Garden trend 2019: This year’s Chelsea Flower Show shows how it is done

The annual flower show in Chelsea impressed us again this year with beautiful garden designs and arrangements and shows us what is currently in trend when it comes to planting. The highlights include, without question, the lively flower colors and the many greens. But that’s not all that the show had to offer. We list the best ideas and every garden trend in 2019 for you.

1. Lots of green as a garden trend 2019

You might be thinking now that there is green in every garden. But at the Chelsea Flower Show 2019, and more precisely in Andy Sturgeon’s garden, green was the main color. Lots of lush plants and arrangements created a natural and inviting look. This was put together with the help of deciduous trees. Around it were white flowers and specimens with yellowish leaves, such as parsley, milkweed (Euphorbia) and meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria), which not only created subtle contrasts, but also a certain texture. An English garden may be the first thing you think of comes to mind when looking at such a design.

If you want to imitate this mood in your garden, you can also opt for the hornbeam, the elder or the field maple and combine them with the marsh herb (Euphorbia palustris), the white California poppy (Eschscholzia californica, Ivory Castle), the garden pearly grass ( Melica altissima ‘Alba’) and the perennial Mathiasella bupleuroides. The latter impresses with interesting flowers in green color. This color theme is an important gardening trend in 2019 and definitely worth considering. Since mostly not only sunny and partially shaded areas should be planted, you can also choose the medicinal angelica (Angelica archangelica) for the shade, which is also known as “Angelika” and goes very well with the fat man (also known as “shadow green”, Pachysandra) ) and the Rodgersia team up.

2. Eco-friendly garden ideas

Ecological and sustainable are the keywords of this year’s Chelsea Flower Show. This applies to both the first steps in preparing for the show and decorative details. For example, excavators with electric motors were used for landscaping. Pots and pots made of sustainable and natural materials were used to decorate the gardens and plastics were largely avoided. This is of course also recommended for your own garden and landscaping and is therefore recommended for imitation.

Another garden trend in 2019 in this sense is recycling and upcycling, i.e. the recycling of old things. An interesting ecologically beneficial system was featured on the show that you can check out as well. More precisely, it is a raised bed system with which fruits and vegetables can be grown. It consists of a container made of recycled brick full of rubble that collects rainwater and gray water from the household. If the crop rotation is also observed in annual cultivation, a nutrient-rich soil is guaranteed. This system was found in Jilayne Richards’ garden.

3. Don’t be afraid of weeds

The eternal fight against weeds is over. Another garden trend in 2019 is namely to let the weeds grow freely, as was also shown on the show. Dandelions (in the garden of Andrew Duff Savills and David Harber), cuckoo carnation and clover (in the garden of Laurélie de la Salle) were just some of the examples that even wild plants can create a wonderful atmosphere in the garden. Local (like in Mark Gregory’s garden) but also more exotic weeds are allowed. Are you not also curious how your garden would develop if you just let it grow and not interfere unnecessarily? Try it! Just mow a strip in the garden, for example. In this way you can find out what appears in the uncut areas and better assess whether the wilder garden plants are worthwhile.

4. Trees as a garden trend 2019

As in the last few years, this one focuses on a particular tree. While it used to be the birch, sometimes the olive, this year the Chilean araucaria (Araucaria araucana), as in the gardens of Jonathan Snow and Sarah Eberle, is one of the highlights and without question a garden trend of 2019. But also the black pine (Pinus nigra ), which was found in Chris Beardshaw’s garden, deserves a mention. However, since the latter are very large trees, you can also choose alternatives and use them to design your garden. One such alternative are the horse chestnuts (Aesculus pavia). They are characterized by a multi-stemmed habit with attractive flowers in the form of tubes, which are also ideal if you want to make your garden insect-friendly. The flowers are a magical attraction for bees. So if you want to plan your garden according to this year’s trends, don’t forget to consider a few trees as well.

5th garden trend 2019 for decoration – copper

What has been modern in furnishings for a long time is now creeping into our beds and plants as a garden trend 2019 at the latest. What is meant is the attractive copper. Helen Elks-Smith shows how it is with her garden and not only uses a copper-coated green roof there, but also decorates the garden with a beautiful water feature made of hammered copper. But there is also an original decoration in the form of a copper hammer in David Neale’s paradisiacal garden. Since it is not necessarily a cheap material, copper should only be used as an accent. This way, it comes into its own much better and a beautiful garden is guaranteed.

6. Unformed bushes and shrubs as garden trends

It is not just the weeds that you should grow. The bushes and shrubs no longer have to be regularly cut and trimmed (of course, the necessary annual pruning is excluded for some plants). While until recently precisely cut and shaped specimens were supposed to adorn the garden, this is no longer the case. Naturalness is the garden trend 2019. The box tree gives way to the yew, pine and beech. This could be seen in the gardens of Tom Stuart-Smith and Kate Gould. With the help of these plants you get a nice texture in the garden and better showcase the flowers and other plants.

7. Colors as a garden trend 2019

Colors, colors and more colors: This is how many gardens impressed, including that of Jody Lidgard, who played with the hues of peonies, dahlias and clove root and thus created an atmosphere that is reminiscent of candies and other sweets. The garden design by Eberle was also particularly ingenious and surprising. Her garden trend 2019 is the combination of interesting colors and plant species such as the red flowering Russian adder’s head (Echium russicum) as a contrast to the sky-blue shrubs (Linum perenne) and the cucumber herb (Borago officinalis) with equally blue flowers. But there was also the color pink. It was represented by the cuckoo carnation (Lychnis flos-cuculi) with its interesting, spider-like flowers.

8. Original privacy screens and room dividers

Instead of metal or plastic, wood is used as a privacy screen. More precisely, they are interesting walls made of logs. If you opt for this garden trend 2019, you will create an eye-catcher that is also nature-friendly and natural. This look is possibly also due to the fact that such a wall somehow resembles an insect hotel. In this way, open gardens in particular can guarantee the necessary privacy without disturbing the open design. The relatively inexpensive privacy screen idea was spotted in Paul Hervey-Brookes’ garden and is also very suitable for protecting a trendy terrace.

9. Green roofs and walls

Planted roofs and walls are another 2019 gardening trend set by the Chelsea Flower Show. It doesn’t matter whether the garden is small or large: every free area should be planted and green. A roof planted with thyme, marshweed and sedum plant was found in Helen Elk-Smith’s garden, among others, while a huge green wall with ferns, grasses, ivy and herbaceous plants adorned Andrew Duff’s garden.

10. Lots of water

Water features and other elements with water come in a wide variety of designs. So if you want to add water to the garden, there is a huge choice available. However, the 2019 garden trend, which was inspired by the show, also relies on naturalness when it comes to water elements. Waterfalls are particularly impressive, especially when they are built very high. One such example is Jonathan Snow’s garden. Joe Perkins was inspired by the coasts and especially by the waves.

Those looking for more relaxing water features can take inspiration from the designs by Helen Elks-Smith. It draws on calm streams and other water features. Quiet pools such as fountains or ponds are featured in the gardens by Tom Hoblyn and Andrew Duff. They are the perfect oases in which you can sit back and relax.

Conclusion

The Chelsea Flower Show 2019 once again showed true works of art in the field of garden design and managed not only to astonish many visitors, but also to inspire them. The trends mentioned are only a small selection of the possibilities for the design of the private garden. Sculptures, lots of stones, art objects and architectural elements are also part of the fascinating ideas of the garden designers, which make every garden a unique area to relax. With water features, wilder garden designs, lots of trees and bushes, an easy-care garden is created that is even suitable for beginners. In addition, the green and lush landscape provides the environment with a pleasant coolness and plenty of shade in hot summer. Regardless of which garden trend 2019 you implement, you are guaranteed to feel really good in your garden in the end.

Find out more about the Chelsea Flower Show 2019 here.