:00:09. > :00:13.Before we start today's show, we want to say our thoughts are with
:00:14. > :00:17.the families and victims of those caught up in last night's horrific
:00:18. > :00:20.attack. In the next 45 minutes, we hope to bring a little bit of light
:00:21. > :00:49.and calm on such a sad day. Hello and welcome back to the RHS
:00:50. > :00:55.Chelsea Flower Show. After all the stunts,
:00:56. > :00:59.celebrities and the Queen's visit yesterday you'd think today would be
:01:00. > :01:05.a day to take a breath and relax. We'll be looking at those
:01:06. > :01:09.all-important results in more detail We'll also be catching up
:01:10. > :01:13.with Carol Klein for her global tour And I will be chatting to none other
:01:14. > :01:21.than Anneka Rice on the Radio 2 colour cutting garden
:01:22. > :01:25.which she is championing this year. And don't forget we want to hear
:01:26. > :01:28.from you - simply tweet us your thoughts and views
:01:29. > :01:40.on today's results on #BBC Chelsea. All that and much more to come
:01:41. > :01:43.from the Chelsea Flower Show, an event supported by M
:01:44. > :01:45.Investments. But first at 7 am sharp this
:01:46. > :01:48.morning, James and I joined the RHS for the annual adrenaline filled
:01:49. > :02:00.medal's dash - and as always It's two minutes to seven and the
:02:01. > :02:04.day the designers have been waiting for. You can just feel the tension
:02:05. > :02:10.as you walk down Main Avenue. This is it. Can't wait any longer.
:02:11. > :02:19.That gentleman there is Darren Hawkes and he built a garden here
:02:20. > :02:25.back in 2015 and won a gold for it. Big smile, big hug. Looks like a
:02:26. > :02:38.gold. Massive relief. I've worked really, really hard for this one
:02:39. > :02:46.and... I can hear it in your voice. I wonder if silver-gilt will run
:02:47. > :02:51.through here. This is the first large one on Main Avenue. Here is
:02:52. > :02:57.your medal. Thank you. Hopefully we'll be back next year to win a
:02:58. > :03:07.gold. We hope you will. He's won six golds in total. This year, it looks
:03:08. > :03:11.like he's won a silver-gilt. We are so thrilled. Looking forward to
:03:12. > :03:15.sharing our garden with everybody. Here we go. Andrew Wilson and Gavin
:03:16. > :03:38.McWilliam. Won a gold. Charlotte Harris has been working
:03:39. > :03:43.behind-the-scenes to help others get their golds. Show everybody at home
:03:44. > :03:52.what you've got. How do you feel? Absolutely delighted. James is new
:03:53. > :03:55.to Chelsea, but in that time he's won three golds, four golds... Huhne
:03:56. > :04:01.congratulations. Thank you very much. That's half of all the large
:04:02. > :04:05.show gardens winning gold here. Is it a bit early for champagne?
:04:06. > :04:08.It's exhausting just witnessing the awards being dished out - I can
:04:09. > :04:11.only imagine what it must feel like to be a show garden
:04:12. > :04:16.Especially when the margins between winning a Gold and Silver
:04:17. > :04:22.You've been there haven't you James - what do
:04:23. > :04:25.you think about the results on Main Avenue this year?
:04:26. > :04:30.The first thing is sleep deprivation. These people will have
:04:31. > :04:34.not slept all night. It can be a point difference between a medal
:04:35. > :04:38.category, so it could be between a silver-gilt and a gold. That means
:04:39. > :04:42.so much, not just to the designer, but sponsors and all the team who've
:04:43. > :04:47.planted them. There's so much pressure that's on their shoulders.
:04:48. > :04:53.We have an incredible array of show gardens here, not all being judged.
:04:54. > :04:57.Eight if total, four got golds. Do you think it's been harder, easier
:04:58. > :05:01.or the same? It's about the same every year. It doesn't matter who is
:05:02. > :05:06.next to you, each is judged on their own merit. I love to see new
:05:07. > :05:12.designers and their shaky emotional state and how they are genuinely so
:05:13. > :05:16.passionate. Any surprises for you? Chris's garden was a huge surprise,
:05:17. > :05:24.I mean that is a spectacular garden and he pulls it out the bag every
:05:25. > :05:30.year, he's Chelsea's golden boy. He got silver-gilt. The judges judged
:05:31. > :05:36.in a different way from people like me that are keen gardeners. I could
:05:37. > :05:40.take that home! The person I was so pleased for was Charlotte Harris,
:05:41. > :05:44.the Royal Bank of Canada. I would like to emulate little parts of it
:05:45. > :05:47.at home? I nearly cried when I saw her crying. So many tears and
:05:48. > :05:50.shaking, shows how much is at stake. Last night we paid a visit
:05:51. > :05:53.to the Royal Bank of Canada garden garden before the medals
:05:54. > :05:55.were awarded today Toby Buckland's takes a closer look at why he thinks
:05:56. > :06:09.they hit the golden jackpot Not only has Charlotte Harris got a
:06:10. > :06:14.very fine dress sense, she's also produced one of the finest gardens
:06:15. > :06:19.I've ever been on here at Chelsea. I mean this patio, it's so cool, it's
:06:20. > :06:23.gorgeous. Who wouldn't want to spend time in summer sitting on here
:06:24. > :06:30.looking out of this magnificent landscape? The real genius, the
:06:31. > :06:34.genius of this garden is that she's captured something very big in a
:06:35. > :06:43.little postcard sized garden here at Chelsea. The forests of Canada. The
:06:44. > :06:47.far northern forests stretch around the planet like a woolly green scarf
:06:48. > :06:52.through Siberia, Alaska and Canada and they are magnificent and huge.
:06:53. > :06:56.They're also menacing. Charlotte's captured that menace too. These jack
:06:57. > :07:02.pines have this stocky belligerence, as if to say, I'm not going
:07:03. > :07:06.anywhere, they are not cuddly trees are they, they're aggressive. They
:07:07. > :07:10.stand up to the cold and they're tough. And that is counterbalanced
:07:11. > :07:14.by the soft planting that rises from the soil every spring after the
:07:15. > :07:22.snow's melted in Canada and covers the soil. Dog roses, it all looks so
:07:23. > :07:28.soft and cottagey but it's really super tough. Of course, a lovely,
:07:29. > :07:33.lovely decking leading back to the patio. In a garden situation, if you
:07:34. > :07:37.want to make a garden look more natural, you have to add nor match
:07:38. > :07:41.Ralls features. If you are a designer, the clever thing to do is
:07:42. > :07:46.to counterbalance man-made clean lines with softness. She's done that
:07:47. > :07:50.with the paving. The edge of the paving is ragged but then there's
:07:51. > :07:54.clean lines between the joints. The same with the deck, straight lines,
:07:55. > :07:58.all looks very man-made, a bit like a picture frame around the outside
:07:59. > :08:04.of a landscape painting. Very smart garden. Not only does it capture the
:08:05. > :08:05.wilderness but the imagination of everyone who sees it here at
:08:06. > :08:11.Chelsea. Well worth a gold. Now yesterday we started our
:08:12. > :08:15.'Class of 2017' profiles, where we reveal just what makes
:08:16. > :08:19.the Main Avenue designers tick. Today we give you gold
:08:20. > :08:34.medal award-winning I'm Darren Hawkes and I'm the
:08:35. > :08:40.designer for Linklater's Garden for Maggie's. I would like to think the
:08:41. > :08:41.three words that best describe me are, determined, hard-working and
:08:42. > :08:50.caring. I fell into working as a garden
:08:51. > :08:54.designer, I was a landscape gardener first and foremost but I wanted to
:08:55. > :09:00.build my designs, rather than other people's, so I had to start
:09:01. > :09:03.designing gardens. My earliest gardening memory is actually
:09:04. > :09:08.escaping from my mum and dad's garden into the feeds behind our
:09:09. > :09:12.house and playing surrounded by beautiful hedgerows and I think
:09:13. > :09:17.that's had more of an influence on me than gardens actually. My top tip
:09:18. > :09:22.for any budding garden designer would be to follow your instungs,
:09:23. > :09:31.trust your gut instincts, they won't let you down, listen to your heart
:09:32. > :09:35.and do it. Gardens comes from the heart and it certainly has for you
:09:36. > :09:40.at Chelsea. Congratulations, your second gold! Thank you, huge honour
:09:41. > :09:46.to get another gold and huge relief but also great excitement today, the
:09:47. > :09:51.first public day as well so they get to see the garden in all its glory.
:09:52. > :10:00.So popular already. We have a big queue. Your gold medal garden. You
:10:01. > :10:04.can relax and be honest now, how was the build for you. The preparation,
:10:05. > :10:12.the month of hard work? I thought it was going to be a really simple
:10:13. > :10:17.build. It's reasonably level. I sort of forgot that by putting the hedge
:10:18. > :10:21.in, there would be tiny access for the gate so it was a nightmare and
:10:22. > :10:26.the hedge was... Was it something else? Taxing beyond belief, yes. A
:10:27. > :10:29.nightmare but worth the pain? Worth it and the response has been great
:10:30. > :10:32.from the public so I'm glad we persisted. At times I thought, why
:10:33. > :10:35.have we done this. Anything you would do differently? Any problems
:10:36. > :10:41.you have encountered that you can now share? I think if I had to build
:10:42. > :10:44.the garden again, I would build it in Battersea Park and helicopter the
:10:45. > :10:47.whole lot in just so that it was already done because trying to piece
:10:48. > :10:52.it together was really, really difficult. You have some splendid
:10:53. > :10:55.planting in here, the first time I've actually stood in your garden,
:10:56. > :11:03.I've certainly admired it from the top. Any plant that you think
:11:04. > :11:07.delivers that is overlooked? Yes. Tiny plant here, it's an annual and
:11:08. > :11:13.I was desperate to use it and the first sewing we did was a very
:11:14. > :11:16.similar plant but different foliage and it was touch-and-go until really
:11:17. > :11:21.the second week of May and I knew that it was going to flower and I
:11:22. > :11:24.was desperate to have nit the garden. I'm pleased it's here. It
:11:25. > :11:28.looks like a pearl in the morning when it's closed up and scattered
:11:29. > :11:33.throughout the garden. Delicate and beautiful and it does its job, as
:11:34. > :11:36.does your garden. Huge congratulations, Darren, you can
:11:37. > :11:39.enjoy the rest of the week. Brilliant, thank you.
:11:40. > :11:42.All week Carol Klein is globe-trotting her way around
:11:43. > :11:44.the Great Pavilion looking at plants from all over the world one
:11:45. > :11:49.Today she's focusing on all the amazing plants
:11:50. > :12:10.There are lots of plants in our gardens that we assume are British
:12:11. > :12:15.through and through. But in fact, many originate from places all
:12:16. > :12:21.around the world. Very many of them come from the continent of Asia.
:12:22. > :12:30.What could be more English than a rose? Roses epitomise an English
:12:31. > :12:36.summer garden. But the roses we grow in our gardens today owe their
:12:37. > :12:41.heritage to roses from all over the northern hemisphere, but
:12:42. > :12:46.particularly from Asia. It was a chance meeting between east and west
:12:47. > :12:51.on the Isle of Reunion in the Indian Ocean which was a Trading Post.
:12:52. > :12:55.Chinese traders brought their flowers, including their roses,
:12:56. > :13:01.French traders did exactly the same thing. Eventually, those roses got
:13:02. > :13:07.together, producing some of the most beautiful roses you can imagine. And
:13:08. > :13:14.the very basis of many of the roses that we grow today, like this one.
:13:15. > :13:16.This is Louise Odea, and the burr bounce rose has brought all sorts of
:13:17. > :13:32.things to cross over now to the BBC News
:13:33. > :13:39.Channel for a minutes' silence. We are in Manchester by the
:13:40. > :13:45.Manchester Arena. We are in Manchester by the Manchester Arena
:13:46. > :13:51.where 22 people died and 59 were injured. Now, at Buckingham Palace,
:13:52. > :13:56.there's going to be a minutes' silence held at Buckingham Palace in
:13:57. > :14:01.attendance the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh, the Prince of Wales and
:14:02. > :15:45.the Duchess of Cornwall. So, the royal family there leading a
:15:46. > :15:53.minute's silence at Buckingham Palace. The Duke of Edinburgh, the
:15:54. > :15:59.Prince of Wales, the Duke of York, the Duchess of Cornwall and Princess
:16:00. > :16:03.Eugenie of York as well. They paused at the top of the steps to the
:16:04. > :16:08.garden, and we heard the drum roll signalling the start of the one
:16:09. > :16:14.minute of silence in memory of the victims of the Manchester Arena
:16:15. > :16:20.bombing. And we have had a message from the Duke of Cambridge, who
:16:21. > :16:27.says, like everyone, Catherine, Harry and I are left shocked and
:16:28. > :16:29.saddened by the tragedy that unfolded in Manchester overnight.
:16:30. > :16:33.The Duke of Cambridge saying hundreds of friends, parents,
:16:34. > :16:36.children and partners are confronting an imaginable grief
:16:37. > :16:42.today, and we send our thoughts to them all. We also send our thanks to
:16:43. > :16:48.the people of Manchester, says the Duke of Cambridge, for their display
:16:49. > :16:54.of strength, decency and community that is an example to the world.
:16:55. > :17:00.Words of sympathy and support from the Duke of Cambridge. And the royal
:17:01. > :17:04.family at Buckingham Palace observing a minute's silence in
:17:05. > :17:10.memory of the 22 people who lost their lives here in Manchester and
:17:11. > :17:20.the 59 who were injured. You are watching BBC News.
:17:21. > :17:26.Welcome back to the Chelsea Flower Show.
:17:27. > :17:28.There are so many wonderful plants from all over the world
:17:29. > :17:36.which we in the UK have embraced into our hearts and gardens.
:17:37. > :17:40.And James and Arit are taking a closer look at them in the Chengdu
:17:41. > :17:44.Garden. It's only when you really start
:17:45. > :17:47.looking at our gardens that you realise just how
:17:48. > :17:50.many of the plants we grow in the UK And they aren't just in
:17:51. > :18:00.the Great Pavilion, there are some spectacular examples of them out
:18:01. > :18:02.here on Main Avenue. I'm joined by Arit Anderson
:18:03. > :18:12.on the Chengdu Garden which solely What has caught your either most? I
:18:13. > :18:19.am always looking around at the beautiful rhododendrons, and I see
:18:20. > :18:21.them in Hyde Park, there I am in the most beautiful British place,
:18:22. > :18:29.forgetting that they come from China. Yes, in Cornwall I was asked,
:18:30. > :18:41.have I seen that incredible China Garden, 20% of the world's plants
:18:42. > :18:43.from China. I know this in the UK as an ornamental plant, but my
:18:44. > :18:48.grandmother would consider it an edible, you buy them in
:18:49. > :18:51.supermarkets, stir-fry ingredients. But on the other side of this
:18:52. > :18:52.garden, it is a whole different world showing the massive diversity
:18:53. > :19:02.that China offers. From a design perspective we are
:19:03. > :19:06.spoiled with all the flowers, but look how much interest is here. The
:19:07. > :19:10.grasses, the shrubs that we know, and that is what is important. These
:19:11. > :19:15.are the backbone plants within a garden design and planting scheme,
:19:16. > :19:19.so it is interesting to see. A fascinating use of texture, you
:19:20. > :19:24.don't just rely on colour. Absolutely, and I love the contrast,
:19:25. > :19:30.this real sense of exuberance and foliage, and we can also focus on
:19:31. > :19:38.that. I am fascinated by this. I can't see a single cultivated
:19:39. > :19:49.variety, these are all straight species. Yes, and there are so many
:19:50. > :19:55.hybrids and cultivars Alpe d'Huez. Man's Hand has created some truly
:19:56. > :20:01.amazing Asian cultivars, and one king of those is Jonathan Hogarth.
:20:02. > :20:03.He looks after the UK's national collection of small hostas.
:20:04. > :20:06.Frances Tophill will be meeting him in just a moment, but first
:20:07. > :20:13.let's find out about his path to cultivar glory.
:20:14. > :20:19.Hostas come in all different sizes, but the particular type that take my
:20:20. > :20:25.fancy are the Small and miniature ones. They are just sweet, and when
:20:26. > :20:30.they start to flower, they look like jewels, little wonderful sweet but
:20:31. > :20:34.you want to take home. There is always that one plant you can't
:20:35. > :20:40.resist when you are out shopping, and you buy it.
:20:41. > :20:48.When I got the collection, it was something that was suggested to me
:20:49. > :20:52.that we should split the plants up so that should anything happen in
:20:53. > :20:58.one area where the plants were displayed that the other area would
:20:59. > :21:02.still save that particular plant. By splitting them, that is when the
:21:03. > :21:06.problems started. I took a good-sized plant that was six years
:21:07. > :21:11.old and I split it, and both plants died. They had lost that sparked a
:21:12. > :21:16.live once you got to a point where you were splitting them, they were
:21:17. > :21:27.just too small. I needed to find an answer, and quick. Really quick.
:21:28. > :21:34.This is not that expensive, it takes a penny a day to run it, but the
:21:35. > :21:40.results are wonderful. The plastic cover reveals a trade, and
:21:41. > :21:44.underneath is the water pump. It has six little sprayers, and this
:21:45. > :21:49.creates a moist atmosphere underneath and dry at the top. This
:21:50. > :21:53.promotes the roots to start growing. And that is how the whole system
:21:54. > :21:58.works. There is no secret, it is just tap water. The first step is to
:21:59. > :22:06.cut the flowers off. You are sending the information to the plant that
:22:07. > :22:12.it's time to make roots rather than the flowers.
:22:13. > :22:22.Hold the plant with your fingers and tip it out this way. And I will just
:22:23. > :22:28.gently tease out the root system. Each one of these can become a
:22:29. > :22:31.separate plant. The genetic information that you need for this
:22:32. > :22:35.plant to be this colour and this particular type is in fact stored in
:22:36. > :22:43.here, so it's important to grab quite a bit of it. Over the next two
:22:44. > :22:50.weeks, buds will start to burst out, rude buds, and from there, that will
:22:51. > :22:56.then start to produce the plant. Here is your cutting. I am now going
:22:57. > :23:01.to put that into the air, and I am going to put it up to its little
:23:02. > :23:05.collar of the top, so the top will sit into the water and the damp
:23:06. > :23:14.atmosphere there, the top will stay dry, and you leave it for two to
:23:15. > :23:20.three weeks. So this one is now two weeks old. The roots are starting to
:23:21. > :23:25.grow again. There were three existing routes, they were half that
:23:26. > :23:33.size when it went in before. The fact is, that is now ready to pot
:23:34. > :23:38.on. I am going to take the pot and put a little soil into it, and then
:23:39. > :23:45.the magic ingredient, the micro riser. It is a fungus that grows in
:23:46. > :23:53.the wild and it will extend the plant's capability of absorbing
:23:54. > :23:57.nutrients. I will add some grit on the top and make it more difficult
:23:58. > :24:00.for vine weevil to lay its eggs into my nice new plant, and that is it,
:24:01. > :24:25.there is nothing else to it. Well, that's 251, so 251 reasons to
:24:26. > :24:26.actually prove that you can take cuttings from small hostas, and here
:24:27. > :24:40.they all are. And here are even more reasons to
:24:41. > :24:45.prove it. Just look at your stand, Jonathan Fawzi yellow I am very
:24:46. > :24:57.pleased to be here. The RHS have been so kind, and we do like to show
:24:58. > :25:02.them off. A lot of hard work has gone into making these perfect.
:25:03. > :25:06.There was quite a bit of worry, you have to be careful of the leaves,
:25:07. > :25:09.they have to be perfect and the best, because this is the best show
:25:10. > :25:17.in the world, so here we are showing off, and here are my friends. Any
:25:18. > :25:22.new additions this year? Yes, miniskirt is the new one, and it is
:25:23. > :25:27.in the centre of my stand. This is the first time it has been available
:25:28. > :25:39.in England. It is a beautiful plant with a
:25:40. > :25:55.wide. This is my habit and obsession. It looks lovely,
:25:56. > :26:00.congratulations. Thank you so much. I do love a hosta, nearly as much as
:26:01. > :26:05.the slugs in my garden do. Now all week we're looking
:26:06. > :26:08.at the Radio 2 Feel Good Gardens and today we have a feast
:26:09. > :26:15.for the eyes. I have just left the listening
:26:16. > :26:22.garden. I'm heading over to the Colour
:26:23. > :26:24.Cutting Garden dedicated to sight to meet its Radio 2 champion,
:26:25. > :26:27.and TV golden girl, Anneka Rice. A keen gardener herself,
:26:28. > :26:42.we caught up with her lending a hand What a blaze of colour, this is
:26:43. > :26:56.beautiful. Isn't it just? You must be delighted. I am so in my element,
:26:57. > :26:59.I am almost dribbling. To be told you were going to have a garden at
:27:00. > :27:05.Chelsea was an amazing shock, and when they told me who I was doing it
:27:06. > :27:12.with, and I can't tell you how Sarah Raven and Tricia Guild have both
:27:13. > :27:15.been such a massive part of my life. The inspiration is the Colour
:27:16. > :27:23.Cutting Garden, the opposite of the very formal stylised gardens you
:27:24. > :27:29.might get. This is all about voluptuousness and just an Augean
:27:30. > :27:33.colour. Are you a big Gardner yourself? I am pining for the garden
:27:34. > :27:38.we used to have which was a beautiful Cotswolds garden. Now that
:27:39. > :27:44.you have been here for the bills, what do you make of it? When you see
:27:45. > :27:48.Chelsea and you see it so finished and manicured, you imagine all of
:27:49. > :27:53.the big trees are always there, but every single blade of grass, tree,
:27:54. > :28:04.branch, is brought in, so to see it unfold is gripping. Anneka, will you
:28:05. > :28:08.give me a hand with the delphiniums? What was your thinking behind this?
:28:09. > :28:15.It is a cutting garden, so everything is cut and come again to
:28:16. > :28:18.a certain extent, so in a few mornings, all of the flowers you
:28:19. > :28:20.pick will grow back again. But it has really come together, I couldn't
:28:21. > :28:42.be happier. Anneka, look at you, still hard at
:28:43. > :28:48.it. You are a lady who never stops. This has been such a joy. And a
:28:49. > :28:51.little bird has told me you have been down here practically every
:28:52. > :28:56.hour that there is. The thing is, I couldn't wear to put my name to be
:28:57. > :29:00.involved with something and then just turn up at the end, so I kept
:29:01. > :29:06.e-mailing Sarah Raven and saying, give me a task. I am such a fan of
:29:07. > :29:14.hers, so to be in her wake doing menial tasks, I am very happy to
:29:15. > :29:20.take anything to the skip, do some watering, copy runs. And this all
:29:21. > :29:24.starts in childhood. You have loved gardening since you were little? My
:29:25. > :29:29.family were great gardeners, so my memory is doing that thing little
:29:30. > :29:34.children do, having a toy lawn mower and going up and down behind my dad.
:29:35. > :29:38.And at school, we went to an inspired primary school that had
:29:39. > :29:47.little gardens, so each child had a tiny area to tend, and that plant a
:29:48. > :29:49.seed, literally. It does. How important you think that has been
:29:50. > :29:56.from being a little girl to seeing it through, to having this passion,
:29:57. > :29:59.and what it does for us as well. I think so, because my happiest
:30:00. > :30:05.memories as a child were in the garden. I loved it so much, and it
:30:06. > :30:10.is nourishment for the soul. And the most gratifying thing has been
:30:11. > :30:15.seeing everyone come to this garden, and people yesterday were calling it
:30:16. > :30:19.the goofy smile garden, because it reminds people of their life, and it
:30:20. > :30:26.makes your heart sing when there is something so beautiful. There is
:30:27. > :30:30.nothing fussy or pretentious or formal, and Sarah Raven who is such
:30:31. > :30:36.a genius, we all decided when we sat down, her and Tricia Guild and I, we
:30:37. > :30:41.didn't want a polite garden, and I think we can safely say this is not.
:30:42. > :30:46.It is an explosion of colour, which we know you love. You have a lot of
:30:47. > :30:50.colour in your London garden. While you're here, will you have a spare
:30:51. > :30:54.minute to go out and explore the grounds and get inspiration? The
:30:55. > :30:59.great thing about being here all this week and seeing everything
:31:00. > :31:04.rising from the ground literally is getting to talk to a lot of people,
:31:05. > :31:09.so I have got lots of ideas, and that's been such a privilege,
:31:10. > :31:14.because usually I just come on press day, but now I have been here is one
:31:15. > :31:20.of the workers. Any one thing you are looking at for? I am looking out
:31:21. > :31:26.for things that are good for the climate change we seem to be having.
:31:27. > :31:31.More Mediterranean? Yes, maybe a fig tree or an olive tree, and I have
:31:32. > :31:33.spotted the most beautiful one. You are going to be De your homework.
:31:34. > :31:36.Congratulations on this beautiful garden.
:31:37. > :31:39.And we'll catch up with Anneka to find out how she's got on later
:31:40. > :31:42.in the show but for now it's over to Rachel de Thame.
:31:43. > :31:45.This year, she's showing us how there is something
:31:46. > :31:49.for everyone here at Chelsea whatever your garden or situation.
:31:50. > :31:52.Every day she's picking out a one metre square section on a garden
:31:53. > :31:55.border in order to reveal how and why it works so well.
:31:56. > :32:01.Today, in-keeping with the golden hue of medal's day she's focusing
:32:02. > :32:16.Lots of plants love a south facing sunny garden.
:32:17. > :32:20.And I'm not just talking about drought-tolerant plants.
:32:21. > :32:22.If you pay special attention to watering there are several truly
:32:23. > :32:28.wonderful plants that will thrive in a sunny position.
:32:29. > :32:35.I love this corner of the garden, this square metre. It's a mixed
:32:36. > :32:39.Matrix planting because they're repeated and dotted through the
:32:40. > :32:43.planting. We've got things at the lower level, California poppy there,
:32:44. > :32:49.and that lovely bright colour and this's picked up here as well. Then
:32:50. > :32:56.we come through the planting with these plants which will take a bit
:32:57. > :33:01.of shade, these are astranias. They're coming through the softness
:33:02. > :33:09.of this one, which gives you that lovely flattened top to the flower,
:33:10. > :33:16.a Pimpinelia. We have these tall vertical accent plants just poking
:33:17. > :33:23.through, things like Beaujolais which I adore. We have irises coming
:33:24. > :33:28.out into flower and this lovely tall spikes pale linkth pink of the
:33:29. > :33:32.Lenaria. The whole thing is softened beautifully by plants that mould and
:33:33. > :33:37.bring everything together. We have the bronze fennel towards the front
:33:38. > :33:43.and that builds up into this lovely grass. Of course, this is Chelsea's
:33:44. > :33:46.show garden planting, so there are lots of plants crammed in very
:33:47. > :33:50.closely together. In your own garden, you would give everything a
:33:51. > :33:55.bit more space to breathe and develop and become bigger individual
:33:56. > :33:58.plants. So to create an effect like this will depend very much on how
:33:59. > :34:03.you put the plants together. Here they're really very much just dotted
:34:04. > :34:08.through making sure there is a lovely balance and flow. If you can
:34:09. > :34:13.achieve that, you'll have this wonderful soft, romantic effect.
:34:14. > :34:21.Plants come with their own likes and dislikes. If you get that right,
:34:22. > :34:24.you'll enjoy the fruits of their labours for many years to come.
:34:25. > :34:28.However, some plants aren't as picky as others and one we Brits all know
:34:29. > :34:36.and love that can grow pretty much anywhere is the native Primrose.
:34:37. > :34:50.Melvyn Jones reveals they're far from commonplace.
:34:51. > :34:57.Primrose I found in Asia and Japan, I love the simplicity of them. These
:34:58. > :35:05.Japanese with their love of plants are the ones that have made the
:35:06. > :35:09.Siboldians what they are today. It's identified in the earliest garden
:35:10. > :35:15.books of Japan, so it's an old, established plant form. There is a
:35:16. > :35:18.Japanese flower translating along the lines of even grasses have
:35:19. > :35:24.cherry Blossom flowers in Japan, the land of the cherry Blossom.
:35:25. > :35:27.The Japanese Gods Jewth used to cultivate the most wonderful gardens
:35:28. > :35:31.with the wonderful cherry trees that bloomed over the streams and lakes.
:35:32. > :35:36.Unfortunately, the Blossom tended to fall too quickly and the Gods were
:35:37. > :35:42.so upset after all their efforts that it was such a short blooming
:35:43. > :35:46.that they Creted in future when it fell it would come over the grasses
:35:47. > :35:56.and the grasses would flower and happen there would be a Primula and
:35:57. > :36:00.that formed this. It's a wonderful plant. The blooms are so nice and
:36:01. > :36:05.there is such a nice variation in them. It's typical of many of the
:36:06. > :36:12.plants the Japanese like to grow. They'll look for the variety.
:36:13. > :36:18.Primulas with good for that, they're promiscuous and variable but the
:36:19. > :36:26.Siboldia, it goes from magenta, pink, through the blue shades up to
:36:27. > :36:29.the pure whites like this. Because they feel almost pastelly in colour,
:36:30. > :36:39.you can put any variety together and they'll look as if they're suited
:36:40. > :36:48.and compliment each other. In the wild, the closest form we have here
:36:49. > :37:05.is the Sumizomegenji. We have tried it in edge of woodland
:37:06. > :37:09.conditions which they thrive in because they love the leaf mould and
:37:10. > :37:14.they do well there. Obviously, you need a bit of light also for the
:37:15. > :37:21.flowers to come out. Very popular form is this one, which is called
:37:22. > :37:25.snow glaik. It looks really delicate but they're reliable, happy in our
:37:26. > :37:30.conditions. They'll normally come into flower mid to late February.
:37:31. > :37:35.You will have them flowering mid to end of June. Don't be deceived by
:37:36. > :37:37.the fact they look delicate, they're quite forgiving and if the right
:37:38. > :37:44.place, they'll reward you for years. We've been having a bit of an Asian
:37:45. > :37:49.theme running through today's show and lo and behold here is another
:37:50. > :38:00.plant with its roots steeped How's this year been for you? It's
:38:01. > :38:05.been difficult. The season started early, the flowers were in flower
:38:06. > :38:08.about five weeks earlier than we'd expect them to be. We have struggled
:38:09. > :38:14.to get here but we have managed to bring a display here in a
:38:15. > :38:21.traditional Japanese form. We have done it but it's not as nice as we'd
:38:22. > :38:25.have liked. To me this looks spectacular, but through March and
:38:26. > :38:28.April I was thinking about the exhibitors because there's only so
:38:29. > :38:32.much you can do with nature, you are restricted by certain plants. Yes.
:38:33. > :38:37.What did you do in the medal stakes? We got to silver. The judges were
:38:38. > :38:41.right. I totally agree with them. We'd have liked more, but the season
:38:42. > :38:46.prevented it. Next year we'll come back stronger. It's frustrating. I
:38:47. > :38:50.heard you had the most spectacular new introduction that you almost got
:38:51. > :38:56.to the show but not quite. Quietly fell out of flower four days ago...
:38:57. > :39:01.Four days? ! Yes, it's one that we got from Alan Bloom's garden, one he
:39:02. > :39:06.raised many years ago, it's been name and is being sold in support of
:39:07. > :39:09.a charity for special Olympics, so we'd have loved to have brought it
:39:10. > :39:13.here but unfortunately again we were beaten by the weather. You don't
:39:14. > :39:19.have necessarily all the plants but you have all the information. I have
:39:20. > :39:23.questions from Facebook. You love shady plants. Even else Sa asks,
:39:24. > :39:27.moved into a house with a huge conifer, the soil is full of roots
:39:28. > :39:31.and well-established weeds, no idea what to plant in the dry shade. What
:39:32. > :39:36.a nightmare. Nightmare having a conifer next to you, totally agree.
:39:37. > :39:47.We do have a couple of plants in the back of the display which would cope
:39:48. > :39:53.with that. One is the Victorian Brooch. That will tolerate dry
:39:54. > :39:57.shade. Another question from Melanie Louise Watson, she asks, the
:39:58. > :40:02.opposite problem, a garden backs on to a river, very large trees from
:40:03. > :40:06.another garden shading it, nothing but nettles grow there. Desperately
:40:07. > :40:11.trawling the Internet for some nice colour and ground colour? Again,
:40:12. > :40:21.that selection is a bit close to that. Moist shade and semishade. I
:40:22. > :40:32.would recommend things like epimediums and nice spider flowers
:40:33. > :40:35.in early to mid spring. If it's dapple spring, the Siboldeii would
:40:36. > :40:40.be ideal. They'd be happy there as well. This is a plant of food
:40:41. > :40:43.plains. Even if the garden floods, they'll survive and produce that
:40:44. > :40:47.colour? In Japan, the rivers flood and bring up the silt which covers
:40:48. > :40:51.the plants and then it drains away and that's how they get a lot of the
:40:52. > :40:54.new nutrients and keep going. Thanks, Melvyn.
:40:55. > :40:57.Earlier on we saw Anneka Rice who told us about her desire
:40:58. > :40:59.to bring the Mediterranean into her London garden
:41:00. > :41:06.and salt water problem due to living by the sea.
:41:07. > :41:12.I've obviously been here a lot during the week because our Colour
:41:13. > :41:19.Cutting Garden is just up there and I saw all of this take shape, being
:41:20. > :41:28.planted up. There was one thing I saw in particular, I think it's over
:41:29. > :41:33.there... When we first met on that Tuesday you were here and there was
:41:34. > :41:38.just this olive tree at that stage. I have no idea about this, I had no
:41:39. > :41:43.idea it was all going on. It's so sculptural. How many hundreds of
:41:44. > :41:46.years old would that tree be? I think it's probably 100 years. It's
:41:47. > :41:52.very hard to tell. It's such a beautiful character the tree. I'll
:41:53. > :41:58.be keeping my eye open for the right tree and each one is like a piece of
:41:59. > :42:03.sculpture I think. It is. It is architectural, it's beautiful. In
:42:04. > :42:06.our London garden, the garden is set up as a Mediterranean garden with
:42:07. > :42:10.bright orange walls and pots and herbs. I think an ancient olive
:42:11. > :42:17.would probably be a good accent. I love the way you have contrasted
:42:18. > :42:22.with the silver green with the under planting because you have Marguerite
:42:23. > :42:24.and Salvias. That's right. The under-planting is important to
:42:25. > :42:30.create a setting for theologiley and you can do this in your garden as
:42:31. > :42:33.well. The olive will need large planters. There are plenty of
:42:34. > :42:38.opportunities to under-plant. Because it's a dry zone plant, we
:42:39. > :42:43.have used Mediterranean plants like the culinary herbs and there's
:42:44. > :42:49.culinary sage down there and the ornamental sage we have used. The
:42:50. > :42:56.Marguerite love it dry and it's a perfect environment for those. This
:42:57. > :42:59.is a very good, dry grass called Prairie Fire. We are talking about
:43:00. > :43:03.the dry climate the whole time. It will probably rain for the rest of
:43:04. > :43:07.the year! We have to say congratulations. Thank you very
:43:08. > :43:14.much. Thank you very much. Yes. I mean, that is your third? Third,
:43:15. > :43:19.yes. I'm very pleased. They're still hard-won, you work very hard at
:43:20. > :43:23.it.iful to think carefully how you are going to present your ideas and
:43:24. > :43:39.we are thrilled -- you have to think carefully.
:43:40. > :43:47.Monty and Joe will be back tonight. They'll be looking at the Best Show
:43:48. > :44:14.Garden coveted award. That is it from us, see you tomorrow. Bye.
:44:15. > :44:18.They want us there. It's for people who knew him, Kat.