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A double accolade at RHS Chelsea

Posted on Wednesday 23rd May 2018

We’re delighted to announce that we’ve scooped a Gold medal and The President’s Award for our hellebore exhibit at RHS Chelsea Flower Show.

Sir Nicholas Bacon presents a proud Kevin Belcher and John Massey with The President’s Award. (Pictured left to right) © Michael Warren

Nursery owner John Massey VMH and the Ashwood team shared an exhilarating moment  on results day at Chelsea when it was revealed that not only had they achieved a much coveted Gold medal but had also been awarded the President’s Award for the RHS president’s favourite exhibit in The Great Pavilion. The latter was presented to John together with Ashwood’s hellebore breeder Kevin Belcher on Tuesday morning.

This double accolade, combined with it being a debut for a single exhibit of hellebores at Chelsea, resulted in plenty of media attention. Carol Klein visited the stand, interviewing John for the BBC TV Chelsea Flower Show coverage.

The exhibit, which aimed to show the beauty and diversity of hellebores in a natural setting, was set in a semi-woodland landscape of dwarf larch (Larix kaempferi ‘Diana’) and the Winter Hazel (Corylopsis ‘Lemon Drop’ and Corylopsis sinensis).

A view of our hellebore exhibit in The Great Pavilion

There was a special focus on recent introductions, in particular some spectacular new colours in the Ashwood Evolution Group: plants in this group are exclusive to Ashwood Nurseries and have been developed as a result of hybridising our finest golden yellow hellebores. Two exciting new groups of hybrids, the Atlas Group and the Profusion Group, still under development, were also showcased on the stand.

John  and Kevin masterminded the project with the help of retired Ashwood plant breeder Philip Baulk as well as members of the Ashwood team led by Karrina Gilbert.

The response from the public has been overwhelming with many enthusiastic words of praise and considerable renewed interest in a much-loved genus.

YouTube: ASHWOOD TAKES HELLEBORES TO CHELSEA: (uploaded by Howard Drury) watch now

Barbara Cartwright