As the official charity partner of Belgravia in Bloom 2024, we were absolutely delighted to be part of all the excitement in Newson’s Yard on Pimlico Road as the free flower festival began on Monday 20 May!
Now in its ninth year and coinciding with the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, this year’s theme is Floral Fun and Games. With a nod to a summer of epic sporting events, the festival has brought the world of fun and games to life with eye-popping floral displays and unique experiences across the neighbourhood.
Horatio’s Garden was invited to create an installation as part of the event, with celebrated garden designer, Butter Wakefield, creating our stunning display. Entitled ‘The Flower Stand’, Butter, her incredible team, the brilliant Landcraft UK, and a host of fantastic nurseries and contractors, all helped to bring the vintage-themed display to life over the weekend. The fabulous installation has a retro-feel and features stunning sweet pea, clematis, hostas, irses, rodgersia, and many more gorgeous spring blooms.
The wonderful installation was ready and waiting to welcome everyone exploring Belgravia in Bloom on Monday, as were our fantastic team looking after the Horatio’s Garden pop-up shop. Located just prior to The Flower Stand installation, a full range of the charity’s beautifully bespoke merchandise will be available until Saturday 25 May in Newson’s Yard, meaning everyone enjoying the wonders of Belgravia in Bloom will be able to take home a memento of their visit.
Among the first visitors to the installation were the talented Belgravia in Bloom judging panel, including our very own Director of Gardens, Kath Moss! Using her extensive background in horticulture and innate creativity, Kath immersed herself in all 58 floral installations dotted throughout the neighbourhood, joining all the judges in congratulating those involved for making this year’s festival such a special and successful occasion. The winners will be announced later this week, whilst you can also vote for your favourite in the People’s Choice Award.
It wasn’t long until the acclaimed actor, writer, and Horatio’s Garden Sheffield & East ambassador, George Robinson, also paid The Flower Stand a visit! Best known for his starring role in the Netflix series, Sex Education, George was delighted to be joining us to celebrate the beginning of Belgravia in Bloom, exactly a year after he joined us for Press Day in Horatio’s Garden Chelsea at RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2023. George has been following the progress of Horatio’s Garden Sheffield & East, the legacy home of Horatio’s Garden Chelsea, and was thrilled to see the charity beginning work on the project at the Princess Royal Spinal Cord Injuries Centre last week.
Having previously been a patient of the spinal centre in Sheffield, George shared more with the Belgravia in Bloom team about how much the charity means to him and how Horatio’s Garden Sheffield & East will transform the lives of thousands of patients, their families and friends, and NHS staff affected by spinal injury from across the region. He also talked about how brilliant it was to see so many people involved in Belgravia in Bloom and how together with RHS Chelsea Flower Show, it was inspiring him to give some gardening a go at home too!
With the week only just beginning, there’s lots more to enjoy with Horatio’s Garden at Belgravia in Bloom all this week, including two talks in Newson’s Yard:
- On Tuesday 21 May from 2-3pm, you can have all your gardening questions answered by Head Gardener of Horatio’s Garden London & South East and BBC Gardeners’ Question Time panellist, Ashley Edwards.
- On Wednesday 22 May from 12-12.30pm, you can discover how to create your own stunning floral displays with celebrated garden designer, Butter Wakefield.
We can’t wait to see you all exploring Belgravia in Bloom all this week (Monday 20 May – Monday 27 May), supported by Grosvenor, and to see you at our pop-up shop in Newson’s Yard too!
