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Plans for the Writtle College garden at the Chelsea Flower Show are moving along apace.Ìý

Tutor Ben Wincott, started working on the project last September, coming up with design ideas, and getting the all important paperwork off to Chelsea.

A former Writtle student, Ben has past Chelsea experience, but this will be his first year doing a garden with Writtle College.Ìý Normally the garden is completed by High Education students; however, this year the student's exams fall in the middle of Chelsea week.

"They can't do it anymore which is great for us," says Ben.Ìý "And having previous show experience anyway was quite useful too."

Ben has tried to make this year's garden something the whole college can get involved in, rather than restrict it to just a horticultural effort.

"I want it to be Writtle College, so it's covered lots of departments at the college.Ìý I've delegated stuff out, and am working alongside other departments.Ìý We've got our IT working with us, the students, the range of the 'hort' people and I'm still dealing with some of the lecturers in the HE," Ben says.

The plot is 4m x 5m, so they're going to have to be quite clever with the space.Ìý

"The design I've come up with this year is all about utilising space purely as a garden. The screening around it, we're going to make look like the garden goes further than it does by playing around with some perspex, and by printing on perspex to create depth," says Ben.

The topic for the garden is 'Global Warming'.Ìý It is designed in two halves - a garden of today and one of the future.Ìý

Ben has the style of planting in mind.Ìý The plants for the future garden are coming from the National Botanical Gardens of Wales, because their specialism is Mediterranean gardens.

"They've got a whole dome up there where they've got all the Mediterranean plants and New Zealand plants.Ìý So they're actually going to design that bit for us because they've got the expertise," explains Ben.

"We're really fortunate to have them on board," he adds.

Pulling it all together

With the work spread out, for Ben, it's just a case of pulling it all together on the big day.Ìý

"The only thing I'm afraid of is that it doesn't come together in the end.Ìý But, the planning of it, chasing the stuff up I actually quite enjoy.Ìý I'm a bit of a sadist like that," says Ben.

The prospect of having the garden ready in time for Chelsea does not worry Ben.Ìý He's up for a challenge.Ìý He was a finalist in the Channel Four programme, 'The Great Garden Challenge' where amateur and professional gardeners battle it out to design and build a garden.

He had five weeks to prepare his first garden, nine days for the next round, but only two days to do an entire garden in the final round.Ìý Unfortunately, he lost out in the phone vote.

"So I've been there, done that," he says with confidence.