‘Reflection’: A Show Garden Rooted in Donegal

Every year, the BBC Gardeners’ World Autumn Fair highlights the very best that horticulture has to offer. There is always something special there for every gardener, from hands-on workshops and expert planting advice to dazzling garden displays that have their own individual stories to tell.

Held at Audley End House & Gardens in Essex, the 2026 Autumn Fair ran from Friday 11th September through to Sunday 13th September.

But for our very own Edward Doherty, this show was particularly special. Making his show garden debut, Edward created ‘Reflection’ - a personal interpretation of the overarching theme ‘Once upon a time’, centred on his early memories of growing up in Donegal. ‘Reflection’ went on to receive a platinum medal during the event. In addition to this, it was awarded Best Beautiful Border and Best Gardeners’ World Magazine Subscribers Beautiful Border.

A personal ‘Reflection’

Inspired by Edward’s childhood, ‘Reflection’ was born from a nostalgic idea - one all about reconnecting with nature and family in fun and engaging ways. From playful mishaps in the family border to blackberry picking on sunny autumn days, the garden captured an enduring sense of family and identity, rooted in the landscapes and memories of Edward’s Donegal upbringing.

Edward talks about some of his motivations behind the garden:
“The football represents my first run-ins with flowers; kicking a ball into granny’s border. As for the blackberries, they represent something purer and less destructive. We would often walk as a large family through the countryside down broken paths for some fresh blackberry picking.”

These simple childhood memories became some of the most personal elements within ‘Reflection’, bringing a sense of family, countryside and home into the garden.

Together, always

Colourful and abundant, the cottage-style planting was intentionally intimate, almost wrapping its arms around anyone walking down the path, while subconsciously nodding to favourite plant choices from three generations of family gardeners.

“When I started coming up with the concept of this garden and choosing the plants, I quickly realised that my colour schemes and plant choices were very similar to those of my mother and, in turn, her mother. It feels like without knowing it, those early experiences subconsciously shape our planting styles. Dahlias, Verbenas, and Salvias, for example, have been consistent go-tos for all three generations.”

Standing tall to one side of the garden, five oak pillars of various heights reflected the enduring closeness of five siblings who remain very much grounded in their Donegal upbringing, despite now living in different parts of the world.

The oak was a particularly meaningful choice for Edward, recalling childhood memories with his siblings. But the pillars also served as a more personal reminder of family and home.

“One of my fondest memories with my siblings was of us climbing, and often falling out of, a giant oak tree in our garden - making oak an obvious addition to this nostalgic garden. Engraved into every piece of oak are the GPS coordinates of where each of us now lives. This means that when I sit and relax in this garden, I have that sense of comfort that they are with me. Not only that, but the oak bench itself is also engraved with the GPS coordinates of the family home in 1980s Donegal.”

This meaningful detail brought the whole garden together, physically connecting the five siblings to the places they now call home - and, through the bench, back to the family home in Donegal where their story began.

For Edward, this garden has been about more than just looking back. It has been about carrying a sense of home with you, wherever life takes you.

A timeless space for everyone

‘Reflection’ also created a habitat for insects to thrive. In one corner, a country-style wooden fence added to the garden’s rustic character, deliberately weathered and slightly rotten in places to echo the Irish countryside. Sandstone chippings set within wooden paving formed the gravel path, reflecting materials popular in Donegal in the 1980s. An apple tree added another playful touch, recalling the simple pleasure of picking fruit straight from the tree.

At the heart of the garden, the oak bench provided a place to sit, relax and reflect. It featured a reference to Seamus Heaney’s writing on blackberry picking, alongside a bottle of Football Special, the Donegal soft drink popular in the 1980s.

These small details helped make ‘Reflection’ feel like more than just a garden inspired by Edward’s past, but a space where visitors could pause, reflect and perhaps find something of their own story within it.

Plants inspired by ‘Reflection’

Here are some of the standout plants that helped create the look and feel of ‘Reflection’.

Edward’s standout plants

Dryopteris ‘Golden Brilliance’ - Fresh golden-green fronds bring colour and texture to shady planting, creating a bright contrast among deeper greens.

Carex ‘Red Rooster’ - Warm coppery-red foliage gives this grass a distinctive presence, adding structure and year-round interest to the garden.

Sedum ‘Purple Emperor’ - Deep purple foliage provides a dramatic contrast, while its clusters of pink flowers add colour later in the season.

Chosen pollinator plants

Agastache ‘Blackadder’ - Tall spikes of violet-blue flowers bring colour from midsummer into autumn, while offering a valuable source of nectar for pollinators.

Perovskia ‘Blue Spire’ - Silvery foliage and violet-blue flowers create a light, airy effect, with flowering continuing into late summer.

Salvia ‘Caradonna’ - Deep purple flower spikes rise above dark stems, creating a strong vertical accent while attracting pollinating insects.

Late summer/early autumn flowering favourites

Catananche ‘Major’ - Delicate blue flowers bring a softer touch to late-summer planting, held on slender stems above the foliage.

Erigeron karvinskianus - A profusion of small, daisy-like flowers creates a relaxed, naturalistic effect and can flower over a long season.

Scabiosa ochroleuca - Soft yellow pincushion flowers add a gentle splash of colour, with their open flowerheads providing food for pollinating insects.

Bringing a little bit of ‘Reflection’ home

At its heart, ‘Reflection’ is a celebration of the places, people and memories that stay with us. For Edward, that story begins in Donegal - in family walks, blackberry picking, climbing oak trees and the gardens that shaped his love of planting.

And perhaps that is what makes a garden so special. Long after the flowers fade, it can still hold a sense of home.

Inspired by Edward’s ‘Reflection’? Explore our range of plants and create your own garden filled with colour, wildlife and memories.