RHS Hampton Court Garden Festival first debuted back in 1993, and each year attracts 120,000 visitors who come to marvel at its range of carefully curated gardens stretched over 31 acres of this historic location.
And in 2025, for the first time London National Park City will be showcasing a garden visioned by Rangers and brought to life by celebrated landscape designer Yoni Carnice (pictured below) and contractors Cultivate London and Froglife.
Let’s take a look at four standout stories from the garden that will help fuel your imagination ahead of the Festival opening on Tuesday 1st July.
1. Rangers are at its heart
The concept for the garden was led by a group of Rangers including Rangers Lesley Wertheimer, Katie Blake and Paula Harvey, all of whom have had input – both on a conceptual and practical level. Together they ideated ‘Aster of Senses’, which is inspired by the National Park City five-pointed Aster logo – where each ‘branch’ represents a different sense – and takes visitors on a 360 sensory journey that supports them in exploring and reimagining urban green spaces as hubs for biodiversity and community.
2. The garden is a brand new category for 2025
‘Aster of Senses’ will show under the new ‘Gardens of Curiosity’ category, which “challenges designers to create spaces that stimulate curiosity and invite visitors to engage with the space on multiple levels, sparking a sense of wonder and exploration…”. And the garden does just this by including a number of visually arresting, and thought-inspiring elements such as a steel-edged pond at the end of the garden filled with edible and medicinal aquatics nestled amidst crushed recycled concrete.
As a London National Park City Ranger, I’m incredibly proud to see this garden come to life – not only as a celebration of nature and sensory experience, but as a reflection of the rich diversity within our communities. The materials and planting have been carefully chosen to connect people with place, memory, and environment. – Ranger Katie Blake
3. Sustainability is a central focus
From featuring native planting sourced in the UK – you can see a sample plant list here – planted in peat-free compost to using foraged wood and fallen natural material to make disc insects (crafted by children with additional needs) interspersed throughout the garden. And at close of show all planting will be distributed to Ranger projects across London in partnership with Wayward Plants – an organisation that facilitates large-scale plant exchanges and adoption events.
4. Regenerative planting is utilised
A meadow containing edible plants will be one of the key centrepieces of ‘Aster of Senses’ and Hügelkultur beds will feature throughout. Meaning “mound culture” in German, this is a permaculture technique where a raised garden bed is constructed by layering decaying wood and other organic materials, creating a fertile and water-retentive soil for planting.
Keen to share the news about ‘Aster of Senses’? Find a press release here or contact me (London National Park City Communications Manager) at miriam.habtesellasie@nationalparkcity.org for additional quotes and interview opportunities.
