A naturalistic garden features a rusty Corten steel hut and ramp, irregular concrete stepping stones, a gabion bench, and abundant wildflowers with tall grasses.
Show Garden Silver Medal

Centre for Mental Health's The Balance Garden

Designed by Jon Davies, Steve Williams
Photo: Royal Horticultural Society
About this garden

The story

The garden uses crushed site waste as aggregates producing a wealth of wildflowers, grasses and hardy shrubs that thrive in stressful environments, as well as sand piles and habitat layers for wildlife. Large concrete pieces reclaimed from waste salvage make up a central area overlooking a clear pool. Suspended steel walkways allow movement through the space and access to the wild planting layers. At the heart of the garden is a ‘mushroom den’ made from a reclaimed steel-clad shipping container. The planting layers contour from wetland towards a denser, shadier canopy of food forestry and ‘edimentals’ while ‘weeds’ are celebrated as an important part of urban ecology.
Award

Recognition

The people behind it

Designers

Photography

Gallery

/
Photo:
Brought to life by

Organisations

Further reading

Links

With thanks to

Additional sponsors