Chelsea - which are your favourite gardens?

So GC folks, which are your favourite Chelsea gardens this year and what specifically do you like about them?

No prize for guessing my favourite: The L'Occitane Garden of course. Mediterranean style gardens have captured my imagination and interest at the moment. I'll be studying the plants James Basson used and getting more inspiration for my own garden.

 

i,m afraid its losing its appeal for me now. it,s become more of a architects show.plus the one,s with unlimited money .it has no relation to normal gardens at all.

 

Easier to say which one I dislike the most, and thats Dairmuds garden. He is always a bit barmy, and I have no issue with that. What I actually dislike is that I dont think he really went far enough with the craziness, seems a bit half measures to me. Not sure why he whacked the shed in either, looks good and not fitting with the theme imo.

Favourites a bit harder, but Im plumping for The Telegraph Garden, just appeals to me.

I havent been for a couple of years, its was getting a bit samey and I know they changed the judging criteria a couple of years back and seems to have improved it. However, it still seems very Formulaic though and with the same designers coming back year after year, its inevitable that they are going to feel very similar. The L'Occitane Garden (sorry Redwing), whiles clearly different in many way, its undeniable that it has the same feel as the design that James Basson did a few years back, but thats his style.

 

I'm sorry but I stopped watching it a few years ago.

To me it's not about flowers and plants anymore. It's just about designs, designers and as said above architects.

I remember when they used to do say a 10 minute feature on a particular plant or species.

Also, it used to go in to more detail. For instance today it showed Ashwood Nurseries winning an award, in years gone by it would have shown a recorded piece from there showing what they grew etc.

Also, if todays episode was anything to go by the presenting and editing is total rubbish.

It showed ( I forgotten who it was now ) making a container only for it to be cut off half way through.

 

I would like to see the RHS define a Theme each year and then designs should fit with that. The whole scenario where it's judged against the designers own brief doesn't work, it makes it too easy.

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I've never been to Chelsea, maybe I should have.
Dont think I'd spend much time looking at the set piece gardens though.
To me they are just like stage sets, totally unreal and often totally impractical to look after.

I'm sure there are much more interesting things going on in the show, but they dont getr much air time on the BBC.

 

Pete: I agree with those who say it is theatre. No garden can ever be like the show gardens but what I really like is seeing how things look good with each other, the hard landscaping and the plantings and how they relate. I really learn a lot from looking at these relationships. And get ideas for my own garden too. There is so much creativity here in the designs and the building of the gardens. I just love it. We are so lucky to be able to have all of this brought into our living rooms for a week every year; it is the best gardening show in the world.

 

Personally I don't see what the appeal is, it doesn't relate to the gardens we all have. As Pete says "they are just like stage sets" and those sets are staged for everyone but gardeners. It needs a reality check, like many things it is about money and people, not plants and gardens.

I totally disagree. I'm so glad I don't own a television and this amongst many other things is why I've been without for five years.

 

I did like it when I went there, but I do agree that garden objects and accessories almost prevail on anything else. I definitely would like to go again though, maybe the last hour of the last day of opening...then I would probably get to stand in front of a display without being pushed about.

 

I guess you will hate the smart garden then S, it really appeals to me tv music lights etc all controlled by your mobile phone, it something I will be doing myself at some point.

 

Rain. That's what you need to get a good view. Everyone rushes into the Marquee and only the brave, or stupid like me stay outside to take advantage

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So didn't anyone like any of the gardens!?

 

So ,I absolutely love the Chelsea Flower Show.
It's everything our gardens are not ,not a leaf,petal,or a piece of hard landscaping out of place.
It's absolutely obscene the vast amounts of money that are spent..........£250.000 is nothing for a large show garden, but I suppose the business provides work for loads of people through the year.
It's pure showbusiness........dreamland.
Just to see what could be done if one wanted and could afford it.
I have been a couple of times,but prefer now to watch it in HD in my lounge.
But in the real world (where I live) I doubt I could play football with my grandchildren in ANY of them.
Which leads to to my dilemma.......
To go to Chelsea on Saturday or Shiney's open day.
Seems like a no brainer to me.........


Above are some of my favourite gardens.

 

Not really, I'm another one of the grumps. It's spring so part of the criteria should be that you can only use seasonal plants. Spring blooming plants next to summer blooming plants just looks plain silly to me.

 

Haven't been to the Chelsea show, went to Cardiff last year though and it was a bit ridiculous. Don't get me wrong it was a good experience, bought overpriced plants and I did like the show gardens but you could see money wasn't an object.

On the 3rd episode on iPlayer.. all I see is ££££ again.

I do like the architecture but it's just not for your normal terraced/semi house is it?

What the eff are those twirling trees.
And I don't like the 'concepts' of the small gardens, the slave one or Ebola one. Too creepy for me.