The place

In 1835, when Joseph Paxton started work on the new Arboretum at Chatsworth, he designed the Trout Stream as a central picturesque feature to bring life and naturalism to this area. It was a huge task involving the diversion of a local stream more than two miles from its natural course.

The brief

With Paxton’s Rock Garden, the Trout Stream served as the inspiration for the Chatsworth Laurent Perrier Garden which was presented at the 2015 Chelsea Flower Show, where it won a Gold Medal and the award for Best Show Garden. Following the show the entire garden was taken to Chatsworth where all of the hard and soft materials were re-used to reinvigorate this area of the gardens.

The design

A somewhat forgotten area of the gardens the design has refreshed and brought new life to the Trout Stream. A series of new planting schemes along its entire length have been installed since 2016. This has included new glade plantings of ornamental trees and shrubs selected for their successional seasons of interest.

While the extreme naturalism of this garden area has been retained and developed, in the perennial plantings strong, vibrant colour has been used subtly and playfully to create a heightened sense of nature, drawing attention to the fact that, although seemingly wild, this is a man made environment.

The installation of new footbridges and new seating have made the Trout Stream and Arboretum more accessible and enjoyable for visitors, while a specially commissioned sculpture by David Nash forms a focal point to the scheme.

A semi-wild planting scheme of this kind requires extremely sensitive management and its continued success and development is testament to the skill of the Chatsworth Gardens team.

The final phase of planting will be completed in spring 2020.