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The Royal visit Chelsea glitterati

Music and flowers everywhere It's judgement day

The Great Pavilion was a riot of colour and scent this morning as the exhibitors unveiled their superb displays to the public for the first time.

Music was in the air, from the calypso sounds of a steel band at the Jamaica Horticultural Society stand, to the ethereal sounds of a didgeridoo played at the foot of prehistoric Wollemi pines, brought to Chelsea for the first time this year.

Competing with the didgeridoo was the more familiar theme tune to the BBC TV series Doctor Who. Cardiff Council has borrowed the TARDIS to form the centrepiece of its Garden in Time, featuring a typical 1960s urban garden that might have existed when Doctor Who first aired, next to a modern environmentally-friendly version.

Today also saw the launch of new plants in the Great Pavilion. There were a number named after celebrities - actor Joanna Lumley was there to launch a new fuchsia named after her for Potash Nurseries, while chat-show host Michael Parkinson launched Rosa 'Parky' for Harness Roses.

Among the new plants were also five roses from David Austin, distilled from about 250,000 seedlings at trial fields in Wolverhampton, and seven irises from Cayeux Iris, including the closest yet to a black-and-white flower.

Time's up for garden designers at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show. Today is the first day of the show, when the gardens are unveiled to an invited audience for the first time. The primping and preening have finished - and all that remains is the verdict.

The official opinion on the 20 large show gardens and 26 small gardens, as well as more than 100 display stands in the Great Pavilion, is down to the RHS judges. They'll be touring the gardens today and deciding which deserve medals, as well as the coveted Best in Show accolade. It's a day of feverish speculation and nervous anticipation, when all the hard work of the last year or so comes to a head.

Most designers are trying hard to be philosophical about it.

"It's a bit late now," says Chris Beardshaw, who has recreated a scene from Hidcote, the famous historical garden in Gloucestershire. "It all depends on whether they can appreciate what you're trying to do. If they can, that's lovely and you get lots of nice medals. But if they can't, that's it."

First, though, there's the razzmatazz of the unveiling of the show gardens. It's a glamorous and often spectacular series of photocalls and publicity stunts for the benefit of the media and invited celebrity guests. Later, the Queen and other members of the Royal Family will tour the show gardens privately, before the gates open to RHS members from tomorrow morning.