RHS CHELSEA
Tabitha has been invited to be part of several Main Avenue planting teams at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show over the years. It’s provided an opportunity to work alongside some of the best in the industry, get hands-on with a huge variety of plants (including some real rarities), and connect with brilliant designers and growers from all over the country. Each year brings fresh inspiration and valuable insight that is brought back to the studio and applied in the gardens we create.
THE KINGS TRUST GARDEN
CHELSEA FLOWER SHOW 2025
It was a joy to join Joe Perkins and his team once again at the RHS Chelsea 2025, this time helping to plant his gold-medal-winning garden for The King’s Trust. Set on Main Avenue, the garden – titled ‘Seeding Success’ – tells a powerful story of resilience and triumph over adversity.
The planting design reflects this theme with a rich palette of pioneer and succession species that thrive in challenging, ever-changing environments. Central to the scheme is the Black Pine—the tallest tree featured at Chelsea this year—known for its ability to regenerate after fire and tolerate poor, alkaline soils. These ecological traits act as a living metaphor for the social mobility The King’s Trust enables for the young people it supports.
Sustainability was at the heart of the garden’s construction. No concrete or cement was used; instead, ‘unbound’ construction methods were employed to promote permeability and reduce carbon impact. Reclaimed materials were prioritised: basalt paving stones and retaining walls originated from a former pavement, while boundary structures were crafted from a sawmill by-product – the outer part of the tree stem, complete with bark, that would otherwise be discarded.
Following the show, Seeding Success was permanently relocated to Uxbridge College Campus, where it has become a living resource, cared for by students enrolled in The King’s Trust programmes and shared with the local community.
We couldn’t have been happier for Joe when the garden was awarded an RHS gold medal!
THE ROYAL ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY GARDEN
CHELSEA FLOWER SHOW 2023
Tabitha joined Tom Massey and his team to help plant his ground-breaking Royal Entomological Society garden at RHS Chelsea 2023. The garden was one after our own hearts, placing insects and their habitats front and centre. Designed to highlight their vital role in our world, this garden demonstrates the positive environmental impact of well-considered landscape design.
The garden celebrates the often-overlooked biodiversity found in urban brownfield spaces, which can be surprisingly rich in wildlife. Designed to contain a broad variety of insect-friendly habitats, it features elements like a sculptural dead tree, rammed earth floors, hoggin paths, waste concrete rubble, sand, and gabion walls.
The planting scheme is designed to support pollinators and other beneficial insects, offering diverse food sources throughout the seasons. It includes familiar, resilient species – many of which are often dismissed as weeds – like dandelions, clover, vetch, and knapweed, alongside key native trees such as hawthorn, silver birch, Scots pine, and hazel, all vital for insect life.
Following the show, the garden was moved to IQL Stratford in East London, where it has become a permanent, publicly accessible teaching space and a long-term resource for studying urban insect populations. From summer 2023, it will be part of Lendlease’s eco-conscious, mixed-use development at the entrance to Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.
THE META GARDEN
CHELSEA FLOWER SHOW 2022
Tabitha joined Joe Perkins and his team to plant up The Meta Garden at RHS Chelsea 2022. The Meta Garden: Growing the Future aimed to highlight the interdependent relationship between soil, fungi, plants and trees, showcasing how these elements work together to create strong, resilient forest ecosystems.
This garden celebrated the beauty and importance of British woodlands, exploring the role of thoughtful stewardship to help protect and preserve these vital landscapes for generations to come.
This show garden was constructed from a palette of natural materials, without the use of concrete or cement; the various structural elements were able to be easily dismantled and re-used – a factor of great importance to us here!
Following the show, the garden was rehomed to the Conkers visitor centre at the heart of the National Forest, which forms part of The Queen’s Green Canopy – an initiative focussed on planting trees to mark The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.
We were delighted to see Joe receive an RHS gold medal for the garden!
YEO VALLEY ORGANIC GARDEN
CHELSEA FLOWER SHOW 2021
Tabitha was invited to work on the planting team behind the Yeo Valley Organic Garden, designed by Tom Massey for RHS Chelsea 2021.
This was the first ever wholly organic garden at Chelsea, and it was truly inspiring to see such sustainable design on Main Avenue. Habitats and plants found at Yeo Valley’s family-run organic farm and garden in Somerset were showcased within this show garden, designed to promote soil vitality, foster biodiversity, provide fodder for pollinators and a haven for beneficial wildlife.
The Autumnal planting scheme made the most of the postponed show date, with warm toned perennials and grasses basking in the September sun (another first – in this, the year of lockdowns).
We were thrilled for Tom Massey and Sarah Mead of Yeo Valley Organic when the garden received a gold medal, and then went on to win the People’s Choice vote. A significant achievement on this platform for the organic movement!
Our studio is based near Marlow, Buckinghamshire. We work on projects across the surrounding counties and pretty much anywhere in the UK.
Tel: 07900 810019
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