A garden water feature is practically obligatory in any show garden at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, and in recent years the show has featured everything from gushing waterfalls and water cascading down sleek walls, to tranquil rills and still pools.
Of course, water is a key element in gardens these days, not least for wildlife. But it is also a scarce resource that needs to be saved and used wisely.
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Here are some of the water features that caught our eye in gardens large and small, from the main show gardens to the Sanctuary, Balcony and Container gardens.
Garden water feature ideas for your garden
Clay water bowl
Ula Maria's Muscular Dystrophy UK - Forest Bathing Garden, which won Best Show Garden this year, featured this clay water bowl. Filled with pebbles, in the rain it provides a delicate sound and visuals, and it is designed to spill over the sides into a naturalised rill that runs through the centre of the garden.
Planting around the water bowl is more moisture loving, and the many trees in the garden mean that it is often in dappled shade, adding to the overall woodland aesthetic.
Stone water butt
This stone water butt in Tom Stuart-Smith's garden for The National Garden Scheme collects water from the roof of the nearby shed. It flows down a terracotta gutter and underground before coming up into the water butt. This allows for all the water in the garden to be recycled.
Hear more about Tom's garden:
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Cascading water features and plunge pool
Water is used to impressive effect in Tom Bannister's Ecotherapy Garden in the Balcony & Container Gardens category.
The centrepiece of the space is a cool plunge pool and the clear water that flows through the garden reflects the surrounding greenery, making this a lush oasis. Antique water spouts in the green wall at the rear feed a series of pools, leading to a rill and the final cascade.
Repurposed water feature
This geometric water feature in the RHS Chelsea Repurposed Feature Garden was taken from The Lemon Tree Trust Garden designed by Tom Massey in 2018. It's great to see elements from Chelsea's past get a new lease of life, and everything from the garden will be moved to a new location after the show.
Cascading Corten steel water feature
In Baz Grainger's Sanctuary Garden, rather than using a basic down-pipe leading off the garden structure, an open Corten steel shoot leading into a limestone well creates a subtle water feature. Catching the light and creating the soft sound of running water, it really adds to the atmosphere of this space.
Rain saving water feature
These tanks for rain water storage double as ornamental ponds in Naomi Slade and Dr Ed Barsley's Flood Re: The Flood Resilient Garden. Rain chains feed the water tanks, which are planted with a range of aquatics. Cascading through the different levels, the ponds can be discharged into the garden, which features a swale, ahead of heavy rain using smart technology.
Rill and pond
A narrow metal rill feeds a clear pond in Matthew Childs's Terrence Higgins Trust: Bridge to 2030 Garden. The pond represents a flooded quarry landscape and the water level rises and falls, revealing a monolith slate stepping stone creating a bridge to the 2030 vision of no new HIV cases.
Classic water fountain
The Bridgerton Garden designed by Holly Johnston features this classic water fountain. Evoking regency era gardens, it provides ambience to the space and a focal point when looking through the moon gate at the entrance.
