solutions and brilliant horticultural. This is a
:54:18. > :54:22.bit of fun, a technological solution to contemporary living,
:54:22. > :54:27.but it has some fantastic horticultural. It is very real. The
:54:27. > :54:33.scourge of most people's garden, deep or dapled shade, cast by
:54:33. > :54:37.buildings or trees, we tend to avoid those spaces, but what about
:54:37. > :54:44.relying on the greenery and the structure of plants? Things like
:54:44. > :54:52.this sensitive fern with the leaves, the tiarella with the foaming
:54:52. > :54:58.blooms and then the requienii, that fills the space with this wonderful
:54:58. > :55:03.aroma and with the TV screen in the garden, all you have to do is grab
:55:03. > :55:13.yourself a bowl of popcorn, make yourself comfortable, sit back and
:55:13. > :55:24.
:55:24. > :55:30.a flower show is a serious business, but not everything here is solemn.
:55:30. > :55:35.Joe, Rachel, Alice and myself have enjoyed some of the most
:55:35. > :55:40.fantastical sights to this year's Hampton Court Palace, so here, with
:55:40. > :55:45.due respect to Lewis Carroll is Hampton Court's Adventures in
:55:45. > :55:50.Wonderland. If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense.
:55:50. > :55:57.Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it
:55:57. > :56:02.isn't. # I invite you to a world wrrb --
:56:02. > :56:06.# Where there is no sense of time # And the girl that chased the
:56:06. > :56:09.ravaged rank # The widens of the pilgrim
:56:10. > :56:18.# Now, off with her head # Everyone is concerned
:56:18. > :56:28.# You see there is no real inding # It's only the beginning
:56:28. > :56:31.
:56:31. > :56:36.# Come out and play # Her name is Alice
:56:36. > :56:43.# She calls into the window in shapes and shadows
:56:43. > :56:49.# Alice # And even though she's dreaming
:56:49. > :56:54.# She's a lot of meaning for you # This kingdom
:56:54. > :57:04.# Good riddance # Her freedom
:57:04. > :57:09.
:57:09. > :57:15.# And incense # And innocence. # So, what sort of
:57:15. > :57:21.day have you had? I've had a wonderful day. I'm in my element.
:57:21. > :57:25.When you are in the roses, I wonder do I go for a new variety or an old
:57:25. > :57:30.classic it is difficult to choose. It is hard to pick any one thing
:57:30. > :57:34.out, but as a group, I'm so impressed by the small gardens,
:57:34. > :57:39.they encapsulate everything that you can do by yourself. I know that
:57:39. > :57:44.lots of people have all kinds of things from the show garden. We
:57:45. > :57:50.asked for your opinions, but we got lots, but this one caught my eye
:57:50. > :57:56.from Max, he says, "I went yesterday with my school from St
:57:56. > :58:02.Martins, and I loved it. I am haved in the flowers and the plants. I
:58:02. > :58:07.loved seeing the flowers and the plants and I saw Monty Don getting
:58:07. > :58:11.interviewed, the best trip ever !" If you have thought bsz the show,
:58:11. > :58:16.there is still time to send them to us to the website.
:58:17. > :58:23.The show is on until Sunday. We are here tomorrow at the slightly