The Royal Parks commissioned HTA Design to create a garden that serves as a lasting tribute to Queen Elizabeth II, celebrating her remarkable service and lifelong love of nature.

The Queen Elizabeth II Garden in Regent’s Park is a radical exemplar of sustainability and resilience, transforming a two acre former store yard into a biodiverse, climate-adaptive public landscape. Opening a previously inaccessible part of the park, the design pays tribute to the late Queen by referencing her life through structural symbolism and curated planting.

The design embodies a stand-out innovative approach, drawing inspiration from Her Majesty’s cherished gardens and personal preferences. A formal promenade, tapered to create a sense of perspective, embodies her lifelong commitment to service, while a serene terrazzo path gently meanders through the garden, reflecting the changing chapters of her personal life.

A pergola, with its 56 uprights, stands as a monument to the unity of the Commonwealth. The repurposed water tower acts as a focal point, featuring decorative metalwork forged by artists from the four home nations in collaboration with The King’s Foundation.

Changes in topography frame and reveal views as the garden unfolds, creating varied microclimates for plants and wildlife. To the north, flowering meadows with large drifts of bulbs, merge seamlessly with the wider park. The garden is designed for universal access, ensuring paths with gentle gradients and generous widths welcome all visitors, including those using wheelchairs and buggies.

From the outset, the design team pursued a radical circular economy approach. Rather than importing materials or disposing of demolition waste, we worked with soil scientists to create entirely new growing mediums from crushed concrete foundations mixed with quarry overburden. Thames gravel from greenhouse floors was reused in bespoke terrazzo paths, while steel salvaged from greenhouse frames was repurposed in the pergola and tower balcony.

The resulting low-fertility soils informed the planting strategy, led by Dr. Noel Kingsbury, which features droughttolerant, intermingled species. This approach creates plant communities resilient to extreme weather, requiring less maintenance, and creating open mosaic habitats crucial for diverse insect populations.

“Something special is coming and it is looking absolutely fantastic.” - Monty Don, Gardener’s World Special