Winning design makes Chelsea Flower Show greener than ever

After nine years of presenting show gardens at the Royal Horticultural Society’s famous Chelsea Flower Show in London, Fleming’s Nurseries has become the first Australian team ever to win a Best in Show medal at the awards ceremony held last week in London. The ‘Trailfinders Australian Garden presented by Fleming’s’ was designed to show the world how Australia is leading the way to a more sustainable water future.

Designed by multi-award winning Australian landscape designer Phillip Johnson, who is renowned for his approach to sustainable design, the focus of the garden is the collection and filtration of rain water. An integrated water-management system is independent from the mains water and reduces the impact on the stormwater infrastructure by retaining and recycling stormwater run-off.

A 3 m³ studio structure, designed by Melbourne-based architecture firm Studio 505, was a key feature in the garden’s design. The management system is designed to capture and harvest rainwater from the studio structure into the rainwater tank.

When the tank is full, the overflow is directed into a creek which flows to the billabong. This serves as a chemical-free swimming pool and includes stone waterfalls - an aesthetically pleasing source of evaporative cooling for the studio structure.

In times of high rainfall, the garden has been designed to utilise rain water run-off via its abundant permeable surfaces, filtrate it and retain the water in the billabong for future use. In times of drought, the garden uses its water stores to nourish the plant life and aid their survival.

Johnson said that, all too often, emphasis is placed on hard landscaping which traps rainwater above ground, increasing reliance on stormwater infrastructure and placing strain on waterways in times of flooding or high water. By shifting the emphasis to soft landscaping - incorporating permeable surfacing and natural or reclaimed materials - the team decreased water wastage and created self-sustaining habitats.

“We came here with a very ambitious vision - to showcase Australia, our horticultural industry and to educate the world on the possibilities of sustainable landscape design,” he said.

“With much attention currently focused on how Australians use and recycle our precious potable water, the Trailfinders Australian Garden is a timely reminder of how residents can help to reduce water run-off in their own gardens at home.

“It is my hope that by demonstrating exactly how we can introduce an integrated water management system into residential gardens, people will consider more permeable solutions in their gardens at home and thus reduce their impact on stormwater infrastructure and water wastage.”

The finished design took a total of 17 days and over 2500 man hours to build, with 18 volunteers and 38 tonnes of tools, equipment, materials and plants. It was the biggest Australian exhibit Chelsea has ever seen.

The team have won a medal for every year they have participated in the show - four silver and five gold in total. This will be their last entry.