RTE Super Garden contestant Chris Walsh blew away a young couple with his “low maintenance” design – but it left the judges divided.
The brand-new series of Super Garden continued tonight with five new budding designers battling it out for a coveted spot at Bord Bia’s Bloom in 2025.
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Gardener Chris Walsh transformed Aline and Marcelo’s homeCredit: RTE
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The couple live in Baker Hall, NavanCredit: RTE
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Chris wanted to showcase his superb design skills with this gardenCredit: RTE
The super gardeners hoping to have their designs shown off at Bord Bia Bloom are Chris, Jorge, Debbie, Eileen and Rosie.
And overseeing the competition are three judges; Brian Burke, former Super Garden winner Monica Alvarez, and Carol Marks.
In tonight’s show, viewers met 32-year-old gardener Chris Walsh from Wicklow.
Chris wanted to design a fantastic garden for Brazilian couple Aline and Marcelo which was tailored to their needs, but incorporated his own sustainable style.
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With a background in environmental science, Chris studied wildlife biology in IT Tralee and has worked in environmental consultancy.
Despite his love for that work, he ultimately decided to pursue his passion for gardening by taking a part-time course in the Garden Design Academy.
Whilst on work experience as part of his course with a Dublin-based landscape company, Chris was inspired to set up his own landscaping business Birch & Fern.
His design passions lie with transforming blank spaces, which is part of the reason he applied to Super Garden, to show what can be achieved in a small space.
Chris has been a big fan of the show and, as a new business owner, the opportunity for him to go to Bord Bia Bloom would be the pinnacle.
Putting that dream to the test, he designed a garden for new homeowners Aline and Marcelo, in their house in Baker Hall, Navan.
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The happy couple emphasised how important it was for them to have a barbecue area to entertain family and friends, as Marcelo is a chef.
With this in mind, Chris hoped to create a culinary canopy design, with planting being the key.
He also planned to attract wildlife to the garden, bringing in his love for the environment.
HOUSE THAT?
Kicking off his build, Chris dug up the green lawn that initially consumed the garden just in time for his new foundation to arrive.
Chris enlisted some help to begin measuring the garden and plotting the patio area.
Ensuring the garden was even was a major concern as Chris wanted level ground between grass, stone and patio.
With much of the work underway, Chris was ready to start paving the path, however, he ran into a roadblock with his near 20-year-old mixer, as it was mixing the materials too slowly.
Reluctantly, Chris splurged to purchase a new mixer, allowing him to be able to begin paving.
From there it was smooth sailing as his design came together under a last-minute crunch with his fellow contestants helping Chris to get his planting finished.
After seeing the results of their new family-oriented garden, Aline and Marcelo admitted they were blown away.
Once it was finished the judges surveyed the garden, with Monica noting: “it has such a wow factor”.
However, Brian insisted: “It has a wow factor, I’m not sure if it’s the wow factor.”
Carol offered her thoughts, adding: “It is such a low maintenance garden.”
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Chris’ passion lies in environmentally friendly designCredit: RTE