Featured Show Gardens
Fleming’s and Trailfinder’s Australian Garden presented by Melbourne, Victoria
Garden in the Silver Moonlight
Awards
This garden was awarded
Bronze
Lloyds TSB
The Lloyd's TSB Garden
Designer: Trevor Tooth
Contractor: Trevor Tooth Garden Practice
Sponsor: Lloyds TSB
Plant ListThe Lloyd's TSB Garden represents an area of garden that was once a pond, but due to the change in the water table now sits mainly in the dry. This area has been transformed into an area of inspiration with vibrant colours, plants and architecture, evoking memories of travels around the world.
The garden is surrounded by a 2m (6.5ft) high rendered wall painted black and red. The wall will give protection to some of the more tender varieties of plants, and the coloured backdrop compliments and jars against the planting. The garden is connected by an oak pathway suspended above the planting, linking circular concrete platforms that are designed to allow visitors to the garden the opportunity to pause on their journey through it. ravelling into the garden, the visitor reaches a curtain of water, which leads to a platform suspended over a pond with bubble jets to give the water movement and life. On this platform, the visitor can shelter from rain or sun under Venus - a metal sculptured folly inspired by a Venus fly trap and made of steel and Perspex.
The planting in the garden is an eclectic mix of plants giving different moods. Towards the front there are plants that grow predominantly in dry, sunny positions, with mass drifts of Carex buchananii and Dianthus deltoides.
An old olive tree sits to one side, and a Lagerstroemia underplanted with Corokia cotoneaster to the other. Further in the planting becomes more tropical and vibrant and incorporates canna lilies, tree ferns, palms, Helenium and bananas, and plants in rich orange, red, yellow and blue. Verbena bonariensis repeats throughout the section, alongside purple textured plants, linking the planting scheme and leading the eye. The planting colours to the rear of the garden are gentler, with pinks, blues and greens and some subtle yellows.
There are several key features within the garden. To the rear, is the curtain of water within a stainless steel frame, which encapsulates a waterfall in a modern form. This curves and divides the garden naturally. Creating power for the garden and home is a wind turbine, which is placed among silver birch trees.