RHS Chelsea Flower Show

18 - 22 May 2027

Fresh Gardens 2016

The Garden of Potential

Awards

  • Silver-gilt medal winner
Designed by:
Propagating Dan

Rugged Icelandic landscapes, a Buddhist sense of oneness and the Venetian architect Carlo Scarpa have come together in unexpected horticultural harmony to provide the inspiration for The Garden of Potential.

A five-tonne glacial boulder balances precariously on the roof of an oak pavilion, directly above a ceramic sculpture by contemporary artist Jesse Wine. An 'elaborate gutter' architecturally zigzags through the landscape, capturing a rainstorm's potency in a gurgling rill. A path, inspired by a collapsed fence, almost tips the visitor into the space.

Rarely used, and often derided plants predominate. Majestic field horsetail, Equisetum arvense, weaves through a lush and unusual woodland planting scheme with Golden Leylandii, in all its sculptural neon beauty as a focal point.