How SA is going for gold at the Chelsea Flower Show

4 Apr 2019

How do you get a tonne of plant material from Cape Town to London and turn it into a gold medal at the Chelsea Flower Show? First of all, you'd have to make sure that it's not just any plant material.

You would have to source flowers and foliage that showcase the very best of South African landscapes. Then you would have to ensure they were in peak condition and remain so for the week of the flower show. The mountain of flowers and foliage all need to be carefully transported without damage and without an adverse reaction to the UK climate. And, of course, you would have to get permits for all of this – all of which can be something of a nightmare.

Leon Kluge

The design of the stand needs to be set up in a contemporary and colourful way where the judges look at selection, creativity, design uniqueness and impact. It all sounds quite impossible. You would need a pretty impressive team of miracle-workers to pull off such a task. Amazingly, that is what we have and what has happened 36 times since 1976. As well as winning 36 gold medals, the South African stand has won a host of other awards and medals.

Mountains of Abundance

Designer Leon Kluge and the team are, once again, going for gold in 2019. This year’s design is a bold and abstract design under the theme, Mountains of Abundance. Three-metre high slate slabs made from ceiling board represent Table Mountain on one side and the Magaliesberg on the other. Kluge speaks passionately about representing the colour of South Africa, not just in flowers, but also in the cultures of the people of South Africa. The waterfalls in the design flow through upturned Ndebele hats and the Ndebele theme is echoed in the designs of the borders.

Tristan Woudberg & Leon Kluge

The flowers have been sourced from throughout South Africa – proteas from the Cape and the Magaliesberg, aloes in full bloom, disas, restios and fynbos – which will all be arranged as they appear on the wild slopes of our mountains.

The South African stand has always drawn huge crowds at the Chelsea Flower Show and is a wonderful way to show off the best of South Africa. The care, the thought, the creativity, the enthusiasm and support that the team of professionals and volunteers embody is somehow magically poured into the exhibit at Chelsea, which is why team SA is a gold medal favourite.

And I have no doubt that it’ll bag another one, this year.