Hardy Plant Society

Chelsea Show 2009

The RHS awarded us a GOLD MEDAL for our display at Chelsea.

The RHS chose our display as the most appropriate backdrop for Her Majesty the Queen awarding the RHS’s highest accolade, the Victoria Medal of Honour to Prince Charles for his ‘passion for plants, sustainable gardening and the environment’, which emulates our own society’s objectives. The backdrop for all the TV coverage and newspaper photographs was our stand and was seen by millions of people.

The design of the stand is based on an English Villa Town Garden featuring a tranquil area of the garden’s colour themed herbaceous borders. A planted rill runs through the garden bordered by a pathway separating the two main planted areas. The path steps up to a raised central area containing a large centrally placed terracotta pot with surround planting. Open slatted columns at each corner are set in planted boxes with inter-connecting arched cross beams at the top of the columns. The theme for this exhibit was chosen to highlight the specialist groups which operate within the Society. The oldest being the Hardy Geranium Group, formed in 1974, followed by the Variegated, Peony, Half-hardy and Pulmonaria Groups. The latest to be formed, in 2007, is the Ranunculaceae group. They all produce their own newsletters and organise meetings and events for their fellow enthusiasts.

Our thanks go out to all those members who contributed plants, time and knowledge to achieve the top RHS medal at the most prestigious Flower Show in the world. We especially thank Monica Gerhold who designed and coordinated our stand, Sue Ward who planted it, Jennifer Harmer our historian, Sally-Ann Turner who produced the plant labels, Sandra Hartley and Denis Watson, the Society's Shows Co-ordinator, who was our Exhibit Co-ordinator. Apologies to all those other HPS members, not acknowledged here, who made valuable contributions and who really deserve a mention, for without them we would not have been awarded a CHELSEA GOLD MEDAL.

Owing to the vagaries of the weather, there were many changes to the plants used in our display after the leaflet went to the printers. At the request of visitors to the stand, here is a downloadable list of all the plants that finally featured in the exhibit (pdf file, which opens in a new window).

Click on pictures for a larger version.