Many RHS Show visitors make a beeline to the Floral Marquees, where some of the finest plant growers in the country create breath-taking displays to show off their impressive collections. A show within a show – browse the stalls, take photos of the rare and unusual plants displayed at their best, and get plant advice directly from the expert horticulturists who raised them.
Proctor’s Nursery
A small hut is surrounded by a generous border of beautiful blooms. On the door of the hut is a chart detailing some of the different types of bees visiting the flowers. Continuing the theme, a honeycomb sculpture weaves through the bed and a small beehive is nestled in one corner.
“You can have the plants you love in your garden and you can also help pollinators.”
-Barry Proctor, Proctor’s Nursery
Barry Proctor of
Proctor’s Nursery earned a Gold medal from the judges for the display and he explains the inspiration behind it. “You can have the plants you love in your garden and you can also help pollinators. That’s the subtle message we want to put across. A lot of the plants we grow are for the height of summer and most of them attract bees. We’re not trying to be educational, we are just trying to show that you don’t have to plant a native meadow to attract wildlife.”
Garth Cottage Herbs
Everything you could possibly want to know about mint is on this display. Dozens of terracotta pots are filled with different varieties. Photo frames line the exhibit with information about how to grow mint and its many uses. There’s a bistro table all set up for a refreshing mint tea, a section on French mint liqueurs and a tray of cocktails which owe a debt to the herb, such as mojito mint and lime mint for gin & tonic.
“I used to do a stand called ‘50 shades of mint’,” says nursery owner Paul Turner, “but I wanted to do something more technical, so the idea of this display is to tell people about the many uses of mint, and how much fun it can be. I’ve also selected out some of the best regional mints from around the country such as the Brundall mint from Norfolk, which is used to make Colman’s Mint Sauce.”
A fascinating, fun display dedicated to what may be the most underated ‘doer’ in the herb garden.
National Sweet Pea Society
RHS Tatton Park is all about community and the volunteers of the
National Sweet Pea Society are proving how a passion for plants brings people together. They’ve worked long hours to pull together their Gold medal-winning display of beautiful and of course fragrant, flowers.
The knowledgeable volunteers are on hand to share their knowledge about the history of the plant and advice on everything from growing to arranging.
Holden Clough Nurseries
Ever wanted to create a stylish border but don’t know where to start? This exhibit is for you. Five areas are planted up into some of the most popular garden design styles. There’s a White Garden, an English Garden, a Japanese Garden, a Cottage Garden and a Meadow Garden. As well as looking beautiful they also serve an educational purpose, with information on what key plants you would expect to find, and ideal growing conditions for each design style.
Steph Brookes-Taylor from Holden Clough Nurseries explains how it works, “We’ve separated our plants into styles so customers can see how to recreate the different types of gardens back at home. We can give advice on how to tailor those choices to suit their soil, aspect and conditions.”
Like having a personal stylist for your garden – the nursery can provide a bespoke service – but in the Floral Marquee you can get help and advice on recreating the look you’ve always wanted for free!
Octavia Hill Garden
At RHS Chelsea Fower Show this year, Ann-Marie Powell’s The Octavia Hill Garden by Blue Diamond with the National Trust was a huge success, scooping a Gold medal, and both the Children’s Choice and People’s Choice awards.
Blue Diamond have taken a section of that garden and brough it into the Floral Marquee, claiming their own RHS Gold medal in the process.
See The Octavia Hill Garden by Blue Diamond with the National Trust
Lucy from Blue Diamond explains. “The planting has been updated to high summer. With the majority of the plants here are all grown at Bridgemere, just down the road. Many of the landscaping elements such as the engineered flooring, the hardwood seating and the water feature have all come from RHS Chelsea, but here we are showing the public how the garden evolves over time.”
After the Show the garden will move to Bridgemere Show gardens where it will be open to the public early 2025.
Master Grower
Every year the Show hosts a Master Grower exhibit, celebrating the expertise and experience of some of the country’s finest growers. This year the honour goes to
Robinson Seeds and Plants, a family nursery, specialising in giant vegetables.
The founder, William Robinson, started the nursery in 1860 and it is now run by the 4th and 5th generation who are passionate about growing sustainably.
They have brought to RHS Tatton Park an enviable selection of their famous ‘Mamouth’ veg as well as the more exotic and rare crops they have pioneered in recent years. Anyone keen on plot-to-plate growing should make a beeline for the Master Grower display and pick the brains of the expert growers.
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