It’s time for RHS Chelsea Flower Show from 19th to 23^th May 2026.  It will be full of beautiful gardens, lots of ideas, tips and advice and plenty of shopping, as well as chances to eat and drink! 

There are show gardens, balcony and container gardens (particularly great if you've got a small garden or balcony and you want some ideas), All About Plants Gardens, to celebrate the wonders plants can bring to a garden, Houseplant Gardens, and floral gardens. There's the RHS Chelsea Plant of the Year and GreenSTEM which highlights horticultural science and technological innovations.  

And - big news - this year, the RHS is lifting the ban on gnomes at the Show.  Why is this?, I hear you ask.  Well, they are raising funds for the next generation of gardeners and the RHS Campaign for School Gardening! 

The themes in 2026 are aiming to show that great design and sustainability can go hand in hand, using water wisely, and the joy of gardens and how we can attract a younger and more diverse audience to gardenin

Find out more about the RHS Chelsea Flower Show.  The RHS is saying that tickets have sold out although there's the chance returns may become available.  

However, here are two other options for you:

You could watch the RHS Chelsea Flower Show on BBC1 and BBC2 this week.   There's a couple of hours coverage a day, from 2 to 3 on BBC1 and 8 to 9 on BBC2.  It's a great chance to get a really good coverage of the Show.   It all kicks off at 8pm on BBC2 on Sunday 17th May, with Countdown to RHS Chelsea Flower Show. 

Alternatively, there are other shows you could go to and some of them are new this year, such as the RHS Badminton Flower Show from 8th to 12th July 2026, and the RHS Sandringham Flower Show from the 22nd to 26th July 2026.  

Don't forget that members get reduced rate tickets to RHS Flower Shows, so you can become a member here.

Visit the RHS here

Wow!  If you've got someone in your life who LOVES cheese, then take a look at Pong Cheese.

Pong Cheese have some of the very best cheeses produced by the leading independent and artisan producers, together.  They have a huge range, just the thing for anyone who loves cheese and has everything, and they've also got a cheese gift subscription  as well so your loved one can get cheese every month to enjoy and tuck in!  (You can choose from 3, 6 or 12 months' subscription.)

Buy a cheese gift subscription!

This is the Welsh Selection Box for £38.00
with the Black Bomber (a strong extra mature cheddar),
the Perl Mas Blue mini, an organic blue cheese with a pale gold natural rind,
the Perl Wren, a soft cheese with a lemony centre, and
the Golden Cenarth.  Go on, indulge them!  

Visit Pong Cheese here to see all their mouth-watering delicious baked cheeses!

There's great news from English Heritage, the charity which cares for over 400 historic places in England and Wales. 

The charity is guardian to some of our greatest buildings and monuments  - Stonehenge, Tintagel Castle, Osborne, Hadrian’s Wall and Dover Castle to name a few!  In fact, there are over 400 sites, and you can visit as many times as you like with an English Heritage Membership!

This is Dover Castle - visit and explore for a great day out!

English Heritage members enjoy great benefits!

SPECIAL OFFER ON! 

Enjoy 15% off gift and annual memberships** with English Heritage with the code AFFEH1526

Carisbrooke Castle is on the Isle of Wight

Give a gift membership here.

** This offer ends 31st December 2026. Valid for new memberships only. Annual Direct Debit only.

The RHS (Royal Horticultural Society) was founded back in 1804, and it has lots for everyone!  

There are five beautiful RHS gardens to explore, such as Hyde Hall in Essex
and 240 partner gardens!

Gift Membership is fantastic value, with:

• Unlimited entry to all 5 RHS Gardens for the member and a family guest or 2 children
• A copy of The Garden magazine
• Unlimited, personalised RHS Gardening advice
• Regular emails with exclusive member content
• Free entry to over 230 Partner Gardens for the member
• Reduced rate on tickets to RHS Shows

So you get a lot for your membership throughout the year.

But there’s more!   The nice thing about the RHS is that they run quite a few campaigns such as National Gardening Week, Wild About Gardens and School Gardens (their campaign has lots of free teaching resources and online training course and awards).  They also have a Planet-Friendly Gardening campaign which has 10 ways for us all to be more sustainable in our gardens. 

And of course, the RHS brings gardening to the neighbourhood, with Britain in Bloom, the RHS It’s Your Neighbourhood and affiliated societies. 

The RHS has over 600,000 members, and membership contributions help to support the work the RHS does, be it undertaking horticultural science or supporting community gardening groups.

Find out about the RHS Grow, the gardening app
The app gives you access to 200 years of knowledge
from botanists, scientists, fruit and veg experts and RHS specialist advisors!

Enjoy a year of days out & gardening inspiration with the RHS!   

A quick word about the RHS Flower Shows in 2026!

This year, the RHS has exciting new shows:  RHS Badminton Flower Show is in the South Gloucestershire countryside (that’s the 8^th to 12^th July 2026);  and RHS Sandringham Flower Show is to be held in the grounds of the Norfolk estate – royal family-owned – from the 22^nd to 26^th July 2026.

And there’s also the RHS Malvern Spring Festival, Worcester, from the 7^th to 10^th May 2026, the big one, RHS Chelsea Flower Show from the 19^th to 23^rd May 2026, the RHS Botanical Art and Photography Show at the Saatchi Gallery, London from the 19^th June to the 2nd August 2026, and the Malvern Autumn Show from the 25^th to 27^th September 2026.  I love the sound of the Malvern Autumn Show, as it’s celebrates country living!  There are vintage vehicles and fashions, harvest competitions, rural crafts and local, artisan food and drink markets.  Can’t wait!