Horatio's Garden Awarded Best in Show at Chelsea Flower Show
Horatio’s Garden Chelsea has been awarded the coveted Best in Show title at RHS Chelsea Flower Show.
Owen Griffiths, Head Gardener at Horatio’s Garden Wales, helped bring the charity’s show garden to life. Owen leads the team to care for people and plants at the beautiful Horatio’s Garden Wales, based at the Welsh Spinal Cord Injury and Neuro Rehabilitation Centre at University Hospital Llandough. Horatio’s Garden nurtures wellbeing after spinal injury, offering horticultural therapy and arts programmes for patients.
Owen joined the charity’s build team led by Ryan Alexander Associates in Chelsea to help create the charity’s prestigious show garden at the world’s leading flower show, supported by Project Giving Back.
Horatio’s Garden Chelsea is the event’s first show garden with mobility needs at its heart. Designed by Charlotte Harris and Hugo Bugg of Harris Bugg Studio, who widely consulted with the Horatio’s Garden community to inform the design, it is an immersive, restorative haven – the antithesis of a busy, clinical hospital environment. After Chelsea, it will travel to the Princess Royal Spinal Injuries Centre Sheffield as its legacy home to become the eighth Horatio’s Garden.
Owen Griffiths said: "Being part of the team responsible for the creation of this magnificent garden at Chelsea Flower Show has been a thrilling experience. With accessibility at its core, the design showcases the power of nature to benefit health and well-being. I can’t wait for the garden’s homecoming at the Princess Royal Spinal Injuries Centre where it will make a tremendous difference to so many people."
Every element in the garden has been informed by the experiences of patients with spinal injuries. Planting is layered to accommodate different ways of seeing, and a garden room provides welcome relief from the busy ward. Smooth, cement-free terrazzo paths are patient-friendly, environmentally-friendly and aesthetically beautiful, with a 77 percent reduced carbon footprint compared to regular cement.
For more information on the award-winning garden, visit https://www.horatiosgarden.org.uk/chelsea/