RHS Tatton Park 2

The second days posts of Tatton start with a show garden I forgot I photographed. The gardens were arranged around rows and avenues, and some were harder to find than others.This was the BBC Northwest Tonight garden called Edible Trends.

It was a mixture of Abstract art, some groovy metal structures that looked like Dandelion seed heads, perennials, and fruit and veg. Cabbages were planted amongst the perennials that flowed along the outside of the garden.

This was designed by the Reaseheath College Garden and landscape design students. I looked at it twice, and kept seeing new things at every visit. The circular outline of the garden meant it was very hard to photograph. The submitted plan in the brochure looks nothing like this. The plan was flat with swirling colours. The garden was three dimensional, but I liked this a lot.

A new type of garden was at this years show. It was called Visionary gardens. I have shown some photos of the strangeness of them. Its like abstract gardening, its okay if you get it. This first one is called Cubed3 by Alan Burns and Philip Dugdale.

The second visionary garden was called Glyndwrs Vision by Peter Styles for the Welsh College of Horticulture. The program guide says this is a structural work designed to be viewed from all angles. The content is all related to Wales.

The third Visionary garden is called Time And the Bell, a line from a poem by T.S.Elliot. It is a mixture of Bamboos and grasses in limited pallet of colours. I did not understand any of the visionary gardens. It was a new category for me to photograph at Tatton this year.

The back to back gardens were good this year at Tatton. They are smaller than the show gardens but packed with ideas, plants, and structures. They are the heart of the show. This first one is called A Shared Space by Graham Bodle. It shows a garden shared between two households.

This garden looks like it has been around for years. Its Tim Fowlers Forgotten But Not Overlooked. It shows how a neglected shady area can be planted. I liked the use of reclaimed and recycled material. The shed has a down pipe catching water in a barrel. It rained a lot when we were there too so it did not need topping up much. This won the gold medal and best back to back garden in show.

Another garden that used reclaimed materials (an old snooker table for example) was the Finchdale Training College a load of old rubbish. It had solar panels for wifi for the open air studying in the corner.

Finchale training college trains people with disabilities for full time employment. The blurb in the book says "As with discarded items in the garden, they reshape marginalised and overlooked individuals into valuable and fully functioning members of society".
I loved the black tiles that reflected the densely planted borders. I like lots of colours.The mirror at the end reflected all the people stood looking at the garden. It got a silver medal..

David Dixons garden was called A Place For Waste. He constructed it with off cut timbers, chippings, old wine bottles, and scrap metal. the wine bottles make decorative structures around the tree's. It has a seating area at the end of the garden. This won a gold medal.

This garden was designed by Hugh Thomas and was called The Dark Horse Venture Garden "Out The Back". It looks like the back of a terraced house, and shows what you can grow in tubs and up the wall. Everything in it was grown from seed this year, except the fruit tree's. It is beautifully planted with annual flowers, as well as the vegetables. This won a gold medal.

This is why they design, plan, and construct the gardens. The prestigious RHS gold medal.I loved how some designers left them on display. People debate why one garden gets a certain medal and the other one doesn't.I think they wait nervously on judging day for the judges to scrutinise their gardens before the awards are made.


I loved the warm colour of this garden, and the loose prairie type planting around the edges of it. Bernie Quinn's garden called Lose The Shoes. The shoes are left on the entry to the reflexology pathway with raised stones to walk on. The garden engages all five senses.

The bird of Paradise sculpture fits in with the fiery passionate colours. There is cascading water, and swaying Bamboos and grasses. Oregano, Rosemary, and Thyme offer their scents. It is a thoughtful garden, and won a Silver medal.

The University of Chester's garden was called Let Knowledge Grow. It was a line from a Tennyson poem. This is a quiet garden for reflection and study.

I liked the leaded glass panels, which celebrated the 170 years that the institution has been around for. This panel shows the University being built. This garden will be recreated in the University's grounds as the Alumni garden.

This garden was called Down Under Jennys 1950's Backyard. The designer is an Australian lady who was a volunteer at Tatton Park (the Estate house). She submitted a design and got chosen to build it this year. It is a representation of her Dads house in Australia in the 1950s. A mixture of edible plants and flowers in red, white, and blue. There is a traditional Dunny too.I actually spoke to her and asked if she would do it again. She is returning to Australia this year, but with a Silver medal.
Christies were back again this year with a garden called Closer To Home, designed by Andrew Walker. Christies are a cancer centre that treats 40,000 patients a year. They are planning to open a new Radiotherapy centre in Oldham Hospital as at the moment all the patients travel to Manchester. This garden will be rebuilt in the new Oldham centre.

It is a very calming garden with the lilac coloured walls, still water, and clipped Topiary shapes. calming pastel flowers are dotted around the garden.

The last Back to Back Garden today is the Hermits Grotto-Inspiration For Imagination. That is a real man sat in the cave. It is based on the story of John Harris, who after he was rejected by a woman lived in the cave until he was 99 years old in the Tatton estate.
That is a selection of my favourite gardens. One more post tomorrow from Tatton. There was a feast for the eyes I thought. I hope you are enjoying my tour of the flower show...