A feast for the senses awaits '¨at Chatsworth

A circular sculpture of 100 golden tractors, a garden inspired by a long-gone village and another depicting a Yorkshire Dales wildflower meadow are among the colourful and intriguing exhibits as the RHS Chatsworth Flower show opens today.

Thousands of visitors will descend upon Chatsworth House and its 1,000-acre estate from today through to Sunday afternoon, and The Yorkshire Post was afforded a peek yesterday, when the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire were taking in the array of imaginative gardens on display.

The Duke visited the Brewin Dolphin Installation, where its designer Paul Hervey-Brookes explained how his garden concept was inspired by a village that once stood in the grounds of Chatsworth House.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Using elements of the village, including plants that would have grown there at the time, the garden aims to prompt visitors to think about the estate’s former landscape as well as their own relationship with time.

Dancers from the International Arts Collective perform at the Berwin Dolphin garden at the press day at the RHS Chatsworth Flower Show. Picture Scott MerryleesDancers from the International Arts Collective perform at the Berwin Dolphin garden at the press day at the RHS Chatsworth Flower Show. Picture Scott Merrylees
Dancers from the International Arts Collective perform at the Berwin Dolphin garden at the press day at the RHS Chatsworth Flower Show. Picture Scott Merrylees

Medals have already been awarded by the Royal Horticultural Society to five show gardens.

Among the awards for a Silver Gilt Medal was the John Deere: 100 Years of Tractors Garden by Elspeth Stockwell and Jo Fairfax, which celebrates manufacturer John Deere’s centenary and how innovation has revolutionised agriculture.

TV gardener Chris Myers also took silver for his Hay Time in the Dales garden which features a cottage, a wildflower meadow, broadleaved trees and herbaceous perennials.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The exhibit aims to raise awareness of the work undertaken by the Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust, a charity that helps to look after the Dales landscape and supports rural communities.

Among the Yorkshire-based exhibitors are two University of Sheffield students, Russell Giblett and Alistair Mockett, who have designed, grown and planted a long border to celebrate 100 years of women‘s right to vote.

The show’s most coveted prize, the title of Best Show Garden, went to Phil Hirst. His garden, entitled The Great Outdoors, is a celebration of 
the natural local environment and is designed to evoke the beauty of the woodland and moors.

Show manager Liz Patterson said: “We can’t wait to welcome visitors to our second show. There is something for everyone to enjoy.”

New features include a river of 12,000 Cosmos and more than 100 varieties of orchid.