Chelsea’s first autumn flower show begins
THE first autumn Chelsea Flower Show has got under way, with gardens focusing on the climate crisis and calls to plant trees to mark the Queen’s platinum jubilee.
Celebrities including Dame Judi Dench got a first glimpse of the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Show, where dahlias, pumpkins and autumn colour have replaced spring and early summer blooms, as it shifts seasons due to the pandemic.
Dame Judi said the show looked “as always, immaculate” as she officially opened the RHS Queen’s Green Canopy Garden, the largest plot at the show, featuring 21 trees and more than 3,500 plants to highlight the importance of trees and woodland.
The actress said she had two passions in life, William Shakespeare and trees, and had planted trees in her garden for all of her friends who had died.
Dame Judi said she had already got her tree to plant in honour of the Queen’s platinum jubilee, a Himalayan silver birch.
Dame Judi said: “We have never had the opportunity to celebrate a platinum jubilee before, never had someone 70 years on the throne before.
“The work the Queen has done, is doing, is remarkable, and what better way to celebrate than by having a garden and then for all of us to take that on and plant a tree.”