The Royal Horticulturist Society (RHS) have announced plans for the first Children’s Picnic to take place at the Chelsea Flower Show in 2023.
The picnic is one of the first initiatives of the new director general, Clare Matterson CBE, who hopes that the event will encourage more children to take an interest in gardening:
“I want this to be a special experience for all the children at Chelsea, igniting an interest in gardening that will be with them throughout their life. We know that spending time in nature leads to better wellbeing and creates a greater attachment and desire to protect and cherish the natural world.
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“With the huge issues facing future generations of mental health, a changing climate and loss of biodiversity, we hope this picnic represents a beginning for children to connect to nature through a love of gardening. Having picked up my first gardening trowel as a young child, this is a really important moment for me as we plan the future direction of the RHS.”
The announcement came as part of the RHS Autumn Conference, which was held on Thursday. It was the first press conference from RHS since 2020.
100 children will be invited to attend the picnic, comprising ten students from ten schools in some of the most deprived areas of London.
Matterson said: “With RHS Chelsea being the world’s greatest gardening show, this will also shine a light on all we do as a charity through our campaigns, gardens and other shows to bring gardening into the lives of millions of children.”
The Picnic will take place on Monday 22 May 2023.
Other announcements from the press conference include a series of restorative gardens, set to make up some of the twelve show gardens as inclusive green spaces for socially deprived communities.
It was also announced that Tom Massey, a Chelsea gold medal winner, will design the Royal Entomological Society Garden with a focus on the biodiversity found on brownfield sites. Korean designer Jihae Hwang’s The Hoban Cultural Foundation: Land of Healing, Korean Mountain Light, looks at how rewilding in her home country can prevent the extinction of native plants.
The Newt in Somerset will sponsor the show again this year, which will run from 23 to 27 May 2023.
