Niwaki Main Stand: EAE512
Our usual spot, just down from the main entrance to the north of the site. A curated selection of our most popular tools, with care advice and a warm Niwaki welcome.
Niwaki Tripod Ladders: AR639
… and Golden Spades! Just around the corner from our main stand. Easy enough to spot: it’s the one with every size of the original and best Japanese tripod ladder.
Niwaki at RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2024
If ever there was proof that teamwork really does make the dream work, it’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show.
Mess, chaos and disharmony is transformed into something approaching magic through the careful planning, expertise and dedication of the teams of gardeners and craftsmen working together with a shared purpose: inspiring stuff when you think about.
In our own small way, Niwaki is a part of this transformation. This year we are proud to support a number of gardens, supplying fine Japanese tools and logistical assistance to several projects: read on for a little more information.
National Garden Scheme Garden by Tom Stuart-Smith
First up, Niwaki is pleased to be kitting out volunteers and professionals alike at The National Garden Scheme Garden, designed by Tom Stuart-Smith.
Tom himself is no stranger to Niwaki tools, and was kind enough to give us a whistle-stop tour of the garden, which, with just a few days to go was slowly filling in with edge-of-woodland themed plants beneath the canopies of unusually shaped hazel trees.
At the rear of the plot the carbon sink timber hut was taking shape, where visitors and garden volunteers can congregate for tea and cake, synonymous with a National Garden Scheme garden open day. Best of all, the garden is conveniently located just across the crossroads from our main stand! Make sure you pay it a visit.
Tom Stuart-Smith, landscape architect and garden designer
A Niwaki Hori Hori is never far from the action, being ideal for dividing and planting out.
Leave no leaf unturned! Volunteers inspect hazel trees for damaged leaves and deal with the offenders accordingly using Niwaki Loppers and Sentei Secateurs.
Borders taking shape at the National Garden Scheme Garden by Tom Stuart-Smith. The humble umbel is having its moment, with cow parsley finding its way into several gardens this year, which makes perfect sense when look around you in mid-May.
Emma O’Connell, one half of the design team at the Freedom from Torture Garden.
Freedom from Torture Garden by John Warland and Emma O’Connell
Just along the way you’ll find the Freedom from Torture Garden, designed by six-time RHS Gold Medal winner (and friend of Niwaki) John Warland, and award-winning designer Emma O’Connell (pictured). The garden is intended as a place of sanctuary, peace and hope where horticultural therapy calms, heals and restores survivors of torture.
It took ten people ten days to sculpt the cocooning willow structures that delineate the space. Combined with the stream encircling the sunken chimney/oven area, the space was already exuding serenity, even amongst the buzz of high-viz jackets and shouts of “pass the Golden Spade!".
John explained that the finest materials and techniques have been employed, imparting dignity to the eventual users of the space. Find out more about their vital work: freedomfromtorture.org
Niwaki is supporting this garden with a selection of tools for the build team including Hori Horis, Golden Spades and a 10' ladder, though we noted that many already had their own well-loved Niwaki tools.
We were very excited to meet Emily and Miya from Beth Chatto’s Plants & Gardens in Colchester. Emily had grown many of the plants to order and, together with Miya, was planting the gravel borders to create a distinctive Beth Chatto-inspired look.
Emily professed her love of Niwaki Gardening Gloves, offering, as they do, just the right ratio of feel to protection.
You won’t catch John Warland slacking, unless he’s ‘working’ on the Niwaki stand ;)
When he’s not creating award-winning gardens, John runs London pub tours and writes informative and amusing books on the same topic. Sorry ladies – he’s taken.
Tomie Cuisine’s the Nobonsai Garden
Keen readers of the Niwaki Catalogue 2024 should recognise a few of the faces in this garden team: Tsuyako, Takuya (with commemorative Niwaki Chelsea Tote at the top of the page) and Kenta all featured (modelled?) for Niwaki, and Tsuyako and Takuya kindly guided Jake and Alex around the Ibori Tree Market and treated them to an unagi supper. It’s a long way from Toyokawa to Chelsea, so we were pleased to lend tools and logistical support to help them make their Chelsea plans come to fruition.
Tsuyako explains: “Tomie Cuisine’s the Nobonsai Garden celebrates living together with creatures, including fungi and microorganisms. Plants will surround the space, softly blocking the line of sight from the outside for privacy, and giving the balcony the feel of being another room. The planting is harmonious, creating an aesthetic closer to nature than a container garden.” We hope you have the chance to pay them a visit and admire the planting and carpentry for yourself.
Tsuyako Asada aka Garden Alice
Kenta - the maker of the Ueneko Holster and the Niwaki x Ulla Johnson special edition leather holster– puts the finishing details to a ladder that Takuya made from scratch.
Steel toe-cap Tabi Boots … also available online at Niwaki! Click here to see the product page.
Many Japanese gardeners are also skilled carpenters, which is one reason Niwaki sells woodworking chisels, saws and hammers. The other is we think they’re the best!
Even amongst those we have not directly supported we discovered a healthy number of Niwaki tools are the pro-gardener’s tools of choice:
We hope you can make it next week (or this week if you’re reading this next week … this is getting confusing … ) and look forward to welcoming you on either of our two stands. What we’re trying to say is, say hi if you’re passing at Chelsea, Chiltern or Semley – we love to meet our customers.