The headline show garden at this year’s BBC Gardeners’ World Live will encourage gardeners to join the new Make a Metre Matter campaign.
Designer Nick Bailey, a presenter on BBC Gardeners’ World, will be including three Make a Metre Matter ponds in The Plant-Based Garden.
These will demonstrate how small outdoor spaces can attract a range of wildlife. Colourful block planting metres have been designed for pollinators, and raised bed metres will show the possibilities for growing vegetables in a tiny space.
“I want to prove that it’s possible to create a whole garden with only renewable resources and I hope people will embrace its ethos,” says Bailey, whose garden will also be plastic and concrete free.
“It doesn’t matter what you do with a metre; the important thing is the collective difference that lots of planet-friendly projects can make. It’s something that everybody can get on board with.”
The plantsman and author will be talking about the campaign on his Plant-Based Garden each day of the show, which takes place from 12-15 June at the NEC Birmingham.
He will also be discussing it in the BBC Gardeners’ World Live Theatre and on BBC2’s Gardeners’ World Live on 13 June.
Hillier, which is supplying the plants for Bailey’s show garden, will be sharing tips for recreating the garden from the Let’s Talk Plants Stage in the Floral Marquee.
A Make a Metre Matter collection is being created at the show by garden designer Pip Propert, who is also behind the Greenfingers Charity Anniversary Garden which celebrates 25 years of the children’s hospice garden charity.
More than 3,700m have already been registered for the Make a Metre Matter campaign in a bid to win the £500 or £1,000 Crocus vouches up for grabs.
Gardeners and growers can also share a video of their metres with the BBC Gardeners’ World TV team for a possible TV appearance on 13 June.
“We’re really excited about Make a Metre Matter this year which we’re sure is going to capture people’s imaginations,” says Lucy Tremlett, event director for organiser Immediate Live. “Designing your own eco-friendly metres at home is a great way to get creative and help the planet at the same time.”
BBC Gardeners’ World Live will also see the Association of Professional Landscapers (APL) celebrating its 30th anniversary with a feature garden – ‘Where There’s Water, There’s Life’ – designed by Rachel Bailey.