Make a splash with clever water features from RHS Sandringham
From tiny drinking dishes for insects to cascading waterfalls, designers at the RHS Sandringham Flower Show demonstrate creative ways to use, store and enjoy water in gardens
Water is not only essential for your plants, it also keeps wildlife hydrated, cools the air and engages all the senses. Being near water can help us feel calmer, create a focal point and provide a beautiful reflective surface.
The designers at the first RHS Sandringham Flower Show offered plenty of ideas for incorporating water into gardens of every size.
On reflection
A rectangular pool creates a very different feel, adding both space and formality. This perfectly proportioned design features stylish benches where visitors can sit and watch passing clouds reflected in the water, which has been purposefully left free of plants. On a garden for The Gurkha Welfare Trust, the metallic surface of a repurposed Belgian chocolate vat forms a striking water feature.
Go with the flow
The key to creating a realistic pond or stream is disguising the mechanics of pumps, pipes and liners. Pebbles and gravel are ideal for filling smaller gaps among rocks, while emerging water can be hidden beneath bridges and walkways.
An old Belfast sink makes an ideal miniature pond and needs just a few plants and some rocks to help wildlife climb in and out safely.
In the Long Borders, designers have made use of every available space. One charming water feature was created by a designer's grandfather using an upturned metal fire bell. Elsewhere, a small pond was tucked among the planting, deep enough for a water lily and finished with a liner and gently sloping gravel edges to help wildlife access this inviting source of water.
Reflective surfaces and harmonic planting set the perfect scene
The greenery extended from the borders into the water
Moisture managed
Water collected from the roof flows into a pebble zone and under a walkway...
...before emerging in lined pond, with an overflow into a rain garden
