A Gardeners’ World favourite has revealed the cheeky message King Charles gave to him before he was due to deliver flowers to the monarch.
Jamie Butterworth, 30, has emerged as a leading figure in the horticultural world over recent years.
He secured gold for his RHS Chelsea Flower Show garden in 2022 before designing a feature garden at the RHS Hampton Court Flower Show in 2024.
He’s also featured on the beloved BBC programme Gardeners’ World this year.
Most recently, he cultivated 10,000 plants for the Gucci Cruise 2025 show and assisted in creating a rose garden at this year’s Ascot, reports the Mirror.
Consequently, he has attracted attention not only from gardening royalty, but from genuine royalty as well.
Jamie, who has worked alongside Monty Don, has recounted the occasion when presenter Jo Whiley introduced him to King Charles at the Chelsea Flower Show.
Jamie already maintained connections with the Royal Family, as his nursery provides plants to Windsor Castle, though he had never been formally presented to his royal customer.
Discussing the encounter with the Times, Jamie revealed his astonishment upon discovering that the King, himself an enthusiastic gardener, recognised him by name.
Jamie recalled: “Jo introduced me as I was standing next to Monty, and the King said, ‘I know Jamie – you are delivering plants to me on Wednesday. Please don’t be late.'”
Indeed, it is the King’s passion for gardening and broader environmental awareness that has given Jamie insight into how democratising horticulture can be.
He explained: “I think that’s one of the wonderful things about gardening. It’s the greatest leveller – it unifies people. It doesn’t matter who you are, where you’re from, what your background is – anyone can garden.”
Jamie’s reputation within the horticultural community has subsequently resulted in multiple appearances on Gardeners’ World since April last year, featuring alongside the programme’s legendary co-presenter Monty, who he disclosed has been offering guidance to support his journey.
Meanwhile, as Jamie considers the possibility of succeeding Monty in the role, there has been mounting conjecture regarding the timing of such a transition.
In conversation with The Garden Magazine, Monty discussed scaling back certain commitments for the remainder of the year.
The 70 year old revealed: “In April I started filming a new travel series going from the source of the Rhine to the sea visiting gardens in Italy, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Germany, Holland and France.
“I’ve got a couple of gardens that I’m working on for charity and have more talks to do. That will take me through until November. I’ve decided I won’t do any more tours after that.”
Nevertheless, Monty has previously indicated he would remain with Gardeners’ World until circumstances force his departure. Prior to his 69th birthday last year he stated: “I’m now 68, I was going to stop when I was 65. I’ll now go on till I’m 70 and then reconsider.
“The reason for that is it’s not so much wanting my garden back, although there’s a strong element of that… It’s just that, whilst I’ve still got energy, there are lots of other projects I want to do that mean I can’t be here every week.”
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