About Melanie Hick, artistic biodiversity garden designer
Award-winning garden designer based in Forest Hill, London, working across the UK and internationally
Melanie Hick Garden Design creates naturalistic gardens for clients who want life-filled spaces that resonate with the people enjoying them. Based in Forest Hill, London, the practice works across the UK and internationally, serving discerning property owners, developers and architects who value creativity, ecological integrity and refined design.
I work with a network of designers, landscape architects, ecologists, 3D artists and drafting specialists.
My approach combines biodiversity gain with artistic habitat design, establishing plant communities that make enriched habitats while connecting with the people who enjoy them.
Each project begins with deep understanding: of you, the site, its soil ecology, hydrology, existing vegetation, microclimate and culture. I bring culture and connection to every garden, with expertise in storytelling and art sourcing.
My studio is for you if you have a home garden, are developing properties with gardens, or are a firm that needs a design partner inside or consulting to your business.
The story of me
I was born into gardens. I grew up on large properties in Victoria, Australia, watching how eucalyptus woodland, perennial planting and farmland worked together across large sites, and that sense of landscape has shaped my work ever since.
Before garden design, I spent two decades in media as a fashion journalist, head of content and editor-in-chief, working with brands including MTV, HuffPost and Net-a-Porter. Editing taught me to listen closely, find the story and see a complex project through to the last detail, and that’s exactly how I approach a garden. But the small white offices of the city began to feel oppressive.
I trained in garden design at Capel Manor College, where I gained Level 3 certificates in garden design and in plants and planting. When lockdown arrived in 2020, people began asking me to design their gardens, and I founded my studio in 2021. In 2024 my first show garden, the Climate-Forward Garden, won a Silver-Gilt medal at RHS Hampton Court. In 2026 my Nocturnal Garden for the Bat Conservation Trust won the People’s Choice Award at RHS Chelsea.
My vision is simple: more life in gardens. I want people to connect with the outdoors and with each other, and to thrive offline among plants and wildlife. Today I bring that editor’s eye to gardens, helping every client tell the story of who they are, outdoors.
For private garden owners
When you feel limited by what you’ve seen and want more from your garden design, I’m the right partner to make your garden dreams reality.
Wildlife for wild hearts, rose bowers for dreamers and retreats for wanderers are my gold dust.
Whether your mature grounds need ecological enhancement or your cosy urban property needs to feel magic, I add resonance and a sense of connection through my design approach.
My process typically spans 12 weeks to 24 months from initial consultation to completion, with ongoing adaptive management guidance. I collaborate closely with estate managers, land stewards and specialist contractors to make sure ecological objectives are achieved alongside design aspirations.
Private garden projects often include:
Comprehensive masterplanning and phased implementation
Storytelling and art to interpret and communicate your project
Complete garden design
Water management design
Formal garden elements within naturalistic settings
I’ll be with you at every step, from your first call to the day your gardener takes over.
“Melanie has a superb eye for landscape. With plants, she comfortably handles texture, colour and shape across the seasons and in different settings.”
Emma Whitten
For the landscape and property industries
Melanie Hick Garden Design plugs directly into your studio or business, charity or site, adding a consultancy service to your landscape and development projects, such as projects with bat-focused planning conditions or BNG designs that need soul and culture.
I add resonance, artistry and garden design to your BNG, Urban Greening and Green Space Factor projects, working with and for you as your remote creative partner, with site visits where needed.
You get my professionalism and expertise in designing plant communities and habitats, plus my experience of co-design with engaged end users and artists such as sculptors and storytellers.
A project with within the landscape or property industry could look like:
Storytelling, art commissions and creative habitat for belonging and resonance
Planting design that lifts BNG delivery to a resonant standard
Gardens for emotional wellbeing
Reclaimed, antique and creative material sourcing
Pitching and presenting with you
Projects are priced individually.
“She gets how incredible a finished project can be when we take the time to come together and plan for how the indoor and outdoor spaces interact.”
Sarah Eagle, interior designerWhat’s the difference between a Design Consultation and a full Garden Design?
| What's included | Garden designFrom £3,750 | Design consultation£185 |
|---|---|---|
| One-hour remote call | Included | Included |
| Understand what landscaping investments look like | Included | Included |
| Clarify your own personal style | Included | Included |
| Understand what's achievable with your wishlist, timeframe and budget | Included | Included |
| Learn where and when you need to make decisions | Included | Included |
| Expert guidance on your site's challenges | Included | Included |
| A report summing up our call, to help you transform your garden on your own | Not included | Included |
| In-person, deep listening brief, with a return brief including expert insight | Included | Not included |
| A step-through of my artistic biodiversity approach | Included | Not included |
| Liaison with architects, builders and interior designers | Included | Not included |
| Commissioning site surveys | Included | Not included |
| Introductions to planning consultants, ecologists and other professionals | Included | Not included |
| Developing the story of you in your garden | Included | Not included |
| Concept design plans, moodboards and renders | Included | Not included |
| Technical design drawings and documents, which landscapers need to build from | Included | Not included |
| Tender management | Included | Not included |
| Build oversight | Included | Not included |
| Sourcing and buying your plants, and overseeing planting | Included | Not included |
| Sourcing special features: art, sculpture, paving, planters and storytelling | Included | Not included |
| Recruiting a gardener to care for your garden as it grows | Included | Not included |
| Let's chat | Book a consultation |
Values and standards
Melanie Hick Garden Design operates to the highest environmental standards, working towards UN Race to Zero principles and aligning with the UN Sustainable Development Goals. I use standards such as Elemental, BNG calculators, small sites urban greening and London Plan guidelines.
I’m BALI registered and a pre-registered member of the Society of Garden Designers, both of which hold members to a professional code of conduct.
An MHGD garden project draws on the following ten principles, based on RHS wellbeing garden standards, my personal philosophy and approach to resilience.
The 10 guiding Melanie Hick Garden Design principles
Belonging, sense of place, stewardship
Climate resilience for a robust future
Accessible ways in to the garden
Discovery and play to connect with nature and each other
Emotional wellness for rest, grounding and resonance
Spatial organisation: the pleasing outcome of good design
Cultural meaning with art, storytelling and artefacts
Species-specific habitat to measure our effectiveness
Reclaimed and low carbon materials
Retain high value existing trees and links to history
Melanie Hick Garden Design at a glance
Who is Melanie Hick?
Melanie Hick, is a garden designer and founder of Melanie Hick Garden Design
Melanies background
Two decades in media as a fashion journalist, head of content and editor-in-chief at brands including MTV, HuffPost and Net-a-Porter, before founding the studio in 2021
Where is Melanie Hick based?
Forest Hill, London SE23
What areas does Melanie Hick cover?
South East London, Bromley, South Wales, the wider UK and internationally
What specialisms does Melanie have?
wildlife and bat-friendly garden design, naturalistic planting, habitat design, climate-resilient gardens, storytelling and art commissions
What Awards does Melanie Hick have?
RHS Chelsea 2026 People’s Choice Award and Silver Medal; RHS Hampton Court 2024 Silver-Gilt Medal; shortlisted, Pro Landscaper Sustainability & Biodiversity Awards 2024; Best of Houzz 2022 to 2024
What memberships does Melanie have?
BALI registered; Society of Garden Designers pre-registered member
How much does Melanie Hick charge?
free 15-minute call; £185 design consultation; full designs from £3,750, all including VAT. View full breakdown here.
Reviews of Melanie Hick
5.0 from 21 reviews on Google and Houzz
Melanie Hick - In The Press
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Gardens Illustrated
17 garden design ideas to steal from this year's Chelsea Flower Show. People's Choice awards announced at Chelsea Flower Show 2026. Alice Tuffery, Molly Blair, Veronica Peerless
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BBC Chelsea Flower Show TV
The Nocturnal Garden features in several episodes of the BBC’s coverage of the 2026 Chelsea Flower Show.
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The Times
Ann TRENEMAN. 3 April 2026 Inside the new Chelsea bat garden — and how to make yours bat-friendly
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Channel 4 news
Melanie was interviewed by Ruben Reuter for Channel 4 news.
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Gardenista
Gardens Are For People (And Bats): A Memorable Chelsea Flower Show Garden. Kendra Wilson May 21, 2026
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The English Garden
40 Must-See Moments at the Chelsea Flower Show 2026. We highlight the designers to watch and the beautiful gardens, plants and products to keep an eye out for at the world-famous show. Clare Foggett and Vivienne Hambly. 13 May 2026
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Country Living
Lisa Joyner spotted the oxeye daisies in the planting in the Nocturnal Garden at the Chelsea Flower Show.
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New Scientist
Dr Penny Sarchet. How to attract bats to your garden.
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BBC Radio Wales
Visit the Bat Conservation Trust’s Nocturnal Garden from the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2026 in its relocation site the Clydach Community Gardens this summer.
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The Independent
Expert reveals how to attract bats into your garden – and why they are so important. How to attract bats into your garden. Next year’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show will feature a garden demonstrating how to support bats.
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The Times
Bat-friendly gardens are powerhouse for diversity, charity says Melanie Hick, whose work will be featured in the next RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2026, will create a ‘nocturnal garden’ for the Bat Conservation Trust.
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The Telegraph
How gardening became young, hip and urban. Melanie has long loved growing her own food and is inspired by the gardener behind New York’s High Line, Piet Oudolf – before she got a vegetable patch, she squeezed in raspberries, tomatoes, courgettes and more into the tiny front garden of a Victorian terraced house.
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Houzz
How to Make Your Lawn More Wildlife-friendly and Sustainable. “The easy way to add more interest and species to your lawn is to inject plugs of endemic wild plants,” Melanie Hick says.
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Ideal Home
Zen garden ideas to create a calming and tranquil landscape. 'A wide range of studies show that meditation can have positive effects for everyone' says Melanie Hick. 'Make sure you create at least a small place to sit and reflect, perhaps surrounded by bamboo, with a view of a water feature.'
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Houzz
How to lay out a short, wide garden. “I managed to fit a patio and over-sized pergola with swings [pictured] into a short, wide garden, because a pergola takes up no space and swings are merely an additional seating option, not a space-stealer,” Melanie says.
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The Times
How to give your front door a spring makeover. “Updating your front door is a quick and easy way to increase kerb appeal and put a smile on your face when you come home,” agrees the garden designer Melanie Hick. “Easy wins include jet-washing dirty paths and brickwork, then replacing unsuitable plants. Any old door can have an instant update with exterior wood paint from Mylands.”
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Country Living
By Jayne Dowle published: 23 June 2024
One of the stars of the ‘Climate-Forward Garden’ is the Eucalyptus Mount Bogong, specifically chosen as a perfect example of a small eucalyptus to grow in UK gardens.
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Prolandscaper
16 Highlights of RHS Hampton Court press day by Nina Mason 02 Jul 24
There’s a range of ideas on display for gardens that are both beautiful and sustainable, from Australian designer Melanie Hick’s The Climate-Forward Garden – which encourages people to think about climate decisions in the planning stage rather than retrospectively.
About Melanie Hick
Melanie Hick is an award-winning garden designer based in Forest Hill, South East London, and founder of Melanie Hick Garden Design. Before founding her studio in 2021, she spent two decades in media as a fashion journalist, head of content and editor-in-chief at brands including MTV, HuffPost and Net-a-Porter. Her Nocturnal Garden for the Bat Conservation Trust won the People’s Choice Award at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2026, and her Climate-Forward Garden won a Silver-Gilt medal at RHS Hampton Court 2024.