Preparing for Chelsea

It’s the end of April, and with only a week to go, there’s not enough time to change anything, but too much time not to think about it?

Did we get enough plants? Should we have started growing sooner? Should we have listened to that one opinion in January? It’s unnerving and for the first time in a year, I feel nervous. Until now it’s only felt methodical with an undercurrent of excitement. This new feeling has been creeping in for a month, and mainly as there has been less and less I can control, and less and less I could do to change anything. My role now comes to play in a weeks time, however there are still a few things still to do.

As a planting consultant on a Chelsea garden my responsibilities are that the soft landscaping delivers what the brief says, and coordinating a fantastic team who ar the reason we can create a beautiful garden. These wonderful people volunteer their time to spend many long days working for the end goal. Some will be sitting preparing plants so they look their best, others making sure that pot unplanted plants are kept in ideal situations, a few might go up a ladder cleaning trees, and then a core team will be planting the garden, using the planting plan a guide, but with the artistic ability and fluidity to change positions when the vision isn’t working. On previous shows I’ve planted what felt like huge areas to then un-plant it when the Planting Lead has decided it’s not working. You learn it’s better to change and to get a better result, you learn not to be precious, and you learn that you’re working to a single vision.

So what is left to do? We still have final visits to see the majority of our Herbaceous Perennials, grown at Kelways in Somerset, where we will play with planting combinations and finalise which plants come in which deliveries. This is where there is also a moment where you see if every plant you planned is going to show or whether some have to be rejected as they haven’t grown as you’ve needed them to. Currently we have fears about one, we will only know on Thursday if it can deliver. This is also an opportunity to marvel at the experience and skill of growers who can time plants to flower for one specific week of the year.

Next is a hedge check at Practicality Brown. The hope is the one that was earmarked in November is still the hedge you hoped for in leaf. If not, a frantic search on site will happed to look for a replacement. It’s also a chance to look at the soil and see which self seeded plants are keepers and which needed to be removed. It’s all details.

Next it’s bringing together the plants that Ryan in Falkirk, and I in Cambridge have been growing as extras and get them ready for London. Again it’s a process of potential eliminations but as these plants might not go through that until we hit site. With so many crevices, cracks and small margins to fill, they may all be useful.

After all that it’s pack up tools, relocate to London and start. The joy of being on site is that there’s no time to think about the what ifs, the what ifs are either happening or not, there’s no time to lay in bed at night wondering, the days are too long not to rest at night, and just like a new haircut, there may be a moment where you’re worried, but then a few seconds later you know it’s going to be fine.

When I look at what’s to go, and when I stop to breathe and rationalise my thoughts, I know that the vision is clear, the plants will be great, the team will knit together on site, and although there is pressure, it’s the pressure I thrive on.