Head Gardener Jonathan Arnold cleaning out the river beds with the gardeners and volunteers at Denmans Garden.

PRESS RELEASE
9 November 2023

The Royal Horticultural Society announced today that Denmans Garden, an RHS Partner Garden, has been named the regional winner for the Southeast and Channel Islands in the RHS Partner Garden of the Year competition. The annual competition invites anyone to vote for their favourite partner garden.

‘We are deeply grateful to all those who took the time to cast their vote for Denmans as their Partner Garden of the Year,’ said Gwendolyn van Paasschen, Chairman of the John Brookes-Denmans Foundation.

‘Being a regional winner in the RHS Partner Garden of the Year competition for the second time in three years means a great deal to the entire Denmans Team’ We have worked tremendously hard in the past 5 and a half years to restore the garden, the former home of Joyce Robinson who started gravel gardening here in 1970, and of John Brookes MBE who stylized and developed the garden between 1980-2018. It had been terribly neglected so this achievement acknowledges just how much has been accomplished.

Equally important, it shows the importance we put on ensuring that our visitors have the best possible experience while they are with us. So often they tell us how peaceful the garden is or that they have been inspired by elements in the garden they can adapt to their own. We love answering their plant questions and sharing the garden’s fascinating history.

This award reflects the amazing community of staff, volunteers, and visitors that has grown up around this magical Grade II garden’

Denmans is also proud to have once again been awarded Gold in the category of Historic Parks and Gardens in the 2023 South & Southeast in Bloom competition for the third year running. South & South East in Bloom is part of Britain in Bloom. Its campaign is the largest horticultural campaign in the region involving hundreds of communities each year and participating gardens are evaluated by trained judges.

Denmans Garden represents a unique and stylish fusion of horticulture and design, with its core focus on inspiring and accessible planting and design for a sustainable future. As beautiful in winter as it is in summer Denmans is free on Saturdays as well as Thursdays to RHS members who present their membership cards. The garden, along with its gift shop and plant centre featuring unusual plants grown on site, is open year-round. Midpines Café, situated in the old dairy at Denmans offers fresh and tasty food and refreshments from breakfast and lunch to afternoon teas and sweet treats.