Exhibitors
SHOW GARDENS | WATER GARDENS | SMALL GARDENS | CONCEPTUAL GARDENS
INSPIRING SPACES | WINDOWBOXES & HANGING BASKETS
PLANTS | GROWING & SHOWING MARQUEE | MARKET PLACE
Small gardens
Page, Prior and Rae
Life Long Living
Designers: Ali Page, Rachel Prior and Toni Rae
Sponsor: Beechcroft Developments Ltd
Contractor: The Green Room
Click on the images to view a hi-res version
This garden has been inspired by the work of the designers’ client and sponsor, retirement specialists, Beechcroft Developments; a company committed to creating outstanding landscapes, where private spaces flow seamlessly into carefully-designed, well-managed communal gardens, designed to stimulate the senses, generate a feeling of well being, encourage wildlife and maintain biodiversity.
The Life Long Living garden is approached from a river bank covered with a wildflower meadow, across an iron and wooden bridge and onto elegant circular sandstone paving intersected by concentric rings of recycled glass. The circle has an iron bird-feeding station to create a focal point. There are six mature trees providing strong vertical accents and habitat opportunities for the wildlife within the garden. The trees are underplanted by shrubs, perennials and grasses in colours of pink, blue, purple, white and cream and increase in intensity of colour from near the house towards the front of the garden. This pastel palette is punctuated by strong burgundy and silver accents and many of the plants have been included to encourage wildlife. The Life Long Living garden will be previewing the Rose of the Year for 2008 (Rosa ‘Sweet Haze’) which is to be launched at this year’s show on behalf of the Bumblebee Conservation.
The garden has been designed for a client who has retired but has a social conscience and cares about the sourcing of their hard landscaping materials and protecting the earth’s resources. Ethically sourced sandstone and recycled glass have been used to provide the contrasting bands within the circular theme. The entire garden will be rebuilt, in part or whole, at one of the residential developments of Beechcroft Developments to ensure it lives on after the flower show has finished.
Each of the designers Ali Page, Rachel Prior and Toni Rae are independent designers who have joined forces to harness their different skills for the challenge and pleasure of creating a show garden. Page, Prior and Rae have designed only one garden for a show at the Hampton Court Palace Flower Show 2005 where they won an RHS Gold Medal and Best Small Garden, so they are feeling a lot of pressure to repeat their first result!