Award: Gold Medal

About the garden

Location

Set in rural Worcestershire, the garden was designed for an artistic and eco-sensitive couple and later relocated to the Humble-Bee Landscaping & Construction Ltd site in Brimfield, Shropshire as a showcase of ecological and innovative garden design.

Design Inspiration

The garden reimagined how we live in harmony with nature, drawing inspiration from:

• Blackthorn salt towers
• Ecological gardening
• The work of John Little and Nigel Dunnett on standing dead wood and biodiversity
• Mirabel Osler’s Gentle Plea for Chaos
• Ben Law’s sustainable built structures

Key Takeaway

Visitors were encouraged to rethink how their gardens could benefit local ecosystems and creatively support biodiversity.

Highlights & Themes

• A bee-wing inspired pergola with a green roof and air/water conditioning tower provided safe water droplets for invertebrates.
• Rainwater was captured and circulated through a brushwood graduation tower, inspired by blackthorn salt towers, filtering into a wildlife pond.
• Medicinal and edible plants were combined with wild-style planting using the “right plant, right place” approach to increase diversity and reduce maintenance.
• Recycled materials were used artistically to create sculpture and varied habitats, blurring the line between wild and cultivated.

Topical Elements

• Water-wise gardening
• Native plantings
• Roof gardens
• Gardening for bees
• Gardening for health and wellbeing

Sustainability & Environmental Responsibility

• Crushed recycled waste aggregate was used for pathways.
• A green roof and grey water recycling system supported irrigation.
• Ground screws replaced concrete for the pergola structure.
• Standing dead wood and dead hedges provided habitat and structure.
• Site-specific design ensured the garden fit naturally into the landscape, supporting local ecosystems.
• Wild boundaries and wildlife corridors enhanced safe movement for animals.
• Maintenance was left over winter to support overwintering wildlife, with cutting back delayed until late February.

Water Management Innovations

• Rainwater was harvested from the pergola and cycled through a graduation tower into a pond and wetland.
• Leaky pipes irrigated the green roof and provided safe drinking for birds and invertebrates.
• Planting under the pergola featured drought-tolerant species, while paths made from sand and crushed aggregate mimicked sand-bed conditions for ground-nesting bees.

Plants and Planting Strategy

The garden featured wild and naturalistic planting, with ornamental drought-tolerant plants providing sculptural statement planting beneath the pergola. The design embraced the principles of ‘right plant, right place’ and habitat diversity, ensuring varied conditions across the space by altering substrates and exposure. Plants were carefully selected to thrive in these specific microclimates, enhancing contrast and biodiversity.

Approximately 3,000 individual plants were included in the garden.

• Emphasis on resilient, drought-tolerant, and bog-tolerant species.
• Extended margins and wild-style planting increased habitat diversity.
• Edible and medicinal plants were included, such as thyme and chamomile.
• Wild-style planting created a mosaic of habitats, with maintenance timed to support wildlife cycles.

 Five Key Plants

• Eryngium agavifolium (Agave-leaved sea holly) – A striking, semi-evergreen plant with spiny rosettes resembling Agaves. Hardy and dramatic, its towering summer flower spikes made it a valuable drought-tolerant statement plant.
• Trifolium ochroleucon (Sulphur clover) – Creamy bottlebrush flower heads atop trifoliate leaves. Hardy and pollinator-friendly, it added a wild yet distinctive touch. Cutting it back after flowering encouraged a second flush.
• Filipendula rubra ‘Venusta’ (Meadowsweet) – A more ornamental version of the native meadowsweet, with palmate leaves and frothy pink flowers. Ideal for damp meadows and a host plant for caterpillars.
• Hippophae rhamnoides (Sea buckthorn) – Hardy and wind-filtering, with silvery leaves and bright orange berries rich in antioxidants. Native to coastal areas, it fixed nitrogen and improved soil health.
• Rheum palmatum var. tanguticum (False rhubarb) – Large palmate leaves with red undersides and tall flower spikes added drama and structure. It shaded and sheltered other plants and served as a sustainable alternative to invasive Gunnera.

Unsung Plant Heroes

• Eriophorum angustifolium (Cotton grass) – A beautiful, fluffy grass found in bogs and damp meadows. Grown in ericaceous aquatic soil to mimic its natural habitat.
• Aronia melanocarpa – A shrub with edible, antioxidant-rich berries. Excellent for jams and cordials, and underused in UK gardens.
• Lonicera caerulea (Honeyberry) – An edible shrubby honeysuckle, hardy and long-lived. Its berries were tasty and easy to grow, gaining popularity for low-maintenance edible gardens.

These shrubs, along with Sea Buckthorn, formed a low-maintenance edible hedge or could be used individually to provide food, medicine, and habitat.

Edible Plants

In addition to the edible shrubs, alpine strawberries were used as ground cover in the borders, adding both beauty and function.

 Plant Suppliers

The designers grew all perennials at their own peat-free, pesticide-free nursery, supplying as much as possible themselves. Shrubs and trees were sourced locally, including from Credale Nurseries in Herefordshire.

Some perennials were grown under cover in polytunnels to ensure readiness for the show, but most were presented as they would naturally appear at that time of year. The designer emphasised the importance of realistic expectations for plant growth and flowering.

Plant lists were provided by the designer as a guide, based on the time of year, location, and client brief. Final plant selections depended on growing conditions and availability, and while updates were made where possible, accuracy could not be guaranteed.

About the designers

Frantisek Zika (lead designer)

“Growing up in rural Czechia, the land is our livelihoods with smallholdings and natural foraging. I had wonderful teachers in primary school who taught me horticulture and beekeeping and I never considered anything else. During my master’s degree, I travelled to Asia and Central America working with specialists on projects in agroforestry and agriculture to benefit the land and local communities. Working with people to benefit the land and biodiversity are my passions.”

Jenny Rafferty (joint lead designer)

“Growing up, I became my mum’s garden assistant, and she would always test my knowledge wherever we were. My mum is a great plantswoman and loves damp gardens in particular. It was common for her to wake up and decide she wanted to dig another pond or extend the one we had, for instance. Damp gardens were my first passion. I would describe my style as wild and naturalistic with awareness of the site-specific experience, often with artistic use of recycled materials and attention to the existing or crafted soundscape.”

Jim Goodman (co-designer & CAD technician)

“I was inspired to make a career in the horticulture industry through a love of the natural world, feeling at home outdoors and the wonder of plants. These things have carried me throughout my career. I’m not sure that I have a design style as such, I do my best to be as customer led as much as possible. I think if there’s something I always try to incorporate, it’s encouraging biodiversity at every opportunity.”

What are the advantages of designing a garden at the show?

The designers say, “Malvern is a fairly local show for us, so perfect for our first standalone show experience. Having tested our abilities at shows over the past two years, we feel ready to try it ourselves and create something personal to us and really challenging us but also bringing together the fabulous community of growers and horti trades that support us.”