Chelsea Garden to inspire budding poets

The 21st March is Unesco World Poetry Day so it is seems an appropriate time to draw attention to ‘The Poetry Lover’s Garden‘, designed by Fiona Cadwallader, for the 2017 RHS Chelsea Flower Show.

Gardens have inspired great poems throughout history, from Homer’s Garden of Alcinous to Milton’s Paradise Lost, through to Elizabeth Jenning’s In a Garden. For her Chelsea garden, Fiona has chosen a poem by Samuel Coleridge, This Lime Tree Bower is my Prison, and hopes that the design will provide some lyrical encouragement to some of the thousands of visitors at the show to explore their creativity and have a go at writing their own garden-related ‘Micro-Poem’.

Poets will be asked if they would like to create a short poem about Fiona’s garden, or any of the incredible displays of floral delights at RHS Chelsea. They can post these on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram with the hashtag #CFSpoet. Or they can post directly onto Fiona Cadwallader Designs Facebook page.

The Micro-Poems can be submitted on paper in a Poem Pot at the side of Fiona’s Artisan Garden and each day Fiona, during the Show,  will select her Poet of the Day from all the entries.

Fiona commented: “I studied Coleridge’s work at university and ‘This Lime Tree Bower My Prison’ made a big impression on me, as the poem echoed my own belief that everyone has an innate appreciation for nature, and gardens can be a heightened version of that. So, when I was considering ideas for my first Chelsea show garden, it felt natural for me to reference the themes of this beautiful poem in the design. Alongside garden design, poetry is a real passion of mine and I’d like to encourage other people to let the beauty of the gardens and floral exhibits at Chelsea inspire them to write a short micro-poem which captures their thoughts of their visit. I hope we can create a real poetry buzz throughout the week of the show.”

Here at Reckless Gardener we feel this is a brilliant idea and hope that as many budding poets out there who visit the show or watch it on television will be inspired by Fiona’s garden and want to put pen to paper.

Fiona is a designer and artist specializing in gardens and domestic interiors. Information on her work and design service can be found on: www.cadwallader.co.uk