'Floating garden' wins best in show at Chelsea

A garden designed to give the appearance of plants floating in mid air has won top honours at the Chelsea Flower Show.

Judges today awarded the Laurent-Perrier Garden designed by Tom Stuart-Smith a gold medal and the prestigious title of best in show.

The garden is described as "a contemplative space with a dreamy, slightly surreal character" and features a grove of hornbeams pruned into "rounded clouds".

A number of zinc tanks appearing to overflow are dotted throughout the garden, with planting based around form and texture rather than colour.

The best in show award is the third for Mr Stuart-Smith and brings his tally of Chelsea golds to seven.

He said today: "A lot of people go into making a garden like this so you feel a lot of responsibility. It's fantastic.

"I wanted to show that a garden doesn't have to be firing on all cylinders and be a blaze of colour and full of gimmicks. This is a garden that is quite serene and subdued."

Thousands of gardening fans descended on the sell-out world famous show when it opened its doors to the public today.

Set over 11 acres, home-grown exhibits are joined by exotic flowers and displays from Jamaica to Australia.

The London event also features gardens designed with particular people in mind including children, the elderly, those with limited space - and even stargazers.

The show was given the Royal seal of approval yesterday when the Queen visited.

She stopped to admire a garden designed in memory of former Beatle George Harrison, which tells the story of the keen gardener's life, and spent several minutes chatting to his widow Olivia.

She also met Yvonne Innes, who designed From Life To Life, A Garden for George.

Ringo Starr and Sir George Martin gave the garden the thumbs up during a trip to the show yesterday.

A host of celebrities - including actors, sports stars and television presenters - also enjoyed a preview of the show's highlights.

Now in its 86th year, some 157,000 people will visit the event, which is organised by the Royal Horticultural Society and runs until Saturday.

Nearly 400 new plants have been launched at the show in the past six years, with many more being added to the list this year.

During show week, 5,000 bottles of champagne, 49,000 glasses of Pimms, 54,000 cups of tea and coffee and 28,000 sandwiches will be sold at the site.

A niche takes root

Gina Teel, Calgary Herald
Published: Monday, May 05, 2008
Like most aspects of life in Calgary these days, gardening has become a hepped up leisure activity that's allotted only so much time in the weekly schedule.

Edward's Garden Centre caters to busy gardeners who know what they want and, perhaps more importantly, what they don't want -- long lineups at the till, having to walk a mile in a big box store to get plants, and ordinary greenery that everybody and their dog has.

"Gardening is supposed to be relaxing. Do you want to be waiting in line with some guy with a bunch of two-by-fours in front of you?," asked Ted Childs, owner of Edward's Garden Centre.

A specialty garden business, Edward's has found its niche in giving the discerning gardener something different.

Hardcore gardeners want to set their yard apart, or make a personal statement, be it through using unusual plants, specific colours of flowers, pots, planters, rock or statuary.

For instance, Edward's carries an Oak Leaf Mountain Ash instead of the common Mountain Ash, just to be different.

There are a Gemini apple trees, bred to produce a small number of large crisp apples for fresh eating and not storage.

"People want to walk out on Sunday morning with their cup of coffee or latte and pick an apple and life is good. They don't want to have a whole yard full of this stuff that they feel they have to harvest," Childs said.

Container gardens are hugely popular, as are rock gardens built with tufa rock and planted with specific dwarf native alpine plants.

His quality selection caters to time-pressed but sage gardeners, but Childs said that doesn't mean he's into fads.

He does, however, work with local gardeners to see what plants work best in Calgary.

Childs also brings in what his customers ask for -- as a result, new this year are water plants and starter koi.

Generally, people want fewer trees and more shrubs that have different foliage and for fall colour consideration.

Customers want a mix of perennials in there, too, to ensure a multi-seasonal punch of colour.

They'll make room for some fruit trees, like Evans cherry, which produces large, edible sour cherries, and apple varieties, such as Gemini.

On the flower side, there are super petunias, which are longer-blooming and more productive than the common variety and don't require deadheading.

There are several different kinds of echinacea -- a favourite for attracting butterflies -- including Coconut Lime, the first double-flowered, white echinacea, and Big Sky Sunset with its florid blooms.

Queeny Purple, the first purple hollyhock, is on offer, as are purple gas plant, sneezeweed, Japanese toad lily, liver leaf, cushion spurge and a tree peony that promises spectacular blooms. That's just a small sampling of what's on hand.

Edward's grows some of its own perennials at its unique cliffside location in the city's northwest. The business also grows its own annuals, but that's accomplished in a 30,000-square-foot greenhouse in Sundre, about 130 kilometres northwest of Calgary.

Childs bought the Sundre property two years ago for cost and quality control reasons, and to grow the more unusual annuals he couldn't get from his former supplier. It also allows him to grow larger plants for containers, which is what his customers prefer.

Warm up to preparations for summer's bounty

Spring gardens are beginning to mature very nicely now, but this doesn't mean you can sit back and pat yourself on the back over your accomplishments. No, May is still a time of much activity between the plant rows.

It's gladioli planting time. The best location for these bulbs is in a well-drained location protected from the wind. If the rains don't come, water weekly after the spikes pop out of the ground. Heat-seeking cannas, caladiums and dahlias can also be planted now.
If you want stronger, bushier plants with more flower power, prepare to give them a pinch. Pinching back encourages branching and more compact growth. This is especially true for such popular ornamentals as petunias, annual salvias and zinnias. The herb basil also benefits from being pinched back.
If your azaleas, gardenias, hydrangeas, magnolias and rhododendrons have begun to look sickly with yellow leaves streaked by green veins, this could be a sign of iron chlorosis. A light application of Epsom salt around the base of each plant is the cure.
A mini-garden for apartment or condo dwellers is possible with a bale of hay. Just locate it in a sunny area, poke holes in the top and sides of the bale, put plants in the holes with a little bit of dirt, and water regularly (add water-soluble fertilizer occasionally). Don't overcrowd plants.
We have had a long winter and a cool spring, so if you have waited to begin your summer vegetable garden until now, you are one smart gardener. With the temperatures finally up, it is time to get those veggies into the ground. Fill your beds with such delectable delights as tomatoes, beans, peppers, okra, squash, cucumbers, eggplant and watermelons.
When planting tomato transplants, take advantage of the warm soil close to the surface (which induces root growth) by planting the tomatoes in trenches rather than in deep holes. For an even stronger root system, bury all but the upper 3 inches of each plant.
The temperature has warmed up enough to bring houseplants out for a summer vacation. Just be sure to locate them in areas that receive filtered shade most of the day to prevent sunscald.
Don't forget to clean the birdbath and refill it with fresh water at least once a week.

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Want to ask L.A. Jackson a question about your garden? Go to his Web site at: southeastgardeningwithla.com.