For the first time the National Botanic Garden of Wales is entering a garden in the prestigious RHS Chelsea Flower Show. More than 4,000 plants are being grown for the Get Well Soon artisan garden designed by Kati Crome and Maggie Hughes which will go on display when the show opens on May 21.
When the designers – previous 2011 gold medal winners at Chelsea – approached the National Botanic Garden in the Towy Valley asking if they could design a debut garden, director Rosie Plummer thought it was too good an opportunity to pass up.
Their entry, the Get Well Soon Garden, draws inspiration from the healing properties of plants and Wales’ own famous 12th century herbalists, the Physicians of Myddfai, who are honoured at the National Botanic Garden.
The design is one of eight artisan gardens at the show, which celebrates its 100th anniversary this year.
Get Well Soon features a reflexology path, a seat carved from a long-dead elm tree at the National Botanic Garden, a water feature and 2,500 plants, all with healing properties.
There will also be two trees, a willow already on site at Chelsea and a Euonymus europaeus which will be delivered in a vast pot.
To ensure the 2,500 plants are at their best for the show, Kati and Maggie have spent the last few months growing double that amount as around half won’t make it or peak in time.
And it’s been a family affair, says Kati.
“We have approximately 96 different plant species that we have sourced from around 17 different nurseries with a total of just under 2,800 plants. About half the plants are currently in our two gardens. We have no greenhouses and have small gardens – so our husbands are not particularly pleased with us!
“I’ve got a tiny cold frame that I’m keeping a few of the plants in and have been fleecing the rest every night. I also find myself moving them round the garden following the sun on those rare days that it decides to appear.”
Kati and Maggie live in the south of England but have ties to Wales as Maggie’s husband Simon is from Swansea and they’re regular visitors to the national garden. They also designed a gold medal-winning artisan garden for Chelsea in 2011 called Postcard From Wales inspired by Welsh cottage gardens.
With Chelsea’s 100th anniversary show fast approaching, Kati and Maggie are now busy making final arrangements for this year.
They’ll move onto the Chelsea show site 10 days before opening to assemble the 7m x 5m garden which also includes wooden post sculptures, stonewalls and shelves.
Kidwelly building firm Ron Pocock will join them on site to build the walls and carry out heavy landscaping while Kati and Maggie are charged with planting.
“It’s taken about a year to get ready,” adds Maggie. You have to submit drawings in September so a year ago our thoughts were on what plants are out at this time of year.
“Medicinal plants are very interesting because they form the basis of so much modern medicine. The garden represents all areas from hi-tech, where tiny extracts are used to make medicine, to things like fennel for soothing tea.”
The last few months have been busy and the cold winter and spring have caused a few headaches, she admits. “Plants can be quite naughty and we’ve had a cold spring.
“We have had irises grown at Sissinghurst, some in friends’ greenhouses and in our own gardens.”
Although none of the plants are being grown at the national garden itself, vital parts of the design will come from around Wales.
Four wooden posts are waiting in Pembroke Dock to be made into plant labels, a bust of Hippocrates has been made in Swansea and Dai Edwards from Pontypridd has cut a section of a dead yew tree from the national garden to make a seat while stone from a Swansea quarry will also be used.
When the show finishes the £22,000 garden, sponsored by Penn Pharma, South West Wales Tourism Partnership and Growing The Future will come back to Wales to Penn Pharma’s Tredegar headquarters.
More information from www.rhs.org.uk
MEDICINAL PLANTS
The vast majority of modern medicines we use today started with biochemical compounds that have their origin in plants, even if they are now synthesised. Here are some of the common plants important in medicine.
Daffodil
The daffodil has a poisonous bulb and shares the compound galanthamine with snowdrops. This compound is useful in treating Alzheimer’s disease.
Foxglove
Despite being extremely toxic, the foxglove contains digitoxin, a compound of which is an important heart medicine.
Willow
Salicylic acid derived from willow bark was used to create the first aspirin in the 19th century. The father of modern medicine, Hippocrates, who lived sometime between 460 BC and 377 BC left records of pain relief treatments, including the use of powder made from the bark and leaves of the willow tree to help heal headaches, pains and fevers.
Valerian
A herb which is most commonly used for insomnia, valerian can also be used for muscle and joint pain and as a relief from menstrual cramps.
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