M & G Garden

M&G Investments, the title sponsor of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show since 2010 and a leading international asset manager, commissioned award-winning Cleve West as its garden designer for a second time in 2016. The inspiration for the 2016 M&G Garden was the moment that Cleve fell in love with the timeless rugged landscape of South West England. Cleve tapped into his memories of teenage beguilement with the rocks and woods of Exmoor. The design payed contemporary homage to the landscape that made such an early impression on Cleve.

The centrepiece of the garden was a sunken terrace and pool in grey sandstone, sourced from the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire. Edges are sharp and the layout geometric, the essence of modern design. The garden featured a stone and gravel path through woodland edge planting, leading past stunted oaks and rocks to a smoother path. The path, a metaphor for the designer's own journey into garden design, started with rough stone and gravel.

Cleve West, garden designer said: "I am extremely happy to be working with M&G Investments for a second time. For the 2016 garden, I am seeking to capture that moment in my youth when I was first inspired by the natural landscape and then take that memory and use contemporary design to create a garden that blends both ancient and modern, past and present. Designing for M&G has been a hugely enjoyable experience in the past and I will be working with a fantastic team this year to bring our vision to life. Sponsoring RHS Chelsea for this many years has enabled M&G to make a real difference in horticulture, particularly in helping to inspire more young people to get in to gardening which is a wonderful thing."

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