With the 2023 RHS Chelsea Flower Show now only days away, it is the perfect time to get inspired. We’ve taken a look at some of the gardens featured at this year’s show for some of the best 2023 gardening trends and looks that you can incorporate into your own outdoor spaces. By scratching beneath the surface of the grand Show Gardens, there are lots of tips and ideas to be found that even the most amateur gardener can get their teeth stuck into.
Embrace the wild, but contrast it with sculpted elements
We’re seeing a lot of emphasis placed on the importance of nature in this year’s Chelsea Flower Show. Campaigns like No Mow May, which aims to help wildflowers and pollinators in decline by encouraging gardeners to not mow their lawns until the end of May, are paving the way for more naturalistic landscapes. The Centrepoint Show Garden adopts this natural style—the garden is centred around a ruinous house which is slowly being enveloped by nature. Interestingly it also incorporates sculpted topiary elements for an alluring contrast of wild vs tame. Juxtapose wild and tame in your garden by positioning sculpted evergreen shrubs (the Common Holly tree or Bay Laurel are great candidates for topiary) within wilder areas. For creating that wild look, we recommend native species such as Silver Birch (Betula pendula) and Common Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna), which are both featured in the Centrepoint.
Create a haven for insects & other essential wildlife
Closely linked to this naturalistic look is a growing emphasis on turning the garden into a haven for insects and wildlife, as seen in the Royal Entomological Society Show Garden. Gardeners can support declining pollinators by choosing trees & shrubs that will provide a habitat as well as year-round food—look out for the RHS Plants for Pollinators symbol when you’re doing your tree shopping. Make sure you have a variety of trees and shrubs for providing support in every season. For winter support we recommend Viburnum tinus. For spring there are several options, but we would recommend a Victoria Plum tree (Prunus domestica 'Victoria'). Not only does it produce the nation's favourite plum—which is suitable for both cooking and eating fresh—it also grows pretty white flowers for springtime interest. Cook up into a jam or plum sauce, safe in the knowledge that you're supporting declining pollinators. For summer, there are more options still, but the Common Mountain Ash (Sorbus aucuparia), which grows in many difficult positions, is a safe bet. For autumn, we recommend the fantastic Strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo), as it produces its bright-red fruits (very popular with hungry birds) and clusters of flowers at this time of year. As an evergreen, it will keeps its foliage year-round for an added bonus!
Add height with tall trees for calm contemplation & spirituality
In line with the “Restorative” theme for this year’s Chelsea Flower Show, we are also seeing gardens designed with spirituality in mind, as spaces to encourage calm contemplation, reflection and mindfulness. In this vein, the Memoria & GreenAcres Transcendence Garden uses the height and verticality of Honey Locust (Gleditsia) trees to create upward movement and a connection with the sky. Their arching branches, adorned with feathery foliage, create a light canopy that allows dappled areas of sunlight to diffuse down below, for a calming and gently uplifting experience. We recommend planting two or three single stem Himalayan Birch trees (Betula utilis jacquemontii 'Snow Queen') to recreate this uplifting effect. They grow tall and slender and produce a light and airy canopy, and their pure-white bark is the perfect colour for imbuing a sense of serenity. Plant them among smaller-sized bushes and shrubs to emphasise their height and elongated quality. Incorporate flowing water into your garden for added sensory relaxation.
Adapt to the changing climate with drought-tolerant trees & shrubs
With the heat of last summer reaching 40 degrees, we’re seeing gardens designed with the changing climate in mind and more planting of drought-tolerant trees and shrubs. The Hamptons Mediterranean Show Garden evokes the warm and sunny feel of a garden that you might find somewhere in Italy, and its choice of trees is reflective of this. Adopt this Mediterranean look in your own garden with a Golden Irish Yew (Taxus baccata 'Fastigiata Aurea') and two or three Italian Cypress trees (Cupressus sempervirens 'Pyramidalis'). Italian cypress are both drought-tolerant and hardy to low UK temperatures, and are ideal for potting as well.
We’re also seeing more drought-tolerant trees in some of the Balcony and Container Gardens, as a nod to the practical issue of city living. Gardeners with busy lifestyles, living in flats, that don’t necessarily have the time or space for gardening, can still enjoy the benefits of gardening on a smaller scale with potted plants that are low-maintenance and that don’t require a strict watering regime. The St George ‘Alight Here’ Balcony Garden is compact but successfully creates a lush green oasis with the help of some bushy, drought-tolerant Eastern Redbuds (Cercis canadensis 'Hearts of Gold')—perfect as a getaway from the stresses of modern life.
