THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY'S
1999 CHELSEA FLOWER SHOW
England's Royal Horticultural Society was
founded in 1804. The Society’s founding fathers
were primarily interested in collecting information
about plants and improving horticultural techniques,
but also launched the prototype of today’s popular
flower shows.
The Chelsea Flower Show has been held on the
grounds of the Royal Hospital in Chelsea since 1913.
This hospital is now the home of retired veterans who
have served in the Army. Chelsea is a district in
London bordered on one side by the Thames River.
This yearly four-day flower show encompasses about
two large city blocks. Inside the Great Marquee
(tented area) are displays of cut flower arrangements
and stylized gardens by nurseries, growers,
horticultural schools, herb societies, and florists, all
from many different districts throughout England,
from the African Violet Society, to Bonsai societies,
and many more too numerous to list. Outside the
Marquee are divided areas, each about 10’ x 12’,
where landscape companies and well-known garden
designers have created theme gardens. Around the
perimeter and interspaced with the gardens are booths
selling antique garden equipment, power tools, garden
furniture, stoneware, statuary and other ornaments,
greenhouses, conservatories, from thatched-roof to
steel-structured summer houses, and associated
equipment; collectable garden books now out of print,
new books, reproduced prints, magazines, anything
and everything related to gardening: seven hundred
and seventy exhibits in all.
For refreshments, there is a large restaurant
along with fast food booths scattered throughout.
There is also a picnic area with a bandstand where
symphonic music to jazz songs are performed during
the four days.
When we joined the Expo Garden Tour, it
included membership in the Royal Horticultural
Society. This enabled us to attend the show on
“Members’ Day Only.” We arrived at 8:00 a.m.
when it opened and already there were crowds of
people. I later learned that there are 265,000
members. It seemed like they had all arrived at the
same time.
Entering the Great Marquee, we were
overwhelmed by the abundance and fragrance of
flowers, banks of cut-flower bouquets, daffodils,
delphiniums, sweet peas, poppies, begonias, lilies, roses,
and so many more. It’s unbelievable to imagine the
months of planning it takes to force each plant to be
in bloom, in perfect form, and at their prime on a
definite date in May. In their natural state, these plants
don’t bloom at the same time.
One of the favorite designs by a grower was
David Austin’s rose garden. He is known for
developing hybrid roses from antique rose forms and
fragrances. Each bloom is double-petaled, deeply
cupped, and highly fragrant. Through the middle of
this display of living plants was a trellised path. The
trellis was covered with climbing rose plants in full
bloom. Austin’s booth was rose heaven. Here in the
U.S. his roses are available through Jackson and
Perkins’ catalog. 1 successfully grow in my own
garden two of his. Heritage (pink) and Graham
Thomas (yellow).
English gardeners regard compost as an
important ingredient for a healthy garden. A
beautiful display of flowers, fruit and vegetables was
created by the combined efforts of the National
Farmers’ Union and the Royal Horticultural Society.
Huge trays of fruit and vegetables arranged like
appetizers or cone-shaped pyramids or layed out in
rows were mixed with large floral bouquets. The
colors of the flowers matched the colors of the fruit
and vegetables, such as: red peppers, tomatoes, and
apples arranged with red geraniums, poppies,
begonias. The greens of lettuce, scallions and cabbage
matched with bouquets of daisies, lilies, mums and
other flowers. In the middle of this display was a large
silver metal compost bin mounted on a frame with a
turning handle. The theme was that all the material
displayed could be recycled into compost matter. One
of the members of the Farmers’ Union mentioned that
a bit of manure added helps to heat the pile of
compost. He enthusiastically added, “One only needs
a cow, a sheep, or any farm animal.” I asked,' “How
about seaweed and dead fish?” He looked a bit
puzzled.
Many of the courtyard gardens featured water:
waterfalls created with banked stones or ponds with
fountains, and a variety of water-loving plants. Many
of these themes reflected a natural setting. One
courtyard garden was created for disabled gardeners.
Narrow wooden planters about 28” high were filled
with textured and fragrant plants for the blind to
enjoy. Also these planters were the right height and
width for gardeners in wheelchairs. This reminded me
of a young man who could not walk because of polio.
He became an expert at growing Bonsai. His family
had fashioned a potting table about the same height
and side bins for soil or other uses.
From formal to whimsical: a whimsical garden
was the replica of Beatrice Potter’s Mr. McGregor’s
Garden. It was formed on the principal setting for her
much-loved Peter Rabbit tales. Some of the familiar
features were: the lily pond and white cat, the water-
can in which Peter hid. the wooden wheelbarrow,
scarecrow, tool-shed, vegetable patch, the gate Peter
squeezed under. Sculptures of the animal characters
were placed here and there.
My favorite garden was called, “Undivided
Garden. ” It demonstrated how to grow flowers with
crops of a variety of fruit trees, berries and vegetables.
This garden could fit in any small back yard. The
fruit trees were espaliercd to form a low fence on one
side. Berry vines were trained on wire the same height
as the fruit trees and bordered the other side of the
garden. In the middle, paths were formed around pie-
shaped beds where vegetables and flowers had been
planted. These beds circled a huge strawberry pot.
The plump ripe fruit of the red strawberries in this pot
looked ready to harvest.
Adding to the festivities of this flower show,
the veterans who live in the Royal Hospital milled
through the crowds answering questions and giving
other information. They were evident, as they were
wearing their full dress uniforms: long red coats
trimmed in black with metal buttons, pie-shaped black
hats trimmed in gold with feather-like emblems, and
across the chests of their uniforms rows of ribbons
symbolizing their service records. In another area was
a marching band of veterans led by soldiers on
horseback performing for the crowds of people.
I stayed for seven hours, stopping only once
for refreshments, but I still wasn’t able to visit every
booth or exhibit. To really see everything, you would
have to attend the four full days.
If you have an opportunity to visit the Chelsea
Flower Show, travel with empty suitcases - just a few
clothes. I later had to buy an extra suitcase to carry
home a new thatch-roofed birdhouse, and many new
books and pamphlets. I sadly left behind sculptures
of angels, water fountains and a thatch-roofed garden
house. The garden house I could visualize in my own
garden. To buy plants you need a special permit to
bring them through customs. One person on the tour
did have a permit, but he still had to wash all the soil
off the plants and prune them a bit to fit into his
suitcase.
<U5e,st o f the,
‘Photography
GWorkjhops
Next month: Meeting the “Queen of Gardening in
England,” Rosemary Verey.
Photograph the Northwest's spectacular
rainforests, beaches & mountains at these
weekend nature photography workshops!
Mount Rainier Wildflowers
July 30-August 2
North Oregon Coast
March 17-20, 2 0 0 0
Central Oregon Coast
September 24-27
Columbia River Gorge
May 17-20, 2 0 0 0
Long Beach Peninsula
January 28-31, 2 0 0 0
SUPPORTID BY
KODAK PROFESSIONAL
Toll-free information: (888) 609-6051
Pelican Productions • PO Box 278 • Cannon Beach, OR 9711(1
As matters stand, we are in little better position than
the guests of the Borgias,
Rachel Carson
Geppetto’s
Shoppe
200 N. Hemlock
Cannon Beach, OR
436-2467
;
“Where quality and tradition make kids happy”
W
jY’r 5uminir
• BUBBLE TOYS
• BEACH BALLS
The obligation to endure gives us the right to know.
Jean Rostand
•
•
•
•
.
•
•
•
.
ANTHONY STOFTIELLO
=
Architect-
at the fytaefy
O
Q
PAILS & SHOVELS
SAND MOLDS
BOATS
THINGS THAT FLY
GAMES
BABY TOYS
BOOKS
TAPES & CD'S
TRAVEL TOYS
•MARINER MARKET*
WE WOW H A V IA WIDE VARIETY OF ORGANIC PRODUCTS
Earth friendly architecture
Consultant - Educator
Passive solar design
Conscientious material use
Licensed In Oregon and Washington
310 Lake S t • P 06 72, Ilwaco. WA 9 6 6 2 4 (3 6 0 ) 6 4 2 -4 2 5 6
ORGANIC PRODUCE
TOFU 4 SOY CHEESE
ORGANIC
CAGE FREE EGGS
FREE RANGE CHICKEN
GOLD MEDAL FLOUR
ORGANIC MILE
ORGANIC CORN MEAL
FRESH HERBS
FANTASTIC SOUPS A MIXES
ORGANIC CORN CHIPS
W hole W heat
flour
A LA R GE SELECTION FROM BOB S RED MILL
....AND M UCH MORE
Man is demolishing nature. We are killing things that keep us alive.
Thor Heyerdahl
• 139 N. HEMLOCK
CANNON BEACH
436-2 4 4 2 *
With proper drugs and therapy, jugglers may
be retrained to lead a happy and even useful,
life.
Rev. Chumbleigh
UPPER. LEFT EDGE .AUGUST - f W