Aug 1, 20193 min read

Trophy win at RHS Tatton

Updated: Feb 28, 2020

We are hugely proud to have received both a Silver-Gilt medal and the coveted Peoples Choice Award for our garden “1 in 10” in the Young Designer category at the RHS Tatton Park Flower Show 2019.

Designed by Envisage's Landscape Architect, Charlie Hartigan, as part of the RHS Young Designer of the Year competition; Charlie came 2nd in her category.

Built by Envisage.

See our previous blog post that explains the Young Designer of the Year competition.

See this link to Charlie’s page on the RHS website.

More photos and details of the garden below.

The Award:

There were 17 show gardens at this years RHS Tatton. Only one Gold Medal was awarded, which came as a surprise, followed by 6 Silver-Gilts, 7 Silvers, and 1 Bronze. Two were ‘feature gardens’ so were not judged.

A Silver-Gilt is half-way between a Silver and a Gold, like being awarded a 2:1 at degree level. The Peoples Choice Award is independent to the medals awarded by the judges and is voted for by show visitors and TV viewers.

“I’m very proud of the team’s achievements here at Tatton,” says Steve, CEO of Envisage.

“It was a tough build for such a complex design; either torrential rain or exceptionally hot weather. To then win one of the few Silver-Gilts is a big achievement, but to win People’s Choice has really made it worth-while as that’s what we aim to do;

build gardens that people love.”

Charlie hartigan rhs tatton peoples choice award young designer — The Peoples Choice Award trophy in Charlie's garden

About the Garden:

Having been given the general task of designing a “Feelgood Garden” for this competition, Charlie was researching various theories surrounding health, well-being and interaction with the landscape when she struck by the fact that being in the middle of her nursery was what made her “feel good”.

“Surrounded by the trees, in the sun or shade. The sensation of the wind on my face, the sound of the water. Just being on my own without any pressure; it’s so healing. When I saw that the majority of people who attend RHS shows are women, I realised that this could be a platform to reach women suffering from Endometriosis; a condition they may never have heard of," explains Charlie.

A plan of the garden helps to explain the subtle meaning behind the design features

This garden is based on Charlie’s own experiences (each individuals case is different) and is designed to raise awareness of this hidden condition in the hope that a show visitor will recognise the symptoms in themselves or somebody they know and encourage them to seek help or treatment.

“The reception I have had from the public has been overwhelming”, says Charlie. “The BBC footage of the garden went out on the Thursday night and I was inundated afterwards, both at the showground and online. Some people said they came to the show specifically to see our garden having seen it on TV!”

You can read more about Endometriosis in the digital version of the garden’s brochure below, or visit the Endometriosis UK charity website.

Although the garden was not designed for, or on behalf of, Endometriosis UK, Charlie chose to highlight their work in her promotional campaigns in the hope that a visitor or viewer might discover the charity and make use of the services they offer.

“It’s been quite the team-effort”, says Hilary, Envisage Garden Designer and CEO of Grafton Nursery. “The Envisage team completed construction and then were assisted for the planting stage by our Horticulturists. We sourced a lot of plants from our trusted growers, but we also grew some of the plants in-house at the nursery. The planting schemes and colour combinations were a big hit with the public, and as a Horticulturist myself that was really important to me.”

The judges were highly complementary in their feedback. Comments included; “loved the sunken seating area… which can be difficult to achieve”, “exceptionally well resolved Client Brief”, and “enchanting Bath area”.