One of the UK’s best-loved cooks celebrated the formal opening of a new landscape at RHS Garden Wisley.
Dame Mary Berry formally opened the new Oudolf Landscape on September 26. She placed the final flourishes of ‘self-raising flower’ on top of a 1.5m floral cake, with more than 1,000 blooms including seasonal stems of British hydrangea, dahlias, seedum and zinnias.
The celebratory floral ‘cake’ was designed and created by one the country’s best known and admired florists - Simon Lycett. As well as including colourful seasonal foliage and flowers, all of which have were sustainably arranged.
It had a selection of plants that celebrate the borders and Dutch garden designer and plantsman Piet Oudolf’s known love of plants such as achillea and echinacea.
Garden manager Peter Jones said: “Even in its first flowering season the Oudolf Landscape borders look stunning. It’s changing colours and textures have created a wonderful display, and the planting also has many useful benefits for wildlife all year round.
“With so many beautiful plants it’s impossible not to feel inspired and want to recreate a little piece of this border at home.”
Situated between the Viewing Mount and The Glasshouse, the Piet Landscape has had a radical re-design to become the Oudolf Landscape.
Oudolf created the original borders more than 20 years ago and re-design work and large scale planting recently finished in the spring is now in its first season of flowering. The newly planted landscape will allow visitors to be enveloped in his signature ‘New Perennial’ style.