RHS Chelsea Dog Garden’s new home at Battersea rescue centre

Monty Don’s first-ever RHS Chelsea Flower Show garden will live on at Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, where rescue dogs will be able to enjoy it for years to come

For the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2025, BBC presenter Monty Don designed a garden for dogs. To ensure it can be enjoyed for years to come, the RHS has gifted the garden to Battersea Dogs and Cats Home.

In its forever home, the RHS and BBC Radio 2 Dog Garden is intended to become a sensory space that benefits rescue dogs – a calm, enriching environment where they can exercise, train and relax.  

Queen Camilla unveils new garden for dogs

© Richard Lea-Hair, Battersea

The Queen received a special tour of the new dog garden accompanied by Battersea’s Chief Executive Peter Laurie and Lead Horticulturalist Dawn Richards

As Battersea’s Royal Patron, Her Majesty The Queen had the honour of officially opening the new dog garden at the charity centre in London, originally created by Monty Don with Jamie Butterworth for the RHS Chelsea Flower Show. 

The garden includes a carefully selected tapestry of dog-friendly plants and a neatly mown lawn, essential for canine sprawling, sleeping, rolling, flopping, itching and chasing balls. A large tree provides shade over the grass, offering the perfect spot to stretch out on a warm afternoon while surrounded by ‘balls’ of alliums and topiary. The lawn also drifts into longer grass planted with ornamental bulbs.

“RHS Chelsea Flower Show was an irresistible opportunity to share my love of gardens and dogs, and for the garden to cross the river from Chelsea to Battersea is both really appropriate and significant,” Monty Don said. “It’s a beautiful garden and to have it grow on here at Battersea for years to come is a lovely idea and a really important part of the project. Along with a superb team, headed by Jamie Butterworth, we created a garden inspired by Longmeadow and my own dogs, but above all, a celebration of the way that so many of us share our gardens with our canine companions.”

It’s lovely to see this beautiful garden cross the river from the RHS Chelsea Flower Show to Battersea.

© Battersea

The water feature replicates the stream included by Monty Don in his RHS Chelsea Flower Show garden

© Battersea

A neatly mown lawn is the perfect space for sprawling, rolling and chasing balls

The new dog garden aims to become a space where Battersea’s staff and volunteers can spend time with the thousands of dogs that come through the charity’s gates each year. Many of these animals arrive with challenging behavioural or medical issues, which Battersea’s expert teams work tirelessly to address. In 2024 alone, the charity took in 2,766 dogs and 2,454 cats at its three centres in London, Kent and Windsor, including 241 animals transferred from other rescues around the UK. 
 

Queen Camilla’s connection with Battersea

Queen Camilla has been a patron of Battersea Dogs and Cats Home since 2017, following Queen Elizabeth II’s patronage. However, her association with the animal welfare charity dates back to October 2010, when she visited the charity’s London centre to open the new cattery and commemorate Battersea’s 150th anniversary. Her Majesty has rehomed three dogs from the London’s centre, starting with Beth in August 2011 – her long-time companion who passed away in November 2024. In September 2012, the Queen adopted Bluebell, who had been rescued at Battersea after being found wandering in woods of a London Park. In February 2025, she finally adopted her Jack Russell terrier puppy Moley.

© Richard Lea-Hair, Battersea

Her Majesty was greeted by Battersea dogs Bertie, Phoenix, Bella and Dipsy

© Richard Lea-Hair, Battersea

The Queen unveiled a plaque to celebrate the opening of the new garden

During her visit, the Queen received a special tour of the new dog garden accompanied by Battersea’s Chief Executive, Peter Laurie, and Lead Horticulturalist Dawn Richards. Richards explained how the garden will serve as a special space for dogs to play, train, exercise or simply snooze in the shade.

“This space will be instrumental in supporting the wellbeing of the dogs in our care and will provide an array of enrichment benefits – from a range of different surfaces and smells to engage their senses to offering them a calm, serene natural environment to support their stress reduction,” Dawn Richards said. “The carefully designed elements of the garden will ultimately help reduce the amount of time dogs need to be in our care. Therefore, being able to offer them this kind of space is invaluable.”