The Choose Love Garden came out of a long running relationship between Jane and the charity Choose Love with generous sponsorship from Project Giving Back.

The garden is inspired by refugee migration routes across Europe, the concept of desire lines (informal paths) and the resilience of displaced people. Many of the ideas within the garden are informed by a research trip to Samos in Greece where Jane volunteered with charities working with refugees.

The design reflects the relationship between movement and permanence, travel and home. A dry stone path built by Stone Inspired to resemble a flowing stream represents waterway migrations, and a weathered Parrotia persica that has taken the shape of the wind signifies resilience in migratory groups. Purbeck boulder seating provides a place for rest and stillness, but the rock’s permanence also evokes migrants’ experience of long years in transit camps.

Linear drifts of drought tolerant plants represent those growing naturally or planted by displaced people along established migration routes when the act of planting becomes an act of hope.

Following the show the garden was relocated at the amazing charity Good Food Matters whose mission is to enable everyone to cook and grow nutritious, balanced meals – making a positive impact on the health and wellbeing of our community. They offer cooking and growing facilities to refugees who have no access to their own kitchen or garden. Once a month people can make and share dishes from their home countries.

The Superadobe wall building technique was created for families and communities to build their own earthquake proof, insulating shelters from material available onsite. Essentially, it’s an earth bag wall rendered with earth that has a high clay content.

Without a contractor or machinery the wall was built authentically as it would be built in the community – by hand with volunteers who have little or no building experience. The team was made up of refugees and volunteers with the aim of giving them a valuable work experience to help them into employment. The build was led by the fantastic natural building architects @earth_hands_and_houses

The Choose Love Garden was awarded an RHS Silver Gilt Medal.

Photography by Stewart Williams