Happy days in the heat: Climate-resistant plants from Africa will thrive as the thermometer rises READ MORE: Use pink roses, pastel blooms and secret spaces for a romantic retreat By Ciar Byrne For The Daily Mail Published: 16:02 EDT, 30 June 2024 | Updated: 16:02 EDT, 30 June 2024 e-mail View comments Finally, it’s getting hot out there and, fittingly, top designer Juliet Sargeant has created an African savannah-inspired garden, containing plenty of ideas for climate-resistant planting in Britain. Her efforts can be seen at next week’s RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival in celebration of the 20th anniversary of the West End production of Disney’s The Lion King. Sargeant’s design is based around a ‘boma’, an enclosure used in south and east Africa to protect livestock from lions and as a community meeting place.
This will be used for live performances at the show, which runs from July 2 to 7. When it comes to planting trees, Sargeant says: ‘I want people to think about the fact that if you’re planting a tree that’s going to live 20 to 50 years, it needs to be resilient to a changing climate.’ She recommends the honey locust, Gleditsia triacanthos ‘Skyline’, which has a light feathery canopy.
Bright stars: Echinaceas are drought tolerant and bring colour to the garden Another drought-tolerant tree is Zelkova serrata, the Japanese Zelkova, with grey bark and green elm-like leaves. A TASTE OF AFRICA There are not many shrubs in Sargeant’s gar.