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Our Gardener-in-residence and fellow West London Mum Laetitia Maklouf reports for us live from the RHS Chelsea Flower Show which this year celebrates its 100th anniversary. Laetitia talks through her top five trends for this year and what gardens to look out for if you are going along this week, or simply watching all the glory from the comfort of your sofa!
If you’re off for a day of horticultural frolics at Chelsea this week, then you’re in for a treat. For the show’s centenary everyone has pulled out all the stops to make it extra-special. And I have great news – don’t worry about the weather; the colour palettes positively lend themselves to a flat grey sky, singing out against the gun-metal. There is so much to see, enjoy her five little tips for adapting the look to your own space.
MULTI-FUNCTION
We’re all looking to pack as much function into our gardens as possible, and Adam Frost’s garden for Homebase is an object lesson in how to get the ultimate family garden and keep it gorgeous.
This is all about creating an inspiring but calming area for the whole family, with a keen emphasis on education. Planting is a mixture of ornamentals and edibles, with loads of wildlife lures throughout. The only thing missing was a larger grassy patch for small footballers.
TAKE HOME: Create easy, instant height with hops (Humulus lupulus) climbing through tripods.
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CONTAINMENT
Chelsea is full of examples of how to keep wafty planting in check by containing it within either structured beds or mixing it with clean, clear shapes of topiary or sculpture. Christopher Bradley-Hole has taken the idea one step further this year with this exquisite confection of boxy topiarised evergreens in different heights and proportions, interspersed with soft, pretty planting. I love the fact that there is no way in…no paths along which to take your clandestine picnic; as if it’s challenging you to break the rules.
TAKE HOME: Always put something solid and substantial next to dreamy, soft planting, to anchor the eye.
SUSTAINABILITY
This is a constant theme now, but this year one garden has really set the bar high. As I write, Flemings Trailfinders Australian Garden, designed by Philip Johnson has just won best in show for an extraordinary hillside masterpiece. The garden was built completely ‘off-grid’, meaning that all the power they needed for the garden was sourced from solar panels, and the water was filtered from surrounding sites through the garden’s billabong. The planting is a beauteous patchwork of vibrant colour and texture.
Nigel Dunnett’s roof garden is another example, using a central ‘wetland’ to irrigate the entire space.
TAKE HOME: Install a water butt to harness all the rain that pours on to your roof and watch your water bills go down as your plants thrive.
BRITISH NATIVE PLANTS
Robert Myers, designing for Brewin Dolphin has totally confined his planting to UK native species as set out by the Natural History Museum. Cow parsley, burnet and grasses take centre stage and he has been really clever with colour, painting his back wall a raspberry pink to set the whole thing off, and echoing this with cheerful pink geranium sanguineum. Lovely hummocky cushions of box too, are nestled between the pretty planting. The plastic-looking garden furniture, and the stonework leaves me rather cold, but this glorious planting more than makes up for it.
TAKE HOME: Using native plants is a good way of tailoring any planting plan, and attracting wildlife. The list is expansive and inspiring – you’ll find it here
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OUTDOOR LIVING
The show’s Urban Retreats element is now in its second year and definitely worth a look. Designers and artists are given a wooden hut to decorate as they wish and there are some fabulous creations this year. Rob Ryan has made a wonderful studio, filled to the brim with his own work and personal possessions. Pippa Small’s retreat is inspired by a stay in India. The outside is the most glorious pink, with a gold leaf tree and peacock mural inside, and sumptuous textiles. I love this development at Chelsea; after all, gardening is all about lying around sniffing the roses, and you need somewhere to do that, don’t you!
TAKE HOME: Motherhood is challenging as well as joyful, and we all need a retreat. It’s worth thinking about creating your own space in the garden, even if it’s just a small seat with a special cushion, so that on rare warm evenings you can take five minutes alone, and be yourself, outdoors with a glass of something good.
This is just a little taster – enjoy the show!
W6 Garden Centre is located at the tip of Ravenscourt Park and are open year round. They are passionate about plants and stock selections that will delight experienced and novice gardeners alike. They support British growers, and the majority of their plants come from specialist UK nurseries.
Laetitia Maklouf is a celebrity gardener and local mum. Her latest book “Sweet Peas for Summer” shows you how to make a garden from scratch in a few months.
