Burbage florist Julia Russett showcased her talents at the Chelsea Flower Show this week.
The owner of Robins Flowers was one of only 16 floral designers chosen to compete in her class. Her design was displayed in the Floral Design Studio, which showcases some of the best, most creative and technically accomplished floral designers from around the UK and overseas.

Mrs Russett was given the section titled Among the Ruins and based her design around the centenary anniversary of World War One, choosing a title of Gone But Not Forgotten. The RHS set some strict rules to abide by. The design had to be created on a base of 1 metre square and had a height restriction of 1m. In addition, the design needed to be viewed from all angles.
 

Mrs Russett, who is the chairman of the Burbage Flower Club, said: “The competition was judged by RHS qualified judges. This was my first attempt at this level and although nothing was awarded this time, I found out that I was only one point away from a bronze medal. I really enjoyed the whole experience and I will definitely be applying to do it again next year."

In order to enter a flower designer must be selected by the Royal Horticultural Society. Applicants need to have already proved themselves with other merits first. The actual process of producing the design is challenging too.

She said:  “Staging for the session I was in commenced at 9.30pm on Wednesday. We had until 6am the following morning to complete our designs. Only pre-declared components could be used and all parts of the floral design had to be made on site and in the time allowed. All the competitors worked through the night to make sure our designs were perfect.”