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Join the RHS

Join the RHS

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Watch the show

Watch the show

See Tatton on BBC2 with Monty Don and friends: Thurs 21 July (7.30-8pm) and Fri 22 July (8-8.30pm). Times subject to change

Breathe life into your urban garden

Helping gardeners to breathe life into our towns and cities is a big part of the RHS ethos. If you'd like to find out how to do your bit, you'll find plenty of practical tips and advice and some surprising facts and figures by visiting the RHS Experience stand at the show (Area B, B159).

Small steps, big difference

This interactive area will show visitors that collectively, they can make more of a difference to their environment than they might imagine. Principal horticultural advisor Leigh Hunt explains: ‘From cooling the air in summer to preventing flooding, gardens really matter. While many of us only have a small plot of land, if we all get planting, the benefits add up for us all.’

Interactive displays will show visitors exactly what they can do. The biodiversity exhibit will focus on the huge range of plants, insects and animals that could find a home in anyone’s garden, given an open invitation and the right conditions.

Make space for wildlife

There’s nothing complex about this; it simply means providing plants for insects to feed upon and a few nooks and crannies for shelter.

To find out which plants will attract insects, just scan the electronic tag on one of the plants in the display and you’ll see on an interactive screen which insect is likely to come flying or crawling to a neighbourhood near you.

Leigh explains: ‘We don’t just need plants to encourage wildlife, they can make cities and town better places to live, as well. They trap pollutants and give off moisture that helps cool the air in urban areas.’

Sky's the limit for green roofs

RHS research has found that green roofs, the focus of another part of the exhibit, could be instrumental in helping preventing flooding and cool the urban atmosphere. In this interactive display, see a selection of plants suitable for planting on green roofs. The message? Even in the tiniest urban gardens there’s room for a little piece of nature to take root.

Leigh explains: ‘We don’t just need plants to encourage wildlife, they can make cities and town better places to live, as well. They trap pollutants and give off moisture that helps cool the air in urban areas.’

RHS research has found that green roofs, the focus of another part of the exhibit, could be instrumental in helping preventing flooding and cool the urban atmosphere. In this interactive display, see a selection of plants suitable for planting on green roofs. The message? Even in the tiniest urban gardens there’s room for a little piece of nature to take root.

How we're making a difference

How we

The RHS Experience is the story of the society in a nutshell - how we help communities to transform their local environment through gardening; from planting the seeds of enthusiasm for gardening among schoolchildren to creating courses and formal qualifications for gardeners; from demonstrating the best in horticulture through our shows and gardens to giving practical advice.

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Four key benefits of urban gardens

Four key benefits of urban gardens

Discover the four key benefits that gardens provide in our towns and cities. See the results by downloading the recently-launched review of the scientific evidence, (1,016kB pdf) which was led by an RHS Scientist. For everyone involved in creating and maintaining urban gardens, this RHS Science Review offers a suite of initial recommendations for action.