Hadlow College Green Seam Garden

The garden is designed by Stuart Charles Towner and Bethany Williams, both studying for a BA (Hons) in Garden Design at Hadlow College, in Kent.

Green Seam tells the inspiring story of hope and endeavour thanks to the vision and regeneration of Hadlow College and partners. It highlights the  revitalisation of a community that has suffered economic and social deprivation since the closure of Kent’s last colliery, Betteshanger, in 1989.

It features a black wall representing the coalface; coal pillars depicting the miners and their heritage and a lift cage symbolising the miners’ daily descent below ground. Steel structures and metal cables support climbing plants to reflect the shape of the colliery pithead, while black opaque glass pillars represent the future.

The planting scheme features the vivid pinks and greens of pioneer plants, some of which are rare, showing how they can colonise previously damaged ecosystems and transform them into places of beauty.

The bright colours are tempered by the shimmering whites and silvers of birches and aspens, while the vibrant green water marginal features ferns, one of the prehistoric plants that was transformed the coal. Wild strawberries, which grow in abundance in the Betteshanger area, also appear.

Plant list:

PERENNIALS