Episode 6 RHS Chelsea Flower Show


Episode 6

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For one week of the year, a small pocket of busy Central London

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ferments a scent so strong you'd be forgiven for thinking you'd

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wandered into paradise. Right now the Royal Hospital Grounds are

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bursting with the finest plants, flowers, shrubs and trees on the

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planet. And for the folk that brought them here, today is the

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most important day of the year, if not their career. Because behind

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the blooms and the buzz lies an ultimate prize that every single

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exhibitor in this showground craves... A Chelsea gold. It's

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medals day, and we know who's woken up to the sweet smell of success.

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Growing for gold - we'll be revealing who's wowed the judges in

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the show gardens and Great Pavilion. Why are you weeping? I don't know.

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Chelsea upstaged - actress Stephanie Cole shares her love of

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gardening. And we meet the design duo causing

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a few ripples. We are aiming for emotional engagement.

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Welcome to the RHS Chelsea flower show supported by M&G investments.

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The sunshine has come out and everyone is happy. There is a real

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carnival atmosphere. A have never sat at Chelsea before with a

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fairground helter-skelter behind me. Their skirts are riding up rather

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high. How you had a go yet? I am walking down. He got a special

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award for it, the silver-gilt medal. Most creative garden in the show.

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don't think anybody would dispute that. When the pensioners lined up

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for it, it was quite aside. It's been a rollercoaster of a day

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because emotions run high when medals are at stake. Nicki Chapman

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rose with the sun to share the joy and pain across the showground as

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the RHS results were hand delivered. We are just waiting for the car RHS

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ladies to arrive because this is what it is all about a day - the

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much coveted gold medal. Congratulations.

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Well done. Has it been a really hard Chelsi? Everybody knows it has.

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It's been a nightmare. Thanks. medal. This means a lot, doesn't

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How did you do? Fantastic, we won gold. A congratulations. You got

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cold. Alan will be delighted. can stop winding me up about it now.

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Congratulations - gold medal. done. I love this job. I get all

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the kisses. How do you feel? Elated. We are just heading for the artisan

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gardens now. Howard do you feel? If gutted. Are you? A to be honest,

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What an amazing morning's work, tremendous.

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It's been a bumper year for golds in the Great Pavilion, with 58

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exhibits impressing the judges. And the same goes for the show gardens

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where nine out of the 16 won gold this year. Earlier, Carol and I

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went to take a look at two that couldn't be more different. Jihae

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Hwangs was over the moon when she discovered she had won a medal for

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the demilitarised zone, celebrating the anniversary of the Korean War.

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Some symbolic gardens I can take or leave, but this one really works.

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It is the area of no man's land between two frontiers. It is a

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savage area, but one which is silent. There are also lots of

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buttons sprinkled through the path and the stream, there is Barb Wire,

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but throughout it all, nature is conquering where man can't. The

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stream runs through, linking the areas. Barbed-wire it is there, but

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so are climbing plants, which scramble over them. As you look

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down, you can seashells in the past that have been abandoned. It shows

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that although man might be involved in conflict, nature doesn't

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understand and it grows on regardless. If you looked for a

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common theme in the gold medal gardens in Chelsea, it would be

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attention to detail, and this garden has it in abundance from the

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rusted wire netting to the plans pushing up through the detritus of

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war. It is incredibly moving. This is Adam Frost's rural news

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garden, inspired by the poet John Clare's country walks. It is a

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gold-medal exhibit and it is hardly surprising. There is a wonderful

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This effect has been achieved by the gravelly path, but it is in the

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planting... The garden really gets its character. Plants like this - a

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double version of our meadow buttercup. Here it is living in

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close harmony, mingling with geranium, aquilegias, and one of my

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favourite grassy plants. The whole thing is planted naturally, and

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there are colonies of plants mingling together everywhere. The

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geranium over here, which is a native, it is really pulling in the

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bumble bees because the real purpose of this garden is to supply

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food and shelter for wildlife. It really does that. There is close

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observation of nature here, even though a lot of the plants that are

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used are cultivated plants, and everywhere there are these native

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trees. Things like hazels and beech trees, and wild cherry. Once you

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want to -- what you want to do is enjoy their shade.

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The pressure to produce the next big design in horticulture is

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paramount here at Chelsea. Design team John Warland and Sim Flemons

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may be strangers to Main Avenue but they've made a bit of a name for

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themselves at Hampton Court with their thought provoking and brave

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conceptual gardens. After pocketing four golds, they've now set their

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sights on pushing the boundaries here. We joined them earlier in the

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month in Cornwall, a land of labyrinths and lush tree ferns to

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talk about their very first Chelsea show garden. Labyrinth is extremely

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special, they have been with us for thousands of years. Everyone thinks

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a labyrinth and a maze is the same thing but they are very different.

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The Maze has many choices, but in a labyrinth there is only one way it

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in and one way out. You mind is opening to being part of the ripple.

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It is a place to be safe and to be alone with your thoughts, a place

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of balance. Myself and Sim went to study garden design many years ago.

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It is in the show gardens where we collaborate and create more thought

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provoking, inspiring, challenging and possibly controversial spaces.

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In general it is probably more myself that comes up with a stream

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of crazy ideas, and Sim has good taste, rings it in, puts in the

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fine details and get his hands dirtier than me. John is the one

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with the ideas. My strength is in the plants, how they relate to the

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garden and relate to each other. The main principle of the design is

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the ripple Poole, and how the ripple effect can cause perpetual

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motion, and that is the start of the garden. The garden is designed

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as a personal space, really designed for almost one person to

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enjoy their time. If you are going to walk the labyrinth path, it

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would be alone, it is a place to contemplate and reflect, and

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consider your own actions. Hopefully to create a sense of calm

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where you can really open your mind. We have been lucky enough to come

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to Cornwall to see these beautiful tree ferns, probably some of the

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oldest in the country. When we have been walking through the tree ferns,

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just to stop and look up, it is emotionally resonant and peaceful

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to enjoy the light. It is a sense of nurture and end closure, and

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that is the essence that we would like to translate the Chelsea

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Garden. Where possible with our planting, we aim for the most

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naturalistic style as well. Something you might see here in the

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Lost Gardens, but we are trying to capture that essence and style, and

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it is to create a calming atmosphere within the space.

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main plant is the tree fern, which we have used to give the sense of

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an closure and protection. though we enjoy the filter of light,

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it is the trunks slightly quirky and off-centre, and that is what we

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are looking for. Imperfect nature. It is our first Chelsea and the

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pressure is quite high. We have been told the garden is quite small,

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we have got to do a lot of landscaping and to his exquisite

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which puts a lot of pressure on. The medal is not everything. It is

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always lovely to get a gold medal. We put everything into our gardens,

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but at the end of the day it is actually rising the design that

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gives us pleasure. We are not trying to design what I call a

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vanilla garden, we are hoping to create something of beauty but it

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is about the ripple effect as a whole, and whether the garden goes

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on to create a ripple effect amongst the viewer. An emotional

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engagement, that is what we are hoping for. Here at the centre of

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the labyrinth, a pulsating water. Are you happy with how it came

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together? Pleased with the result, the medal could have been better

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but this garden is all about the message. Silver is... Everyone

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wants gold. It is frustrating. had won four golds at Hampton Court

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so maybe it our expectations were high but it has been a great

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learning curve. Tell me about its transportation here it - does it

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always come as a surprise when it comes together? As a prize, but

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mainly a relief to see the dream come true. It is just a massive

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relief. The ethos from your point of view - what you want people to

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feel when they come inside here? Starting with the labyrinth garden,

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you only walk one way. So it leaves you to the middle? Yes, then you

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can contemplate and watched the ripple effect. What do people think

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to it? They love it. It is a time to think, to contemplate, to

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contemplate an act of kindness. talk about the triumph of winning

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gold, but we have to talk about people who do not win gold. Will

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you come back? Come will definitely come back but we won't compromise

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the way we do it. We like to innovate and provoke thought, and

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debate, and not everyone loves it but we will be back with gusto next

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year. Using the power of flowers to highlight charitable causes through

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horticulture is an innovative way of delivering thought provoking

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messages, and at Chelsea you have the world as an audience. This year,

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to celebrate their 90th birthday, the charity Furzey Gardens has been

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working with Chris Beardshaw to create a garden that celebrates the

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achievements of its learning and disability garden team. Rachel went

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to find out if he and the students Chris, you said that you thought

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this garden wouldn't do well, it wouldn't be liked, because it had

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rhododendrons and azaleas and they are out of fashion and it who won a

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gold medal. Everybody loved it. know. I should have had more faith.

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When was the last time you saw rode ded Rons -- rhododendrons and

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azaleas. It is not just about the big and blousey ones. This one has

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a wonderful fragrance. And more subtle ones. There is one for every

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spot if you have the right soil. Let's hope they are looked on more

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favourably. How have the students responded to the success you've had

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with the garden? The project started last year. We walked around

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the garden, we selected the plant material. Tried to give them an

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idea of the pressures of growing and even just delivering into the

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Chelsea showground. The whole thing is a logistics nightmare. They

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propagated plants for us, tended plants. They helped us plant and

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collect pots and thatch the roof. To then be able to turn around this

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morning and say, we've got a gold medal, breathtaking. Priceless.

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Wonderful. I've heard there are some hidden gems on this garden.

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Where are they? What's hidden? There are a few things. The

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students have been involved in creating the stained glass leaves

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hanging from the roof, but I suspect you are talking about the

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fairies from Furzey. They are secreted around the garden at

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Furzey, so we brought a few of them with us. They hitched a ride. If

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you look at that tree stump, there's a fairy door. The children

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run through the woods and leave a gift outside the fairy doors.

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never thought I would hear the day when I heard you say you believed

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in fairies. I'm a believer! have to hand it to the designers

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who exhibit here for putting themselves through the stress of

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building a Chelsea garden. It's hard going for those who do it year

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after year, never mind a first timer. One man knows this only too

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well. He's usually standing with me commenting on everyone else's

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gardens. This year, after years of deliberating, he's finally designed

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his own. Joe, tell them what you've got. I've got a gold Alan. Excuse

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me... I know! My first Chelsea, and I've done it. You can't rib me

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about it any more. You have got to stop now, because we are equal.

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There is only one way down from here - down. So, are you happy with

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it, that's the thing. Did it turn out the way you wanted to?

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course I'm happy. I'm so happy, I couldn't have dreamed for a better

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turnout. The plants were great. The build was really good. Can I do my

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Oscar-winning speech? No, the people will switch off. I know you

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are grateful. It couldn't have looked better. I Amex at that

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timeic about my garden. The judges often want to know who the garden

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is for. I want people to project themselves into this garden. That

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was one of the feed-back from the judges, I didn't put on my brief it

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was for a young couple, a married couple or whatever. I wanted people

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who come to the show to imagine themselves in this space and

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hopefully think they might want it. If there is bravery about this

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garden it is these arches, which are quite dominant. And bright.

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Brave. Were you determined to push the boundaries? You've got to be

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bold. That's what the Chelsea gardens are about. It is no good

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coming and doing what every we've seen before. I like bold, masculine

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designs. It always looks so harsh with the boulders and the trees,

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but as soon as you put the plants in you have a strong framework to

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soften it up and get movement into it. And in this case you've got a

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gold medal-winning garden. Well done. I taught him all I know. When

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you show a garden at Chelsea, you When you show a garden at Chelsea,

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you have to be prepared for it to be viewed by the world's media and

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to listen to anyone and everyone having an opinion on a design

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you've sweated over for months. But it can be just as daunting showing

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someone your own back garden for the first time. After all, it's a

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personal space. Last week we persuaded actress Stephanie Cole to

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let us take a look over her garden fence and what we found was a

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garden very much like her - utterly I live in a malt house. The main

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bit of which is 17th century and the other bit is 18th century.

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About a third of the garden is wild, then probably just under a third is

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vegetable and fruit. The rest is lawn and flower beds. I have a

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swimming pool. Through this arch we come into my wild bit of my garden.

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When it's sunny it's wonderful lying here in the dappled shade.

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The birds come into the trees and they don't know you're there and

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you can watch them very quietly as they go about their business. I

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feel as if I'm part of their world when I'm quietly here lying on my

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hammock or just sitting. Passing my log pile, specifically for bugs and

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insects of all sorts, this is the hawthorn, which grows cheek by jowl

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with the white beam. They are both wonderful British plants. Look how

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beautiful that is. All the blue of the forget-me-nots. They are so

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vigorous. You pull them up and there they are next year looking

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Albright and glorious just at a time when you need it. For me it is

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a joy and delight. This is the sort of fruit and veg section. You can

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see two pears and a lovely Victoria plum, apples, fig free, rhubarb.

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I've just seen how well my gooseberries are doing, and

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raspberries. And down there strawberries. My mother was a great

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gardener, which tends to occasionally put you off, but I did

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love helping with picking the fruit. So I just feel I have an affinity

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with fruit trees. This is my magic apple tree. It's very, very old.

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It's two apple trees. Obviously the rootstock has grown from one of

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them. This side is a very old sheep's head apple. You know what a

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green pepper looks like. That's what they look like but slightly

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paler green. The other side has tiny deep red, very sweet apples. I

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have no idea what sort they are but I love them. In the spring hate a

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wonderful hat of clematis.S that dies back the apple blossom comes.

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I adore it. It's my pride and joy. What am I hoping to see at Chelsea

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this year? Well, all of the obvious things, but I do have my problem

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areas. Here we have one of the big problems in my garden. There was

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this huge willow. This gradually over the winter rotted. The nettles,

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the sweet nettles and cowslips and things love it, but nothing else. I

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don't know what to do here. I'm very keen to get ideas about that.

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Both plant ideas and structural ideas. We now come to the next

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slightly smaller problem area. For the first few years I had frogs and

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all sorts of things, but now I don't quite know what I've done

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wrong. It is a bit niminy isn't it, a bit niminy piminy. Again Chelsea

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will give me great ideas I think. And I'm determined to keep all my

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nettles and dandy lions, because they're so beautiful when they come

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out. I love leaving things to come up where they grow naturally. If

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they like growing there, that's great by me, because they are all

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Stephanie, this garden is very clearly very important to you, an

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important part of your life. It is actually. I really love it. I

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particularly love the wild part, because when I was a child, I was

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brought up in the country, and I remember learning at a very young

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age the name of wild flowers, like herb Robert and things like that,

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and that wonderful smell. God, I love that smell. Some people hate

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it. I know they do, but the scents of Devon covered lanes, I love it.

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I've got piles of log where is all The Beatles and things can go. It

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is really important to me and I love it. Is it important in your

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work that you have that to go back to? Actors are always away a lot.

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know, and that's one of the problems. When I get back I do go

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into panic mode, as the task seems to enormous. Die have someone to

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help me, thank God, or it would be a wilderness. Sometimes I have to

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admit to you and the viewers that I do suspect myself of not having

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green fingers but black thumbs. I will put things in lovingly and

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with great care. They might flourish for a while and then

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suddenly... But I don't despair. If they are not dead I will try and

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coax them back into life. I'm not a good gardener. But you love it,

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that's the important thing. I do love it. A gardener said to me

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yesterday, he said, "I've realised the difference between an expensive

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plant and a weed." I said, "What's that?" And he said if you pull up

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back whereas a weed will. I've seen you in Coronation Street. Are you

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having a ball? I've been very lucky in my 50-odd years but Corrie is

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the icing on the cake. Everybody is, I love them. I love them to bits.

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And my character is so beautifully written for. I have a ball. It is a

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bit, I was going to say something I don't think I can say, but very

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fast working. KBS I think we call it. That's the one. It is faction,

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but that's OK, because something strange happens, and you will

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understand this, as you love acting. When you have a long rehearsal time,

:26:28.:26:36.

that's what we all want but with Corrie it is very fast. What

:26:36.:26:39.

happens, particularly if you have had a lot of experience, it happens

:26:39.:26:44.

in the back part of your brain, so you come out with it like that and

:26:44.:26:49.

actually it's better. Chris per. Extraordinary. We let you loose on

:26:50.:26:53.

this showground here with all the goodies. We will find out later

:26:54.:26:59.

exactly what you got out of it. For now, Stephanie Cole, thank you.

:26:59.:27:02.

Bless you. Whilst many gasp at the grand

:27:02.:27:05.

garden designs outside, the die- hard plantsmen and women head

:27:05.:27:08.

straight for the Great Pavilion to gush over the floral glories. It's

:27:08.:27:10.

the size of two football pitches and full of premiership plantsmen

:27:10.:27:14.

and women who, like everyone else on Medals Day, are eager to impress

:27:14.:27:19.

the judges. Some of them have been exhibiting here for decades and can

:27:19.:27:21.

boast a gold every year, because theyve become the masters at

:27:21.:27:31.
:27:31.:27:42.

Blackmore and Langdon have been exhibiting at Chelsea since the

:27:42.:27:47.

show first began in 1913. That makes next year their centenary.

:27:47.:27:51.

This year has been especially difficult, with cold temperatures

:27:51.:27:55.

and lowlight levels, but nonetheless their plants are as

:27:55.:27:59.

good as ever. In fact they've all been given a sort of freshness just

:27:59.:28:09.
:28:09.:28:10.

by the lateness of the season. Avon Bulbs have been coming here

:28:10.:28:15.

for 33 years and during that time they've won more than 25 gold

:28:15.:28:19.

medals. One of the best things about their stand is this

:28:19.:28:25.

incredible combinations that they make. I really love this one. These

:28:25.:28:31.

big blue spikes of camassia, in contrast with that orange tulip.

:28:31.:28:36.

Not only does it have this immensely graceful shape but it

:28:36.:28:46.
:28:46.:29:04.

also has perfume. Sometimes it is all about shade.

:29:04.:29:10.

These intimate beautiful woodland areas, crammed full with delicious

:29:11.:29:16.

plants. These are woodland edges recreate it, thick with some of the

:29:16.:29:21.

most special plants you could ever wish to meet. One of them in

:29:21.:29:22.

wish to meet. One of them in wish to meet. One of them in

:29:22.:29:27.

particular - this orchid. In the winter it doesn't like to paddle,

:29:27.:29:32.

so well-drained soil, but in the summer it means loads of water.

:29:32.:29:42.
:29:42.:29:52.

Difficult conditions to recreate What a wonderful job they have made

:29:52.:29:59.

of this. It is a special place where you display your most

:29:59.:30:09.
:30:09.:30:13.

important possessions. In pride of place is this gorgeous PNA. --

:30:13.:30:21.

peony. This is one of the most inspiring stands I have ever seen.

:30:21.:30:27.

The Great Pavilion, it is all about reputation and achieving floral

:30:27.:30:33.

perfection. That is something that Christine Skelmersdale off

:30:33.:30:37.

Broadleigh Gardens knows all about. She has been exhibiting here for 39

:30:37.:30:41.

years and she has had a lot to do with the development of this world

:30:41.:30:51.
:30:51.:30:58.

class floral marquee. But this year is to be her last. We caught up

:30:58.:31:02.

with her as she prepared for her floral finale to reflect on a life

:31:02.:31:11.

of beautiful bulb growing. 1972 was a momentous year, a year of huge

:31:11.:31:18.

change. We got married in 1972 and came here to live. We start of the

:31:18.:31:28.
:31:28.:31:33.

nursery knowing absolutely nothing about bulbs. We ploughed the field

:31:33.:31:39.

and planted daffodils are out here, so for years we had daffodils

:31:39.:31:49.
:31:49.:31:49.

rotating outside the front of the house. In May that year I was taken

:31:49.:31:53.

to my first Chelsea Flower Show. Things were very different then.

:31:53.:31:58.

You had to wear a hat and gloves, you're photographed, and little to

:31:58.:32:02.

do I realise that next year I would be doing my first Chelsea Flower

:32:02.:32:08.

Show. When we started, it was very easy. You grew the plants in pots

:32:08.:32:14.

and brought and displayed them in their containers, or you did cut

:32:14.:32:20.

flowers. Now it is so much more difficult. You have props, you have

:32:20.:32:24.

got to try and make it look like a garden, you have got to cover the

:32:24.:32:30.

pots and hide them. You are judged not so much on the plans as

:32:30.:32:38.

artistic designs. One of the big decisions was to dispose of the old

:32:38.:32:44.

Marquee. It creaked and groaned like a sailing ship. It was full of

:32:44.:32:48.

tent poles holding it up so you never quite knew where that would

:32:48.:32:54.

turn up in your stand. There was limited height, but it was also hot

:32:54.:33:00.

and dark. We had to make a decision, and so we went with this wonderful

:33:00.:33:06.

new marquee, which we now call the pavilion. I am sitting on a small

:33:06.:33:11.

piece of the old one now. I have some lovely cushions made from the

:33:11.:33:20.

canvas of the old Marquee so it is still with me. Although we don't

:33:20.:33:26.

normally have themes, we felt that this year, being my 40th Chelsea,

:33:26.:33:30.

and my ruby wedding, we should have a coloured theme. On one side of

:33:30.:33:36.

the stand we have gone for Ruby, so we are not going for gold, we are

:33:36.:33:43.

going for Ruby this year. We have supporting plants, and coming

:33:43.:33:48.

through we will have a whole host of purple alliums and a mass of

:33:48.:33:54.

different coloured Ruby juleps thought every shape, think through

:33:54.:33:58.

to read, and pink cut daffodils, and we have been very fortunate

:33:58.:34:08.
:34:08.:34:15.

this year to have a wonderful new enemy. -- anenome. I have no idea

:34:15.:34:22.

how I will feel when I finish this, my last Chelsea. I will miss the

:34:22.:34:28.

wonderful smell, the adrenalin rush, the panic of trying to finish and

:34:28.:34:33.

get it all done on time. I suspect when we walk out the door at the

:34:33.:34:39.

end I will feel sad and tearful. It is the end of an era, but there are

:34:39.:34:44.

so many other things I want to do and this will free up my time to do

:34:44.:34:54.
:34:54.:34:56.

other exciting things. Are you happy with your 40th

:34:56.:35:01.

Chelsea display? Yes, I really think I will go out on a big one. I

:35:01.:35:06.

was worried that I have been planning it three years, but I

:35:06.:35:11.

think we have achieved it. No anti- climax here, everyone is enthralled

:35:12.:35:20.

with it. It is as good quality as I have ever seen you produce. It is

:35:20.:35:23.

certainly very colourful. The tulips, finally, I didn't think

:35:23.:35:28.

they would make it but they have come to perfection on the day.

:35:28.:35:32.

Aren't you going to feel a bit strange not coming to Chelsea any

:35:32.:35:40.

more? Yes, I will miss you and my fellow exhibitors. I will miss

:35:40.:35:50.
:35:50.:35:50.

meeting the customers. I won't miss the three am panic, wondering what

:35:50.:35:59.

the weather will be like. I have turned the lights on, I have turned

:35:59.:36:04.

the lights off, I have watered them - I won't miss that. What will you

:36:04.:36:11.

be doing in the future? preparing pops for Chelsea, I will

:36:11.:36:17.

have time to grow miniature daffodils. I want to grow my other

:36:17.:36:27.
:36:27.:36:35.

passion, these peonies. I want to raise a lot more of these from seed.

:36:35.:36:40.

Your nursery in Devon is not as warm as you might think, is it?

:36:40.:36:46.

the temperature is five degrees below what it might be here. And do

:36:46.:36:51.

won a gold. How confident were you when you came? I never believed we

:36:51.:36:56.

would be standing here with the gold medal, just unbelievable.

:36:56.:37:00.

super collection of primulas and aquilegias. Have the remarks being

:37:00.:37:05.

good? The have been positive, everyone has loved it. We have been

:37:05.:37:09.

so pleased to get this amount of colour and the exceptional weather

:37:10.:37:16.

we have had. My congratulations, you deserve your gold. Thank you.

:37:16.:37:19.

There's still plenty to come from the RHS Chelsea flower show

:37:19.:37:25.

supported by M&G investments. Coming up: Best man's speech - we

:37:26.:37:31.

talk to the designer whose scooped the highest prize in horticulture.

:37:31.:37:34.

Waiting for Chelsea - Stephanie Cole asks the best minds in

:37:34.:37:40.

gardening for some inspirational advice. This is where I need to be.

:37:40.:37:46.

The pond, a great problem area in my garden, and I will be asking

:37:46.:37:56.
:37:56.:37:58.

lender to guide me. -- asking Linda. And Jubilee

:37:58.:38:01.

jubilation - we talk to the nursery that's scooped the Diamond Jubillee

:38:01.:38:03.

Award in the Great Pavilion. For those looking for inspiration

:38:03.:38:06.

in their modest patch, there's the small garden category. They may be

:38:06.:38:09.

Main Avenue show gardens in miniature, but they're big on

:38:09.:38:12.

inspiration and ideas. This year there are 17 of them competing for

:38:12.:38:15.

medals and they're split into two categories - fresh and artisan.

:38:15.:38:18.

Earlier, Toby Buckland went to take a look at who had caught the judges

:38:18.:38:25.

eye and why. If you go to the woods at the back

:38:25.:38:29.

of the Showground today, you are in for a very pleasant surprise. That

:38:29.:38:34.

is because this is the home of the artisan gardens, a relatively new

:38:34.:38:40.

category here, and one that is based on sustainability and natural

:38:41.:38:50.

materials. There are eight gardens this year, and two got gold. One of

:38:50.:38:57.

the winners is the Bronte Yorkshire garden and I can see why. The hard

:38:57.:39:01.

landscaping is good and the naturalistic planting is lovely and

:39:01.:39:05.

soft but it is not those things that give this garden the X Factor.

:39:05.:39:11.

It is the fact it captures the spirit of the Yorkshire moors.

:39:11.:39:16.

Sometimes soft, sometimes dangerous. The Gothic wall paints a picture of

:39:16.:39:23.

the gloom in the Bronte books and the window gives the whole patch

:39:23.:39:33.
:39:33.:39:34.

and uncomfortable feel. The second was Ishihara's garden, who were

:39:34.:39:41.

also won Best In Category. The best at his own garden. Thanks very

:39:41.:39:51.
:39:51.:40:03.

TRANSLATION: Last year the tsunami and the earthquake destroyed

:40:03.:40:06.

everything and he was very pleased to get the chance to recreate this

:40:06.:40:16.
:40:16.:40:18.

beautiful scenery. Andrew, you were the chairman of the assessors who

:40:18.:40:23.

judged this garden. Why do think it is the best in the category? At the

:40:23.:40:27.

reason it stands head and shoulders above the other gardens is that it

:40:27.:40:32.

has this amazing flow around the garden. Your eyes are drawn to the

:40:32.:40:36.

different elements of it and the devil is in the detail. We have

:40:36.:40:41.

these incredible details, like the Stones and the Morse so you get the

:40:41.:40:51.
:40:51.:41:00.

feeling this garden has always -- stones and moss. The remaining nine

:41:00.:41:03.

gardens were competing in a brand new category this year called Fresh,

:41:03.:41:06.

and it's a little controversial as the RHS ripped up the rule book and

:41:06.:41:09.

told the designers anything goes. The controversy doesn't end there,

:41:09.:41:12.

because only one won gold and Best In Category, and it went to Tony

:41:12.:41:15.

Smith with his "Green With" garden. What makes this garden better than

:41:15.:41:22.

the others? It is all about envy and desire. It really draws you win,

:41:23.:41:27.

it is an amazing garden that brings you win it as an individual, even

:41:28.:41:36.

if there are 100 people standing round the I'd -- outside. Did the

:41:36.:41:40.

other gardens not deliver for the judges? We have a lot of new

:41:40.:41:44.

exhibitors so it is only ever going to get better.

:41:44.:41:46.

Earlier we chatted to the wonderful Stephanie Cole about her passion

:41:47.:41:50.

for gardening. She's a huge fan of Chelsea and wanted to use her trip

:41:50.:41:53.

to get some advice for solving some dilemmas in her own garden. We

:41:53.:41:56.

followed her round as she took picked the horticultural brains of

:41:56.:42:06.
:42:06.:42:08.

the floral folk here, who really do know what they're talking about.

:42:08.:42:14.

That is what I love about Chelsea, this wonderful smile and I could

:42:14.:42:22.

see exactly why the glory of all those roses. Look, aren't they

:42:22.:42:32.
:42:32.:42:34.

beautiful. The deep red and the White, beautiful. Now, that is just

:42:34.:42:39.

what I am looking for. They look as if they have just arrived together

:42:39.:42:49.
:42:49.:42:50.

by pure chance. This is a rather difficult place in my garden. Now,

:42:50.:42:58.

this is where I need to be. The pond, a difficult area in my garden,

:42:58.:43:05.

and I will be asking Linda to guide me. So unlike the zebra grass, nice

:43:05.:43:15.
:43:15.:43:15.

and bright, and to complement that, this has an arrangement that gives

:43:15.:43:25.
:43:25.:43:38.

you the lovely strong shape. And the miniature Equus C -- Equisetum.

:43:38.:43:44.

This is my kind of garden, lovely and organic. I can actually sit

:43:44.:43:49.

down. Seriously, this is a wonderful garden. I grew this in my

:43:49.:43:54.

garden for a few years and it disappeared, I don't know why. It

:43:54.:43:59.

is very breathtaking, moving actually. I just think this is the

:43:59.:44:04.

most beautiful garden, and it's so deserves its prize. It really does.

:44:04.:44:10.

I love the man who created it and I'm going to meet him. Joe,

:44:10.:44:15.

congratulations. Thanks. It is fabulous. When have you got time to

:44:15.:44:22.

do my garden? Now - I am pretty pushed for time. I would love to do.

:44:22.:44:28.

I have had the most wonderful day. The sun is shining, I have seen

:44:28.:44:35.

some glorious gardens, it has been Celebrities flock here every year

:44:35.:44:39.

like bees to nectar. Who'd have thought gardening could create such

:44:39.:44:43.

glamour? It all adds to the magic of Chelsea, because this is the

:44:43.:44:47.

show that has the power to create household names, and today a new

:44:47.:44:55.

one has been added. A star is born. Sarah, welcome. With your Daily

:44:55.:44:59.

Telegraph Garden. Tell me about the history of this. What have you done

:44:59.:45:04.

before in terms of show gardens and what have you won in terms of

:45:04.:45:10.

medals? My first show garden was at Hampton Court Palace and I wonder a

:45:10.:45:14.

gold, which I was completely shocked and amazed at. When was

:45:14.:45:22.

that? In 2006. Gosh! I came to Chelsea in 2007-08 with smaller

:45:22.:45:26.

gardens and won silver. So now this is a big garden on Main Avenue and

:45:26.:45:32.

a big prize. Did you expect it? I've had a really amazing team

:45:32.:45:38.

behind me, Crocus. And also the Telegraph let you design what you

:45:38.:45:43.

wanted to. Designers always say this. If they give you a brief it

:45:43.:45:47.

is con Tricketted but if they let you have your head it's wonderful.

:45:47.:45:51.

So from your point of view freedom was wonderful? Absolutely. They

:45:51.:45:56.

could sense I was toning myself down for Chelsea and they said, "Go

:45:56.:46:04.

with it." You need that support, that encouragement. Do you like it?

:46:04.:46:10.

I do. I like, I feel like I'm starting to get to know it. It

:46:10.:46:14.

sounds ridiculous when you visualise nit your head, but the

:46:14.:46:19.

light is changing, we've had sun, and the plants are opening. And by

:46:19.:46:23.

the end of the week it's a garden. Many congratulations. Thank you.

:46:23.:46:26.

You can find out more about the thinking behind Sarah's design over

:46:26.:46:36.
:46:36.:46:39.

on the Red Button, but don't press it yet. Wait until after the show.

:46:40.:46:42.

Now, Medals Day can be joyous or heartbreaking for designers. It

:46:42.:46:46.

takes months, even years of work to get here, never mind the added

:46:46.:46:49.

pressure of winning a medal, so you'd be forgiven for taking a

:46:49.:46:52.

break. Arne Maynard's break has lasted 12 years. Carol went to find

:46:52.:47:00.

out what it was like for him to be back. You've won two golds.

:47:00.:47:03.

Absolutely brilliant. Thank you very much. Very well deserved. I

:47:03.:47:07.

have to say straight away that what I love about the garden is the

:47:07.:47:13.

planting. It is so accomplished and it is so clever. Yet it looks

:47:13.:47:16.

completely natural. What I wanted to do with the planting, I wanted

:47:16.:47:19.

it to feel like a garden that everyone could take away a little

:47:19.:47:24.

bit from it. I wanted a garden that was created by plants and planted

:47:24.:47:28.

material, so we had the copper beech trees which formed the axis

:47:28.:47:32.

in the garden. They have become a beautiful backdrop with all the

:47:32.:47:37.

planting, with the roses and the perennials and the delphiniums. And

:47:37.:47:42.

we've got the opium poppies and cornflowers to. Me that's a real

:47:43.:47:48.

garden, a garden where things do migrate around. Exactly, because

:47:48.:47:51.

some of it looks almost accidental. That's the intention. But very

:47:51.:47:57.

difficult to get. The colouring is so subtle but it works so

:47:57.:48:03.

brilliantly. I love all the pinks and whites. And big accents of dark

:48:03.:48:08.

colours. The roses really provide that accent. What I'm particularly

:48:08.:48:13.

pleased about is the way I've trained them, on these hazel domes.

:48:13.:48:19.

That's what die in my garden and clients' gardens. We've had used a

:48:19.:48:28.

number of varieties. That sharp pink compliments the dusky look.

:48:28.:48:36.

is very sculptural and signature Arne Maynard, are we going to see

:48:36.:48:41.

another one next year? Maybe not next year. Between now and ten

:48:41.:48:47.

years. I hope so. There are so many facets in Arne

:48:47.:48:51.

Maynard's garden, you can lose yourself. Good for him.

:48:51.:48:53.

Over in the Great Pavilion, the gold medal-winning nurseries are

:48:53.:48:56.

competing to win their equivalent of Best in Show. And this year the

:48:56.:48:59.

presentation has become all the more regal. Rachel went to

:48:59.:49:06.

investigate. Here in the Great Pavilion from now on exhibits are

:49:06.:49:11.

not only competing for gold but to be crowned with the equivalent of

:49:11.:49:16.

Best in Show. This is the Diamond Jubilee Award and it's renamed to

:49:16.:49:20.

coincide with the Jubilee. The winner is literally royally

:49:20.:49:23.

anointed, as the prist idgeous prize is presented by the Queen

:49:23.:49:28.

herself. But how do you you begin to choose who should win? The

:49:28.:49:34.

person with all the answers RHS judge Jekka McVicar. What's it that

:49:34.:49:39.

the judges are looking for? This beautiful display by HW Hyde has

:49:39.:49:45.

got everything right. It is the most wonderful specimens, and a

:49:45.:49:51.

huge variety. Attention to detail with the labels and all the edging.

:49:51.:49:57.

And that is what makes it just superb. I must say, Richard, it

:49:57.:50:02.

does look absolutely immaculate to me. What does this mean to you as a

:50:02.:50:06.

nursery? We have a vision of what it should look like. It worked out

:50:06.:50:12.

exactly how it worked in our heads, so for nursery, for us, the

:50:12.:50:17.

exhibitor, this is the pinnacle. Have you won Best in Show before,

:50:17.:50:22.

or anything similar at Chelsea? at Chelsea. It is really exciting.

:50:22.:50:25.

I know your sister picked up the award from the Queen herself. Got

:50:25.:50:31.

that feel like? Amazing, she said. Many congratulations. It's the most

:50:31.:50:35.

beautiful display. I can't fault it. Clearly the judges couldn't either.

:50:35.:50:38.

Congratulations. Thank you very much.

:50:38.:50:45.

A bit of a thrill there meeting the Queen. If she was here right now I

:50:45.:50:51.

think Her Majesty could approve of this corgi? You do approve?

:50:51.:51:01.
:51:01.:51:01.

haven't made up my mind. Anne Brook made it to meet the Queen. It is

:51:01.:51:05.

made of chrysanthemums with black ris for its eyes. Have you seen

:51:05.:51:12.

what the nose is made of? Pussy willow. I expect it to roll over at

:51:12.:51:21.

any moment. And tiblg its tummy. It has -- and tickle its tummy. It has

:51:21.:51:29.

a bowl of blueberries and a bone. Peter Dowell's L'Occitane garden

:51:29.:51:39.
:51:39.:51:44.

and Andy Sturgeon's garden for M&G Investments. This weather is

:51:44.:51:50.

exactly what's needed to bring out all those scents and perfumes. It

:51:50.:51:55.

is a lot cheaper than a Mediterranean holiday. And you have

:51:55.:52:05.
:52:05.:52:07.

no for passport control. Andy has won a few at Chelsea, it is still a

:52:08.:52:14.

pressure. I think there's a certain amount of relief, but also surely

:52:14.:52:19.

this exhilaration, he looked happy to me today, and no wonder. To

:52:19.:52:23.

maintain that kind of standard year after year and always do something

:52:23.:52:31.

new. I love that bronzey sculpture, thatlb Serpentine slithering

:52:31.:52:37.

through the water. I love the stone. To be brave and push the boat out

:52:37.:52:42.

financially, to have these big pieces. Smooth stone is wonderful

:52:42.:52:47.

in a garden, it gives peace and certainty. It is lovely. When you

:52:47.:52:55.

want to be cool, it is lovely to have a lie down. The RHS may be

:52:55.:52:58.

judge and jury medal-wise but it is a subjective matter and you may

:52:58.:53:02.

have your own opinion of who was robbed and who deserved gold. You

:53:02.:53:06.

can vote for your favourite show garden in the RHS People's Choice

:53:06.:53:10.

Award. We'll be looking at all the show gardens across the week to.

:53:10.:53:14.

Take part, go to our website - bbc.co.uk/chelsea.

:53:14.:53:20.

Follow the link to the RHS peel's award. We'll announce the result on

:53:20.:53:28.

Saturday on BBC Two at 7.15 pm. Every year the RHS judges choose

:53:28.:53:32.

one medal-winning show garden to award the Best in Show award. This

:53:32.:53:36.

is the highest prize and receiving it can take careers to the next

:53:36.:53:41.

level. Earlier the President of the RHS, Elizabeth Banks, presented the

:53:41.:53:47.

trophy to this year's winner. have got the greatest pleasure to

:53:47.:53:51.

give you, to the Brewin Dolphin garden, the Best in Show award.

:53:51.:53:55.

Thank you very much. It is just wonderful and so many

:53:55.:53:59.

congratulations to you and actually all the team.

:53:59.:54:07.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE Hooray! This is fabulous. Absolutely fabulous.

:54:07.:54:13.

It is a little light the Cup Final. This is more useful. You can put

:54:13.:54:17.

port in there. Two years running Best in Show. Is that a record?

:54:17.:54:23.

don't know many others two years Best in Show. I really done. It is

:54:23.:54:27.

quite something. I hate that question, how you do feel? But I

:54:27.:54:32.

have to ask you. It's genuinely overwhelming. I was going to put a

:54:32.:54:38.

bet on someone else yesterday. us through what you were trying to

:54:38.:54:42.

do here. Brewin Dolphin, 250 th year of one of the founding members

:54:42.:54:46.

of the London Stock Exchange. gave me an open brief but we

:54:46.:54:50.

decided on something that was traditional with a contemporary

:54:51.:54:58.

twist, so we can reference history but bring it up to the present day.

:54:59.:55:05.

This wellhead became our focal point. It is used in a contemporary

:55:05.:55:10.

context. You have used topiary. Each year there'll be a Zeitgeist,

:55:10.:55:17.

a mood of the moment, and it will pop up in several gardens. We get

:55:17.:55:22.

desperate thinking what hasn't been done for several years. Where did

:55:22.:55:26.

they come from? A nursery in Belgium. They've got so many

:55:26.:55:34.

presence. The garden is reflecting that 250 years. 250 year agos ago

:55:34.:55:39.

topiary was being ripped out by people like "Capability" Brown.

:55:39.:55:44.

can celebrate it now with a nice glass of port. Cleve West, best

:55:44.:55:51.

garden in show. APPLAUSE It's been a momentous day here in

:55:51.:55:55.

the Royal Hospital ground. We've had a fair share of laughter and

:55:55.:56:00.

tears. The sun has come out. Nothing can bring out a smile quite

:56:00.:56:10.
:56:10.:56:10.

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 53 seconds

:56:10.:57:03.

SONG: You Can Get It If You Really One of the great things the sun has

:57:03.:57:07.

done is bring out all the flowers that have been held back so far.

:57:07.:57:11.

And what's more in the show gardens the judges haven't penalised people

:57:11.:57:16.

for the fact that that knowledge this season, for the fact that

:57:16.:57:20.

things were backward. It is a really good sign. It's a

:57:20.:57:25.

recognition of the fact that gardening is all about cycle and

:57:25.:57:29.

change. It is not saying alright we'll let you off this year,

:57:29.:57:34.

because they are. It is being realistic that the sun is bringing

:57:34.:57:38.

them all out. Opening the flowers and making them brighter. That's

:57:38.:57:41.

all for tonight's Chelsea. Nicki Chapman and Toby Buckland will be

:57:41.:57:44.

back tomorrow at 12.30pm on BBC One. I'll be joined by Chris Beardshaw

:57:44.:57:48.

tomorrow night on BBC One and BBC Two for a bumper 90 minutes of

:57:48.:57:51.

Chelsea coverage. If you simply can't wait, you can press the red

:57:51.:57:54.

button straight after the show to find out more about Sarah Price's

:57:54.:57:56.

design inspiration. And join Tom Hart Dyke, who's looking at the

:57:57.:57:59.

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