Escaping to BBC Gardeners’ World Live

BBC Gardeners’ World Live 2021, rescheduled from its usual June slot, may have been smaller – fewer show gardens, not as many nurseries in the floral marquee – but there were still plenty of take home ideas.

Chief among these seemed to be the idea of gardens as a refuge and somewhere to relax, with chairs, sofas and other places to linger featuring on nearly every garden – and even some of the Beautiful Borders entries.

Some were traditional in style such as this on the ‘Nature’s Resilience’ garden by Lisa-Marie Elkhadraoui, Nicola Cooper and Samantha Wright. I liked the use of a strawberry pot for annuals including nasturtiums. I’ve never found these pots to be much good for strawberries.

Other designs had a far more tropical feel. This was ‘Staycation Tropical Cornwall’ by Kim Parrish, summing up summer 2021 for much of the country.

I liked the juxtaposition of bananas and dahlias – the county is home to the National Collection of Dahlias.

There was also a tropical vibe to the ‘In Momento’ garden by Cath Fletcher (pictured at the top of this blog post). The bright colours were welcome on a rather grey day.

And I loved the tropical planting on ‘Garden Envy’ by Kate Mason, one of the many Beautiful Borders.

Even the nurseries had picked up on the idea – this was the award-winning display by Moore & Moore Plants.

It’s always good to find out you’re in tune with the judges. This garden really appealed and I found myself drawn back to it.

It turned out to be the judges’ choice too, winning Best Show Garden for Tom Wooldridge of TAW Garden Landscapes. It was in the APL Avenue section and was designed by Tony Nutley of Anthony Lionel Landscapes

Before he knew of the award, Tom had told me how delighted he was with comments about the garden: “It makes all the hard work and effort we’ve put into it worthwhile.”

Gardeners’ World Live is always a good place to get ideas and there were lots of small details worth noting. The planting under this bench softened it and helped to fully emerse you in the garden.

There was lots of inspiration for bringing water into a garden

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This more traditional raised bed by David Stevens and the use of a reclaimed water trough by Jessica Nicholls showed the different styles that can be achieved.

David’s garden, created with the Association of Professional Landscapers, revealed the reality behind building a garden with cross sections showing the landscaping work that underpins it. Entitled ‘What Lies Beneath’, it won gold and the Best Construction Landscaper award.

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There were also ideas for water in small spaces with a couple of great container pools.

This quirky garden by Hana Leonard showed how you could use recycled materials to create a garden with a cycling theme.

The fence was bicycle parts and there was even an igloo-shaped shelter made of cycle wheels and covered in plants. There were some good plant combinations in the central border with a great mix of textures and shapes.

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Many of the gardens had some interesting paving ideas with a mix of materials and using plants to soften the effect.

This border by Nickki Hollier was packed with planting suitable for pollinators.

In the floral marquee, there was a whole display on houseplants and how to display them in the home. Ideas for indoor gardeners is something that is now being covered at shows after being overlooked for many years.

Finally, among the nursery displays at BBC Gardeners’ World Live, it was good to see a display by Barnsdale Gardens commemmorating the 25th anniversary of the death of Geoff Hamilton.

It referred to him as ‘The Greatest TV Gardener’, something that many gardeners would support.

You can read more of my flower show reviews here.

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