A new and expanded Winter Garden, designed by Jo Thompson, is planned for RHS Rosemoor in Devon.

The new design will double the size of the Winter Garden by merging it with the three Model Gardens, first created in the late 1990s, to make a new unified landscape that will show off stunning winter features.

Low-level planting will open up vistas across the garden, and new island beds will bring in colour and interest through the use of enchanting drifts of herbaceous planting and grasses. Jo’s design includes beautiful mature trees – a rare Fraxinus profunda (pumpkin ash), a Catalpa, a stand of birch and Japanese maples – giving the space an instant sense of maturity and presence.

The colour will change as the seasons do, with the peak interest reserved for winter. Plants will be selected to help create connectivity between the existing and new half of the garden; a mixture of dogwoods to the upper half, which are one of RHS Rosemoor’s Plant Heritage National Collections. In the lower half, Betula ermanii ‘Daleside’ will contrast with Betula utilis subsp. jacquemontii which are established in upper part of the garden.

Jonathan Webster, Curator, RHS Garden Rosemoor said: “I am excited to see Jo’s vision come to life; the design will unite the landscape and enhance the views and vistas as well as creating a better flow through the garden to immerse yourselves in the plants. Winter can be a time without drama in the garden landscape and this concept and the plant palette will help our visitors see what is possible to create, making winter more exciting in the garden.”

Photography by Jason Ingram and Mark Bolton.