The Beth Chatto Approach to Ecological Planting in Public Spaces

CEO

Julia is the CEO of Beth Chatto’s Plants & Gardens and Beth’s eldest grandchild. Raised in the Midlands, she spent her childhood summer holidays at the Gardens, developing a deep connection with both the place and her grandparent’s work. After a career in general management at Donington Park race circuit, she joined the business in 2012, bringing her commercial expertise, a strong personal tie to its history and a clear ambition for the future.

Today, Julia is focused not only on safeguarding the organisation’s future, she’s also deeply committed to honouring Beth’s legacy through environmentally responsible practice – reducing the organisation’s environmental footprint and championing the importance of green public spaces thorough sustainable planting and mindful, ecological practices.

At Chattowood, a local housing development, the Beth Chatto team introduced a drought resistant planting scheme in sand; the Meanwhile Garden, beside Firstsite Art Gallery, and the Albert roundabout in Colchester further showcase how thoughtful, environmentally sensitive planting can enrich public spaces and support biodiversity.

Julia recently appeared as a speaker on the In the Footsteps of Giants US lecture tour, curated by Garden Masterclass, where she joined a panel exploring the legacy of three iconic British gardens created by extraordinary women. Her contribution highlighted Beth’s pioneering work and also underscored the continued relevance of sustainable horticulture in a rapidly changing world.

Award-winning garden and landscape designer and writer

He is the author of Gardening in a Changing World: Plants People and the Climate Crisis (Pimpernel Press), exploring recent developments in planting design, horticulture, ecology and plant science; addressing our relationship with plants and gardens, looking at the ways we can begin to appreciate and work together with plants in facing the challenges of climate change and biodiversity loss.

Darryl is Director and co-founder of the innovative urban landscape organisation Cityscapes, realising creative approaches to greening city spaces through novel design ideas that ensure ecological, economic and social sustainability. He is a consultant at Beth Chatto’s Plants & Gardens, cocurator of thehub.earth and a tutor at KLC School of Design. He sits on the Society of Garden Designers Council, and is a fellow of the RSA. His most recent award was for the St Mungo’s Putting Down Roots Garden at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2022, showcasing sustainability and ecology in public places.

Green roof and brownfield gardening expert

John argues against long standing protocol within public space and horticulture. He suggests structural complexity is overlooked in landscape design and is more important than plant choice.

After 18 years caring for the green space on Clapton Park estate, Hackney, he produced a sustainable grounds maintenance contract that puts people first.

Since starting the grassroofcompany.co.uk in 1998, he has designed and built over 400 small green roof buildings, combining deep biodiverse green roofs with walls of breeding and hibernation space.

In 2007 John’s company was awarded Silver Gilt at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show for a garden based on the work they pioneer for the green spaces within social housing.

He questions our obsession with specifying topsoil in all new projects, especially on highways and new developments. Habitat trials at his home, Hilldrop Garden, include a garden designed with spoil from the local road widening scheme, industrial and construction waste.

In 2025 he started a not for profit to offer free training for gardeners, with the aim to put more modern gardeners into public spaces. carenotcapital.org

Wildlife Advocate for Beth Chatto Gardens

Chris Gibson is an all-round naturalist and passionate advocate for wildlife who spent more than 30 years in statutory nature conservation in Britain, mainly dealing with the delivery of sustainability into land use and development. This followed a PhD study of the ecology and biology of a plant now seen as key to the maintenance of many grasslands, Yellow Rattle Rhinanthus minor.

Since taking early retirement in 2016, Chris has become closely associated with the Beth Chatto Gardens, finally joining the team some four years ago.

He is a Trustee and Fellow of the British Naturalists’ Association, an organization that awarded him the David Bellamy Award for a naturalist of distinction in 2009. With a passion for nature, he spends most of his time trying to help others grow into the same passions, through guided walks and tours, photography, blogging and writing books: his latest, British and Irish Wild Flowers and Plants was published in 2024.

Labour MP for Colchester and academic

Pam Cox has represented Colchester as its Labour MP since 2024, becoming the constituency’s first Labour MP since 1945 and the first woman elected to represent the city in Parliament. A resident of Colchester for more than 20 years, she has built her career around public service, community development, and improving opportunities for local people. She has advised the Victims Commissioner, supported police and councils in tackling anti-social behaviour and violence against women, and helped develop services for vulnerable mothers.

Before entering politics, Cox studied history at Robinson College, Cambridge, completing a PhD on the history of girls’ delinquency in Britain. She went on to become Professor of Social History and Criminology at the University of Essex and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts in 2017.

Elected to Colchester City Council in 2021, Cox served as Portfolio Holder for Culture and Heritage, championing local culture, youth services, community gardens, and projects that strengthened Colchester’s identity while making the city more inclusive and sustainable.

One example of her local leadership was the idea to transform the long-abandoned site beside Firstsite, unused since 2012, into a “meanwhile garden.” Proposed by Councillor Pam Cox in 2023, the project brought together Beth Chatto’s, local businesses, community groups, and Essex County Council after no public funding was available. Beth Chatto’s secured a temporary licence for the site, with the understanding that it would revert to Essex County Council if needed in future.

As Colchester’s MP, Cox continues to focus on priorities including secure jobs, accessible healthcare, affordable housing, safer streets, protecting green spaces, and supporting projects that strengthen the city’s communities and heritage.