The 2013 edition and the centenary year of the RHS Chelsea Flower show drew to a close yesterday and one of the highlights of the last day of this week long even is the plant sell off that happens late in the afternoon. At 4 PM a bell rings and various display gardens and nursery exhibits can sell off their plants if they wish.
Not all nurseries and gardens take part, some choosing to take their plants away, particularly if they are stock plants rather than sale items. However for those that do sell off it can be a frantic affair with the plant buying public all desperate for a bargain.
Some show gardens were kept pristine that day and did not participate in the sell off...
Whilst others did...
Although we did buy one plant - a Kalopanax septemlobus from Paul Hervey-Brookes Brand Alley garden, we choose to watch the proceedings rather than get caught up in them and it was quite good fun, seeing people almost fighting over the bargains, snapping up plants and flowers to allow them to take home a little bit of Chelsea!
Meanwhile, the plant sell off frenzy carried on...
Bottoms up!
Must get that bargain plant!
As the visiting public gore at the displays, the gaps reveal...
It's pack up time!
And the sell off went on right until the very end...
As mentioned before, not all gardens were torn apart that day. Some were kept pristine, set for more careful packing up later to be ready to go to its new home...
Not all nurseries and gardens take part, some choosing to take their plants away, particularly if they are stock plants rather than sale items. However for those that do sell off it can be a frantic affair with the plant buying public all desperate for a bargain.
Some show gardens were kept pristine that day and did not participate in the sell off...
Whilst others did...
Although we did buy one plant - a Kalopanax septemlobus from Paul Hervey-Brookes Brand Alley garden, we choose to watch the proceedings rather than get caught up in them and it was quite good fun, seeing people almost fighting over the bargains, snapping up plants and flowers to allow them to take home a little bit of Chelsea!
Meanwhile, the plant sell off frenzy carried on...
Bottoms up!
Must get that bargain plant!
As the visiting public gore at the displays, the gaps reveal...
It's pack up time!
And the sell off went on right until the very end...
As mentioned before, not all gardens were torn apart that day. Some were kept pristine, set for more careful packing up later to be ready to go to its new home...
This gardening blog follows our journey as we create our Tropical and Exotic themed garden. We hope you'll enjoy the journey as much as we do. We started our Exotic Garden in 2005 and this site will show its development, as well as our travels, both abroad and within the UK to gardens, nurseries and friends.
Fantastic photos! I would imagine that for some of the vendors, it's best to sell stuff and make a few books rather than lugging so much back with them. Now for me I can't even imagine being in there for a sale. :)
ReplyDeleteCher Sunray Gardens
Indeed Cher, for some nurseries and for most of the display gardens it makes sense for them to sell off their plants and not have a big haul to take back with them. For some though what they have are their best plants hence they do take them back to be nurtured again to top condition for the next show.
DeleteHoly cow! that's one heck of a plant sale. Great pictures. I can imagine I'd have an adrenaline rush and would just have to buy some of those beauties if I was there.
ReplyDeleteIt was fun watching the mad dash for the plants up for grabs :)
DeleteThank you so much for taking me to the show! As for this last day... I think I'd skip it. But, I am happy for those people who got a piece of Chelsea!
ReplyDeleteA pleasure Tatyana! For most of the last day of the show it was about viewing the display so still worth going. But if you're not keen at the hustle at the end then best to exit before the sell off bell rings.
DeleteThank you for your coverage of the Chelsea show! Your pictures and commentary from the pre-show plans to the final plant sales makes me feel almost as though I'm there. It's the best overview I've seen of any of the garden shows.
ReplyDeleteThank you and you're welcome Kris! I'm glad you enjoyed our coverage of the event :)
DeleteThis is my favorite Chelsea post of all! Chaos all around. You guys got some fun pictures.
ReplyDeleteIt was good fun being there Loree, and was nice to look back at the photos of the frenzy too!
DeleteI enjoyed your posts on the Chelsea show! From your photos, I think the M&G garden was my favorite. Watching it all deconstruct must have been amazing. Lots of human interest photos there!
ReplyDeleteWe think the M&G garden was delightful, traditional yes but well composed. And yes it was fun watching the frenzy at the end!
DeleteI see the famous British reserve breaks down when plant lust strikes. What a mad scramble. I guess it would be a toss-up which would be the most exhausting: Packing everything up at the end of an exhausting show, or facing the madding crowds. I'm glad you spent the time observing to capture the atmosphere for the rest of us.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely Ricki! It was also amazing to see how many people attended that day for the main purpose of the plant sale at the end rather than seeing the exhibits.
DeleteThanks for your Chelsea posts which have been most enjoyable. You showed admirable restraint with just the one purchase. I just wonder how many plants get to their new homes in one piece :)
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome Anna, glad you enjoyed it! I'm wondering that as well, how many actually made it home intact. But a majority of those on the plant sale seems well experienced in bringing home bargain plants from the show.
DeleteWow! This has been a wonderful series covering Chelsea! It would have to be a pretty special plant to merit one's being in the frenzy! Love the wire mesh human figure that you showed before and in your tenth picture in this post. Thanks for allowing us to enjoy the show vicariously through these excellent posts!
ReplyDeleteA pleasure Peter! We love that wire human sculpture too, so airy and light, and modern. There were lots of special plants there but in reality a majority of the genuine one (or two) offs weren't sold that day, instead they were taken back, more likely to get ready again for the next show.
DeleteYou are brave souls to wade into a crowd of determined plant buyers!
ReplyDeleteMostly happy spectators really, it was fun to watch!
DeleteI can't wait to check out your other posts on Chelsea. Seeing it all being dismantled, like having the magician explain his trick, is quite the shock! Apart from the exhibit gardens, I would really love to go just to visit the plant vendors' booths in the marquee.
ReplyDeleteThanks Denise! Yes it was a bit strange to see such pristine displays suddenly dismantled and in disarray in an instant, right before your eyes.
DeleteThe Floral Marquee is our favourite area of the show, where all the wonderful and special plants mostly are :)
its always a bit manic at the end! Was interesting seeing how many of the plants eneded up being sold off at the Columbia Road Flower Market on Sunday - those traders know where to get the best plants!
ReplyDeleteHmm...now that's an interesting piece of info there Colin!
DeleteFor some reason this post made me think of piranhas fighting over food, LOL.
ReplyDeleteThat's a good thought, we were joking that it was like zombies searching for brains... :)
DeleteCrazy fun! :) Jeannine
ReplyDeleteLooks great fun! Visiting at the beginning of the week, I've never been there for the sell-off although I love the pics I've sometimes seen of people trying to cram impossibly big plants into taxis and so on!
ReplyDeleteWhat fun! Looks more frantic than the Harrods sale ... I remember being taken to Chelsea when I was a teenager just so that I could transport some of those bargains home.
ReplyDelete