At a glance: An authentically crafted hospice garden focused on colour, movement and strong visual impact designed by Tom Hoblyn
“This is my tenth and last RHS Chelsea Flower Show,” says multi-medal-winning Tom Hoblyn, aiming to celebrate the storied and human-made in this hospice garden. This is a deeply positive project that draws inspiration from a cherished Mediterranean aesthetic.
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It was while studying at Kew, that Tom spent time plant mapping in the Mediterranean wilds. However, this is not a pastiche; the garden anchors itself in northeast England, its future home following the show, using local materials to forge a sense of place while echoing a Mediterranean palette.
Visitors encounter a sequence of garden rooms, defined by Will Trouton's expertly crafted low dry-stone walls. Grounding the landscape are massive boulders from nearby Raby Castle, placed to suggest that the garden has formed around them. They foster a sense of permanence and exemplify nature’s power – qualities vital in hospice care. Mark Tungate’s flowing oak benches visually connect these rooms, creating a cohesive experience
Tom uses a painterly approach to the planting prioritising climate resilient choices inspired by the Mediterranean plateau and meadow. A strong colour palette dances through the garden, set against a rich, dark backdrop of trees such as Acer monspessulanum with its deep green leaves and Arbutus andrachne with distinctive cinnamon coloured bark. This year Tom has delved into his own seed collection to grow such choice plants as Delphinium peregrinum, Lotus hirsutus and cadmium-yellow Mexican tulip poppy Hunnemannia fumariifolia.
3 Key features of the Hospice UK: Garden of Compassion
- Water bowl Ceramicist Thea Thompson has used crushed oyster shells from Lindisfarne as the binding agent in her bowls – a Roman technique that gives a textural and organic appeal.
- Leiotulus aureus An unusual biennial umbel native to the eastern Mediterranean, previously known as Malabaila aurea. Bright-yellow flowers mature to eyecatching clustered seedheads. Volunteers at St Cuthbert’s Hospice were growing some of the plants to be used on the show garden. After the Show many of the garden’s plants are being sold at a Hospice UK Plant Sale at Hortus Loci.
- Oak benches Furniture maker Mark Tungate has used the traditional technique of steam bending to give these functional art pieces a flowing appearance. Sections are shaped to allow a wheelchair user to be at the centre of a gathering.
Designer Tom Hoblyn Sponsor Project Giving Back, for Hospice UK Contractor Peter Harket, Mark Whyman Landscapes Plants Hortus Loci, Rymer Trees and Hedging Furniture Mark Tungate Relocating to St Cuthbert’s
Hospice, Durham