Nice piece Dan. I love the modest passion of these independents in the grand marquee and there’s so much originality there. Although the show gardens are very impressive, I found most of the planting very similar this year, with the main differences being the heft of the sponsors’ wallet for the varying degrees of structure.
Couldn’t agree more, on all counts. And while I’m sure it still cost a pretty penny to put together, I love that “the shack at the back” in the Rewilding Britain landscape/garden was as close to an actual shack as you could get without going to B&Q and buying a flatpack shed. Made the other far more elaborate constructions look a bit silly by comparison. But yes, there’s something very heartwarming and inspiring about the devotion of the independent plantspeople.
Was interesting to hear Monty’s comments about that garden, this evening. The phrase ’re-wilding’ has started to grate on me too and I appreciated his point about we’re not able to re-wild a suburban garden - not should we kid ourselves. We should be moving towards working in harmony with our plot of earth and the nature within it. Re-wilding in essence means doing nothing and there’s the right places for that.
Yeah, I heard his comments too. I’m inclined to agree - obviously the beaver narrative does take it out of the realms of a realistic, or even aspirational domestic garden. But I think its place at Chelsea is still merited - a lot of very wealthy landowners attend the show, and if a small proportion of them are moved by that garden - or its popularity - then it could still have a positive impact on the wider landscape. But yeah, rewilding isn’t something we necessarily can or even should do in a tiny urban garden. Like they said on the telly, creating a space that promotes and supports biodiversity whilst functioning for people is probably the thing to strive for.
Nice piece Dan. I love the modest passion of these independents in the grand marquee and there’s so much originality there. Although the show gardens are very impressive, I found most of the planting very similar this year, with the main differences being the heft of the sponsors’ wallet for the varying degrees of structure.
Couldn’t agree more, on all counts. And while I’m sure it still cost a pretty penny to put together, I love that “the shack at the back” in the Rewilding Britain landscape/garden was as close to an actual shack as you could get without going to B&Q and buying a flatpack shed. Made the other far more elaborate constructions look a bit silly by comparison. But yes, there’s something very heartwarming and inspiring about the devotion of the independent plantspeople.
This earnest plant passion made me smile. Thanks for brightening my day!
Their passion is contagious, isn’t it? So refreshing. Glad you enjoyed it!
Was interesting to hear Monty’s comments about that garden, this evening. The phrase ’re-wilding’ has started to grate on me too and I appreciated his point about we’re not able to re-wild a suburban garden - not should we kid ourselves. We should be moving towards working in harmony with our plot of earth and the nature within it. Re-wilding in essence means doing nothing and there’s the right places for that.
Yeah, I heard his comments too. I’m inclined to agree - obviously the beaver narrative does take it out of the realms of a realistic, or even aspirational domestic garden. But I think its place at Chelsea is still merited - a lot of very wealthy landowners attend the show, and if a small proportion of them are moved by that garden - or its popularity - then it could still have a positive impact on the wider landscape. But yeah, rewilding isn’t something we necessarily can or even should do in a tiny urban garden. Like they said on the telly, creating a space that promotes and supports biodiversity whilst functioning for people is probably the thing to strive for.
Well, you got me with your tease for tomorrow's post. A couple selfies?!?!? How am I supposed to sleep at night? I can't wait to see these!
Oh dear, I fear you might be sorely disappointed! Get some sleep, Boaz!