Flowers from the Farm win Silver-Gilt Medal at Chelsea Flower Show

A Suffolk flower grower has won Silver-Gilt at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show as part of the Flowers from the Farm team exhibiting in the Grand Pavilion at the festival.

Lucy Attwood, (pictured above) a Flowers from the Farm member from Lavenham, is part of the team who planted and built a miniature flower farm, the first in the show’s history, and will be attending the show as an Ambassador for the British flower farming this week.

Beyond the festival, Flowers from the Farm has secured major official recognition from the government and has also secured a lasting legacy for the display to support Age UK.

The RHS Chelsea Flower Show has been the highlight of the UK’s horticultural calendar for over a century.

This year’s edition, which runs until Saturday, May 23, was the first time, the campaigning trade association Flowers from the Farm had an installation at the festival.

Lucy was part of a dedicated team that made the event possible.

Occupying a 20ft x 15ft plot in the Great Pavilion, the miniature flower farm is a living showcase of the diverse crops British flower farmers can grow in May.

The display included ranunculus, foxgloves, orlaya, peonies and geums.

The floral scene is complemented by patterned fabrics from the Guy Goodfellow Collection, whose botanically inspired Rendlesham design features on the aprons of the team.

Lucy said: “It has been a great privilege to support the work of the Flowers from the Farm trade association at Chelsea.

“As a a relatively new flower farmer in my first year of trading they have been a huge soruce of support and infomration as well as a great community to be part of.

“Flowers from the Farm will also have a presence at Sandringham Flower show in July this year, providing another opportunity for us to showcase our industry in East Anglia.“

Adding to the celebrations, Flowers from the Farm has successfully secured an official Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) code, marking a major turning point for the UK flower industry.

Previously invisible in broader agricultural statistics, the £30 million-a-year British flower farming sector – where eight out of 10 FftF members are women – is now formally recognised by policymakers.

While turning heads in Chelsea, the display will continue to make an impact long after the festival closes.

The installation will be gifted to FiSH (Friendship, Independence, Support and Help) and the Barnes Community Gardeners, in London.

FiSH works alongside Age UK to provide support for older residents.

Meanwhile, the Barnes Community Gardeners green less affluent areas of the neighbourhood and encourage local housing estate communities to get involved, ensuring that a piece of Chelsea leaves a beautiful, lasting footprint.