My Climate Change Garden

Climate Gardens is delighted to announce that they have received an RHS Gold Medal for an environmental Conceptual Garden at the Hampton Court Flower Show this year.

Near Future Garden encouraged visitors to observe climate change in their back gardens whilst thinking positively about how to improve their carbon foot-print.

This innovative garden conveys the importance of using earth’s natural elements to ensure a low carbon future.

Over 10,000 visitors entered the Near Future Garden garden via a pathway impregnated with footprints that lead to a vortex of black “oil”, slowly draining away as we burn fossil fuels, depleting the earth of the essential carbon that it needs to balance increasing emissions.

This experience was aimed at inspiring gardeners to improve their environmental footprints by using carbon enriched, peat free soil such as Biochar in their gardens.

Carbon Gold who provided GroChar for this garden estimate that if we increase by 4% (0.4%) a year the quantity of carbon in soils, we can halt the annual increase in C02 in the atmosphere, which is a major contributor to the greenhouse effect and climate change. http://www.carbongold.com/carbon/

Why Near Future Garden?

The garden used drought tolerant plants to reveal just one possible extreme weather scenario – Is this the English Garden of the “Near Future?”

The planting was inspired by how our gardens are being affected by climate change.

Gardeners care about how weather affects their plants and soil. These factors influence everything they grow. This is why they should care about keeping carbon in the ground.

Gardeners can reduce their carbon foot-print using carbon enriched, peat free soil such as Carbon Gold Enriched Biochar in their gardens and switching to renewable energies in their homes.

Inspirational garden design has the potential to deliver tremendous impact on its audience. This is why I am optimisitc that my design for Near Future Garden can influence the carbon footprint of 146,000 visitors to RHS Hampton Court Flower Show in 2016.”

RHS members gardening in a changing climate

The RHS are already aware that climate change is a serious issue for their members. In 2014 they announced the results of a survey which confirmed that gardeners are already dealing with climate change in their own gardens.

Four fifths of respondents reported that they paid more attention to the weather in recent years. In addition, 87% believed that climate change is happening now and 62% reported they were optimistic about adapting to the challenges that climate change is already delivering. See the RHS survey results.

Evidence that the climate is changing rapidly was further confirmed by the Met Office who recorded that December 2015 was 4.1c above the long term average for the UK, with temperatures closer to those normally experienced in April or May. As a result, many UK gardeners reported daffodils and tulips bursting into bloom 4 months early. Gardeners are having to diversify quickly as seasons shift and extreme weather brings new challenges to normal growing patterns.

Renewable energy inspiration
Near Future Garden also aims to encourage gardeners to understand the role of renewable energies for a low carbon future. Specially commissioned wooden sculptures designed by award winning artist Charlie Whiney, will highlight the importance of the natural elements of the sun, water and wind that are used by gardeners every day to grow their plants.

These free and readily available natural resources not only ensure the health and vitality of our garden plants on a daily basis, but are making a vital contribution to powering our future energy supply for a less polluted and low carbon planet. It is estimated by the International Energy Association that four fifths of the earth’s fossil fuels must stay in the ground in order to limit global warming to 2c.

Time to Change?

Deborah Scott Anderson, Founder of Climate Gardens is delighted that Near Future Garden will be built at RHS Hampton Court Flower Show during 2016:

“The timing of Near Future Garden is perfect. The concept of this garden conveys important environmental messages about planning for a low carbon future. These are being communicated just months after 190 countries committed at COP21 in Paris 2015 to reduce their carbon emissions to help limit global temperature increase “well below” 2c.

Investment in renewable energies is considered to be the fastest and most efficient transition to achieve these ambitious targets.Near Future Garden demonstrates that investing time, money and effort into managing nature now will ensure a sustainable and easy to manage low carbon future for our children to inherit.

My vision for Climate Gardens has always been to encourage gardeners to engage with climate change in their back gardens. I am confident that 2016 is the year this will start to happen with Near Future Garden.”

Good Energy

Visitors to Near Future Garden can cut their carbon foot print by 24% by switching to  Good Energy.