RHS Feel Good Garden

Did you know...

• A tall Judas tree (Cercis siliquastrum) along with mature honey locust (Gleditsia triacanthos) provide height and as they don't completely block views they create a sense of security especially for those suffering from anxiety or stress
• Using his experience gained from working with Help for Heroes and inspiration from the RHS Feel Good Garden at RHS Garden Wisley, designer Matt considered all aspects of this garden and its planting. The layout was intended to draw people into the garden and compel users to interact and engage with the plants and other people
• Foliage and flowering plants were blended in perfect harmony in this garden. Particular highlights included the pale yellow Trollius × cultorum 'Alabaster', which Matt described as coming to life in the evening light, and the tall bearded iris 'Black Tie Affair' with its deep purple, almost black flowers
• Find out more about how the RHS and NHS are collaborating to promote wellbeing through gardening

About the garden

The positive impact that gardens and gardening have on our mental health and emotional wellbeing are at the heart of this garden. The RHS Feel Good Garden was designed to offer a contemporary, therapeutic space in which to relax, while allowing the visitor to reap the positive benefits of being in a garden. It combined an elegant balance of exciting and restrained planting with innovative stonework to create a space that puts the garden user at complete ease.

The RHS has joined forces with the NHS as part of that organisation’s 70th birthday celebrations. The garden was designed to raise awareness of the positive impact of horticulture on mental health. It also took inspiration from the development of a Health and Wellbeing Garden at RHS Garden Wisley, which is due to open in 2020. After the show, the garden is being relocated to the Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust, providing a place where staff and patients can garden, relax and be close to nature.