100 years of inspiration

By Hannah Stephenson

So, what are we going to learn from this year's internationally acclaimed horticultural show?

While sustainability may be the watchword of this year's RHS Chelsea Flower Show, with emphasis on biodiversity, wild planting areas and inviting eco-systems, so many of the designs simply wouldn't be feasible in our own gardens.

So, eminent designers ranging from Tom Stuart-Smith to Jekka McVicar are offering advice to gardeners based on their own experiences in a new centenary edition of Take Chelsea Home by Chris Young, which looks at how gardeners can adopt similar techniques to create beautiful spaces in their own residential plots.

Here's a few tips from the award-winners:

:: Organic herb grower Jekka McVicar, who has won 14 gold medals at Chelsea, on planting a summer salad crop container: "Salad rocket, dill and mustard are all great salad herbs that can be easily raised from seed and grown in a container.

"The trick is to choose a planter large enough to grow a crop for cutting; an ideal size is 23cm (9in) wide by 18cm (7in) high, or 5 litres/1 gallon, or larger. Fill with compost and water well, then sow the seeds and cover lightly with more compost.

"Set the container in a sheltered warm spot that is shaded from the midday sun. Once you start cutting your salad, feed the plants every week with a balanced liquid fertiliser."

Landscape designer Tom Stuart-Smith, who has eight Chelsea golds under his belt, on layered planting: "The idea behind layered planting in the garden is to repeat the ecological patterns inherent in complex plant communities.

"In an oak woodland, for example, there are various different levels: an upper canopy, often a middle canopy of medium-sized trees and saplings; a shrub layer, a herb layer, and then bulbs and corms at the bottom.

"By adapting this natural pattern to a garden, it is possible to have different layers flowering at different times, usually with the lower layers flowering first."

:: Professor Nigel Dunnett, three-time Silver-Gilt winner and designer of this year's Royal Bank of Canada Blue Water Roof Garden and one of the principal planting consultants for the London Olympic Park, on green roofs: "Garden sheds, porches, summerhouses, balconies, garages and small extensions all offer great potential for planting green roofs.

"The most important consideration for such a roof is how much weight the chosen building will support. It must comfortably take the weight of a person if it is to be strong enough to have a green roof planted on it.

"You can create a simple green roof by securing a pre-grown mat of sedums over a pond liner on the roof surface, but it is referable to plant individually into a generous layer of free-draining soil or potting compost on the roof. Many typical alpines such as dianthus and thyme are excellent for green roofs, as are low-growing species tulips."

Water specialist Andrew Ewing, who is working on this year's Daily Telegraph garden with Christopher Bradley-Hole, on edging water: "The use of an appropriate material around your water feature can substantially enhance its overall design and effect.

"For a minimal edging, say, between grass and water, stainless steel set upright produces a crisp line and can allow the water height to be almost level with the grass. Otherwise stone is a great edging material, whether cut clean in a modern style or left more naturalistic and jagged.

"Consider also wildlife needs, in terms of how amphibians may enter or exit the water, and also the role and requirements of aquatic and marginal planting if desired. Such planting can 'soften' the edge of a water feature, directing attention on to the plants and water itself."

:: Take Chelsea Home by Chris Young is published by Mitchell Beazley, priced £20

:: The RHS Chelsea Flower Show takes place from May 21-25, in the grounds of the Royal Hospital, Chelsea. For more information, visit www.rhs.org.uk

Best of the bunch - Tulip

There are so many of these late spring stars available, ranging from dwarf and species tulips ideal for pots and rockeries, to tall, sturdy varieties for beds and borders, whether in classic red or multi-coloured, frilly and frothy.

Among my favourites is Tulipa 'Queen of Night', whose tall, strong stems carry silky, purple-black flowers. They look fantastic in a pot or mixed with 'Maureen' or 'Cheers', against acid green foliage plants in beds and borders.

For frilly varieties, you'll need a parrot tulip such as T. 'Flaming Parrot', which is among the showiest, with golden yellow petals streaked with scarlet, but if you want a touch of the exotic, try T. 'Deirdre', with its elegant, lily-like green and white blooms.

Tulips should be planted in late October or November with the base of the bulbs at four times their depth below the surface, adding grit to the soil to make it more free-draining. Choose a spot in full sun and avoid wet conditions.

Good enough to eat - Courgettes

You can still start courgettes up on windowsills in May, even when the weather is warming up, as they are susceptible to frost damage so you mustn't put them out too early.

They are fast-growing plants, so don't worry about sowing the seeds indoors as in most areas you'll have to wait until June to plant them out.

Sow one large seed on its side per 7cm pot and cover with compost, giving it a minimum temperature of 18C. Keep it well-watered and if you can't plant it out after a month, transfer it to a bigger pot.

Gradually harden the plants off by putting them outside on warm days and moving them under cover on cool nights.

Courgettes need plenty of space so you could plant one in a large patio tub which will give you tender courgettes throughout the summer as well as bright yellow flowers.

When planting out, dig a hole 30cm wide and deep and refill with a mixture of soil and compost, allowing an area of at least 1m in diameter for each plant.

Once flowering starts, give them a good soaking once a week and feed them at the same time with a dilute tomato feed. Pick fruits regularly to encourage further cropping.

Good varieties include 'Patriot', a standard long green variety, 'Gold Rush', which produces attractive yellow fruits and is perfect for patio pots, and 'Sunburst', a summer squash with small, tasty, golden, pie-shaped fruits.

Three ways to... Perk up a shady spot

1. Go for shade-loving plants with pale colours, which are transformed into a palette of subtle pastels in shade, such as busy lizzies or scented stocks, which are superb next to shady seating areas.

2. If you have a specimen tree, create a stunning shade-tolerant wildflower meadow underneath with ox-eye daisies, musk mallow and knapweed.

3. Use landscaping materials such as pale-coloured pebbles or gravel to introduce light into a dark corner. The lighter stones will emphasise darker-leaved plants such as fatsia.

What to do this week

Take basal cuttings of border plants such as lupins and delphiniums before they develop hollow stems, at which point it's too late for successful cuttings.

:: Sow fast-maturing and late-flowering annuals, herbs and vegetables including parsnips, early carrots and runner beans.

:: Thin out hardy annual, vegetable and other seedlings sown outdoors.

:: Pinch out the growing tips of bush fuchsias while the plants are still small and check all types of tender fuchsias for pests.

:: Make sure the greenhouse has adequate shading and ventilation to prevent overheating.

:: Train greenhouse cucumbers and tomatoes, removing male flowers from cucumbers.

:: Earth up early and maincrop potatoes, protecting foliage if frost is forecast.

:: Cut lawns with naturalised bulbs growing in them, keeping the mower blades high.

:: Stake dahlias early, particularly any that have been raised from cuttings which have not yet formed large tubers.

:: Continue to deadhead spring-glowering bulbs including daffodils, allowing the foliage to die down naturally.

:: If you haven't yet done so, mulch borders with organic matter.

:: If frost is forecast, cover vulnerable plants with layers of newspaper or horticultural fleece, weighting the material down with large stones or secure the material with wire or canes to stop it blowing away.