RHS Hampton Court Feature Gardens

The 2022 RHS Hampton Court Palace Festival (4th to 9th July 2022), has several feature gardens this year ranging from forest ‘bathing’ to an immersive walk-through River Cottage Market Garden. Pictured banner above the Mail & RHS Plant Friendly Garden designed by Mark Gregory.

RHS Forest Bathing Garden

©Dave Green

Designed by Dave Green, this garden follows a forest bathing theme, a technique involving spending time under a canopy of trees surrounded by nature. With evidence for its benefits as an effective treatment for health and wellbeing, the design takes us into the natural environment using all our senses (sight, sound, touch and smell). The garden promotes an appreciation of nature spaces, providing accessible and peaceful places for gentle mindfulness practices.

Planting is inspired by natural woodlands but with a Japanese influence to tie it back to the country where forest bathing is primarily practiced.

Iconic Horticultural Hero

©Sarah Eberle

Designed by award-winning designer Sarah Eberle, the garden is a journey through world landscapes featuring rare and wild world plants, including species that are not only beautiful and sustainably grown in the UK but also reflect our cultural heritage.

Sarah uses a mix of her favourites such as tree ferns and euphorbia with planting also including rare and wild world plants.

River Cottage Market Garden

©Adam Crofts

Adam Crofts, head gardener at River Cottage Market Garden, has designed this immersive walk-through garden to focus on growing organic vegetables, fruit trees, botanicals and wildflowers for pollinators. Planting focus is on organic vegetables and edible plants, including peas and lettuce, beetroot and kale.

The RHS Vitamin G Garden

Designed by Alan Williams and Jo Whiley, this garden is inspired by the evidence-based research published in April 2021 by RHS scientists Professor Alistair Griffiths and Dr Lauriane Chalmin-Pui that proves how gardening benefits our mental, physical and social wellbeing.

It takes the form of a studio filled with art and plants together with a science hub, with adjacent area of the garden inspired for social interaction. Scented planting stimulates the senses encouraging connections to be made around the table with neighbours, family and friends.

The Mail & RHS Plant-Friendly Garden

Designed by Mark Gregory, (pictured banner top of page) this garden explores innovative solutions for tackling climate change. The garden gives resilient and sustainable planting ideas, for both hot, dry slopes and sunken, wet marginal areas. The design concept is balance with two halves like Yin & Yang. A central pathway dissects the space and contoured mounds frame a reflective pool at the garden’s centre.

Plenty of ideas here for upcycling and demonstrating creative ways to use readily available materials in interesting ways that can easily be recreated at home.

RHS Rose Tea Garden

©Pollyanna Wilkinson

Celebrating the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, the Rose Tea Garden designed by Pollyanna Wilkinson, is synonymous with traditional English Gardens and the Festival of Roses. The colour theme wraps around the garden from pure white Rosa ‘Desdemona’ to pale pink ‘Elizabeth’ and deep saturated ‘Gabriel Oak’.

For further information on gardens and visiting the show please see: www.rhs.org.uk