: Gardening - Show Business.

PLANTS were upstaged by fish and fowl at Chelsea Flower Show - but only temporarily. The fish, 25 koi carp worth pounds 30,000, were the first living creatures permitted to be displayed in the show's 140 years.

And the fowl, a blackbird, put the show organisers, the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), in a flutter by nesting in one of the show gardens. It all fitted with the back-to-nature feel of many of the entries at the show, which finished yesterday as wild flower and cottage garden exhibits swept aside the glass, steel and decking of recent years.

But the koi, in a 5,000-gallon pool, were completely different. They were the focus of Wonderful World of Koi, a Japanese-influenced rock and water garden staged by Stephen Hickling who persuaded the RHS to break its tradition that no ``livestock'' could be shown and won a bronze medal.

Meanwhile, the blackbird decided the Garden of Transparency entered by an Arab sheikh was transparently ideal as a des res. The bird built its nest in an elegant hornbeam topiary as the garden was being built and, by the time the show opened, had laid five eggs.

This put the RHS in a dilemma. The law forbids the nest of a protected bird to be disturbed but the show site, in the Royal Hospital grounds, was due to be cleared within 13 days while the young blackbirds would not be ready to leave the nest for three weeks. The firm that produced the garden was prepared to leave the nest site in place while clearing the rest of the garden.

``We'll talk to the RHS about delaying it,'' they said. I checked with the RHS but I'm still waiting to hear back. Surely the prospect of such an august society contravening the Wildlife and Countryside Act is too terrible to consider...

The sheikh's exhibit, one of a record 61 gardens at the show, was a creation of arching trees, huge amphora discharging water into a straight rill, blocks of white roses and plenty of seats. Symmetrical - surreal even - but relaxing. The garden won a silver-gilt medal.

Of those naturalistic displays, most attention was naturally attracted by a garden inspired by the Prince of Wales and dedicated to the memory of the Queen Mother. The Healing Garden combined a meadow-style mixture of 125 species of trees and plants said to have healing properties, with country crafts such as a laid hedge and a huge wattle-and-daub shelter - which, for me, dominated the scene rather than acting as a focus. It won a silver medal.

The Queen's jubilee year could not pass without a Golden Garden at Chelsea and that was the title of Help the Aged's display, a gracious exhibit including yellow roses, from climbers on ornate arches to ground cover mixed with golden grasses. A bronze medal was awarded.

Gold medals were won by three superbly executed show gardens: one viewed through a ferny, dry-stone moon gate, symbolisingCeltic sanctuary; another a wonderfullybalanced, geometric garden of trees, waterand sculpture, also representing sanctuary, in this case from city life; and the third, celebrating the National Garden Scheme's 75th anniversary, which was voted best show garden.

Ultimately, Chelsea is about plants of the highest quality including newly-bred varieties and introductions from far and wide.

Dibleys, the streptocarpus (Cape primrose) breeders from North Wales, are increasing the flower's yellow centre to the point where they will perhaps achieve thefirst yellow variety. They are half way there with two new kinds with large yellow centres - Emily, pink and Charlotte, pale blue, creating a stunning moonlight effect with the pale yellow contrast. They also showed the largest collection ofstreptocarpus species ever exhibited - 15, all from southern Africa - and collected their 14th consecutive Chelsea gold medal.

First-time exhibitors Deva Orchids of Penyfford, near Chester - proprietor Chris Channon and Dave Rimmer - staged a stunning display and we were rewarded with a silver medal.

Other local award-winners were: Gold - Fryers Nurseries, Knutsford, roses;Medwyn Williams, Llanfairpwll, vegetables. Silver-gilt - Craig House

Cacti, Southport; Roualeyn Nurseries, Trefiw, Llanrwst, fuchsias; Cheshire Herbs, Tarporley.

Bronze - C & K. Jones, Tarvin, roses.

CAPTION(S):

ROYAL VIEW: The Queen and Prince Charles admire the Healing Garden which he helped to inspire and was dedicated to his; grandmother, The Queen Mother and (below) a Queen Elizabeth I figure visits Help the Aged's golden garden