The theme of this year’s Chelsea Flower Show 2016 is ‘Greening Grey Britain’. So we thought we’d take a look at properties with gardens with the best Chelsea Flower Show inspired designs.
With 165,000 visitors passing through the gates this week, Chelsea Flower Show is the country’s largest and most well-known horticultural event. Attracting celebrities and the biggest names in the gardening world, it’s a must for the green-fingered amongst us.
Great British greenery
Box hedges and symmetry are at the forefront of The Husqvarna Garden’s design, which is replicated in both the front and back gardens of this six bedroom house in Barnes. If views over Barnes Green aren’t enough for those who love the outdoors, the back garden has an abundance of trees and carefully shaped hedges that give the feeling of being in your own urban jungle.
Soothing scents
One of this year’s winning show gardens sponsored by L’Occitane is designed to replicate a lavender field around the hills and wooded areas of Provence, which is famous for lavender growing. A firm staple in British gardens, lavender borders the newly landscaped garden of this four bedroom house in Clapham, which also features planted bay trees for a Mediterranean vibe.
Idyllic indoors
These days a garden doesn’t even need to be outside. Some of London’s newer developments are proving that you can indeed bring the outdoors, in. Incorporated into Great West Quarter in Brentford is an indoor communal garden, complete with one of Europe’s largest vertical wall gardens and bamboo reaching up through the building’s atrium. Each apartment also includes a private winter garden perfect for entertaining all year round.
Theatrical themes
According to the show's organisers, "RHS Chelsea provides an international stage for horticulturists and there’s even more of a theatrical feel to the show this year". Designed by Diarmuid Gavin, this year's Harrods British Eccentric Garden 'performs' for visitors every 15 minutes. So, if it's theatrical that you're after, just take a look at this garden in Temple Fortune. Multicoloured lights in amongst the tiered beds of shrubs and grasses, as well bamboo borders and an oriental themed water feature all add to the drama.
Outdoor oasis
At the centre of Cloudy Bay’s Chelsea Flower Show garden is a reflective pool that has “connotations of setting sail and drifting away or escaping”. This feeling of escapism is at the heart of Wardian London’s design too. Trees and plants will feature throughout the landmark development and will surround the outdoor communal pool, adding privacy as well as a feeling of total relaxation. Each apartment will also include a balcony that can be individually landscape designed, giving each resident their own slice of the outdoors well above the city.
English estate
An Englishman’s home is certainly his castle if you live in a house like this. And there’s nothing more quintessentially British than the beautiful grounds that it is set in. One of the main themes of this year’s Chelsea Flower Show is reflection and relaxation. So if you’re looking for an escape from the city and a bit of peace and quiet, this beautiful residence in Theydon Bois is definitely for you.
Summer setting
At this year’s Chelsea Flower Show, gold medal winner The Garden Bed has a hospital bed as its centrepiece. While the Asda sponsored garden is meant to offer a contemplative and picturesque view from a hospital bed, this apartment in Barnes has a terrace with beds of a different kind. Wrapping around the property and with a south-west-facing aspect, it’s the perfect space for a couple of sun beds perfectly positioned to catch some rays this summer.
Urban retreat
A 2016 gold medal winner, Vestra Wealth’s Garden of Mindful Living is designed as “a calm space in which to relax after a busy day at work”. And just like Paul Martin’s Chelsea Flower Show design, the owners of this four bedroom house in Islington have managed to create a tranquil space in hectic North London. The different levels to the garden provide various spaces for entertaining and are broken up by pretty flowers, trees and shrubs that add to the calming atmosphere.
Looking for more inspiration?
Take a look at our favourite gardens, gardens perfect for a summer staycation, properties with London's best roof terraces and London's secret public parks and gardens.
