Episode 1 Hampton Court Palace Flower Show

Hello. Welcome to the Royal horticultural Society's Hampton

Court Flower Show which is the largest annual Flower Show in the

world. What a setting. Apart from the Palace you have the grounds and

the deer park around it. It's just perfect. It's a great day out.

There's lots of space at the show. It's relaxed. You can dangle your

feet in the long water, if you fancy. I will hold to you that.

Maybe by the end of the week. It's also about the flowers and there is

one huge floral marquee. Growers from up and down the country, from

what I have seen so far, bringing fantastic plants. You won't find

many Roses, there is a marquee dedicated to Roses here. Peak rose

season and if you are a rose lover that's where you head. 47 show

gardens in total. Water garden, summer gardens, city gardens and

those that are unique to Hampton Court, the conceptual gardens, the

mind benders. Over the week we will bring you three shows covering as

many of the gardens and plants and of course the people that make this

one of the horticultural highlights of the year. Coming up on the RHS

ham contourt Palace Flower Show. James Wong gets an exclusive look at

Japanese grasses en route to Hampton Court. Rachel system in the Festival

of Roses marquee on the lookout for this year's best and brightest. Mark

Lane is scouring the showground for clever ideas to inspire you in your

garden. There are 47 show gardens to inspire

you this year. Earlier Joe and Rachel went and took

their first look at some of them. This garden is called Outstanding

Natural Beauty and takes inspiration from the natural forms and shapes

that are seen throughout the Yorkshire landscape.

My favourite bit is the different uses of York stone here. We have

this wonderful dry stonewall with a rusty skullen ture element which is

like tree roots embedded into it. The seats protrude out. There is sa

clever use of space and it connects you with the stone. Then this

clean-cut circle under foot. We are up and over a few boulders.

There sa nice level change there. Then alongside this stream that runs

all the way through the plot. I love the way the stone underneath is set

on edge. It adds intrigue, but also adds some texture to it, as well.

Then a couple of rocks stepping across the water.

They add a nice sense of movement through the space.

For me, the planting is a little bit confused. We have areas which are

naturalistic, they work the best, but some feel overgardened. But all

in all, I think this garden works. This is the Cancer Research UK Life

Garden and it's very much planned around a circular theme. So you

follow this path through naturalistic planting. We have

natives like the Silver Birch and the hazel. Then you are taken

through, it's a series of circles down into the heart of the garden.

The planting here also follows this rounded theme.

What this garden also does cleverly is combine all of this nature with

technology. We have virtual reality headsets and when you put them on

you are transported beyond Hampton Court and the garden becomes

magnified and absolutely magical. Lavender is a British garden plant.

A huge favourite. And one that conjures up images and a sense of

high summer. But we don't normally associate lavender with farms in the

UK but this is a garden set within a farm. It's complete with farm shop

that I really like made out of reclaimed materials. It looks

fantastic and creates a great backdrop. The garden is cleverly

designed because it leads you right into the heart, into the centre

here. Because it's tiered down, when you

sit down you feel as if you are right in amongst the planting. You

can get up nice and close to the lavender and see the bees buzzing

through and butterflies on the flower spikes.

This is designed by three women first-timers. Let's call them The

Lavender Girls. I think they've done a really nice job. It's so relaxing

here. One of the big attractions at

Hampton Court is this huge marquee. It houses the Festival of Roses and

that's unique to this show. This year, they're celebrating the 150th

anniversary of the birth of Beatrix Potter. So masses to see.

Even predating the birth of Beatrix Potter is one of my favourite old

roses. This lovely soft lilac colour and the fragrance I can smell even

from here. You get an amazing first flush of flower and after that you

will get flowers here and there but not masses of them. If you want

something that is going to give you that continuity of flower and has a

similar look to it, then you could choose Macmillan Nurse. This was

introduced within the last 20 years. The fragance isn't as good but what

you do get is masses and masses of flower right into the autumn.

Not many of us have room for a fabulous flower like this that can

get up to about ten meeters in height. Most of us probably have

space for a more compact climber or two. My eye is drawn to these two.

Both are English Roses. These can be trained so they would grow to a

couple of metres high so you can keep them within bounds in a smaller

garden. This one is fabulous, this soft pink.

Crown Princess is apricot. They've a lovely fruity fragance and this one

has an extra season of interest. If you want to keep them even smaller

you can treat them as a shrub and prune them back that little bit

harder. Something quite different is this

very simple single flowered rose. It's called Simple scan peach and

aptly named. You get this darker colour in bud and then you get the

graduation through to pale shades as it fully opens. This illustrates one

of the best things about a single flowered rose it's because when

there are masses of petals, pollinating insects can't get the

nectar but here it's all fully on display and this variety is a

magnet, not only for bees and hover flies. In fact, there is one right

there. Hampton Court is the perfect

platform for new talent. Among them is a young designer this year who's

really grasped the opportunity to make his debut. We went to visit him

in the south-east to see how he plans to pack an entire County into

one small garden. I am a garden designer from Sussex

and I am 20 years old. Quite a nice place to come.

Especially with a sketch book. It's just a really peaceful place. This,

for me, sums up Sussex in a nutshell. And I think it's amazing

just to be able to come to these sort of places and call it your

office. The design is all themed around

Sussex. We are taking the natural landscape and trying to condense it

into a six by four metre space, which is a challenge in itself.

Back in May I was co-designing a display in the floral marquee at

Chelsea Flower Show which was great fun. It was really, really useful to

see Sarah's garden where she tried to fit a whole country into, I think

it was a seven by five metre space. You could go into it and you could

kind of feel that you were in the space and that's something I want to

try to create, as well. And James Wong I met there as well

and he gave me a few tips which was really nice of him. When I did my

first show garden I was 24, not much older than you, and I was trying to

come up with ideas and I had a big long list and I had lots of things I

thought were really good and I think I fell into the trap of what lots of

new designers do, and that's trying to put too much in. It's tempting to

cram everything in. I think the real point of a garden is to have a

simple, single idea that is perfectly expressed. You have to

crystallise what Sussex means to you and that can be a childhood memory,

it could be a photograph, it could be like a single view. That's all

you have to do in a tiny space, you can't try to include the kitchen

sink. No, no, definitely not. Meeting James gave me a lot of

inspiration especially using the simplicity in the design and not

overcrowding it. So, this is the Hampton Court

design. We have two sculptures. Three multistemed birch trees and

these two channels here, these are reflective pools.

And a contemporary space we are trying to put in traditional

material. We are using traditional Flint because it's all over the

place. The bricks, as well, all handmade in a traditional Victorian

method. Even all the plants are all pretty traditional kind of Sussex

plants. We are trying to shake it up a

little bit and put it in a contemporary fashion.

These are our round-headed rambians and also known as the pride of

Sussex and these are the main plants in our design. You can just see a

little flower head coming out here and that will probably grow to

around this sort of height and then pop open a beautiful iris type of

flower head and it only grows in Sussex. It's a beautiful flower and

it should work very nicely with the rest of our design.

Sussex in a pot. Hampton for me, it would be nice to

come out with a nice medal, but being there is enough for me, to be

honest, at such a young age. I think it's just very cool.

Will, we are here. You survived this. It's looking great how are you

feeling? It's been fantastic. It really has. What are the bits you

are most happy about with the build? The best thing and the main vocal

points is the Flint. It was always all about the Flint and how

everything drew your eye to that. Once we got those in I was happy. I

knew that the garden would work. I am loving the planting here. It's

loose, naturalistic. Exactly like the brief it's traditional but not

stuck in the past. I never even heard of this, it looks great. It's

leaning over the water to reflect it and highlight it. When I first

arrived I was a little bit concerned and scared they wouldn't flower

because they're an important thing being the pride of Sussex. I am

really happy that they've made it on time and flowered perfectly.

Anything I should to you at Chelsea help you? Definitely, the things you

said about keeping it loose and keeping it, well, brief! And also

the simplicity of the garden, as well. I definitely was going to have

a few more bits and bobs in there but decided to take them out once I

had spoken to you. My first garden was at Hampton Court and I got the

same medal. It's incredible. It's so well done. It's all over, I have a

great medal and moving on to the next thing now. Congratulations. Is

the next thing back here? That's what I want to know? If they'll have

me back, I would love to come back next year and maybe push the

boundaries. Amazing. Can't wait to see it. Thank you.

When I was growing up in the late 50s and early 60s, my mother had a

border dedicated to just two macro plants. These were dahlias and

Gladio like. In my mind, those plants are locked in that period in

history. They are associated with a B-movie glamour. Only recently have

we embraced dahlias and now everybody grows them as one of the

stars of the late summer border. Gladioli still have not caught on

for so they are not a fashionable plant. Maybe now their hour has

come. Rob Evans has an exhibit of mass gladioli, here in the floral

marquee, for which he has been awarded a gold medal. Rob,

congratulations on the gold medal. Thank you. It is not your first

comment is it? No, we have had seven gold medals at Hampton Court.

Dahlias have become hugely popular. Can you do the same for gladioli?

Will they become a fashionable plant? We have seen increasing sales

by mainly because of the new range of colours, with the Salmons and the

hybrids. They are bright and vibrant colours. Do they need the same

growing conditions? Yes, the same as large gladioli. Keep the drainage on

them. They do not need staking like the large gladioli. They have thin

stems and blow with the wind. Do you live them every year? We lift the

large ones but we have left some of the other ones in due to the milder

winters. They are coming back in. Not guaranteeing that they are

hardy. When is the best time to plant them? We start to plant them

from the 15th of March. Let's hope people come to see your stand and

take Tempra macro to their hearts and gardens. Hopefully they will use

them as cut flowers as well. -- take gladioli to their hearts and

gardens. Carroll has been out and about looking for plants that will

shine out of your summer borders. It is July, the time of the year when

we expect our gardens to be at their brilliant best. We want everything

to be light, soft and gentle. For some plants but that just comes

naturally. They are intrinsically romantic. If you are going to

deliberately create this effect, you need to choose the right plants. How

about this potent as a starting point? -- potentilla. The soft

flowers scattered through its little branches. Some plants can be tall

yet still create the same effect, like this delightful one here. It

has excellent deportment. Elegant and very delicate.

This is pemstemon. It is not how we expect them to be that they are

usually big blocks of solid, vivid colour. Not in its case with it has

an entirely different habit. That is the see-through plant, it loose you

include beckoning you to see what is around the next corner. -- lures you

in. If you want some are from Venus, what does it better than love in the

mist? -- summer frothiness. What an inspired combination! This alley.

Normally they are renowned for being, statuesque shapes. Allium. It

furthers the whole mood of the planting. Summer for me is all about

wandering through meadows. Swishing your hands through soft grasses.

This planting takes its inspiration from nature. This is just the sort

of thing you can see out in the wild. This beautiful plant is one of

our own native plants. It is a wild carrot. Not a fussy plant for so you

can grow it easily from seed. To thrive, all it needs is a sunny,

well-drained spot. These flower heads floating in the sea of wispy

grasses. Perfectly sums up the essence of summer frost.

I have just found this nifty logs stacked in this garden. Unlike the

weight is contained within this wire basket which stops it collapsing. It

is a fantastic habitat for insects. The wire basket does not stop them

getting in. It is perfect for wood boring beetles, ladybirds and even

small reptiles. It is so simple. Hampton is packed full of ideas like

this for you to take home. We scoured the showground for the very

best. I love coming to the show gardens. For me, it is about the

little details. Those details you can use and adapt to your own

spaces. Just look at this! Such a wonderful

idea. If you have a damp, shady part of the garden just like me, blue

hydrangeas are a really good choice of plant. A group of them underneath

the dappled shade of the bamboos and aces, the blue comes to light.

Japanese philosophy is about keeping things simple. In English gardens we

like to fill our borders with lots and lots of flowers. Actually, one

simple hydrangea, with one firm surrounded by greenery is just

wonderful. -- fern. Here is a wonderful idea. The dry

stone wall. You can create something similar at home. Just actually

stacked up old roofing tiles, slates, and even your old slabs.

Make sure, if you're going to build one, it is safe and sound. This is

something I will take home and it will go in my garden.

Now, that is a brilliant idea. Don't be afraid of using black in the

garden. This almost looks like scales. It trains the green but also

Black is a brilliant colour to use. It actually makes the space for

seeds, so your garden feels a lot bigger.

And I love this idea. This is such a brilliant one. Dead trees used for a

purpose, to create a wonderful pergola. The wisteria is going to

wrap its way around. Over time, this will get better and better.

Wonderful! This planting scheme really caught

my eye. Grasses come in all shapes and forms. Philip goes to bring only

has eyes for one grass, the Japanese Hakonechloa. James one went to visit

him as he got his collection ready for Hampton.

Canterbury Cathedral in Kent is the oldest existing

It is a place of stunning architecture

What is less well-known are the rarely seen

collection of private gardens within the cathedral walls.

There are six private gardens, all reflecting very much

the personal taste of the members of the clergy who live there.

There's something so magical about stepping through a doorway

In between old English scented roses and Gothic architecture, it is like

When I was a student, studying botany in Canterbury,

And you'd never imagine it's rolling lawns, roses round every door

Coming to such an imposing building, I was expecting these massive,

kind of single stretches of palatial grounds.

What you find instead is lots of really intimate,

Even with a vegetable patch, it gives the whole space

a kind of community, village green type feel.

The standard of horticulture here is incredible.

They've even got their own national collection.

Hakonechloa macra is an ornamental grass which is native to the wet,

rocky cliffs of Japan's Honshu island.

The man responsible for bringing the grass here is

cathedral head gardener, Philip Oostenbrink.

They don't have big flowers, they don't come in loads

What's so exciting about them for you?

It's the way the wind sort of plays with them and they flow over

They're really good as under planting as well.

If you have a tree with a massive block of Hakonechloa under it,

I think it is the perfect plant to grow under any tree really.

Hakonechloa is one of my favourite plants.

It's at the Chelsea Flower Show every year.

A lot of people do say, there's only one, which is the Hakonechloa,

That's the amazing thing about national collections.

People think you need to have a massive commercial

greenhouse in the middle of the countryside.

You can have them in the living room!

How are you with being judged and medals and all the stress?

I asked our receiver general if I could have time off for this.

He said, yes, you can, as long as he win gold.

Amazing plants and divine intervention probably on your side.

Philip did not get the gold medal he was hoping for but he did get a very

honourable silver. Philip, you made it. It was wonderful. I liked the

simplicity of the same colour pot all the way through which shows off

the grasses for what they are. That is what I was hoping for. Some of

them are quite similar but with the pot being neutral you can see the

differences. They are subtle differences, aren't they? That one

has quite striking variation. This is the normal when you see in garden

centres but this one has pink streaks in autumn. I normally go for

the straight green rather than variegated. That is new completely.

In autumn, that one turns quite red. That is already turning. It is. It

is ideal for the show. You can see more of the differences. What are

your top tips for growing Hakonechloa in a pot? When they get

dry, they start to curl up. The water them and within half an hour

they are happy again. So far, you're experiencing is to be good. Really

good actually. Will you come back to Hampton Court? I hope so, yes. I

love it. Be a challenge to see how I can change the display. What you

have to keep fundamental is the grasses. I think so. That is it for

today. We will be back here at Hampton Court on Thursday and on

Friday when our special guest Martin Clunes will be taking a closer look

at the garden for dogs that we started tonight's one. I will be

upset you have not bought me to see that garden. We are standing on the

wetlands trust garden. This one one Best show garden. We will also be

revealing rows of the year. Until Thursday, goodbye. Goodbye.

Dip into a summer of amazing live music,