Harrogate Spring Show Garden Design using Golden Section Geometry
When the Association of Professional Landscapers (APL) invited us to design a show garden for the Harrogate Spring Show, we were delighted—but also faced with an interesting challenge. With no set brief, we had complete creative freedom to design whatever we wanted. Yet as designers we’re used to working within certain constraints—whether a client’s wishes, site conditions, or specific themes. These limitations often provide the spark of inspiration & design opportunities. Starting from a blank slate was both refreshing and daunting. Our initial sponsors, Bradstone (paving and walling) and JA Jones (plant nursery), provided a great foundation, but the vision for the garden was ours to shape from the ground up.
To shape the design direction, we focused on three key principles: geometry, a client persona, and sustainability.
Geometry
The garden’s spatial layout is based on the Golden Section, a principle that enhances balance, harmony, and flow—particularly valuable in small gardens where achieving spaciousness can be challenging. By using this proportion, we’ve aimed to create a visually pleasing composition that feels ordered and effortless to navigate.
Selecting Materials
Sustainability guided our material choices, starting with a commitment to sourcing locally.
Using Bradstone products for paving and walling we discounted the options available from outside the UK and focussed on their eco range—concrete-based but with better environmental credentials. The attractive gravel was sourced from a local quarry in Ripon (Lightwater Quarries), thus reducing transport impact on the environment. Also gravel is a permeable to surface water, thus helping to slowing water across a site.
Typically, materials are chosen to complement a house, but in this case, we worked in reverse. Inspired by Yorkshire’s landscape, we selected materials that emulated local stone, refining our options further. The final choices balanced similarity and contrast, adding texture and colour, with paving, walling, and gravel harmonising through buff and grey tones.
Using local suppliers producing beautiful garden products wherever possible, we were delighted when Urbis design based not far from Harrogate, sponsored one of their beautiful, reflective water features.
Selecting Plants
Selecting a planting palette is always a challenge, given the vast options available. With our brief in place and the garden layout defined, we narrowed our choices based on conditions—using trees and fencing to create both sunny and shaded planting areas.
The west-facing show garden included a space with a woodland feel, where we embraced the principles of forest gardening, layering trees, shrubs, and ground-level planting to create a naturalistic and biodiverse environment. Thanks to sponsorship from an excellent nursery, we had quality plants to work with, but in April availability is limited especially for flowering species.
Designing for a show garden requires a different mindset; rather than long-term seasonal interest, the focus is on what looks good now. Evergreens provide essential structure, anchoring the space, while large specimens create the illusion of maturity, visually expanding the garden and helping visitors envision how their own spaces could evolve over time.
Organising the logistics of setting up the display
Setting up a show garden is an intense and fast-paced experience, requiring meticulous planning and coordination. Keeping detailed records of tasks and deadlines is essential, as is maintaining clear communication with landscapers, sponsors, and team members—an ongoing but time-consuming process. From the outset, we established a structured system, using spreadsheets for deadlines and reminders alongside multiple message groups to keep everyone informed.
As this was an APL show garden, we were fully supported by the Association of Professional Landscapers and our chosen contractor, Paxman Landscapes. Their expertise and experience were invaluable, reinforcing that, like any new garden, success comes from collaboration at every stage.
With a tight turnaround, volunteers, tools, and props needed to be secured well in advance. Hard landscaping required at least 2–3 days, with another few days for planting. Crucially, extra time was factored in for last-minute plant adjustments, final touches, and styling the space with props to create an inviting, aspirational setting—one that allows visitors to picture themselves enjoying the garden with family and friends.
We’ll be sharing our plant list in the next blog post, nearer the time of the show. Check back late April to find out more.
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