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RHS Hampton Court Palace Flower Show

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Recreate your own Galician ‘pazo’ garden as seen at RHS Hampton

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The Spanish Tourist Office is showcasing the mystery and romance of Galicia’s ‘Pazo’ gardens at RHS Hampton Court Palace Flower Show this July. Show garden designer, Rose McMonigall, shares her tips on recreating the look in your own garden.

The historic Galician Pazos are magnificent palaces famous for their exquisite architecture and extensive gardens, where formal design meets the untamed nature of Galicia’s landscapes.

Often mysterious and dripping with greenery, with mists enshrouding them in the cooler months, softening the edges of their often highly formal design, these gardens blend with a larger, more practical landscape, where the productivity of the land is as important as its aesthetic appearance. Vines tangle amid the ornamentation to yield harvests producing some of Northern Spain’s best wines.

“The climate of Galicia is very similar to that of the UK” says Rose, “and the plant life that thrives in northern Spain is not dissimilar to that which we enjoy here, so why not try to achieve the ‘Pazo’ look in your own garden?”

 Rose provides her top tips for bringing a little bit of Galicia to Britain:

  1. The key to this indulgently romantic look is to embrace nature in your garden. A few ‘weeds’ here and there will add to the theme, so let nature do its thing. If there’s a balance between plants that you have bought and those that have self-seeded and introduced themselves, you are following the right path. Celebrate the true beauty of these wild flowers; after all this is a romantic garden…
  2. Go for green, in all its many shades. A limited colour palette with varied green shades and a dash of cool blues will evoke the mysterious, shady gardens of the Pazos. Edges should be blurred, so avoid neat lines and be led by the shape of the plants.
  3. To add instant impact, invest in specimen plants common to this beautiful part of Spain such as glossy-leaved camellias and delicate mophead blue hydrangeas, or climbing varieties. Both of these need acid soil, so if your soil is neutral or alkaline (you can check this with a pH tester kit bought at a garden centre), you’ll need to add ericaceous compost. Ferns and arum lilies will also complete the look.
  4. Garden furniture, stone features or hard landscaping should look as faded and vintage as possible. A stone bench with lichen spots, rocks covered in cushion moss or even a classic statue tangled in ivy or vine will add to the atmosphere.
  5. Encourage wildlife into your garden by creating a small log pile as a haven for insects and hedgehogs, and avoid sweeping up fallen leaves. If you want to really embrace the Galician look, build a small pond or water feature and add some marginal pond plants and water lilies. Local wildlife will love it and the sound of trickling water will really heighten the romantic vibe.

Spain’s exhibit at the show this year, ‘The Pazo’s Secret Garden’, by Rose McMonigall, celebrates Galicia, its Pazos, the camellia, and the distinctive Albariño wine of the region and provides an exquisite example of what your Pazo garden could look like.

Known as ‘the land of camellias’, Galicia is a renowned destination for lovers of the outdoors and garden enthusiasts. Camellias have become such an integral part of the region that visitors to Galicia can follow a dedicated ‘Camellia Route’; a journey that passes from northern to southern Galicia through 12 manor houses (or Pazos) and gardens where the camellia reigns in all its glory.

Covered in lush greenery, with some of Spain’s most idyllic, natural beaches; home to a number of buzzing, charming and characterful cities; one of the top (though lesser known) wine producing regions in Spain, famous for the delicious Albariño white wine; and offering up arguably the best seafood in the country, Galicia is a must-visit destination.

To purchase tickets for the RHS Hampton Court Palace Flower Show, visit: www.rhs.org.uk/flowershows and for more information on Galicia or other regions of Spain visit http://www.turismo.gal or http://www.spain.info respectively

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Notes to editors:

  • There will be an opportunity to meet for 1:1 interviews with garden designer, Rose McMonigall, and the STO team throughout the show. Please contact the Rooster PR team should you wish to schedule a time to meet
  • A more detailed description of the garden and the symbolism behind its design is available upon request, as is a full plant list and background on designer Rose McMonigall.

 

For further press information on Spain, please contact:

Natalie Garland / Melissa Hobson / Julie Aguilera

Rooster PR

T: +44 (0)20 3440 8926

E: Spain@rooster.co.uk

 

For further information on designer Rose McMonigall, contact:

Emma Mason

Emma Mason PR

T: 07762 117433

E: emma@emmamasonpr.co.uk

 

 

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Brutal beauty of Britain’s brownfield sites to be championed by RHS Hampton show garden

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‘Brownfield – Metamorphosis’ by designer Martyn Wilson, sponsored by St. Modwen

A CONCEPTUAL garden at this year’s RHS Hampton Court Palace Flower Show will highlight the surprising beauty of Britain’s brownfield, urban sites and the important role they have to play in creating the communities of tomorrow. 

‘Brownfield – Metamorphosis’ by designer Martyn Wilson will take an abstract look at regeneration and demonstrate nature’s ability to succeed against the odds and transform an open space.

Designer Martyn Wilson
Designer Martyn Wilson

Show visitors will be greeted by a series of monolithic steel structures that reference the manufacturing industries of the Industrial Age. On closer inspection, the steel appears twisted and torn – a nod to the decline of these industries. Through the rubble, the decay is being replaced by the processes of natural regeneration, and trees and vegetation are self-seeding. This natural transition provides opportunities for wildlife in the heart of urban areas.

Sponsored by the UK’s leading regeneration specialist St. Modwen, the garden will feature urban art references by street artist Louis Masai on recycled hoardings. Swathes of grasses, ferns, herbaceous perennials and self-seeding annuals will soften the hard landscaping. The garden will form part of the new ‘gardens for a changing world’ category at the show.

Martyn’s design has been Inspired by Landschaftpark, Duisburg-Nord in Germany, the High Line in New York and successful brownfield regeneration schemes in the UK. He said: “What interested me initially was the changing nature of urban landscapes which are so often are in state of flux. There’s the process of demolition and reconstruction but between the two, before building work starts, you often find nature moves back in and a new, temporary landscape is created.

“My garden will recreate that moment in time, in a sculpted form, with nods to the past and also the future. We should see these city spaces as opportunities and, whilst appreciating their gritty beauty, look forward to welcoming the communities that will replace them.”

St. Modwen is a fitting sponsor for the show garden. Currently spearheading the regeneration of New Covent Garden Market, London; the transformation of Longbridge, Birmingham and RAF Uxbridge in west London, the company is the UK expert in developing brownfield sites and amongst its portfolio also counts the magnificent Trentham Estate and Gardens in Stoke-on-Trent.  Mark Allan, Chief Executive at St. Modwen, said: “The transformation and regeneration of urban sites not only goes a long way to answering the UK’s existing housing crisis but has also brought back thousands of acres of brownfield land into the public sphere that was previously not accessible.”

The steel structures on the garden are being designed by sculptor Simon Probyn and walls loaned by The Pot Company. The steel structure will sit on concrete footings being donated by Easymix Concrete.

The surface of the garden will be mulched with aggregates recycled from brownfield sites and donated by Smiths of Bletchington.  The plants are being sourced from renowned nursery and show garden supplier Hortus Loci.

Martyn’s garden will also help raise the profile of cancer charity UCARE [Urology Cancer Research and Education] at the show with volunteers greeting visitors.

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For further information contact Emma Mason on 07762 117433 emma@emmamasonpr.co.uk or for information on St.Modwen, Emily Boswell 0121 222 9400  corpcomms@stmodwen.co.uk

 

Martyn Wilson – A trained town planner and lecturer at the Cotswold Gardening School, Martyn runs Wilson Associates Garden Design where his portfolio includes residential gardens, public and commercial spaces and three RHS award winning show gardens. He won the People’s Choice Award presented by Alan Titchmarsh at the RHS Malvern Spring Festival 2016 for his show garden ‘Time is a Healer’ in support of The Primrose Hospice in Bromsgrove, Worcestershire.