Veteran Chelsea Flower Show designer ‘honoured’ to win garden of the year award
Kazuyuki Ishihara appeared jubilant at winning the gong.
A veteran Chelsea Flower Show designer with many accolades to his name has expressed disbelief at winning the “gift” that is the garden of the year award.
Kazuyuki Ishihara designed Cha no Niwa – Japanese Tea Garden – for the annual horticultural event at the Royal Hospital Chelsea celebrating all things gardening.
He appeared jubilant at winning the newly named RHS Chelsea garden of the year prize – which is his 13th gold medal from the show – as he posed for photographs with his hands in the air and a beaming smile on his face.
After winning on Tuesday, Mr Ishihara said: “I’m very honoured to receive this wonderful award – I never thought I’d have such a gift.
“I really still cannot believe it after working here for 20 years. It’s such an honour to have it, thank you so much.”
Mr Ishihara’s garden was created to give visitors a place for reflection, according to the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), and the judging panel called it a “masterclass”.
Chairwoman Hayley Skipper said: “It is exquisitely detailed and delivers immersive, beautifully composed planting. Every viewpoint delivers exquisite compositions.
“The beautiful foliage throughout demonstrates the power of green. Perfect in scale, the trees are excellently proportioned.
“The garden illustrates how designers do not have to use huge specimens, powerfully exemplifying an appreciation of beauty in detail. It is an immaculate delight.”
Mr Ishihara’s design last year – Moroto no IE Garden, which featured vibrant acers and a tumbling waterfall – was visited by the King at the 2024 flower show.
Designers Tom Massey and Je Ahn won the best construction for a show garden award for The Avanade Intelligent Garden, which featured a fungal wall constructed from ash timber from diseased trees.
Joe and Laura Carey took home both the RHS Chelsea small garden of the year and RHS Chelsea best construction for a small garden awards for The Addleshaw Goddard: Freedom to Flourish Garden.
The RHS environmental innovation award was given to Allon Hoskin and Robert Beaudin with Modular for The Pathway Garden, which used reclaimed materials in its design.
Ryan McMahon won the best all about plants garden award for his Seawilding.
The RHS Chelsea plant of the year was awarded to Philadelphus Petite Perfume Pink (‘P1’), bred by Alan Postill, which was lauded for its unusual pink colour for a species that is usually white.
The show opened to members of the public on Tuesday, but celebrities were afforded a sneak preview the day before.
Cate Blanchett, Dame Joanna Lumley and David Tennant were among those who attended the world famous event on Monday, along with Sir David Suchet and Zoe Ball, before the King and Queen were given a tour.
