Chelsea garden task for Harlow Carr man

THE FORMER curator of the RHS Harlow Carr garden in Harrogate has been tasked with designing the first garden exhibit for BBC Radio 4 Gardeners’ Question Time at next month’s Chelsea Flower Show.

Matthew Wilson is designing the garden to celebrate the radio show’s 75th anniversary, on which he is also a panellist.

Mr Wilson, who also won the prestigious People’s Choice at the show in 2016 for his Welcome to Yorkshire garden, said the design would be a “playful and relaxing space”, featuring plants frequently asked about on the programme.

The exhibit will also have a recording studio, based in a retro camper van, where visitors can put a question to a Gardeners’ Question Time panellist.

The show’s presenters will be there for sessions throughout the week at Chelsea and visitors may find their question featured on air at a later date.

The exhibit will also include artefacts from the programme, some personal presenter rarities and familiar pieces of historical gardening equipment that will track the evolution of gardening and the Radio 4 show across more than seven decades.

Mr Wilson said: “Gardening has helped so many of us through these difficult times and this spring I look forward to sharing the wealth of wisdom from the Gardeners’ Question Time team in person with our many listeners.”

To mark 75 years of the programme today, presenter Kathy Clugston will host a special episode celebrating the years of “expert gardening advice” and the “odd patch of horticultural silliness”.

Chelsea Flower Show, hosted by the RHS, will be held in the grounds of the Royal Hospital Chelsea in London from May 24 to 28.