Hampton Court Festival Gardens

I too must be out of date. I would rather have seen some interesting planting.

The outside furniture is a strange concept - it only needs rain or a bird in need of bowel relief and they would just become a mess.

I went to the show preview on Monday night and was very disappointed. The plane was the most memorable garden and I felt it was in the wrong place..... Show gardens at RHS shows are often inspiring and encourage beautiful planting - we saw no beautiful planting except for the vegetable garden. The flower tent was lacklustre and the rose tent cast a strange light over the blooms. Many trade stands had nothing at all to do with gardening and the music was all pervasive. I really hope the RHS isn't going the way of the National Trust!

I’ve also thought that Chelsea and Hampton Court have, in recent years, been less about the plants.
I’m going to Tatton, it’s in a more spread out setting and has always had a focus on the plants and gardens. They have a section where local schools design mini gardens and one for young designers, who are less well known.

Off to Wisley next week. I am not a fan of Garden shows as they re selling a lie- no garden can have all its plants at their best at the same time- unless you would accept that the rest of the year would be 'dead'. It gives a very false picture of what a garden is- a series of 'shows' that change throughout the year- some plants disappearing as others take over. In my garden from late winter until late autumn.

Wisley and other gardens RHS or not, are a much better and true representation, I feel.

Oh Dear I'm going to Tatton Park in a few weeks and was looking forward to it.

It's about 11 or 12 years since I've been to Hampton Court Flower Show, used to go every year as I then lived in Sunbury on Thames. Used the bus rather than the car due to the amount of traffic. DH & I always enjoyed it, very impressed. Obviously things have changed but I haven't seen the tv programmes this year so can't comment about the changes in the gardens.

Real gardeners should recognise that these are "show gardens" & in no way would expect their own garden to look the same, we all need inspirtation at times

I always thought that Hampton Court was the show that was best for plants, with all the marquees, but I've not watched my recorded BBC programmes yet.

I was a bit shocked by the plane crash and not sure it will inspire anyone to help environment-wise. Thought she was jumping on bandwagon. Some nice plants in other gardens tho.

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

It is amazing. The allotments wonderful. The plane crash a wake up call but it shows that the planet will recover by showing all the ferns that have survived millions of years. I am looking forward to Chelsea. That will be truly exciting.. .

My question here is, is this a "Garden Show" or a "Flower Show"?

If a flower show then yes, I'd expect to see lots of beautiful flowers but if its a garden show it can be anything and doesn't actually need to have a single flower in it, as many modern gardens have AstroTurf (plastic), slabs, decking, gravel etc.

My own back garden is fully slabbed with only one honeysuckle and one jasmine, both being very successfully strangled by my neighbour's triffid of an ivy plant

I didn’t see the TV coverage but by the sounds of it I experienced similar thoughts at Chelsea a year or two ago. The multiple trade stands had very tenuous links to gardening, maybe a flower on their non gardening products. The show gardens were so much smaller than I’d expected and because of the crowds it was extremely difficult to see anything. Luckily I had won the two tickets but I certainly wouldn’t be in a rush to buy tickets and return. My local garden centres are more educational.

A friend of mine went to the Show last week and was so disappointed at the lack of plants.p this year.

Leggs55 I live in Sunbury on Thames and the traffic to Hampton Court actually goes past my house. I didn't think it was as bad this year maybe fewer tickets sold.

Lace, at last someone lives near me !
I’m in Ashford!
Made my day!

Kacee, sorry blooming auto correct

And I live in Staines! I went to the Hampton Court Show some years ago on the last day and bought many tall plants, completely forgetting I hadn't arrived by car!

I had to miss 3 buses home before a sympathetic driver let me on, and took myself to the terminus so that I had time to get everything off again.

Fortunately two lovely grandsons rescued me from the terminus and helped me carry everything home.

And one particular agapanthus reminds me every year how reluctant it was to get home in one piece.

I’ve been to Hampton Court a few times, and I think that it is OK but no more than that really. It is good if you want to buy stuff though.

Unigran4** That made my day - just the sort of thing I’d do! So glad your agapanthus is still going strong.

I went on Wednesday, walked through Bushy park to get there, very lucky with the weather. I thought that the rose tent was very disappointing, only two suppliers. I didn't care for the plane, but it was a good message. Our allotment was showing there, saw a friend thus morning who said that Mary Berry was most impressed by the fact that we have a cafe every Sunday a the allotments! I'm going to Chelsea in September with my daughter, she's moving to a house with a large garden, it should be interesting, as they are only letting half the numbers in we should be able to see the gardens.

I’ve been loving the show this week just a bit of normality for me. I take it with a pinch of salt that all of the gardens are ear marked for down south. Up north we need lots of. Of water as we get more rain than anyone. I do love the show and look forward to Chelsea it’s my favourite and I didn’t realise it was going to be on later in the year.

Mamissimo

I went to the show preview on Monday night and was very disappointed. The plane was the most memorable garden and I felt it was in the wrong place..... Show gardens at RHS shows are often inspiring and encourage beautiful planting - we saw no beautiful planting except for the vegetable garden. The flower tent was lacklustre and the rose tent cast a strange light over the blooms. Many trade stands had nothing at all to do with gardening and the music was all pervasive. I really hope the RHS isn't going the way of the National Trust!

I went too - it was supposed to be a special evening on Monday and cost almost twice as much as the other days. I was so disappointed! But, on the other side of the fence, one of the stall holders told me that because of the pandemic, their nurseries were down more than fifty percent so I guess some just couldn't provide the inspiration they should have done.

I lived so close to Hampton Court for years until we moved very recently, I could have walked there from my house, would have taken possibly half an hour, we were always walking in Bushy Park anywayr, just across the road from the palace. ............I'd never been but was very aware of the traffic when it was on!

How much is the entrance? Daughter said £100- which I find incredible.