Blue Diamond Garden Centres is sponsoring Where Grief Grows Quiet, a powerful Young Designer garden at the RHS Badminton Flower Show 2026, created by Sophie Leo in support of national cancer charity Maggie's.
Inspired by the loss of her mother in 2022 following a cancer diagnosis, Sophie's garden explores how nature can provide comfort, reflection and healing during times of grief.
The garden has been made possible through the support of Blue Diamond Garden Centres, whose sponsorship is helping Sophie bring her vision to life on one of horticulture's biggest stages.
Sophie, one of the RHS’s Young Designers of the Year, said: "This garden was inspired by my experience of losing my mum to cancer in 2022. A few months before she passed, while I was studying garden design, she sketched an idea for a show garden in one of her notebooks and encouraged me to one day bring it to life.
"This garden is my way of continuing her legacy. I have adapted her vision into a space designed to offer people somewhere to pause, reflect and have supportive conversations. I am incredibly grateful to Blue Diamond Garden Centres for believing in the project and helping make it possible."
Jill Kerr -Group Relationship Manager for Blue Diamond Garden Centres said: "We are delighted to support Sophie and Where Grief Grows Quiet at RHS Badminton. Gardens have a unique ability to bring comfort, connection and wellbeing, and Sophie's design beautifully demonstrates the positive role outdoor spaces can play during difficult times. We are also proud to support Maggie's and the invaluable work they do for people living with cancer and their families."
Sophie chose to support Maggie's because of the care her mother received from the charity's Cheltenham centre. This year Maggie’s marks 30 years of transformational cancer support for people with cancer, as well as family and friends, through its 27 centres across the UK.
She said: "Maggie's Cheltenham was a great source of comfort to my mum, and shining a light on the vital support Maggie's provides is at the heart of this project."
The garden reflects the role nature played in Sophie's own experience of grief.
"Spending time in nature was something my mum and I turned to often, particularly when processing difficult news following hospital appointments," she said. "This garden reflects that shared experience, with the hope of encouraging others to find comfort and healing in natural spaces."
Inspired by traditional sheepfolds found throughout the British countryside, the garden reimagines these historic shelters as a place of refuge and emotional rest. Soft planting, water features and comfortable seating create a safe space for visitors to pause, reflect and reconnect.
Alongside the garden, Blue Diamond Garden Centres has created an engagement space where visitors can learn more about the project and speak with Maggie's staff and volunteers about the support available through the charity.
Nicola Peregrine, Centre Head of Maggie's Cheltenham, said: "We are incredibly honoured that Sophie has chosen to support Maggie's with this deeply personal and thoughtful garden. We supported her mum while she was living with cancer, but we are also here for people living with grief. Gardens are an important part of every Maggie's centre, making this partnership especially meaningful."
Following the show, Sophie will donate plants from the garden to Maggie's centres across the UK, helping extend the garden's legacy and support many of the hundreds of people impacted by cancer who come to Maggie's every day.
