Over the fence
Charlie Bloom and Sean Murray debate whether design professionals need a horticultural qualification
Is training vital for garden designers?
Plants are more important than a designer’s need for fashion fodder I think you can learn design principles quite quickly
hat value do ornamental plants have ? Do they have intrinsic value as living, breathing, highly evolved organisms or are they only valuable as fashion statements? For me this is at the heart of this question because garden design is unique, being the only area of design that uses living organisms as part of the designer’s tools. I worry that garden design has evolved with the same determination for quick fixes and fashion fads as we see on endless property and interior makeover television shows. This is acceptable when working indoors, as wallpaper, soft furnishings and furniture do not need suitable habitats, soils, light, warmth, food, water and maintenance to remain in optimum condition – their only value is to meet the requirements of style and comfort. So back to my original question – what value should be given to ornamental plants? I feel garden designers have a responsibility to understand the materials they use. When plants are reduced to mere tools in a designer’s box, they are relegated to being just ‘things’, and their value as living, breathing, highly evolved organisms is no longer an essential consideration when using them in a garden setting. I believe garden designers should have horticultural knowledge because it is an ethical question of how much we hold other living organisms in regard. Their health, longevity and intrinsic value should be more important than a designer’s need to provide fashion fodder for those with no appreciation of the natural world. sa relatively new kid on the garden design block, I have quickly learnt how crucial plant knowledge is to creating a successful design that embraces longevity and grace as it matures. I have no formal qualifications in design or horticulture, but since winning The Great Chelsea Garden Challenge in 2015, I’ve designed public spaces, large estates and tiny courtyards. Classic design principles applied to all of them, but for me what turns a good design into a great one is an understanding of planting and how to put plants together. Whether that comes from formal or experiential learning is immaterial, as long as it’s sound and applied well. I’ve stopped apologising for being selftaught and not having the ‘right’ bits of paper. I’ve spent the last 40 years devouring horticultural writings – from Margery Fish to Piet Oudolf – and I apply that knowledge in practice. I think you can learn design principles quite quickly – any good garden design course will provide that; and an understanding of how plants relate to the landscape and the longterm picture comes, in my opinion, from hands-on practice. I recently visited a garden designed by a professional with all the right badges to find no consideration had been given to the context of the garden. And I’ve met some designers that would make great interior designers but haven’t a clue about plants. I once shadowed a designer who couldn’t tell a heather from a hebe. Any credible designer will have a fluent grasp of both the art and science of garden design, appreciatng the subtle play between plants and hard landscaping. HAVE YOUR SAY Do you think a garden designer needs formal training in horticulture, or is a qualification in design enough? Write in and tell us at the address on p16