Episode 11 RHS Chelsea Flower Show

Chelsea Flower Show. The event, supported by M&G Investments, is as

addictive this year as it always has been. So this afternoon, we're

asking why visitors and exhibitors alike find it such a floral magnet.

Coming up: Controversial but never boring.

Designer Diarmuid Gavin tells us why he loves to hate Chelsea but can't

keep away. I wasn't worried about gold, I

suppose I wanted to change the world!

Dazzling dianthus. Simon Lycett is here with a tribute to the woman

dubbed Queen of Carnations. And, perennial favourite. Plantsman

Roy Lancaster tells why the judges love a geranium called Rozeanne.

Andy, it might be raining but it will not dampen our spirits. It has

been a wonderful week. As we come to Saturday, I wonder what will happen

to these gardens and plants? The great news is some of these

gardens will have a new life. For examples, one will be rebuilt in

Bristol zoo. Lovely to think it will be rebuilt

somewhere else. And one going to Royal Aberdeen infirmary.

And another will be packaged up to a new therapy centre.

And, of course, if you are lucky to come here on Saturday, the great

sell-off, it becomes a bit mad, you can take home a bit of Chelsea

yourself. Almost everything in the pavilion

seems to be sold off. People taking it home to give it a new life.

This afternoon, we're asking some of Chelsea's regular exhibitors to

share their memories with us. And in the Great Pavilion, those memories

stretch far beyond the British Isles with many overseas growers making

their annual pilgrimage to the show. Ann-Marie Powell's been to meet them

and see what offerings they've When I come to Chelsea, all I have

to do is choose my favourite outfit and jumped on the train. Some

Tobago's 10th year at Chelsea, but this is your first. Getting here

with all of these beautiful plants and flowers, how do you do that?

We go to growers all over the country, they bring it to the

society. It takes us up to three days to clean, box every flower, one

by one. We have two layer everything with tissue, and shredded paper. You

can only pack so many in one layer at a time. Because some of them are

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 53 seconds

quite big, we need bigger boxes. We need to condition them. We have come

over from the Netherlands. How do you manage to bring over these?

is not easy. We had to travel in the night, it is cooler. They come over

by van and the ferry. Then, we tried to London. We build up this whole

display on Sunday. My goodness. The heads are quite heavy. We support

them with a pin. We have to do a lot of things before we can bring them

safely over. The comments we get from the public, they love the

scent. We offer that to all, for free. It is great, they get percent,

the gold medal, and you as well the Great Pavilion with an

unexpected display of some favourite -- summer flowering favourites,

dahlias. Michael, this is a great stand. What

made you come to exhibit here in 2009? In a way, we had done the easy

bit, we had been to Hampton Court and Tatton Park, a more seasonal

time for these flowers. They should not be in flower in the

middle of May. That was the challenge. In part, it was time the

public got to understand dahlias. Even now, we get people saying we

did not think dahlias looked like this. There is an image they have.

We wanted to change that image, to get them reinvented.

Tell me about the history and story you are telling with the different

varieties? What we try to do is follow the

history of dahlias over the 100 years of the Chelsea show. We have

this small species bred at the end of the 19th century, the sort of

thing which would have been here at the first Chelsea show. We then move

on to the most iconic of all the dahlias. This has its lovely dark

foliage, a great favourite for many years. What then happens, of

course, that the war years, they fell out of favour your -- and then

the post war years. The image people have is of grandad on his allotment.

We have tried to reflect that. Then, the issue of dahlias becoming big,

they fell out of love with people. That is my memory from growing up in

the 70s. The reason they fell out of popularity, you will recall that

passion for instant gardening and the perception dahlias were hard

work, they had to be done every winter. That was the reason they

fell out of popularity. Over the last 15 years, we have tried to

reintroduce them. Some of the modern breeding now has gone right the way

back, a 200 Years Circle, to get these much lighter single flowers

which are exciting. Bringing bees back into the garden. Simple

flowers. Exactly. Use them as feature plants. Fantastic, thank

This year, the RHS are asking you to vote for the plant you think

epitomises 100 years of the Chelsea Flower Show. There are ten

short-listed plants to choose from. And, all this week, RHS plantsman

and judge Roy Lancaster has been explaining why each one was chosen.

Today, it's the turn of the plant representing 1993 to 2002, a hardy

the mountains of Kashmir. But I never did see they're a plant such

gardening merit as Rozeanne. It was bred and first shown as a Chelsea is

a bit in 2000. Correction-macro exhibit. It is a plant of rapid

growth which doubles both as ground cover beneath shrubs or to plant in

large containers. It flowers through summer into autumn and at its peak,

it stands out at a distance. It is probably the most popular hardy

geranium of its day. And Roy will be back later in the

programme with the final flower vying for the title, RHS Plant of

the Centenary. We'll also be telling you how you

can vote for your favourite then. Diarmuid Gavin created his first

Chelsea show garden here in 1995. But it was his vibrant city garden

in 1996 that catapulted him to fame. Since then, his unique approach to

contemporary garden design has made him a favourite with the Chelsea

crowds. Who can forget his Sky Garden in 2011 and last year's

Magical Tower Garden? Diarmuid may not have a garden here this year,

but he still visited Chelsea this week to share his show memories, and

give his own take on the show gardens.

In 1995, I was homeless, based in Dublin and I had an improbable dream

of coming to the Chelsea Flower Show and create a garden. I arrived with

a friend, 300 quid in our pockets. We went and bought a wheelbarrow,

two shovels and two spades. We walked up and down Sloane Square. We

started digging. And it is on this very spot we

started digging from soil, moving it over there and creating our vision

of paradise. And I am back 70 years later, and we still have the waters

and the wild in this Best in show garden. This spot in Chelsea is

where I come back to, I like to come back to see what is happening in my

place. In the last couple of years, we've created this. And also this

multilevel garden. Sometimes, you come to Chelsea and you create a

garden which is about your own indulgence, the biggest and the

best, the most showy, to reach for the skies. I wasn't worried about

goals, I was worried, I wanted to challenge the world. More than that,

to make people smile, how they respond. I get an acceptance here

The garden in Chelsea this year that has invaded my headspace and which

will remain with me is this, the National Society for the love

children, it is about what we will leave behind. Childhood memories. It

beautiful scene, a treehouse, foxgloves. Bluebells. It is lazy and

gorgeous and summer. It is not the experience of childhood that many

people have or can associate with. There is the unlucky and the

unlucky. This garden is an important I think this is really wonderful. A

garden from the Potteries full of pottery. Loads of schoolchildren and

people from the hospices got together to create these bricks,

they have all been brought down to London, sprouting with flowers.

Not only a beautiful display at Chelsea, but it has brought the

essence of a city from up north, to London. It is exuberant, it

wonderful structure, framed in this beautiful planting and structure. We

have the passion of one city, brought to another, and I love it.

And let's hope he's back next year with another wonderfully

have become synonymous with wedding buttonholes and garage forecourts.

But back in the 1950s, one Chelsea exhibitor made them a cutting edge.

Grower and flower-arranger Mrs Desmond Underwood won the title

Doyenne of the dianthus because of her passion. So this afternoon, our

favourite florist Simon Lycett is here to show us how to give these

poor relations of the floristry world the majestic make-over they

deserve. Have to say, I quite like carnations. They are a good bang for

their buck, aren't they? They are. If he comes home with one of those,

isn't he in trouble? ! But on the other end of the scale, we have this

beauty. They are magnificent. They are also beautifully fragrant but

you are just getting that gentle smell. Do you use carnations in your

business? We use them for vibrant, architectural and sculptural forms.

They are a brilliant flower. I sneak them in as dianthus and my clients

don't know! I wouldn't know. The pressure is on me to do a fabulous

arrangement today. This week has been a bit dodgy. My creative skills

have been pushed to the limit! What are we going to design today?

are all British grown beautiful pinks from down in the South of

England. What is the secret?They smell magnificent and we are going

to use some silvery grey foliage. She was also into that. Mrs

Underwood wrote more books on her silvery grey foliage than she did on

the dianthus. I am going to put some short stems in. About there, yes.

What is the secret? Give them a good drink? Don't cut them on the nodes.

Cut them in between at an angle. And give them a really good drink before

you strip off the lower leaves. And you will then be able to start

can see some wonderful displays behind me. What you can do... I love

the coloured ones! Yes, they are phenomenal, aren't they? So vibrant!

If I saw that on its own, I wouldn't give it a thank you, but as a

display... Arranged en masse, they just give fabulous, fabulous spots

of colour. Whatever they are, it will be gorgeous. So the key to this

is using as many as you can. The key to using carnations in general for

me is quantity. It's not what you've got, it's what you do with it. They

are relatively inexpensive. So you get a good bang for your buck

because you are able to buy lots for your money and you never die loot

them down. Don't mix them with other things. The boys are going to love

this! In about 20 years, I might finish... On one of those! And you

will be a queen of carnations! you so much. Very proud of that.

They better not be rude later While Chelsea's long-serving

exhibitors have many cherished memories of their time here, one

designer has been been making brand new memories by building her first

ever show garden here. Toby Buckland's been to meet her.

This is your first show garden. What was your experience like? It has

been fantastic, fabulous. We had an amazing team. It was brutally long

but, my goodness, what an experience to be here! Have you had a few

hitches or has it been a roller-coaster? We had a tree at the

end of the garden that was wrapped in a sculpture with a heater at its

abundant skirts, so it was coming into leaf! You always have these

things. You even made a difference to the handrail. It is the

detailing, everything? Yes. We even decided after the first weekend to

have edging along both sides of the brick path, which meant every single

Rick had to be shaped and cut by hand. Extraordinary. -- every single

brick. You've also brought some interesting plants? Yes, this was a

wild collected seed form and it is a fabulous plant. Great textures and

amazing foliage. Yes, one of the best forms as well. Beautiful. And

you've also got this. They will recognise this at home from their

gardens. Yes. It is where we have the circular pool and we wanted to

draw the eye up and into the height. Yes, the conifer is coming back to

Chelsea. Yes. We also have this conifer. It is not a usual one. But

very graceful. And can I congratulate you on your use of

lawn? It is wonderful to see that back at the show, because people can

relate to it. Yes, people see this garden and they can empathise with

it. They say, I want to take that back home and what can I do with

it? Lovely seeing lots of shrubs and different types of plants, whether

it is the marginals all the trees or shrubs. They love it. Thank you so

much. Time now to look at a very special

house plant, called Streptocarpus "Harlequin blue". It is the last of

ten plants shortlisted for the title Chelsea Plant of the Centenary. The

RHS are now asking you to vote which of the ten you feel defines the past

100 years. So here's Roy Lancaster, to explain why this streptocarpus is

When Dibley is exhibited their streptocarpus Harlequin blue, I

could only stand and stare! It is compact and the growth and short

flower stem is one thing, but when the flower colour combination comes

streptocarpus on show, Harlequin blue really captured the public's

imagination as something different and something new. And it was knows

the price at all that Harlequin blue won the very first Chelsea plant of

contenders for the title Chelsea Plant of the Centenary, and they're

obviously winners with the professional plants men like Roy.

But are they popular with our nation of gardeners? It seems they are, and

to prove it, the RHS have enlisted ten amateur enthusiasts to champion

each plant. Each champion was born in the same decade as his or her

This is one of the hardiest plants ever and I can recommend them to any

gardener because they can just do what I do and sit there! This plant

ages gracefully even if you have it for 20 years. It will still be well

worth keeping it. One more big smile! Balloon pins are loved by

bees. Plant them in your garden and they will create a spectacular

rainbow of beautiful colours. A really good value plant. Straight at

the lens! A big smile, thanks. Representing the rhododendron. You

don't have to prune it. You don't have to deadhead it. And that is

about it. It is a great plant for a small garden. A bigger smile than

that! I particularly like this rose because it has memories of my dad.

In fact, I have it as a standard in the middle of the bed and it is a

lovely feature because it flowers so profusely in the summer. When it

comes out in the spring, it is absolutely profuse. It swallows the

plant. The most fantastic plant to your garden. I grew at last year and

even when everything else was being devastated by slugs and snails, it

kept flowering, so it is a fantastic plant to grow. This is well suited

to this because it is colourful all year round. It has a wonderful

tropical look to it, so for somebody like me who likes that, it would

suit your garden. I'm representing this to rainy. It

is low maintenance and also attract many insects, including the

garden's friend the hover fly and the attract live and delicate

butterfly. I like the streptocarpus because it

has a beautiful blue and yellow colour on it. And it is good for

boys and girls to enjoy! And it is an indoor plant, not an outdoor

Now you've seen all ten, the RHS are asking you to vote for your

favourite. To vote, simply visit our website and follow the link. And

we'll be announcing the winner in tomorrow's show on BBC Two at 7pm.

Sadly, we're near the end of our lunchtime coverage for another year,

so let's celebrate a few of # Out of the tree of life I just

picked me a plum. # You came along and everything

started to harm. # Still, it's a real good at the

best is yet to come. # Best is yet to come, and, baby,

won't that be fine? # The best is yet to calm, come the

day you are mine. # Come the day you are mine.

but I had to ask you, at the beginning of the week, I asked you

about gnomes and I asked you, are you for or against? I am getting a

bit bored with it now. They are Two here! Yes, and they are going at

�200. A snip, I think, because they are brilliant! Oh, my goodness, it

hasn't stopped, has it? It is really important we get young people into

water culture because the industry depends on it. I have had a spotty

gnome and people have been buying these badges all week at Chelsea as

well. I haven't got mine yet. You better get yours soon! I am going to

put you on the spot. Next year at Chelsea, will you be trying a

garden? You know, I think I would quite like to. Yes? ! All of the

gardens are a bit straight lines this year. The one behind us is the

only one with any sort of curves, so I am going to campaign for curves!

And are you going to go for gold again? I will give it a shot but I'm

not promising anything! It has been tremendous this week apart from the

rain. The coverage of this year's Chelsea Flower Show isn't over yet.

You can join Alan and Joe at 7.30pm this evening on BBC One, which

includes a special tribute to one of Chelsea's favourite rose-growers,

Peter Beales. There's also an hour-long programme over on BBC Two

at 8pm, when we'll be meeting the champion delphinium growers who have

been exhibiting here for the past 100 years.

And plant hunter Tom Hart-Dyke is over on the Red Button now