This year's RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival focuses on peace and positivity
Jane McGowan takes a peep behind the scenes of this year’s shows to discover an event that promises flora, fauna and fun aplenty.
Festival dates and opening times:
- Monday 4 July & Tuesday 5 July: RHS members, 10 am-6.30 pm
- Wednesday 6 July to Friday 8 July: 10 am - 6.30 pm
- Friday 8 July: Flowers After Hours, 4 pm - 10.30 pm, with entertainment from 7.30 pm
- Saturday 9 July: 10am-5.30pm
It would seem that with every day that passes, the news gets progressively worse.
From the human tragedy of the war in Ukraine to endless ‘Partygate’ mud-slinging, the past few months have brought little for us to smile about.
Even more reason to head to Hampton Court for this year’s RHS Garden Festival, where, for a few hours, you can forget about the worries of the world and immerse yourself in a landscape loaded with the very best nature has to offer.
New category
One of the key areas for 2022 is the Getting Started Gardens, a new category designed to highlight the healing power of horticulture for those just stepping out on their green dream.
Here, we meet three of the Get Started gardeners who will be presenting their designs at Hampton Court for the first time to discover how their creations came about.
Hamzah-Adam Desai spent two decades as a graphic designer before making the move into the world of gardening. He was encouraged to take up planting as a past-time by his GP while suffering from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD).
After investing in some pots for his balcony, Hamzah was then encouraged to get involved with his local community garden in East London.
From there he was hooked and embarked on a new career as a garden designer, launching his business Tone & Manner in TBC.
His RHS Hampton Court Garden Festival Get Started garden is called Turfed Out.
“I was inspired to create this garden after reading an article about new-build homes. I noticed they all had identikit gardens - a square patch of lawn and a small patio so I decided to design something that people who may want to be a bit more creative could replicate.
It is called Turfed Out because it encourages people to move away from a traditional lawn. It is about repurposing what you have already - using the slabs from the patio to create stepping stones for example. It is a low-maintenance, sustainable garden with seating that doubles as a bug hotel.
I have chosen drought-tolerant plants as well, which is a reflection of the environment but also means if you forget to water them, they should survive. Plants such as Pinus mugo ‘Slowmound’ adds winter colour with the rosemary Salvia rosmarinus ‘Miss Jessopp’s Upright’ adding vertical interest. Hebes add an evergreen winter structure and further encourages bees and butterflies.
Gardening changed my life and I hope this garden - which is achievable, economical and sustainable - helps others to discover a love for it too.
Esher-based Toni Bowater and Lucy Welsh from Bromley met on a recent garden design course going on to form Bowater Welsh. Their Get Started Wood Spoon Garden is sponsored by Wooden Spoon - a charity that supports disadvantaged children and young people with disabilities by creating spaces such as sensory rooms and playgrounds. Following the festival, the garden will become part of a sensory garden at a special needs school in Kent.
“Our category is there to entice those who have zero horticultural inclination to become interested and to show what is achievable,” says Lucy.
“And as the garden is going in the main to be the entrance of outdoor classroom, it has been designed to be cared for by the children,” adds Toni. “It is a safe, calm space but we have also included some fun elements such as a trellis made from wooden spoons and bird climbers.”
Lucy adds: “The plants feature a soft, muted palate and are designed to add movement. Again, we have concentrated on the beginner gardener and all the plants are available at your local garden centre. We wanted visitors to the garden to feel sheltered and protected offering a sense of achievable calm.”
