KENSINGTON Palace has released never before seen pictures of Kate Middleton tending to her garden at the Chelsea Flower Show.
The green-fingered royal can be seen getting her hands dirty as she works with landscapers Andree Davies and Adam White on her Back to Nature plot.
Doing away with formal wear, the Duchess of Cambridge cuts a casual figure in a Barbour jacket and jeans as she makes the final preparations to the garden, a week before it is unveiled to the public.
The woodland wilderness garden aims to get people back to nature and highlight the benefits of the natural world on physical and mental wellbeing.
It will feature a swing seat, a rustic den and a campfire, with a centrepiece of a high platform treehouse.
In a tweet accompanying the photos the palace wrote: “Over the past few months, The Duchess and landscape architects Davies White have visited plant nurseries, suppliers and specialist craftspeople who have been growing and building elements of the garden ready for #RHSChelsea.”
The Duchess of Cambridge, 37, has created a family-friendly classic garden, where children can toast marshmallows over an open fire and pick wild strawberries.
According to People hands-on Kate emailed and spoke to architects almost every day about the project.
Adam White remarked: “To us, this is very much about childhood memories. We all spoke about our childhood memories, being outdoors and exploring nature. She was very open and has been hugely collaborative.
“This is very much about the three of us, as co-designers.”
The mum-of-three is set to design two more RHS Gardens for displays at RHS Hampton Court and RHS Garden Wisley in Surrey later this year.
It is not only Kate who will have influence over the show with sister-in-law Meghan also featured at this year’s exhibit.
An African patch created by a charity Meghan supports is threatening to steal the spotlight.
The Sunday Times revealed that a second garden, created by a charity supported by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, is to be unveiled this year, and it couldn’t be more different to Kate’s.
The organisation Camfed will show an African climate change garden, with a breeze-block school house and crops girls are taught to grow, such as peanuts and okra.
The garden is just a stone’s throw away from Kate’s patch, and features solar panels and a smart irrigation system.
The Sunday Times said Kensington Palace “presumably aware of the risk of headlines about ‘sisters-in-law at war’ has intervened to stop Meghan and Harry’s glamour eclipsing Kate’s pride and joy.”
Camfed has allegedly been told it can’t use a photo of Prince Harry surrounded by its young Zimbabwean alumni to promote the garden.
A source at Camfed is said to have told the publication: “It’s because the Duchess of Cambridge is co-designing a garden, so . . . we can’t use the photo. The palace is worried about mixed messaging.”
Kensington Palace confirmed that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are extremely supportive of Camfed’s work, which helps girls stay in education in rural Africa.
A spokeperson told the Sun Online: “There is absolutely no rivalry here.
“Meghan and Prince Harry haven’t been involved with Camfed’s garden design, nor do they have any official role within the organisation.
“They are in no way pitted against each other, in part because the Duchess of Cambridge’s garden is the RHS garden and isn’t judged.”
In other royal news we revealed that Prince Harry is leaving Archie and Meghan for a second trip abroad just weeks after the birth.
It has been reported that Meghan Markle and Prince Harry ‘will NOT reveal Archie’s birth certificate’.
Meghan revealed a sweet snap of her little boy’s feet to Instagram as she celebrated her first US Mother’s Day.
