Kate Middleton Plays on a Swing as She Previews Garden Design for Chelsea Flower Show

Karen Mizoguchi
Updated
Kate Middleton Plays on a Swing as She Previews Garden Design for Chelsea Flower Show

Kate Middleton is just days away from unveiling her showpiece creation for the annual Chelsea Flower Show!

On Saturday, three days before the opening, the royal mom of three, 37, shared four behind-the-scenes photos from the preparations on the Kensington Palace Instagram and Twitter pages.

“In recent years I have focused much of my work on the early years, and how instrumental they are for outcomes later in life,” Kate said in the caption. “I believe that spending time outdoors when we are young can play a role in laying the foundations for children to become happy, healthy adults.”

In one of the pictures, Kate, who was an art history major at the University of St. Andrews, can be seen playfully enjoying a swing seat that is placed under a tree house, which serves as the garden’s centerpiece.

The swing was included with hopes to encourage “creative play and discovery for all generations” while the woodland wilderness garden “aims to get people back to nature, and highlight the benefits of the natural world on our mental and physical wellbeing.”

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👀 We invite you to take a sneak peek at The Duchess of Cambridge’s #RHSChelsea ‘Back to Nature’ Garden! The woodland wilderness garden aims to get people back to nature, and highlight the benefits of the natural world on our mental and physical wellbeing. Speaking ahead of @The_RHS garden unveiling, The Duchess of Cambridge said: “In recent years I have focussed much of my work on the early years, and how instrumental they are for outcomes later in life. I believe that spending time outdoors when we are young can play a role in laying the foundations for children to become happy, healthy adults.” Some features of the #ChelseaFlowerShow garden include: 1. A swing seat hanging below the garden’s centrepiece, a high platform tree house, encouraging creative play and discovery for all generations. 2. The high platform tree house is inspired by a bird or animal nest and provides a wonderful place to retreat and look out through the trees. The treehouse is made from chestnut, with hazel, stag horn oak and larch nest cladding. 3/4. The garden is aiming to inspire interaction with the natural environment through its multi-sensory, green and blue plant scheme. The garden will be filled with incredible edibles, plants for craft activities, forest scents and a diverse range of plants, shrubs and trees of different heights and textures. The garden forms part of Her Royal Highness’s ongoing work on early childhood development and her mission to support efforts that give every child the best possible start in life. The Duchess has committed to making early childhood development the focus of her work in the years to come, and believes that providing children with the opportunity to spend time outdoors can play an important role.

A post shared by Kensington Palace (@kensingtonroyal) on May 18, 2019 at 2:31pm PDT

And other photos show Kate collaborating with her two co-designers, Andrée Davies, 55, and Adam White, 45, to complete the “Back to Nature”-themed garden, which is meant to be a fun place for families to experience a natural environment together and enjoy the relaxing benefits of nature.

Last Monday, the palace shared a glimpse into her artistic process in a series of photos in which Kate is shown collaborating with the designers on the project, which was a “passion” for her.

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Kate, who has taken on a very hands-on role to add inspiration and practical ideas for the garden, first revealed her unique plans in February.

“Over the past few months, The Duchess and landscape architects Davies White have visited plant nurseries, suppliers and specialist craftspeople who have been growing and building elements of the garden ready for Chelsea,” Kensington Palace said in a previous statement.

Kensington Royal/Instagram
Kensington Royal/Instagram

“The Duchess has worked with @the_rhs and Davies White to design and build the garden, to highlight how being active in nature can positively impact our physical and mental health. The garden has a natural woodland feel and contains lots of unique design features to inspire families to get outside and explore nature together,” the statement said.

Kate is known to regularly escape the bustle of London to enjoy the clean air and vibrant woods near her parents’ home in Bucklebury with Prince George and Princess Charlotte, so that the royal children can feel the dirt on their hands and the mud on their wellies — and in the future, little Prince Louis will join his siblings on their jaunts across the fields of Royal Berkshire, too.

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Chelsea Flower Show will take place Tuesday, May 21 through Saturday on the grounds of the Royal Hospital Chelsea in London.