Featured Elements

The winning garden is full of quirky features designed to spark conversation and to encourage visitors to think about conservation.

Some of the main features of the garden include:

Water feature – Heather has created a bit of theatre in the garden with a playful water feature, designed to represent a sardine tin. Jets of water spring on and off to make the water ripple, mimicking shoals of fish. A subtle, abstract sardine pattern is barely discernible on the floor of the canal by day, but sparkles through the water when it is illuminated at night. Visitors have a view down the full length of the canal-shaped water feature to a curved sculpture at the far end in the shape of a rolled back sardine tin lid.

Puddle ring – Next to the water feature is a rainwater ‘puddle ring’. This slowly returns water to the canal with aerating bubbles so the public can spot the recycling process in action.

Rainwater butt – Continuing the theme of water conservation is a rainwater butt, nestled next to the garden shed. Water is harvested from the roof of the shed and from discrete gullies running around the tops of the garden walls.

Garden shed – In a real garden, tools need storage, so a shed has been included in the design. It is concealed underneath planting, including a sedum carpet on the roof. There are also solar panels on the roof, offsetting the energy required to power the water jets and lighting.

Planters – Running along from the garden shed is a raised salad bar and a series of vegetable baskets, all manufactured from split hazel by UK craftsmen. A short pathway dissects the salad and vegetable planters, ending with a sculpture representing the key of the sardine tin lid, connecting the area to the central water feature.

Quotations – running through the garden is a series of quotations, helping visitors to understand the inspiration behind the garden and to spark conversation.