Since 1913 the RHS Chelsea Flower Show has been held in the grounds of the Chelsea Royal Hospital. This year, from the 21th to the 25thof May, the world-famous show will feature gardens created by some of the world’s best garden designers, an awe-inspiring selection of plants from UK and international growers in the Great Pavilion, the very best in gardening products, captivating designs for small spaces, spectacular floristry displays and much more.

For the first time in the RHS Chelsea Flower Show’s 100 year history the RHS has collaborated with an artist to create an installation – titled The Rush of Nature – which will be auctioned in association with Sotheby’s to help raise £1M for the next generation of horticulturists. Renowned British artist Marc Quinn has created the installation to celebrate the garden as an artistic medium.

British native plants and tones of pink steal the show at this year’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show. While almost all gardens at this year’s show are using native British plants, three gardens in particular are featuring this theme strongly in their design. Make sure you’re there to enjoy gardening at its most gorgeous and glamorous.

www.rhs.org.uk

Patrick Blanc has become known internationally for his impressive „vertical gardens“ – green walls covered with plants, within public space as well as inside of buildings. Today he cooperates with some of the best known architects worldwide. In the interview, the french biologist talks about how he came in touch with architecture and what is so fascinating about vertical gardens.

Patrick Blanc, you studied biology and work as a botanist and researcher at the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) and in the research group Biotrop. How did you get in touch with architecture?
My first work was a project for the Museum of Science, Technology and Industry in Paris in 1986. We used plants that were imported from all over the world and received a lot of attention. Eight years later I had a whole wall being covered with plants for the International Garden Festival at Chaumont-sur-Loire. But the real breakthrough came with the green wall at the Pershing Hall Hotel in 2001. Andrée Putman called me and said that she would like to cooperate with me. When I came to the building site, I was totally shocked. This was not about dimensions of a few metres anymore, but a 30-metre high fire wall. That was a big leap, from indoor and landscape design towards architecture.

The vertical gardens are based on a separate steel construction covered with fleece in which you cut pockets for the plants. What are the advantages, compared to horizontal gardens?
There are several advantages. You can have more plants on the same area. It is very space-saving and therefore suitable for small plots in the city. Finally, there is also an aspect of surprise. Nobody will find a small garden remarkable anymore. With a vertical garden it’s different. People look up; maybe they think about the unusual installation and start to reflect a bit about nature in general.

What are the ecological advantages?
On a small scale, you will of course have a better microclimate. The air is filtered and tastes better, bacteria are fought. On a bigger scale of the city as a whole, I have to admit, there are no climatic results. I would like to say the opposite, but that wouldn’t be true.

What else would be attractive about vertical gardens?
Of course there is also a certain lifestyle factor. Many private clients, hotels, companies adorn themselves with such a project. But that is positive, as thus the media, architects and also investors are inspired and become sensitive for this topic. It is also about sociology. I see my vertical gardens as a kind of photogenic, easily understandable and inspiring multiplier.

Is there a general idea of urban living underlying your work?
In general, we need more green in the cities. The most important thing is to think on a small scale. More than half of the population already lives in cities. Everybody wants some nature, and if they all drive out of the city by car on the weekend that is contradicting everything we have achieved so far. I want to contribute, on a small scale, to the quality of living environments. That can be achieved by vertical gardens or small green plots or some urban gardening. I am convinced that these green impulses can change life in the city consistently. Not simply because they are green, but because they help to develop alternatives and therefore to change the principles of urban life. It is high time.

Find out more about Patrick Blanc at www.verticalgardenpatrickblanc.com

Inviting ambience. Warm lighting and comfortable sound. Design cubes, space for young talent. The catwalk for your innovative ideas. The conference garden, for your inspirational business meetings. Camera gates to protect intellectual properties. Welcoming guests with unique hospitality. Meeting the community of the high-priced garden furniture segment at the “unique hour”.