Peter Dowdall: Summer garden festival favourites

As Bloom gets under way, Peter Dowdall examines what it takes to create a winning outdoor space

The forest bathing-inspired Octavia Hill Garden by Blue Diamond with the National Trust, designed by Ann-Marie Powell with the Blue Diamond Team. Picture: RHS/Neil Hepworth

A gold  medal at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show in London is the ultimate accolade for a garden designer. It shows that you are at the top of your game and you are able to design not just a beautiful space, but that you can deliver on a brief, along with all the logistical challenges that come with developing a garden in central London.

A gold medal means that you have achieved a specific standard, but the People’s Choice Award is something special, because it is voted on by the public and thus it means that you have created something that people like.