It was a trip to B&Q in Cheetham Hill that launched the chain of events that led Jason Williams to the Chelsea Flower Show. Relaxed and struggling with his mental health during the first blockade, he decided to take up gardening.
As Jason returned to his downtown apartment with a single marigold, he didn’t know what was coming. In the following months, he turned his balcony on the 18th floor of the city center into a boisterous urban oasis.
His Cloud Garden was so successful that he was invited to exhibit at the prestigious RHS Chelsea flower show in May. Jason decided to pursue gardening as a hobby shortly after March 2020 as an escape to help support his mental health during the blockade.
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The 35-year-old man explained: “I had just moved into my apartment and realized how important outdoor space is. Eventually I went to a B&Q in Cheetham Hill and got a marigold.
“The garden center was the only place that was open, so it turned into a day trip when I went for a walk. It was a pleasant distraction during the blockade. He started just to spend time, then grew into something more than that.
“I realized how much it helped my mental health, and I really started masturbating to try to grow food for myself.” Jason spent the next few months honing his gardening skills through trial and error and documenting his journey in YouTube videos.
His apartment for rent near Deansgate is now home to more than 150 houseplants and another 100 containers in his ever-growing garden on the balcony. This helped him become more independent and he now grows his own fruits and vegetables and turns his household waste into compost.
Jason’s “Cloud Garden” in the city center (Image: Cloud Gardener UK)
His balcony garden even boasts its own mini pond – full of fish – and Jason uses water as fertilizer to avoid buying chemicals. One of his main challenges is to understand what plants will grow on the 18th floor of a tall building.
“The front of my garden is made of glass railings, so it can be up to 15 degrees warmer on a sunny day than at ground level,” Jason explained. “It simply came to our notice then.
“Because I’m so tall, it’s extremely windy. Nine out of ten times my plants end up burned by the wind and die.
“It’s about making the right choice and coming up with something that will suit my space. My garden is not a perfect picture. Sometimes things don’t go well and it’s important to learn from your mistakes.
Jason presents his garden on his YouTube channel, where he offers tips to other avid gardeners. His love of gardening is such that he has since quit his job as a bar manager to pursue his passion full-time.
In January – less than two years after he started gardening – Jason found out he had won a place at the Chelsea Flower Show. “There were a lot of tears,” he recalled.
Jason has already been invited to exhibit at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show in May (Image: Cloud Gardener UK)
“This is probably one of the most famous flower shows in the world, so for someone like me with no experience in gardening to get there is a real honor. It’s amazing that they gave me the opportunity. Everyone is super supportive.
“It was an amazing trip. One of the main things was just to have a little faith in myself, to believe that I could do things and not give up.
“I realized that I work 60 to 70 hours a week, constantly tired and answering emails. Spending time in blocking gave me time to think. There is nothing better than leaving a toxic work environment and doing something you love.
Jason will make his Chelsea debut in the category of small balconies and container gardens, which was introduced last year after a boom of gardeners who closed. His self-funded effort consists exclusively of plants that have been tried and tested on his balcony and will be sourced from the Chorlton plant nursery.
In the end, Jason said he hoped he could make the event “more accessible” and inspire other apartment dwellers to create their own balcony gardens.
Jason hopes to inspire other apartment dwellers to create their own balcony gardens (Image: Cloud Gardener UK)
“When people think of an exhibition garden, they think of extravagant flowers,” he said. “I live in the city center and I don’t drive, so they are all plants that you can get at B&Q or at your local plant nursery.
“More and more people are moving into city apartments. If you rent, you need to be more creative in the way you use the space.
“There are more people who do what I do in London than in Manchester. The things I do take a lot of time, but it would be amazing if everyone had just one container of wildflowers.
“It’s a lot simpler than people think. I think the appetite is there, but people don’t know where to start. At this time next year, we may have a ton of gardeners on balconies in Manchester.”
You can learn more about Jason’s work here.
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