Has ‘gravel gardening’ ever been as perfectly presented? What we really thought about the 2026 RHS Chelsea Flower Show
Romantic planting, running water and an abundance of trees in all their glorious forms reigned supreme in SW3 this year, reports Kathryn Bradley-Hole.
Gently flowing water invigorated more show gardens than usual this year at Chelsea, from the slenderest of rills to shallow, stepped pools, the prevailing mood being calm and tranquil.
Also noticeable in the gardens were exceptionally varied trees. They ranged from substantial hawthorns in full blossom to ancient, espaliered pears and potted Persian ironwoods. There were pines in unusual abundance, size and form, convincingly despondent ‘weeping cedars’ and the contrastingly cheerful acers of Japan, in their coats of many colours.
The ‘woodland edge’ maintains its might in 2026. I did think we had reached ‘peak woodland’ a couple of years ago, but apparently not. Romantic, pretty and fashionably wild, intentionally sylvan designs took away top awards for the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE), Tate Britain and the Woodland Trust.
Meanwhile, in the Great Pavilion, luscious leaves had their moment: The Sienna Hosta nursery received the coveted President’s Choice award and the unique new Hosta ‘Red Ninja’, its foliage streaked with burgundy, was anointed the Plant of the Year.
The Tate Britain Garden
Gold Medal
A forest of art: Barbara Hepworth’s bronze Bicentric Form (1949) sits amid Tom Stuart-Smith’s Chelsea scaled-down sample of the Clore Garden for Tate Britain, due to open in 2027 on its 1½-acre site at Millbank. Its bold, naturalistic planting includes herbaceous euphorbias, the tractor-seat plant Ligularia reniformis, sago palms, Cycas revoluta and sparkles of white Libertia grandiflora. Slender water rills cut through the paving.
Tokonama Garden–Sanumaya No Niwa
Silver-gilt Medal
Last year’s Best in Show winner Kazayuki Ishihara presented yet another masterpiece. The popular Japanese designer’s trademark landscapes of hefty rocks, mosses, tumbling waters, acers in varied hues and characterful, crumpled pines have earned a loyal following — and has ‘gravel gardening’ ever been as perfectly presented? I thought a silver-gilt was a little harsh, it seemed to me to be his best yet.
The Curious Garden
Presented by Frances Tophill for the RHS and The King’s Foundation, this pleasant muddle of flowers and edibles was planted around an oak building containing produce gleaned from the garden, including dyes, jams and dried herbs. As the media fixated on its several garden gnomes, gardeners were more interested in the crimson-flowered broad beans, planted for their beautiful blooms among Rosa ‘The King’s Rose’.
The Campaign to Protect Rural England Garden: On the Edge
Gold Medal, Garden of the Year
Seemingly plucked from the countryside and brought to the show by Sarah Eberle, the garden was planted with exquisite detail in its natural flora, associated with the woodland edge. Deftly presented with soft, earthen paths, its genius moment lay in the prostrate, timber form of a gigantic, sleeping ‘Gaia’, or Mother Nature, made by a chainsaw artist, the appropriately named Chris Wood.
Addelshaw Goddard: Flourish in the City
Gold Medal
Boulder dash: attention to detail in its attractive, gurgling water features and careful planting aimed at water conservation produced a unified concept by Joe and Laura Carey. Visitors appreciated its ‘user friendliness’ as a potential mild-climate, small city garden in which it would be delightful to relax or potter. Planting included poppies, verbascums, cistuses, salvias, irises and woolly leaved Ballota pseudodictamnus.
The Eden Project: Bring Me Sunshine Garden
Silver-gilt Medal
This interesting, complex garden, by Harry Holding and Alex Michaelis, was a crowd pleaser. Its central terrace and canopy are part of the permanent structure due to be relocated to a new Eden Project, at Morecambe Bay in Lancashire. The structure looks quite space age, but is modelled on the form of a bivalve sea shell. Luminous yellow Baptisia ‘Lemon Meringue’ brought sunshine in all weathers.
Flood Re: Contain the Rain Garden
Gold Medal and Best Container Garden
Drawing upon ancient Persian design, this was the most glamorous container garden I have seen at Chelsea since the category was launched some years ago. Within a tiny space, John Howlett captured the ambience of a private courtyard at an elegant Mediterranean villa or high-end hotel. Its secret was the gathering of contrasting foliages in interlocking, large containers, set off by the drama of tall, Parrotia persica trees. The copper/verdigris finishes and contrasting pale limestone and render brought calmness and unity to the bold ensemble.
The Killik & Co ‘A Seed in Time’ Garden
Gold Medal
‘Save for a rainy day’ was the subtitle for this cleverly organised garden by Baz Grainger, using its imposing, rectangular structures to gather rain and redirect it to a central wetland area, crossed through with stepping stones. Intended for family enjoyment, its planting was engagingly mixed, with fruiting trees such as big, old, espaliered pears and self-sowing flowers, such as foxgloves and primulas. The prettiness of the planting and lush greenery nicely counterpointed the hard, modern lines of the structures.
Trussell’s Together Garden
Gold Medal
Under a Constable sky and overlooked by the roof dormers and soaring chimney stacks of the Royal Hospital, this garden was laden with declared messages about ‘togetherness’, ‘connection’ and ‘communities holding each other up’ related to the ambitions of its sponsor. That is all well and good, but does it succeed also as a garden? Happily, this one did and it drew the visitor to peruse its central area of sociable seating, contained within an inventive and striking timber structure, all of which contributed to Rob Hardy receiving the Best Construction Award.
This feature originally appeared in the May 27, 2026, issue of Country Life. Click here for more information on how to subscribe.
