Escaping seasons of the mind

* I was invited to the press preview for and provided with a pair of tickets to Gardeners’ World Live so I’m marking posts from the show as 'Ad’ - as usual my views and opinions are very much my own. Be sure to check out all of my posts from the show.

In the last of my posts from last year’s Gardeners’ World Live I’m sharing a reflection garden which for me was one of the most thought provoking gardens at the show. It’s designed by Lilidh Matthews and John Tallis and is exquisitely beautiful, even more so when you understand the meaning behind it.

A series of increasing height corten steel posts form a circle around the garden representing time

There are eleven corten posts which represent the ubiquitous architecture of the cityscape, and the garden takes you on a journey through the seasons, illustrating the passing of time. This is done, not only by the change in height of the beautiful corten posts, but also through the changing colours of the planting again representing the seasons.

A closer look at two of the corten steel upside down L shape posts with purple and white planting beneath
Two further reverse L shaped corten posts, these are much smaller and the planting around them is yellow and green

“The garden was inspired by two facts:

  1. 90% of our lives are spent indoors. The central space portrays how we are trapped in a void of our own four walls.

  2. Most suicides happen in the autumn.”

The cracks in the paving slowly grow closer together as you pass through the garden and arrive at the 12 o’clock point; a bench in summer where you can admire all the beauty of the four seasons.

entry and exit to the garden is across three calm stepping stones surrounded by water and edged with small box plants, the centre section of the garden is also paved with a raised central area

It is a stunning garden full of symbolism, but even without knowing the symbolism it would be a great place to spend some time and exactly the sort of space to nourish your mind.

I can’t wait to see the showcase gardens, beautiful borders and everything else that this year’s show has to offer. I’m planning to attend on the first day, and I just know my phone will be full of photos - I’ll share some shortly after our visit on Instagram, but will also start another series of posts from the 2024 show just as soon as I’ve sorted through all my photos!

* With thanks to Gardeners’ World for inviting me to Gardeners’ World Live, it was as fabulous as ever!

The Love Yourself & Nature Retreat

* I was invited to the press preview for and provided with a pair of tickets to Gardeners’ World Live so I’m marking posts from the show as 'Ad’ - as usual my views and opinions are very much my own. Be sure to check out all of my posts from the show.

This garden, designed by Ben Thornton, is a joyful riot of colour and it’s no surprise that Ben himself describes it as ‘full of colour’ - it’s inspired by his love of nature and growing. It’s definitely a place where you could escape the outside world and enjoy the wonders of nature isn’t it?

The border is busting from the seams, and surrounds an edible raised bed. In this garden Ben is showcasing his journey of becoming a grower after getting paralysed and I agree when he says that gardening doesn’t have to be perfect. Nature isn’t flawless and he says neither is his garden - in fact, neither is mine too.

He also says that by ‘letting nature in it has healed his body and mind’ - which does a lot to explain the title of his very beautiful border.

a closer look at the borders - yellows, pinks purples and so much colour

I love the colour, I love how busy it is, and I love how there’s space for flowers and edibles. But most of all I love how it makes me smile.

* With thanks to Gardeners’ World for inviting me to Gardeners’ World Live, it was as fabulous as ever!

Keep off the grass!

* I was invited to the press preview for and provided with a pair of tickets to Gardeners’ World Live so I’m marking posts from the show as 'Ad’ - as usual my views and opinions are very much my own. Be sure to check out all of my posts from the show.

Be prepared for something entirely different - and a beautiful border which I absolutely love. I don’t think it’ll be something we recreate here, although the yellow red hot pokers could be a contender!

This garden designed by James Fenneberg takes the brief of ‘my garden escape’ to an entirely different level. He has designed a space which transports you through his choice of plants and materials. Agaves with their texture thorns feature prominently and symbolise ‘the sense of protection he wanted to create in his border’, and the results are stunning.

In addition James was also inspired by our ever changing climate to create a drought tolerant design which also features repurposed volcanic sand and rocks to create an ecological habitat for insects. And the weather on the day we visited the border couldn’t have underlined his message any more. We spent some time chatting with James and remarked how he was noticeably less flustered than some of the other garden designers who were watering the plants in their gardens so that they would look their best for the duration of the show.

small sedum like ground covering plants in one corner of the beautiful border, encroaching onto the volcanic sand
The agaves in the foreground and in the background on a rock flanked by yellow red hot pokers on each side

Not so for James though, that’s definitely a design element that paid off - and one that I think we will all need to incorporate more and more into our garden spaces. Though if it means having sculptural plants like this, then it would be relatively easy to get on board with that wouldn’t it?

* With thanks to Gardeners’ World for inviting me to Gardeners’ World Live, it was as fabulous as ever!