Horticultural Olympics in London in May
February 26, 2010
The horticultural Olympics, aka the Chelsea Flower Show, occurs yearly in the last full week of May in London, England. The Chelsea Garden Show is the gardening equivalent of a couture fashion show. You’ll find innovative garden design, gorgeous flowers, superb people watching opportunities and enough inspiration to send you home ripping up your garden to emulate what you’ve just seen.
The show accepts 160,000 visitors over 5 days but the first 2 days are reserved for Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) members only. It’s worth joining so you can see the gardens at their peak. I was there in 2005 and an uncharacteristic heat wave caused the sort of headaches that the lack of snow has caused the winter Olympics organizers. Planning a display garden can take a solid year and forcing plants to bloom out of season is fraught with failure. You’ll see the designers patting their sweaty brows just like the Olympic athletes. They’re in a pressure cooker too - just a different sort but the rabid British press can be just as biting in May as it’s been in February.
Tickets are available for a whole day (8am-8pm) or part day (3:30pm-8pm). Public whole day tickets are 45 pounds ($Cdn72) and half day tickets are 25 pounds ($Cdn40). There are onsite cafes to rest weary legs where you’ll find traditional scones with clotted cream, tea and other British goodies. I recommend visiting for the full day, especially if this is a once in a lifetime trip. Get there early before the crowds so you can really get close to the popular show gardens. Save the indoor pavilion for last unless you have a fondness for new flower varieties and best of blooms displays. The outdoor garden displays are far more inspiring.
The Chelsea Garden Show is visited by the Royals in headgear, obsessive, Latin speaking English gardeners but also by the public at large because it is truly a magnificent show. Tickets are for sale online now and they typically sell out by early April. If you have a London trip on the horizon then I highly recommend including the horticultural Olympics in part of your plans.
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