Awarded RHS Silver Gilt Medal and voted 'Peoples Choice'
Designer: Peter Reader
Construction: Living Landscapes (then The Real Garden Company)
Sponsor: Provender Nurseries

The garden structure was based on the ancient Persian Courtyard gardens: divided into 4 equal parts by clear bubbling rills fed from a stone filled gabion at the back of the garden. The planting scheme overall had a Mediterranean flavour to it, but in fact contained plants from around the world. Each of the four areas had a subtly different atmosphere but the whole space was tied together by some common plants that ran across the garden, and a planting style that was consistent throughout. Plants which particularly tied the garden together were structural Lavenders and Pittosporums, and the perennials Calamagrostis x acutiflora 'Waldenbuch', Salvia 'Caradonna', Achillea 'Walther Funcke', and Orlaya grandiflora. The strong lines of the stone lined rill, the deck and the raised dry-stone planter added to and enhanced these building blocks of the garden structure. 

The planting style across the garden was of the modern naturalistic type, with grasses and perennials mixed together in a naturalistic style. The grasses and the different height perennials gave the garden several layers and the open structure of the plants gave a transparency such that visitors were able to look both at and through the plants. The use of 3 different height grasses gave a green backdrop to the bright hues of the flowers, which enhanced their appearance whilst also highlighting the complementary colours. This style is very reflective of nature and adds to the relaxing feel of the space. All the flowers were chosen to be insect friendly; we had many bees, butterflies and insects in the garden throughout the show. I also made a frame containing insect homes to further encourage wildlife. Accompanying this frame were another two, both filled with Sempervivum plants, a kind of natural artwork.  
Finally, the area under the Cercis trees was planted with shade loving plants that added to the feeling of coolness and contemplation when seated on the deck.