Jo Chapman

The Take-Away Garden 2011

The International Festival des Jardins, Chaumont-sur-Loire, France

A concept garden for the Festival International des Jardins 2011, Domaine de Chaumont-sur-loire, which runs from annually from May to October. The team was Jo Chapman, Steve Papps Onebeech Garden Design, Jackie Bennett writer.

The take-away garden or le jardin a emporter is a step towards encouraging responsibility and respect for our environment and the rich bio-diversity of thenatural world. Each cubic metre tonne bag, contains a tree which can support a small eco-system. The bags were delivered to the site in a van, which once there underwent a transformation to become a focal point. The van was parked in an area of natural planting which became denser as the festival progressed. Each of the 18 bags supported one of six different habitats; forest, orchard, maritime, heath, woodland edge, hedgerow or marsh.

The completed garden featured a van with cut-out vinyl text and tree, 18 tonne bags hand-stitched, printed and planted, steel and timber benches, hand cut logo.