The Two Moors Festival Garden scoops a double at Chelsea

The Two Moors Festival Garden, supported by the Exmoor and Dartmoor National Parks’ Sustainable Development Funds, has scooped a double at the Chelsea Flower Show - a Gold Medal and the award for 'Best Courtyard Garden' in the Show.

Commenting on the awards from the Show, Exmoor National Park Member and chairman of the garden working group Dr Stephen Head, said: “The original idea to design a moorland garden at Chelsea was to let people around the world know about the beauty of the south west and encourage them to come and see for themselves. The awards are an incredible achievement when you think that the people involved have never done anything like this before.”

He added: “The Two Moors Festival in Sept and October is designed to encourage more people to come to the National Parks outside the main visitor period and hopefully this fantastic result will help.”

The garden has a Westcountry feel - through Gothic willow arches can be seen moorland in the distance, with a solitary hawthorn amongst Molinia grasses. There is granite from Dartmoor and cobbles from Exmoor and a garden lies in the lee of the church, with planting characteristic of the region.

Designed to celebrate the tenth anniversary of The Two Moors Festival the garden highlights the links between music, flowers, gardens and the open countryside. By drawing the elements together and involving the local community, Christina Williams, the garden’s designer hoped to increase the awareness of the cultural qualities of the South West and inform people of the unique environment of the two moors.