Episode 2 Hampton Court Palace Flower Show

There's a distin theme this year. From Alice's adventures, we have

spent the week in a gardening wonder land. We are here today and

tomorrow with full one-hour programmes, bringing you the very

best from the Hampton Court Flower Show. I tell you, it's very good.

Joe and Rachel are looking at medal winners in the large show gardens.

I feel like Cathy in Wuthering Heights up here. I have been re-

visiting the work so of of our greatest poets in a series of

gardens inspired by them. It is the about the killing of the

Jabberwocky. Alys Fowler has paid a visit to the

floral marquee, to seek out some of the legend dri stories behind some

of our favourite flowers. marquee is packed with incredible

plants. This year, it rivals the Hello, welcome to the 2011RHS

Hampton Court Flower Show. The medals have been awarded and

obviously the normal upsets and surprises, but on the whole, I

think tough, the medals. Possibly. There are three Gold Medals this

year in the large show garden category. That is two more than

last year. Some of the silver-gilt people may feel aggrieved. It means

the judging has been of a high standard. The winner is a goody.

Habit the floral marquee? Plenty of -- Hapbt the floral marquee?

Plenty of medals in there. Paul Harris wanted a gold and got a

bronze, but the public loved him. They loved the conceptual gardens.

This one got a silver-gilt. She is still pregnant, carrying twins.

had the babies yet? Not yet. One of the interesting things about the

show gardens is they have a message, a plea to plant more apples in our

gardens to a passionate plea to stop world poverty. The fact that

designers seemed able to express these beliefs through the medium of

horticulture is in itself very interesting. After the medals were

awarded, Rachel and Joe went along to see if the messages had reached

designer. It is about older people getting their heads around the

internet and getting lost. Clues are in the planting. The monkey

puzzle tree and this wire netting plant. That tangle of confusion and

the internet, literally, I it comes over very well. I quite like this

hedge at the back, the way it is lumpy and bumpy, it is not

perfectly trimmed. It has a brilliant texture. It might be

indicative of woolly thinking. draws the eye up - it was as if

that was there especially. This backdrop you get at Hampton court

is unique to this show. It sets off the show gardens a treat. This one

got a silver medal. This garden, Diamonds and Rust, by

Tony Smith, whose work we are more familiar with. The thought process

is deep with Tony's work. This is about time. We are sitting on a

Pyramid here, which represents thousands of years. There are hills

which are geological structures obviously, which represent millions

of years. Then, in the middle we have these chimneys, which are

man's influence on the landscape. They are hundreds of years old.

There are some really clever ideas behind the garden. If you knew

nothing about the concept it still really works. I love this sort of

dark satanic mill here and these soft hills - very beautiful. I feel

a bit like Cathy in Wuthering Heights up here. The public are not

allowed up here. We are privileged. Have you noticed how the turf is

alive - it's getting full of mushrooms!

The Naked Garden is about transparency. The plants are

growing without soil in oxygenated, oxygen-rich water. Everything is

made from see-through plastic or glass.

This garden will go on to form part of the courtyard at a hospice after

the show. It is a calming space. It is also cheerful and uplifting. You

have the oranges there and that lovely magenta of the cosmos. And

the pavilion has an Asian feel to it, it reflects the diversity of

the Leicester area. It is a lovely It is so graphic. There's an

important message behind it. have the world of haves and have

nots. Trying to deliver the message for world vision, who work in 100

countries worldwide to create child welfare through health and

education. How does that narrative work in the garden, with the dome

and then the hole in the water? have a concave dome, which

represents half the children in the world live in poverty, and then the

convex stone is the children in prosperity. Then the reflection in

the water, the world in harmony. becomes more intriguing. I really

like the screens as well. It is about everything sharing the whole

vision. In reality people only get glimpses why they are the haves and

have-nots. Nobody can see the reflection apart from a couple of

points in the garden. That is what we should all aim for.

Beautiful planting. You got a gold - a brilliant garden.

designers have based their gardens specifically on individual poems.Ly

come back to look at some later. -- I will come back to look at some of

them later. The Reverend Charles Dodgson, better known as Lewis

Carol. The tales of Alice Through The Looking Glass provide an

influence for many of the exhibits here.

In 1865, when the book was published, standard roses were at

the height of their popularity. You can see them within the pictures in

the book. Since then, they've gone in and out of fashion. There's one

exhibiter here at Hampton who reckons there could be a standard

rose for everybody, using a stem. Some people call them tree

roses because they are in fact a miniature tree. It's a tree that

you can manage. You just give it one hard prune a year and it will

always keep its shape. A better look, the standard rose can grow

for 20-30 years. They were becoming unpopular in the

80s and 90s, mainly because the varieties selected were often too

tall growing and there was a lot of wind damage. Also the heights the

graphs were being done made them flower at seven feet high sometimes.

We have reduced the height of the stem. They used to be graphed at

700 centimetres. We have brought that down by a foot. Therefore, you

can then plant them into pots and still have a flowering plant at eye

level. This is a -- what we produce our standards from. We buy the

stems in from Holland, plant them by hand in March time.

We leave them to grow. Normally by the end of June, early July, they

are ready for budding. This is what we call bud wood,

which is taken from the previous year's roses in the field, which

are roses you would associate as garden roses with flowers on them.

What we have to do in the shed is remove all the thorns. When you do

the budding you cannot wear gloves so, you need a good clean stem that

will not prick your fingers. We take the bud wood to a cut into the

stem and pull it down. Then we remove the wood behind the eye.

Then we have to make a T--cut on to the stem. We get the eye from the

stem and put it into the cut. Then we cut off at the bottom, leaving

the eye in the stem. We do this process four times. We put four on

because we want to end 7 with a -- up with a standard with two

branches, one on each side of the stem to become a first-quality

plant. Then we put a patch over the eye. The reason for the patch is to

keep out the dust, not let it dry out and also to keep out rain.

This one here is Flower Power. It is a nice patio, pro-fuesly flowers

and has a delicate scent. This is a quarter-standard. It is on a

shorter stem. It creates a different interest in the heights.

This has one long blush of colour lasting six to eight weeks. The

cascades get longer as you leave them to grow throughout the summer.

Planted like this you can create that romantic feel.

The purpose of grafting at this height and Victorian times may have

been to protect the dignity of the lady of the house. By having them

at this house she would not have to bend over to smell and tend her

roses. In the Alice In Wonderland book

they talk about painting roses. We want to include striped roses. This

is called Brush Strokes. It has red and yellow stripes, produces lots

of flowers on the head and is extremely healthy. You either love

or hate striped roses. At Hampton magnificent on the display? Can you

graft any variety in that way? can put any rose on a standard stem.

In practise we need to stick to shorter varieties. All that will

happen if you have a tall one on a standard is they will get wind

damage and probably flower at six or seven feet rather than eye level.

What are you particularly proud of this year? Our new introduction

Truly Scrumptious. It flowers into December, even through the hard

frost. We have lovely pink and apricot tones. I love how the

colour is reflected in that deep purple stem. For a hybrid it is a

small flower, so neat as well. Very, very pretty. You have captured the

whole Alice theme with your red and white roses. It looks a treat.

Thank you. Chris and Margaret are not the only

rose growers embracing the theme this year. All the big nurseries

are back with a hint of fantasy and a host of new offerings.

New from Harkness Roses is this lovely shrub which is named after a

famous actress. It is very reminisce sent of the old hybrid

musks. It grows to about a metre, one metre 20 in height. It is broad,

so it has a domed shape and works very well in the mixed border. It

has a lovely colouring. The way it bleaches as it grows, as it matures

from this delicate peach and opens through a creamy yellow and becomes

paleer as the time goes on. Best -- paler as the time goes on. Best of

all, from this distance, a You have been aregarded -- awarded

this lovely vase? That's right. We are very, very proud.

Now, what is it that you look for in a rose to get that sort of

accolade? You want to look at the amount 6 colours, the fragrance,

the health, how it grows, how it looks in the garden.

What is it about the rose, apart from the fact it looks stunning

here, that makes it so special? Most of the time it has shown

really, really good performance. The rose is exact, and really,

really healthy and the sheer Flower Power it flowered all the year

through. You should have called it Unstoppable! It would have been

very apt! New this year from David Austen Roses is Wool tonne Old Hall.

It is a good, upright shape and a knock out fragrance. It was not

looking its best for Chelsea, but here you can see it in its full

glory at Hampton Court. There is a new rose at the show,

gloirgloirgloir and 'Katie's Rose', a double with intense -- 'Norfolk

Glory' and 'Katie's Rose', a double with dark green glossy fowliage.

P&O epo are showcasing this, "Camelot" With wonderful, rich pink

flowers. It is very pretty. It grows to about three metres in

height. It has this lovely glossy foliag and the stems are plyable,

so you can wrap and train them around a pergola and arch. It

should make a for a really good garden feature.

Pococs are also showing 'Pure Poetry', aptly named. Look at the

colour in the purple, and it opens and it fades to the magenta. I

think that the shape is misleading. It has the traditional pointed bud

and then it opens up to this broad flower, packed with petals. Luckily,

the stems are strong to support the heavy blooms. In the garden it can

be used in containers, in the bedding and in a mixed border

situation, but it is also very good for cutting. It lasts well in a

vase, so I recommend growing some for that. It is yet another

highlight in what is for me, truly a wonderland of roses.

The influence of Lewis Carroll is found all over the -- over the show

this year. I'm in the Poet's Garden. This is a garden based upon Lewis

Carroll's poem, Jabberwocky. This terrible beast, the jaber wok

is slain. What I like about this, is that this garden, made by Kid's

Company, seems to celebrate not just the poem, but also their

experience. These are children with all kinds of problems, but it comes

through and it is fun. Yvonne Matthews's garden is based

on Lord Byron's poem, Love's Last Adieu.

Whereas in the 21st century we are rather uncertain how to handle

death, this uses the poem to create upon a poem by Rudyard Kipling

called My Boy Jack a lament to his son killed in the First World War.

The First World War theme is picked up by the poppities, the grass and

the graves made out of the bay. It is a tribute to the graveyards

where so many of the young men who died in that war were buried.

Jane Tomas has designed a garden based upon the poem of Shelly's

Mont Blanc. It is ambitious with 40 tonnes of rock. Based on four sides

with a waterfall. As you move around a wood lank section and then

is based on a poem by William Wordsworth. It is a simple dity who

are three lads, who build a stone building and the wind knock it is

down and they build it again. That is at the core of the early 19th

century row monthcism, but there is a message that is pertinent. There

is juniper growing. Juniper was common in the Lake District when

William Wordsworth was writing, but it is not there at all anymore. It

is telling us in the to overlook our own endangered native plants.

The final garden is made by Barry Chairmaners, based on his life long

love the of the sea and also on the poem by John Keats, On The Sea.

That is where Barry went, to the Isle of Wight, following in the

foot steps of the poet to seek inspiration.

It keeps eternal whisperings around Desolate shores, and with its

mighty swell. Gluts twice 10,000 caverns, till the spell of Hecate

leaves them their old shadowy sound. I'm doing one of the English poet's

gardens, based on a sob et by John Keats called On The Sea. I wanted

to do a garden about the sea, not presented as a coastal garden, but

a garden that provokes images of the sea and of a summer storm. For

me, the sea, in much the same way that Keats writes in his sonnet is

about washing away the mundane stresses and strains of everyday

life. Just clearing your head completely.

Oh ye! Who have your eye-balls vexed and tired, feast them upon

the wideness of the sea. I really get the sense of,ing down to the

sea, everything being alleviated and you are left with the hypnotic

sense of watching the waves. As a child we spent a lot of time down

at the beach in the summer holidays. We had a beach hut. I remember

playing with my brother, running along and seeing how close we could

get to the waves, splashing up and down as they fell on to the

promenade. I've come to have a look at how the

wild flowers are growing here in a monks all of the grass. Obviously

they are really low down and hugging the ground to keep out of

the wind. There is lots of d arcrossgarotta. They are lovely

little plants. Quite pinky, but when they come out to flower, they

come out quite white and frothy. It would be nice to include some of

these on tonne of the cliff areas. That tides in with the flowers at

the back of the sea garden. There is lots of this bird's foot

trefoil, but it is on the more grazed down areas. I'm not sure if

we would include it on the top of the cliff. Even here there is still

stitchworth growing. That is something that I would like to

include. It take as bit of time to recreate

a really wild area of planting, but I find it really quite fun to put

the plants in such a way that they look like they have been sewed by

nature. In fact that genre laets really to the rest of the garden.

The rest of the guarden is about plants that would self-seed and a

garden that would in fact be, at least, in part, be redesigned by

nature each year. Now, I last saw you by the seaside,

planning out your planting for the cliff-top. Did that work out OK?

Have you got the plants you needed? Well, as you can see I've gone for

a chalk life. I think when people think of the Isle of Wight they

will think narrally of chalk. So what I have on the top is chalkland

planting. There are hair bells, just high

enough so that there is this dramatic professional.

OK. To what extent did the poem limit you or direct you, or did it

just provide inspiration? It has evolved a little bit in that I

injected my personality. For me it is a summer storm. This is one of

the storms where myself and my brother would run along the rom

inadequate and the great waives were would be crashing to the front

and we would be daring to see how we could get closer and closer to

all of this water coming down above our heads. It is carefully planted

but you were saying that you like things to set seed? To go op off on

their own? I really enjoy when a plant turns up somewhere, you think

well, let's give that a go. Another one is somewhere near and suddenly

there is a plant association that you never thought of trying. That

is the real joy of gardening. Why did you decide to use mirrors

along the edge? To recreate the wideness of the sea that Keats

talks about. So there is a little bit of distortion in them that adds

to the watery storm, the effect I was looking for.

I love the way that the grasses of -- and the white, and the idea of

you and your little brother running along the sea as children, that

will stay with me. Thank you very much.

The floral marquee here at Hampton Court is the largest of all of the

floral markis. We will be catching up with some of the 92 exhibitors

there later on. However, there are lots of other nurseries displaying

their wares elsewhere in the show. Here is a whole cluster of them

each with their individual display. Joe has been there to visit them.

This is the Total ally Planting areas. Where the nurseries put

together their plants and you can come sand see the plants here and

buy them on the spot. It is Totally Plants! Back here at Hayloft Plant

Ltd, there is a box of Goodies. Look at this, this is stacked so

high! Now they are famous for the plug plants that they send out in

the spring. Here they have grown them on, potted them up into nice

big pots and they are looking fantastic. Just waiting for the

plantaholics to snap them up! This is the Coblands Nurseries Ltd stand,

look at it, it is beautifully planted. So bright and colourful, I

wish I had brought my sunglasses, but you can't beat the silvers and

the blues together. This is so tactile. The cat mince

and the lovely deep purpley blue salvia at the book. A lovely come

binnation there. If you have not got the sun, they have everything

here, they have laid out the exhibits, look at this, "I love

chalk", I love clay" And look at this, Annabelle, that is beautiful.

With hostas next to it, and ferns at the book. You can see how a

corner of your garden could come together. A plant emporium! Grasses

come into their own later in the season. Hampton Court is the

perfect chance to start to show people how to use grasses, as a

screen to look through. A container plant, to cover an unsightly wall.

Have you new varieties? We have one over there, that is Short Stuff. It

is a nice short selection we have been working on.

It does not always flower in the UK, but we are pleased with this one,

it is shorter, so it will flower each year.

You have the grasses next to more grass, but they work brilliantly

with other plants? It is with the other plants that they are so

effective. With the person eenials of the special water garden

category. Now water is incorporated into a lot of the show gardens.

This is beautifully planted with water lillies. We have this Texts a

-- Texas Dawn. We have Lucida, that pink. Black Princess, that dark,

sexy red - a really nice colour. That is a taste of some of the

nurseries out here. And the fantastically imaginative displays

they put on, using their own plants. Alys Fowler has been at the show

this week. It was great to catch up with her. We met up in the small

show garden. The last time we worked together was at Berryfields.

A long time ago. Here, at Hampton court, what have you seen that has

particularly caught your eye? small gardens have impressed me so

much this year. The design is so well executed, the ideas are clever

t planting perfect. The bar has definitely been raised. I was

walking past here the other day and stopped in my tracks on this garden

and thought, that's lovely. I thought, it's heathers, I don't

like heathers. I had to review my world order of plants and how they

can be used. It is a gift. You cannot ask for more than that.

these gardens a as the same thing, which is leaving enough space. They

have all edited so you can go into the gardens and get lost. Which is

your favourite? I am going to be a little contrary and say I love the

Bulgarian garden. That is completely mad. There's something

charming about this man's love of Bulgaria and the fact he's made all

these pots himself. I am touched by his dedication. You walk around a

show like this and you find these bits of gold that strike a chord

with you, even if other people might not see it in the same light.

Yes, there are always some. Alys Fowler will be in the small gardens

and the Floral Marquee. If there is anything you want to know about the

show or Hampton court, you can go to our website:

You will get information there and also you can read Rachel's blog

about roses. Now, all of these gardens, whether

big or small are based upon a story and a theme. The Floral Marquee,

every plant has a story to tale. This was named a passion flower who

took it to represent the passion of Christ, including the thorns and

the wounds in his side. It has been brought to Hampton court by Jane

Lyndsay, who has over the years, built up a remarkable collection.

Every plant tells a story. And the most fascinating story related to

the passion flower is the legend. It is always based on caerulea. The

ten apos tells are represented by the ten petals. The five wounds are

symbolised by the five stamens here and the three nails by the three

stigmas. The crown is represented by the filaments and the trinity by

this three bracks finally the purity by the white of the flower

and heaven by the blue of the flower.

As nice as the legend of the passion flower is, we move on to

the harsh realities of nature and the passion flowers in the wilds of

South America are a food plant for the butterfly. The passion flowers

have built up with their own self- defences.

On this one here, this is a final example of the egg mimicing glands.

These represent the false eggs of a butterfly. So the butterfly comes

to lay their eggs, they think, oh, no, something has laid on there.

They move on to another plant. This is how they have evolved with their

own plant defences. Passion flowers come in all shapes,

sizes and colours. This is a good example of the sizes you can get.

You have alata here, which is brightly coloured and this one here,

which is also a species and probably the tinniest of all the

passion flowers. And this shows how different they are, but have the

same characteristics. This grows beautifully as a house plant, keep

it at 18-24 inches. It is a pretty climber. They have a long flowering

period. Most climbers you may have a set period of flowering. These

will start around April or May or if the weather warms up. They will

go on until Christmas. Even though you will not have an abundance of

flowers you will have flowers for seven or eight months of the year.

When one pops out you get the wow factor because they are such an

intricate flower. Well, you have certainly achieved

the wow factor. I hope so. beautiful display. There are your

passifloras. People will want to know which ones they can grow in

the outside. There are only true which are hardy, this one here, the

caerulea gives good coverage. Flowers from the middle of the

spring until the autumn, even up to Christmas in the Christmas is right

-- if the weather is right. It will produce fruit. Then you have a pure

white flower, that thrives in semi shade. It is very happy in semi

shade. Very useful. Not as rampant. It keeps a better shape. What about

if you want to try something else which is not a passion flower, but

is hardy enough to grow in the UK. One of my favourites is this one

here, it is evergreen, it produces a ready floilage in the summer. It

really is a firm favourite of mine. If you want a bit of colour, I know

this one here is not hardy. If it is a mild winter and in a very

sheltered aspect they will survive the winter. Really best pot-grown,

taken outside for the spring. End of September, October time, then

you will have a mass of flowers throughout the summer. And worth it

for that extra effort? Definitely. There are lots of Roman tick

histories surrounding many of the plants here -- Roman tick histories

packed with incredible plants, from romantic flowers to unusual trees

and sh rucks. This year, it -- shrubs. This year, it rivals the

best of them. I love orchid displays like this. They show you

immense variation. Many people grow this because they are easy to grow.

Equally easy and less obvious are vandas. When they are high draited

they are green and when they are thirsty they go white. Once white

you soak them in water for 20 minutes. You get these

extraordinary, rather outrageous blooms.

Conifers were first popular rised by the Victorians who brought them

to grow in rockeries. This offers a sea of oasis in colour. You see

there is a variety in texture. The wonderful thing about this display

is it is all container-grown. If you don't have a garden but want to

grow trees, then perhaps these are for you.

This is a display you might not expect to find in the Floral

Marquee. In evolutionary terms the gingko is used for medical reasons.

It is said to improve your memory. The female tree produces a nut

which smells horrible, but tastes divine and improves digestion. Most

people think of this as being a huge tree. It is often used as a

street tree. Here, in this display, there is variation. This small one

can spend its life in a pot. I make no bones about the fact I am

crazy about violas, as is Roger Chapman. They were a favourite of

the Victorians. We this one here, it is a variety which during

Victorian times people would bring into the gardens. It is the mother

of all the plants you see here today as far as breeding is

concerned. It was called different names in Victorian times. One name

was "kiss me at the garden gate." They flower through to September.

The public come along and smile at these plants during this week. It

makes my job well done. If you want to fall in love, come and see the

violas. Sue, you are the Director-General

of the RHS. You have been for nearly a year. Yes. One thing I

have often wanted to ask is, Hampton Court, biggest Flower Show

in the world. Fabulous, really high content of gardens, plants. A lot

of people see it as Chelsea's little brother. They are siblings,

for sure. Very different. Chelsea is in a historic ground. Here we

are ten miles outside of London, in acres. It is a spectacularly

beautiful setting w the space for people to see their own gardens and

imagine themselves in their own gardens. Is there a deliberate

policy to make this more geared towards people's experience of

gardening, rather than the aspirational side of Chelsea?

the highest peak of horticulture. We have a variety between the small

gardens, we have the conaccept tuel gardens which are off -- conceptual

gardens which are off the wall. We have the normal, normally

brilliant gardens, the Floral Marquee, the roses and everything

else Hampton Court is known for. Hampton Court is connecting to

people, in terms they understand through their back gardens, do you

feel the RHS is connecting to people in terms they understand?

There is a perception that the RHS, as an organisation, is a little bit

stuffy, a little bit old fashioned, a little bit formal, whereas, if

you look around you, gardeners are not like that. Nobody at the RHS is

like that. That is the perception that we are working very hard to

try and change. We want to be more open, much more accessible. We want

to be relevant to everybody. And that means whether you live, well I

am from Yorkshire, whether you live in the north of England, whether

you live in the Channel Islands, wherever you live, whatever type of

garden you have, the RHS is for you, our science, our community work. We

want to reach out to everyone in this country who loves gardening.

Sue mentioned that we are all getting more and more interested in

growing our own. The RHS show is reflecting that. This year the RHS

have commissioned Anita Foy and John Wheatley to create a large

garden which celebrates our very British edible growing heritage.

We've been given the opportunity to build the most challenging garden

that we have ever had put in front of us. It comprises vinets which

introduce different elements of edible plants that people can grow

or pick in the UK. The site for the Edible Garden is nearly half an

acre. It is, in show terms, it is enormous. We try and give people

the opportunity to see these plants in a context that they can actually

grow them and also to demonstrate how they can be used.

One of the main reasons for coming to Kent today is to look into a

plant that is absolutely gorgeous to look at, but really hits you in

the nos trils as well, and that is -- nostrils and that is lavender.

We are here to see Caroline Alexander, who has been helpful on

advising us on the correct varieties and talking us through

the usage of lavender. We grow 110 miles of lavender. Kent is a great

place to grow lavender. We have the right soil type here. It is a very

poor soil, very stoney. Lavender is a plant that originated from the

Mediterranean regions. It has adapted to specifically dry

conditions. And the oil from it is ago is ta variety you have gone

for? There are so many different types you could have gone for?

Producing a wowing effect, we have to go for a flowering type. We have

gone for this because it will be out in flower and it grows in pots.

Which is important in creating a guard no-one a short period.

If you want to use lavendar in cooking you need this type. This

one is folgate, although at the show, we are using hidcote, but it

is one that many gardeners relate It is a lovely colour and they are

great to use in cakes or to coat chick no-one the barbeque. There

are so many different ways to use Maiflt.

It is glorious! -- magnificent. Yes, it is glorious! We could not

come to Kent, without looking at your wonderful hops, because of

beer production in the UK, the national institution, we have to

have them in the garden. Right, absolutely. I have to thank

you for the biggest challenge of my horticultural career, you did warn

me growing in pots and containers, a deep-rooted plant will be a

challenge. That is why ours at Hampton Court will not be as tall

as these today. Well, you may be lucky, they can do

six inches a day if they really get going.

We have having stilt walkers, I understand that was the traditional

way of tending the framework for the hops? Whfrpblgts you have the

gardens and the hops, they are up to 1ft, 18ft in the air, you needed

a man on stilts to do the framework. It will be fun to see.

The RHS Edible Garden future is a fantastic opportunity to showcase

some of the very basic thing beings British growing that people can use

and get ral value from. -- And get real value from.

You said you wanted to see a real stilt walker in your own hop garden,

there you are. Didn't she look fantastic! And the

hops are a considerable size, really. I agree.

Are you happy with the way it has turned out? I think it is fantastic.

It has competed my expectations. It is almost not gardening? No. We

were really hoping to convey just what a wide variety of plants that

are edyibl. That it is not just about fruit and vegetable. That

there are many other things that we can grow ethat go into food

production and that we can eat. What is the feedback from the

public? Fantastic. They seem to love it. So it is great, so far, so

good. John, nice to see you and lovely to

see the garden, especially the lavendar it is looking good, isn't

it? It is fantastic. We worked hard to get it right for the show, it's

achieved what we set out to do. Also good to see a vineyard like

that, lavendar, a vine yard, we are all over the Mediterranean here?

That is correct. We are raising expectations to what you can do in

this country now. I'm optimistic, I think we are going to see a whole

new generation of gardeners and to encourage people that plants are

not just good as thetically, but that they have other purposes. That

is what we set out to do here. We want the garden to look great, but

to have a good go at growing the new crops and to have fun gardening

with them and eating them I think you have created the

message! I hope so. There are ten separate areas in the

garden. In this part of the garden there is

a large pond. Of course, ponds are perfect for attracting all forms of

wildlife into the garden. Around the garden there are reeds that

keep it nice and clean and willows that bring in the light and help

the soil. Behind the pond we have an area

which showcases food for free. So you can forest through the

countryside and find all sorts of food in our native hedgerows, so

Hazel where you get nuts from. Nettle to make tea or pies from and

blackberries, of course. There is nothing better than walking down a

country lane and finding a black box recorder that is ripe and

eating it. This has been beautifully done and it feels like

it's been here forever. Alistair has been to visit the

inspirational flower and vegetable garden.

It is obviously why I like this informal space so much. The mixture

of lovely edyiblles and cut flowers. It is done in such a beautiful way.

7 It moves in the yellows, the ochres and then it becomes so

wonderful with all of this food packed into such a small space.

Whether you want your vegetables to stand to attention or put a kale

amongst the rose, there is so much ipbsz separation here and lots of

ideas to try out at home. This is a really good edible garden.

And finally, Rachel takes a look at the cider orchard which looks as

though it's been here for years. Well, this area represents a

traditional orchard. So there are plenty of fruit trees, there are,

of course, apples, pears, but also Medlars and quinnss and cherries.

There are nuts here too, walnuts and haze elnuts, fantastic. In

amngs the trees there are active bow hives, so there are bees here

and also bee-keepers, not just looking after the bees, but if you

are thinking of keeping bees for the first time, they can advise you

on that. Also a cider press, wonderful. I think that John and

Anita have done an incredible job in this garden. Packing so much

into the space. Whether you have room for a single tomato in a pot

or a cherry tree, the garden showcases what we can grow in this

country. There are 11 small gardens at

Hampton Court this year, many of which offer romantic settings

within an urban environment. Chris Beardshaw has been looking at some

of them, starting with a garden that has more than a hint of 89

prehistoric. -- of the pre-historic. Romance is

best played out in a convincing theatre. There is little more

convincing in hard landscape turns than in these wonderful steps.

Apparently, these are a waste product from the quarry. They date

back to a period of time, as recent as 65 million years ago! And that

is exactly the same point in history when many of our flowers

plants started to evolve and emerge. One of the oldest and still

remaining flowering plants is on the garden, the magnolia. It relied

on beetles to pollinate the flowers. They could not fly into the flowers

but crawled up the stems, chewing their way through the base of the

petals and then ate the Nectar and pollen within the bloom.

Hethners a garden, it is maybe a -- hethers in a garden, it is Mable a

slightly unusual sight, that is why this green wall of wint ter

flowering hethers is such a wonderful sight.

Glrb The -- the subtle use of these

heathers as an edging plant in place of the rose mayy, the

lavendar, the thyme, as long as there is an acid soil rich in this

matter, why not use the heathers to tickle your garden paths! For me,

show gardens are at their maximum intensity and integrity when filled

full of design solutions and brilliant horticultural. This is a

bit of fun, a technological solution to contemporary living,

but it has some fantastic horticultural. It is very real. The

scourge of most people's garden, deep or dapled shade, cast by

buildings or trees, we tend to avoid those spaces, but what about

relying on the greenery and the structure of plants? Things like

this sensitive fern with the leaves, the tiarella with the foaming

blooms and then the requienii, that fills the space with this wonderful

aroma and with the TV screen in the garden, all you have to do is grab

yourself a bowl of popcorn, make yourself comfortable, sit back and

a flower show is a serious business, but not everything here is solemn.

Joe, Rachel, Alice and myself have enjoyed some of the most

fantastical sights to this year's Hampton Court Palace, so here, with

due respect to Lewis Carroll is Hampton Court's Adventures in

Wonderland. If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense.

Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it

isn't. # I invite you to a world wrrb --

# Where there is no sense of time # And the girl that chased the

ravaged rank # The widens of the pilgrim

# Now, off with her head # Everyone is concerned

# You see there is no real inding # It's only the beginning

# Come out and play # Her name is Alice

# She calls into the window in shapes and shadows

# Alice # And even though she's dreaming

# She's a lot of meaning for you # This kingdom

# Good riddance # Her freedom

# And incense # And innocence. # So, what sort of

day have you had? I've had a wonderful day. I'm in my element.

When you are in the roses, I wonder do I go for a new variety or an old

classic it is difficult to choose. It is hard to pick any one thing

out, but as a group, I'm so impressed by the small gardens,

they encapsulate everything that you can do by yourself. I know that

lots of people have all kinds of things from the show garden. We

asked for your opinions, but we got lots, but this one caught my eye

from Max, he says, "I went yesterday with my school from St

Martins, and I loved it. I am haved in the flowers and the plants. I

loved seeing the flowers and the plants and I saw Monty Don getting

interviewed, the best trip ever !" If you have thought bsz the show,

there is still time to send them to us to the website.

The show is on until Sunday. We are here tomorrow at the slightly