The Royal Parks Guild Overview

The Royal Parks Guild is a voluntary Partner Organisation of The Royal Parks who are responsible for managing and preserving over 5,000 acres of historic parkland across London.

Our aim is a serious one – championing The Royal Parks by promoting their qualities, including horticultural excellence and historical significance, whilst offering practical support where appropriate. Allied to this is the service to its members through the provision and development of a broad range of social activities, and keeping members abreast of current and past news of The Royal Parks.

2020 design competition open to all students

An online design competition for apprentices and trainees involved in horticulture and its allied disciplines

Recognising the feelings of disruption and dislocation currently being experienced by apprentices and trainees, the Royal Parks Guild and the Royal Hospital Chelsea have joined together to launch a plant-focused, online design competition called Design Online - Say it with Plants. This is kindly being supported by the Worshipful Company of Gardeners, The Royal Parks, Professional Gardeners Guild, London In Bloom, Commonwealth War Graves Commission and other organisations with an interest in horticulture and its associated disciplines.

Under the overarching title Growing Generations, signifying the involvement of all ages in the scheme, Design Online - Say it with Plants is a free competition open to all horticultural apprentices and trainees.

This will involve individual students or students in groups of no more than three, designing an exciting, thought-provoking, three-dimensional structure composed of plants and associated decorative materials. The display will be designed to fit within a container measuring 1m square x 400mm deep and with a maximum height of 1.8m.

Entrants will be asked to work to the theme what horticulture means to you, a chance to demonstrate their gardening passions and interests. Entrants will be asked to submit their design concepts by Friday 14 August 2020.

Winning entries will be selected by experts working in horticulture. Twelve winning entrants will be invited to construct their designs within the grounds of the Royal Hospital Chelsea during the time of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2021.

Entering the Competition

To register an interest and enter the competition, please contact Mike Fitt at competition@trpg.org.uk. An entry form, including further details about the competition, will then be sent in response.