RHS Chelsea Flower Show is the world’s most prestigious show of its kind, attracting over 165,000 visitors in 2016, and this year an exhibit inspired by Grenada will aim to secure a thirteen Gold Medal for the design team.

The RHS Chelsea Flower Show was first held in 1862 and has been held at its current home, the Chelsea Hospital grounds in London, since 1913.  Grenada has a long and proud history of competing at the show; annually the team of volunteers create a bespoke garden with a new and vibrant theme.  The first Grenada-inspired exhibit appeared at the show in 1998 and the team received a Silver Gilt.

Presence at the show enhances the profile of Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique as a desirable holiday destination for UK travellers, and also provides an opportunity to impress high profile guests including HM The Queen, as well as entertainers and sports stars.

Since that illustrious start, under the leadership of Mrs Suzanne Gaywood MBE the team won 12 Gold Medals and five Silver Gilts from 1998 to 2014. In 2015 Suzanne passed the baton to Mrs Catherine John, who had been a long-serving member of her team.

Mrs John, working with a dedicated team of 12 – eight volunteers on island and four in England  – was awarded a Gold Medal in 2015 for a new and exciting staging, with the theme ‘Pure Grenada’s Rainforest’.  In 2016 another Gold Medal winning performance was achieved with the theme ‘Three Enchanting islands – Pure Grenada’.

Mrs John and her team are hoping for more success this year when they will unveil a striking new design that celebrates remarkable and memorable aspects of the tri-island state and its flora.

The Grenada Tourism Authority (GTA) has been a leading sponsor of the Grenada exhibit for many years and continues to support the team today.  In 2017 the GTA will host a media event at the show to raise awareness of holidays to Pure Grenada, the Spice of the Caribbean highlighting local, authentic experiences in the tri-island state of Grenada.