Tom Massey is an award-winning gardener and landscape designer, and this September he will design and execute the first organic exhibition garden at RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2021.
Designed by Tom Massey and sponsored by Sarah Med, Yo Valley Corporation sponsors Yo Valley Organic Garden It will be a celebration of wildlife, housing and vegetation in Somerset. You can read an in-depth profile on garden design here.
But who is Tom Masse – a graduate of London’s College of Garden Design and a presenter of BBC Two ‘s Your garden is perfect – Will history be made at the big garden event in the annual calendar? We met Tom to ask him about Chelsea design, organic gardening practices and the upcoming first Chelsea Flower Show …
Chelsea’s first organic show garden – that’s a coup…
It has never been done before, as far as we know. I am determined to create a garden using chemical pesticides, pea-free soil, and small pieces of plastic. Other show gardens contain organic ingredients, but I believe my Valley Organic Garden is the first attempt to grow everything physically.
Does that make it more stressful?
Predicting a garden this way is less likely but it makes it even more fun. Sarah Med, a senior gardener in Ye Valley, made it clear that the second step was to create a garden that was truly organic and promoting that approach. This is my fifth show garden, so I know the process well, but I’m sure I won’t feel comfortable one day before the verdict!
Tell us in your garden…
We have been planning for many years and a mixture of ornamental grass. There are fields and forests with birch, willow, medium, and quince trees, so it feels a bit like Sumerset. In Tom Rafffield, a stream flows down a steep path leading to an oak-shaped oak hut. Mendip’s rocks and burnt logs come from every valley farm and return there after the show.
Tom Masse’s RHS Medal History –
- RHS Silver-Gilt Medal at Chelsea 2018 for Lemon Tree Faith Garden
- RHS Silver-Gilt Medal at Hampton Court 2017 for a permanent annual garden
- In HCCS. RHS Gold Medal and ‘Best Concept Garden’ in the ‘Boundary Control’ Garden
Is organic only messy and distorted?
We want to make sure he is beautiful. Of course, not using chemical pesticides means that plants are more susceptible to aphids, vines, and snails, but there are some good chemical-free pesticides, such as SB environments. Organic plants do not grow big, but they are more resistant because they do not rely on chemicals to survive.
Any other bug fixing tips?
Encourage your hunters to come to your garden – a small pond will bring flies that you love to eat. Or, if you know a plant is vulnerable to pests, place a bird feeder nearby – the birds will spread it with them.
More Chelsea News
Can the Chelsea Flower Show be completely organic?
The scene is pea-free and things are already changing. The next step may be to ban chemical pesticides and fertilizers and ask exhibitors to use organic clay fertilizers. I think the judges should give signs of sustainability as an incentive. For me, it’s about protecting the natural world. Currently, 40% of the insect species in the UK are declining, the third being ‘endangered’. If we continue to use pesticides,
Over the next 50 years, we will see mass extinction.
How will the show be different this year?
Sarah and I were thrilled when the show was scheduled for September. A.D. We had an exhibition when it was canceled in 2020. I did not want the plants to be wasted, so we took them to hospitals. A few have survived this year. Keeping them alive was challenging, but organic principles encourage reuse in a processed garden and the ferns and grasses become more abundant. I like to see fruit on trees and seed columns in low spring light.
What’s in the notebook after Chelsea?
I will present a second series Your garden is perfect He created two ‘mobile’ orchards for the BBC and recently planted in parliament near the Olympic Park. I also work on residential projects – from Yorkshire to Cornell. I want to create beautiful gardens that improve the environment and support wildlife.
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