After watching the excitement from afar last year I had to check out the Urban Garden show, with a quick reminder from Fiona at Blue Leaf a few weeks ago I put it in my diary. Missing out on the evening preview but turning up bright and early on day one I slipped past Vincent Square, Victoria to Lawrence Hall.
It was a little more houseplant show than urban gardening in my opinion but still a wonderful botanic oasis in central London. I was greeted and relaxed as I walked around soaking in the genuine knowledge and vitality about plant life. I haven’t been to an RHS show before and this was my first tiny step in to their world. It was an easy afternoon with plenty to see, even in this relatively small space, I bought lots of leafy companions to take home.
With a few interesting event decorations and installations like the Cityscapes domes, a trendy gin bar from Hendrick’s, a pop up indoor pool and lots of talks & workshops on top of that.
Another of the great displays to take in was put on by IKEA who made a return to RHS with a silver medal winning exhibit ‘At Home with Plants’, an innovative installation comprising of three walk-through rooms. It features IKEA furniture and plants from their extensive range in innovative ways around your home.
So who else was there, the creme de le creme of plant people both garden centres & plant friendly design brands. The rise in the percentage of cacti & succulents compared to the more traditional ferns & monstera was pretty obvious in the room, with a few air plants thrown in for good measure. There was a definite nod to easy care when it comes to plants, trying to give even people with a black thumb a chance to be involved with gardening.
