Turning towns & cities green

Discover how urban gardens can make a huge positive impact on the environment.

Green spaces really make a difference to our environment, and this year the RHS Environment feature at Chelsea focuses on the remarkable range of benefits that urban greening provides.

Look out for two 2.7m high green walls in the style of a giant QR code and you'll know you've found the exhibit giving advice on every aspect of improving your urban environment.

Why green spaces matter

Our gardens and green spaces help regulate urban temperatures, protecting us from extremes of heat and cold; they help to prevent flooding and aid biodiversity by providing important wildlife habitats, as well as being good for our mental and physical health.

Particular planting techniques, growing your own fruit and veg, and how you design your garden can all make a difference. Experts from the RHS will be on hand to advise visitors on how to implement beneficial changes in their own green spaces that protect habitats, encourage biodiversity, help control temperatures and improve food security.

Exhibitors

A host of exhibitors will be showing a variety of displays to help visitors understand the benefits of urban greening and inspire them to garden in a sustainable way.

The Food and Environment Research Agency (Fera)
Stop the Spread
British trees and plants are under unprecedented threat from a host of destructive pests and diseases. Fera explains the practical steps we can all take to help stop their spread.

Groundwork
Urban Oasis
This exhibit, designed by Chris Beardshaw, shows how well-designed pockets of green in built-up urban environments can improve mental and physical health and reduce anti-social behaviour.

Sparsholt College
The Space Race: maximum cropping from minimum space
Ingenious space-saving ideas to enable people to grow produce in the tiniest of plots.

Society for General Microbiology
The New Green Revolution
Learn about the importance of the microbial support matrix in the soil and how it enhances plant growth through symbiotic association.

University of Leeds
Gardening for Champions!
This exhibit explores how urban ecosystems such as managing storm water, enhancing pollination and reducing the carbon footprint in our gardens can benefit gardeners, the local community and the wider environment.

University of Reading & the RHS
Keeping their Cool
The plants in our urban gardens can help reduce temperatures, control flooding and capture pollution. Making a difference can be as simple as choosing the right plants for an urban setting.

Capel Manor College
Mad about Meadows
Meadows are vital for biodiversity and they also have great aesthetic appeal. Here, different types of meadows are highlighted, including the growing conditions and soil type required for each.
 
The Royal College of Pathologists
Urban Greening – not to be sneezed at!
Plant pollen can cause respiratory allergies such as hay fever but, thankfully, there are ways to minimise the risk. Here, visitors can get information on which plants to avoid, and details about laboratory diagnosis and treatment.

Knightsbridge School
Planting the Idea
Pupils are demonstrating how the most unpromising urban environment can be improved with thoughtful planting.

Writtle College
Green Spaces: growing your own in small spaces
Grow your own produce in a small space with the bottle garden, a hydroponic system you can build at home.

Architects Sans Frontières UK
Urban Green
The exhibit challenges and empowers visitors to bring the concept of urban greening to every windowsill, balcony, street and latent space in their town or city.

Treebox Ltd
Spiral Allotment
This display features several spirally-arranged, vertical growing systems designed for sustainable urban food production.