Garden for Tatton to showcase sad plight of trees outside woods

A young designer has created a unique garden to highlight the dramatic loss of treasured trees outside woods.

Between 1850 and the present day, it is estimated that the country has lost 49 per cent of these trees that are important for a resilient landscape and characterise the English countryside.

Working with the Woodland Trust, designer Ashleigh Aylett, 29, has created a garden for RHS Tatton in Cheshire -  which starts tomorrow - and showcases efforts being made to address this issue.

This includes planting UK grown trees, and diversifying the species planted to build resilience.

Ashleigh’s unique garden uses more than a thousand different plants, it depicts a south facing garden in rural England, with a stream, footpath, fields, hedgerows and dry stone walls.

She said:

“The garden seeks to capture the romantic essence of the English countryside. By evoking the nostalgia of a perfect day outdoors, it aims to draw the public outdoors and open their eyes to the importance of preserving trees outside woods, a key feature of our countryside.”

Ashleigh’s work takes inspiration from her childhood.

She added:

”From my earliest days, I've been captivated by the vibrant world of greenery, often reminiscing about my adventures in my grandparents' greenhouse, who grew cut flowers commercially - I even had my very own vegetable patch at the age of 8! Over time, I increasingly felt a pull to combine my love of design with a career working with nature, culminating in the switch from interiors to gardens.”

Rebecca Gosling, a tree disease expert from the Woodland Trust has provided support bringing the garden into fruition – the trees have been provided by the charity.

She said it is hugely important to highlight the effect of tree disease. Millions of trees are imported each year, posing a threat to our current trees and woodlands. They can bring with them new pests and pathogens, and these can be extremely damaging when they spread into our ecosystems.

She said:

“Since 2000, a new serious pest or pathogen of trees have been found in the UK every 1.4 years! For example, due to imported ash trees in the 2000s, we are expecting to lose anything between 50-80% of our ash trees to ash dieback, having significant impact on the 953 species that use the ash tree and costing the UK economy £883.5 million annually.

“This is why we are thrilled to showcase this remarkable show garden, which features a diverse array of trees cultivated right here in the UK, highlighting the beauty and resilience of UK-grown trees, and bringing critical attention to the alarming loss of trees outside woods across the country. Trees are indispensable to our ecosystems and our wellbeing, and it is our collective responsibility to protect them.”

This garden at RHS Tatton uses exclusively UKISG (UK Sourced and Grown) trees. The Woodland Trust scheme ensures all the trees have been grown in the UK for their entire lives, and the seeds have also been sourced from the UK. This means there are no risks of importing any new pests or pathogens.

Species weaved into the garden include wild cherry, which thrives in an garden environment, making it an ideal tree for visitors to the show to plant themselves. Also, hawthorn which forms the backbone of many hedgerows within the UK, anchoring the garden in its native landscape. It’s also fantastic for wildlife and can support more than 300 species of insect.  Plants include geraniums and native hogweeds.

Each day the garden will be handing out free saplings to the public visiting the garden.

Saplings will be limited and only available during certain times of the day.

More on tree disease is here.

Details on the show:

 RHS Flower Show Tatton Park 2024 / RHS Gardening

The Woodland Trust was established in 1972 and is now the UK’s largest woodland conservation charity, with more than 500,000 members and supporters.  With a vision of a world where woods and trees thrive for people and nature, today the Trust owns and cares for more than 1,000 woodland sites, covering around 33,000 hectares.

The Woodland Trust has three key aims:

1. Protecting the UK’s rare, unique and irreplaceable ancient woodland.

2. Restoring damaged ancient woodland, nurturing precious pieces of our natural heritage back to life.

3. Establishing new native trees and woods to create healthy, resilient landscapes for people and wildlife.

 Access to all Woodland Trust woods is free so everyone can experience the physical and mental benefits of trees.