Stars in bloom for the Chelsea Show
More than 150,000 visitors are this week expected to descend on Europe’s premier horticultural festival in London to see plants and gardens from 600 exhibitors.
Yesterday Gavin, host of RTÉ’s I Want a Garden was at the festival showing off his Westland garden, which he designed for an artistic couple facing retirement.
Gavin’s creation is an L-shaped arts studio complex in a garden comprising verandas, swinging chairs, cobblestone paths, evergreen plants and a pond.
The designer was joined at the festival by fellow TV gardener Charlie Dimmock, star of BBC’s Ground Force, as well as singer and gardening enthusiast Kim Wilde.
Chat show host Michael Parkinson and actress Joanna Lumley were also at the show, which opens to the public today and runs until Saturday.
Lumley had a fuchsia named after her, which will be sold to make money for the Barnardos children’s organisation.
Describing the flower, the 61-year-old actress said: “This is ravishing. It is the most delicious candy pink with pale lilac.
“I’m rather ashamed to be in the same picture as it.”
The actress said she was also a keen gardener and had been up digging rhubarb earlier in the day.
She added: “The truth is when you’re very young, in your 20s, you don’t care for gardening much. But as you get older and wiser I think now I’ve got maybe another 20 years to try to absorb all this.”
Michael Parkinson launched a white “Parky” rose at the event.
The chat show host said: “My father was a great gardener. He particularly loved white roses which is why this is so nostalgic for me. He was a miner, and because miners spent so much time underground, in their time off they spent time in gardens or allotments. He couldn’t understand my lack of ambition to follow in his footsteps. He would have been very proud today.”
Amnesty International was behind one of the 20 show gardens, with a design called Garden for Human Rights.
It features a sculpture of the amnesty candle, which will transfer to the roof of the charity’s London HQ after this week.
* www.rhs.org.uk
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