We are getting all the more familiar with wetter winters and drier summers as our climate changes. Our orchards and gardens need to change too. To futureproof our green spaces we must make them more resilient in the face of uncertain weather patterns. This will in turn help our plants and the biodiverse creatures they support to survive and thrive. Designing resilience into our growing spaces can be an opportunity to showcase the beauty of our regional landscapes and the robust plants that are found within them.
Former Certificate in Community Orcharding (CICO) and Award in Forest Gardening student, Nicola Stuart-Menteath (below) explores resilient planting in her exciting new Beautiful Borders design entry for Gardeners’ World Live 2026 in Birmingham. We caught up with her to talk about her design inspirations and personal journey.
A resilient garden inspired by The Fens
As our climate shifts towards periods of extreme wet seasons and increasingly hot, dry seasons, gardens and orchards that include plants adapted to a variety of weather events will be the most resilient. Nicola’s garden design submission explores resilient landscapes, showing a succession from wetland, water-loving plants though to plants that thrive in drier meadow habitats.
“I wanted to show that there is a variety of native species that you could use that are so resilient and can cope with really wet conditions and really dry conditions, and also be amazing for wildlife,” Nicola explained.
This year’s theme for the Beautiful Borders category is “Once upon a time”. For Nicola, this theme made her reflect on her childhood, growing up near Ely, an area of Cambridgeshire with a very distinct landscape known as The Fens.
Fenlands are naturally marshy regions found in the east of England in areas of low-lying land. They are beautiful, liminal places where water meets land. Plants that thrive in these wet, boggy areas include reeds, rushes, sedges and beautiful wildflowers such as yellow iris, purple loosestrife, water mint and common birds-foot trefoil. Nicola has challenged herself to focus on using plants that are indigenous to the fens in her design.
She also draws on the traditional folk activities of Ely in her design, which she has named “The Eel Catcher’s Garden”, incorporating traditional willow eel baskets, along with a vintage fishing stool to add structure and charm.
“Growing up I didn’t realise that I was assimilating the stories of the people who used to live there and catch eels,” Nicola says. “It’s only now when I reflect on it, I realise it was quite a unique place to have grown up, so I wanted to capture that in this design.”
Preparing a show garden using fenland plants can be a difficult undertaking as large plants of these wetland species aren’t usually available to buy. Larger plants are vital to making the show garden appear to have been growing for years, fully established and full of vegetation. Nicola has been spending all her spare time finding her plants as small plugs or 9cm pots and growing them on, timing their development perfectly so they can look their best during the show. She shared, “I’m really excited to see how it turns out. If it works and they’re all flowering at the right time, it will look beautiful.”
Orchard and forest garden inspiration
The “Once upon and time” theme also made Nicola think of her own journey towards gardening and orcharding, aiming for the design to reflect her own growth as a person. Nicola was part of the 13th cohort of students who gained their Certificate in Community Orcharding in 2024. She went on to complete the Award in Forest Gardening six months later and recently joined the first cohort on The Orchard Project’s new Consultant Development Programme to share all she has learnt with community orchards and budding new orchardists in the future.
To commemorate this journey into the world of community orcharding, and her growing love for apple trees, Nicola has incorporated a crab apple tree into her design. Her community orchard training has had a big impact on her, and the holistic approach she takes towards building resilience into her gardens.
“I think what I love about The Orchard Project is that they have completely integrated courses,” she says. “You’re not just learning about fruit trees, you’re learning about soil, you’re learning about biodiversity to be able to support the fruit trees, you’re learning about planting other plants that can support the fruit trees. I found it so enlightening, wholesome and nurturing.”
Nicola’s top tips for planning a resilient garden
With Nicola’s garden design integrating resilient planting schemes, we asked for her top tips for creating your own resilient and futureproof borders.
- Use diverse plants: Summer can bring drought one year and waterlogging the next. We just don’t know what is ahead of us. Plant different species (polycultures) that are indigenous to your region and can cope with many different conditions.
- Think holistically: Think about plants, but also think about the soil underneath, and the needs of different root systems. Improving and protecting your soil will help to counteract what’s going on with the climate.
- Support biodiversity: Choose plants that are in flower at different times of the year. You will have beautiful seasonal interest and there will be food for pollinators throughout the year.
by Franki Appleton
Behind the scenes at The Eel Catcher’s Garden
Nicola’s garden was shown at Gardeners’ World Live between 18-21 June 2026 at the NEC in Birmingham. She won a Gold Medal! Here’s a selection of some beautiful images of the garden in situ, kindly shared with permission from the photographer Dave Fennel Wells.
Book recommendations:
Fowler, A (2025), Peatlands: A journey between land and water, Hodder & Staughton, London.
Delamain, L (2026), Gardens That Can Save the World, Thames and Hudson, London
Discover our accredited courses
Inspired by Nicola to learn more about orchards and forest gardens? We have two popular courses available that you might like.