RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival 2025
THANK YOU
Thank you to PoB Hotels, Taro Yaguchi, London College of Garden Design, the RHS, Mandy Plants, Weather-it, Create, Media Powerhouse, Nicola Davies, Provender Nurseries, Hortus Loci, How Green Nurseries, Beth Chatto Plants, RHS Plants, Norfolk Herbs, Potash Garden Centre and Tearoom, Hardy Plants, John, Christine, Michelle, Emma, Nina, Ros, Geraldine, Donna, Maggie, Zoe, Lindsey, Stuart, Matt, James and Phil
Shadwell Williams Design Studio and Price Adams Studio are delighted to have been selected to be part of a collaboration between the London College of Garden Design and the Royal Horticultural Society.
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The Hummingbird Haven celebrates the relationship between plants from the Lamiaceae family and hummingbirds.
Shrubs provide shelter and nesting habitats for hummingbirds
Slender bills protect long, forked tongues - perfect for reaching the nectar in the tubular flowers
Insects do not see red well, leaving the nectar in these blooms for the hummingbirds
Shrubs provide shelter and nesting habitats for hummingbirds
Plants like Lamium maculatum echo the iridescent foliage of the hummingbirds
These acrobatic birds fly in ovals, reflected in the shape of the border
Their tiny nests are woven from soft materials, such as the downy leaves of Stachys byzantina
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This border celebrates the connection that evolved between hummingbirds and Lamiaceae plants such as Salvia and Monarda. Featuring a curated selection of their favoured nectar-rich orange and red blooms, the planting creates an inviting habitat inspired by these fascinating pollinators.
Enjoy a vibrant, immersive space with life-size origami hummingbirds darting between flowers. The oval shape and curves of the bed are inspired by their elegant flight patterns.
Plants are chosen that attract these birds by providing nectar-rich flowers, shelter, and nesting materials such as downy leaves and grass heads. Iridescent foliage and swaying grasses evoke the hummingbirds’ eye-catching plumage and acrobatic flight.
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The Team
Ali Shadwell-Williams
Garden Designer
Based in California, Ali is lucky enough to see hummingbirds feeding from the Salvia in her garden.
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A trained horticulturalist and garden designer, Ali runs Shadwell Williams Design Studio. Her passion is creating beautiful gardens and landscapes with a strong focus on wildlife and biodiversity.
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Yvonne Price
Garden Designer
The first person that Yvonne met when she was studying at the London College of Graden Design was Ali. They bonded over their common interest in conservation.
The lead of Price Adams Studio, Yvonne worked as a horticultural lecturer before moving into garden design. Working out of Essex, Yvonne aims to incorporate sustainability and intelligent design.​
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PoB Hotels
Sponsor
Impeccable independent hotels, rooted in their locale, offering unforgettable stays, dining, and spa experiences - yours to enjoy or gift with PoB Hotels vouchers.
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Discover lush and vibrant gardens across the British Isles, in the splendid settings of tranquil hotels, creating an oasis of calm for your perfect break.
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Taro Yaguchi
Origami Artist
Taro’s Origami Studio is the world's largest origami studio with locations in New York and Tokyo. The founder, Taro Yaguchi, has agreed to craft 100 origami hummingbirds to bring the theme of the border to life, kindly donating his time and expertise.
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Taro enthusiastically embraced the challenge of crafting a series of hummingbird origami, each capturing different wing positions.​​​
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Nicola Davies
Ambassador
Nicola has adored hummingbirds since she saw the display in the Natural History Museum as a small child. She saw her first live hummingbird aged 19 in Toronto and has been entranced ever since.
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Nicola Davies trained as a zoologist before spending ten years as a presenter for the BBC Natural History Unit. She has been writing for children for more than twenty five years and is the author of more than 90 books, including poetry, picture books and novels.
London College of Garden Design
London & Melbourne, Australia
Ali and Yvonne both trained at the London College of Garden Design, completing the Garden Design Diploma.
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Taught by world-leading, experienced designers and other experts in small groups, the LCGD offers inspirational garden design training and life-changing career opportunities. ​​​​
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For the Love of Lamiaceae
Lamiaceae is a huge plant family, made up of over 7000 species. Often known as the mint family or the dead-nettle family, it is spread all over the world and includes some real stars of horticulture, including lavender and rosemary.
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A family is a taxonomical term, which describes how different living things are related. Humans, for example, are part of Hominidae family - more commonly known as the great apes. A family is sub-divided into genera (singular is genus), which are then further split into different species. For example, rosemary is in the family Lamiaceae, genus Salvia and the species is rosmarinus. Its name in Botanical Latin is Salvia rosmarinus.​​​
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Read more about this fascinating family of plants here or, even better, visit us at the RHS Hampton Court Garden Festival.
