Sandy Felton takes an overview of some of the gardens set to inspire at RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2012.We are at that period pre-Chelsea where the frisson of anticipation starts to get stronger and the video clips of the build-ups of various gardens go online. The press start paying a little more attention to gardening than they seem to do the rest of the year and we are treated to snippets of what this or that garden will look like.
There is usually a crop of 'trends' from those in the know and that word 'sustainable' seems to find its way into the vocabulary more than usual. However, one thing is constant – for the gardening public RHS Chelsea is the world’s greatest flower show and the annual event is awaited like no other.
This month Mr McGregor talks about dealing with the hosepipe ban and what gardeners' can do to to save water while maintaining a healthy garden.With the hosepipe ban now in place, there are a few lingering questions, after all how will this affect nature reserves and national parks, never mind our gardens at home? However, on quite the reverse, the ban has been welcomed by many reserves as this prolonged drought has already had a big impact on RSPB wetland nature reserves. The ban will enable trusts to preserve their water for birds and other animals, but for the average gardener, it’s a different story.
Two new heritage courses have been announced by the National Trust marking the charity’s most significant development in horticultural training for 209 years. The new courses, which are co-funded by the National Gardens Scheme, offer budding gardeners the opportunity to study for qualifications in heritage gardening and replace the Trust’s Careership training scheme which was launched in 1991.
The one year Foundation Certificate is aimed at those new to heritage gardening and will enable the development of essential practical skills needed to look after and nurture heritage gardens. It is aligned with the Royal Horticultural Society’s (RHS) Level 2 in Horticulture.
Read more: New heritage gardening courses launched by National Trust
Following the success of the L'Occitane Garden at RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2010, the sponsors return for 2012 with a garden which promises the sights and scents of the Corsican Maquis.
Designed by award winning designer Peter Dowle, the garden will be modelled around Dowle's first-hand experiences in Corsica, bringing together the key plant species and the breathtaking Corsican landscape.
No stranger to Chelsea, Dowle has been awarded 8 coveted Gold Medals at the Show over the past 14 years and his gardens are always a firm favourite with the public. In the L'Occitane Garden, Peter will feature plants that grow naturally in Corsica such as myrtle, lavender, daisies and verbena which form key ingredients in L'Occitane’s best-selling collections.
Read more: L’Occitane garden brings a sense of Corsica to Chelsea
Dry-stone walls in the shape of the spinal column are at the heart of a pioneering rehabilitation garden for patients at the Duke of Cornwall Spinal Treatment Centre in Salisbury. Designed by award-winning designer Cleve West, (pictured left) Horatio's Garden will provide patients with a beautiful social place in which to escape the day-to-day routine of hospital life.The garden will also serve as a lasting tribute to Horatio Chapple, who was killed in a polar bear attack in Norway in August, 2011. Horatio was a volunteer at the Spinal Treatment Centre and had helped with research that identified the need for a patients' garden.
Read more: Pioneering garden set for Spinal Treatment Centre
