What a week! (Part 2)

Monday. The day has been booked in my diary since last Autumn as it’s the Chelsea Flower Show and I am part of the Tradestand Assessing team once again. I shared an Uber from the hotel with the sweet folks from Felco not realising that they were going to use the Embankment gate, so before I began I’d clocked up a few hundred steps as I made my way around to the opposite side of the showground where I needed to be.

Sure enough, the florists had completed their creation from yesterday afternoon and cleared all away, leaving a magnificent sweep of flowers on each side of the gate. So many people were posing for photographs, even at this early hour, that I decided to wait till later to get a picture of both sides. Actually I was also distracted by the sight of my lovely daughter in law, already there and waving to me from inside the gateway.

First job was to pick up my credentials from the RHS and get a cup of tea! Slowly over the next half hour or so, the team assembled and familiar faces from 2022 appeared. I was glad to be part of the same team as last year too, feeling more confident and knowing what to expect. Two of us have worked with the same professional mentor and the new member of our team this year was of similar mind to us both. We were going to have a good day. Amy was working as part of a different team and caught my eye with a smile - she too was happy amongst friends.

Our first task was to establish a benchmark by making a common assessment of a single stand. That way, we could agree the things we were looking for, those details which made the difference between a “good” and an “outstanding”. I am well used to working to criteria like this and enjoy the challenge of a completely different set of outlines. We were not going to be looking to identify craft techniques or the choice of materials here!

The lead assessor suggested we each take a close look at the Muck Boot stand then, make a few notes and reach a conclusion independently of each other before regrouping and discussing our thoughts. We were going to be looking for exceptional design and visual theatre, skilled planting and great merchandising and from the moment I stepped into the stand, I was impressed.

It’s always a challenge to build in some storage and “business” space into the design, but here it seemed to be well considered and in keeping with the rest of the surroundings.

The attention to detail was impressive too - not a single plant tie visible as every one had been covered with moss. Oh my.

For me, the finishing touch was something my students know that I consider to be tricky to get right.: whimsy. Too much and everything looks silly, but get it right and people will leave with a smile. So, quietly fit one of your sheep with a pair of boots and watch the tradestand assessor’s face as she spots them.

Having established a common standard, agreed the specific points we would look for this year and reminded ourselves of the need to crack on we gathered our maps and went our separate ways to begin work. Each team had sixty or so stands to assess, meaning there was only a few minutes for each. At this time of the day there were not so many people around. It’s Press Day and the celebrities and photographers will be out in force later, but for now, it was us and a few Chelsea Pensioners stealing a march on the crowd.

No awards or medals yet, but the large show gardens were complete and ready for viewing. Not that we had time to stop and stare at this stage. The overcast skies didn’t look so good either and I was really pleased I’d decided to wear a jacket.

My team had cast an eye over our list and decided to begin with some larger stands, leaving a straight run of smaller ones for this afternoon. So, we turned a corner and checked our map and stand numbers and began work with the Big Hedge Company.

From there it was Natural Swimming Pools…

and garden ovens made in Kent , styled in a stand based on Derek Jarman’s garden.

Then there were the most extraordinary garden sculptures

and exquisite metal working on a rather different scale!

And so we continued, stepping onto each stand and making our observations before retiring to one side and sharing our thoughts which would inform our decision. As the hours passed, people began to arrive, the camera crews and the celebrities too, not that I ever know who any of them are.

There are exceptions. I think we’d all recognise that white bob, even from behind?

But crack on we must, this time enjoying learning more about something that’s been on my list for a while: rugs and blankets from Weaver Green

The Moorcroft Pottery display was interesting though sadly the demonstrator stopped whilst we looked around. I thought I recognised her from the Great Pottery Throw Down and would love to have watched her work, but there was no time!

On we went, via greenhouses (with tulips that fit the colour palette and cleverly styled boxes made specially for the occasion)

There were a few examples of pebble mosaics too, bringing memories of pavements at The Newt (this year’s show sponsors) to the forefront of my mind.

I hadn’t seen Strandkörbchen on sale here before and by the time we reached this point, I would have given anything to have tried it out!

We were getting near lunchtime and the drinks parties were assembling in the gardens.

We thought it was time we made our way back to the London Gate where we were going to assemble before going to lunch. We stopped to take a good look at Sarah Price’s garden on the way though, since there seemed to be few people in this particular corner right now.

A familiar voice was to be heard behind us however, as Dame Judi and her friends came on through.

Actually, I was more interested in these beautiful iris though.

And lunch of course!

As always, the shops and restaurants along Pimlico Road are spectacularly adorned during Flower Show week.

Thankfully the pavements are broad enough for some lavish planters to be placed along the frontages.

There is some imaginative and unusual styling too.

I’m not the only person to stop and photograph them, either!

Back to work then and another opportunity to snap a picture of that gateway. But no time to stop and stare and why did that security man have to adjust his trousers whilst I had camera in hand!?

With seventeen of these smaller stands to work through, we began our afternoon schedule, not quite understanding why we were each beginning to sneeze and cough. As we made our way down Eastern Avenue however, feeling a little breeze and noting the accompanying pollen that fell from the trees above our heads, we noted many others suffering the same symptoms. Tricky that!

But the delights along this stretch of stands more than made up for the slight discomforts and this particular flower combination (part of a lavish floral display on the Moloh stand) took my breath away. The combination of red and white striped roses, red peonies and white stocks in a red and white striped container was stunning.

It was almost 4.30pm by the time we’d finished and I got to peek inside the Floral Pavilion. My feet now felt as though they belonged to someone else and although I knew HM the King was nearby, I decided that I’d save my energy for getting back to my car!

His magnetic appeal meant that I reaped the reward of seeing empty gardens en route to the gate too

and finally, the picture I’d been trying for all day!

What a day! I loved every minute and think that my team did a grand job of fair assessment. But oh my word, how tired I felt now. I was so pleased my car was just across the road from here, crawled over to it and drove home.