RHS Badminton Flower Show is a true spectacle of planting, but one show garden in particular has stood out for the success of its design, having been awarded Gold and the Best Construction Award by the RHS. Macmillan Cancer Support: The Nascent Shade Garden was designed by Elle Arnett in collaboration with Artisan Landscapes, and is an ornamental woodland garden.
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The garden features a group of birch trees interspersed with sculptures and paving with brass leaf details, and was inspired by the proverb 'A society grows strong when its people plant trees in whose shade they know they shall never sit.'
It aims to highlight the inequalities people experience in cancer care, and this is represented by the layout and design of the space. Elements in the garden are spaced unevenly at the start, but as visitors move through the garden, the spaces gradually close, symbolising Macmillan Cancer Support's mission to close the gap between the best and the worst cancer care experiences, so that everyone can get the care they need.
"The concept behind the garden is to tell the story of Macmillan Cancer Support's mission to make cancer care fair and equitable for everybody," says Elle. "We know that cancer care experiences aren't fair at the moment and Macmillan Cancer Support are working hard to make them fairer in the future."
Inspired by the idea that society thrives when we plant trees for future generations, the garden highlights the lasting impact of gifts left in wills. Trees providing shade in years to come is mirrored in the idea that leaving a gift to Macmillan in ones will can support it to continue its work to support everyone living with cancer today and transform cancer care in the future.
"If visitors take one thing from the garden," says Elle, "I would like it to be a sense of optimism and hope for the future in cancer care."
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Designed to thrive in shade, the garden features eight Betula trees - paper and Chinese red birches - and a palette of green and white plants that transitions into soft pastels. Top plants include Digitalis grandiflora, sweet woodruff, hostas and pink and blue campanula. The trees provide a dappled shade for ferns, Thalictrum and Astrantia to flourish.
Unusually for a show garden, it is a walk-through space, meaning visitors to Badminton show are able to actually go on the garden rather than look in from the outside, meaning they can enjoy the special detailing of brass leaves in the Purbeck stone paving, and place a birch token in the water bowl as a sign of hope and optimism for the future.
Elle was delighted to win Gold for her first show garden and her landscaper Will Cooke and his team from Artisan Landscapes were over the moon to be awarded the Construction Award for the build. The garden is being relocated to a hospice in Bristol after the show.
You can find Macmillan Cancer Support: The Nascent Shade Garden in the Show Gardens category of RHS Badminton Flower Show, which is open until Sunday 12 July. Find tickets at rhs.org.uk
To learn more about Macmillan Cancer Support, visit macmillan.org.uk
