Another Chelsea has drawn to its inevitable close and we are delighted to share the pictures of our Greenfingers Charity garden with you all. The build was an exhausting one but we were proud of the final result. The team all did an amazing job and if we collapsed in an exhausted heap after judging then we would all probably blame it on the lift!
Designing a garden at Chelsea is truly like no other experience in the world and this garden was particularly close to Kate and the team’s heart as it was designed and built for a wonderful charity that really does make a difference to children and their families who have to spend large quantities of time in hospices.
The space itself was a lush green split-level garden with a strong evergreen base of topiary. This ensured the garden would always provide a beautiful outlook for its imagined hospice home. The design aimed to provide a peaceful, interactive and uplifting space where life-limited children with complex needs, their families, friends and carers can come together for play, relaxation or peaceful reflection. The lift and sloped walkways, the ‘Greenfingers Charity Garden’ made sure the garden was an accessible space for people of all ages and abilities. The cargo net proved a complete hit with children and adults alike adding a ‘fun’ playful element to the garden.
The planting that Kate chose was a real highlight and a hit with the public and media. The soft lemon yellow hues, bright crisp whites and swathes of green made it an appealing alternative to an all white garden. Stunning yellow irises and Californian poppies contrasted the white flowers of the Choiysa ‘Greenfingers’,which was bred especially for the charity by the horticultural legend Peter Catt of Liss Forest Nurseries, as well as white roses and gorgeously scented ‘Festiva Maxima‘ peonies loaned by Primrose Hall Peonies.
The green and cream glazed bricks were kindly donated by Ibstock and contrasted a grey porcelain (London Stone) water wall provided a wonderful backdrop to the garden carrying through the recognisable Greenfingers hand emblem. The cool running water, hanging apple swing chair (Linum Loom) and beautiful custom green benches (Oxford Planters) created a calming space where families could come together to chat and spend much needed time outside. All elements of this innovative garden design aimed to highlight and promote the therapeutic benefits of the outside spaces created over the past 20 years by Greenfingers Charity, the charity dedicated to creating inspiring gardens for life-limited children and their families who spend time in hospices across the UK.
This garden has left a mark on us and It will be a Chelsea garden that we will remember for years to come. It was a great opportunity to design with a different purpose in mind to our usual client gardens and being able to bring something to life that would help a charity raise its profile and enable them to carry on the amazing work that they are doing was truly a privilege. We do hope you all loved the garden as much as we did. We are very pleased that a number of elements from the garden have now moved to Richard House Hospice in London where they have gone on to bring joy to many.
