Woke-bashing of the week: When even the Chelsea Flower Show becomes ‘woke’

From woke scones at the National Trust to the supposed menace of ‘woke’ Paddington Bear, Britain’s culture warriors have developed an extraordinary talent for turning almost anything into evidence of civilisational decline.

And this week, it was the Chelsea Flower Show’s turn.

In a lifestyle gardening piece headlined ‘How the Chelsea Flower Show lost the plot with its woke messaging,’ the Telegraph got excited about what it sees as the politicisation of one of Britain’s most beloved horticultural institutions. The article opens with artist Grayson Perry’s quip that Chelsea is “Glastonbury for people who wear linen,” a line obviously intended as affectionate satire, but repurposed as the prelude to a familiar conservative grievance narrative.

According to the Telegraph, traditional gardeners are becoming alienated by the Royal Horticultural Society’s embrace of “political messaging and youthful ideology.” The evidence offered is notably thin. Apparently, the most talked-about flower was the “David Beckham rose,” while the most debated exhibit was a “Tunnel of Love” installation sponsored by a sex toy company. The paper also seems to object to gardens carrying themes related to climate change, mental health, sexuality and even gynaecological health.

One example singled out is the award-winning On the Edge garden, inspired by neglected land between urban and rural spaces. Critics dismissed it as resembling “abandoned scrubland” rather than a proper garden. The article also complains that peat compost is now frowned upon, manicured lawns treated with suspicion, and “weeds and slugs rehabilitated as misunderstood ecological heroes.”

“For some younger designers and environmentalists, this represents important progress,” the Telegraph noted. “But for many amateur gardeners, it feels rather joyless – as though one of Britain’s loveliest institutions has become yet another venue in which to be lectured.”

To reinforce its point, the article quoted Jenny Grey, a 72-year-old amateur gardener who has attended Chelsea since the 1980s, who said the event now feels “like a trade fair mixed with a fashion show rather than a place where actual garden lovers can come to get tips and inspiration.”

Another commenter, sourced from Mumsnet, complained: “It’s a flower show, for crying out loud. I want to see flowers.”

Yet much of what is criticised as ‘woke’ reflects broader changes in gardening itself. Concerns about sustainability, biodiversity and climate resilience are now central to horticulture, just as gardening trends have always evolved alongside wider social and environmental changes.

The RHS itself reportedly stated that it doesn’t impose themes or ideological requirements on designers, with trends emerging naturally from submissions each year.

As we see week in and week out, institutions that adapt to changing environmental or social concerns are accused of becoming ‘woke,’ even where those changes reflect mainstream developments.

Chelsea Flower Show may look different from previous decades, but rather than being evidence of political capture, it simply reflects the fact that gardening, like every other part of culture, evolves over time, however uncomfortable that may be for those who believe the ideal flowerbed was perfected sometime around 1978.

Of course, Chelsea gardens can be criticised: what constitutes a great garden is a subjective judgement and one of the small eternal pleasures of show is to say, “I don’t like that.” But to try to paint it all in the tired old cliches of anti-wokery, come on, give it a rest.