New Blue Peter Garden opens at RHS Bridgewater

(Image of Blue Peter Garden – Discover Soil at 2022 RHS Chelsea Flower Show)

Now open at RHS Garden Bridgewater, the Blue Peter Garden – Discover Soil encourages children and families to dig a little deeper and find out all about the importance of soil. By bringing soil up to eye level for us to see, touch, smell and hear, the garden tells the amazing story of the world beneath our feet and how it quietly supports the world above it.

Designed by scientist-turned-garden designer Juliet Sargeant, the garden’s message is ‘Don’t treat soil like dirt!’ Soil is alive and complex, and we cannot survive without it, so let’s learn how to look after it, while also having fun.

Originally unveiled at the 2022 RHS Chelsea Flower Show and relocated to Bridgewater, the garden contains elements that are both fun and educational. You can watch what happens below the ground in an observation chamber, see the worms in their wormery creating compost from kitchen scraps and learn fascinating facts about soil and the compost cycle. In a teaching area, schoolchildren can get their hands dirty and dig about in the bare soil.

Vibrant planting reflects the Blue Peter colours of blue and orange, with a cheerful mix of blue hydrangeas, delphiniums and echinops alongside orange geums, kniphofias and cannas. Look out for artworks from the Decrustate Collective on display. These curious pieces are thin crusts of the earth’s surface and include soil surfaces collected locally from Salford.

The Blue Peter Garden – Discover Soil will be a permanent feature at RHS Garden Bridgewater, where it can be enjoyed for years to come while inspiring a passion for protecting our soil.

• Read more about how to care for your soil
• Woodland Play at Bridgewater