{"id":1047746,"date":"2026-06-24T20:27:30","date_gmt":"2026-06-24T20:27:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1047746\/"},"modified":"2026-06-24T20:27:30","modified_gmt":"2026-06-24T20:27:30","slug":"award-winning-garden-opens-in-edinburgh-after-community-campaign","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/1047746\/","title":{"rendered":"Award-winning garden opens in Edinburgh after community campaign"},"content":{"rendered":"

AN\u00a0award-winning garden<\/a>\u00a0has opened permanently in Edinburgh after a community fundraising drive brought it home from a flower show in Yorkshire.<\/p>\n

Drakkar\u2019s Drift, created by Leith resident Luke Coleman, was formally unveiled at\u00a0Victoria Park<\/a>\u00a0on Sunday by Councillor Margaret Graham, the council\u2019s Culture and Communities convener, and\u00a0Sanne Dijkstra-Downie<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 the Liberal democrat MSP for the area.<\/p>\n

The garden swept the boards at the\u00a0RHS Flower Show Wentworth Woodhouse<\/a>\u00a0last July, winning a Gold Medal, the RHS Young Designer of the Year title, the People\u2019s Choice Award and Best Construction. All of this in Coleman\u2019s debut as a show garden designer.<\/p>\n

Inspired by the basalt columns of Fingal\u2019s Cave on the island of Staffa, the garden celebrates Scotland\u2019s historic ties with Scandinavia by blending Nordic wellness traditions with Highland elements. Its name draws on the Norse word for the dragon-headed Viking longship.<\/p>\n

\"LukeLuke Coleman (second from left), Councillor Margaret Graham (centre), and Sanne Dijkstra-Downie MSP (second from left) cut the ribbon on Drakkar\u2019s Drift \u00a9 Tom Duffin<\/p>\n

After the show, a community fundraising campaign was launched to bring the garden to Edinburgh permanently.<\/p>\n

The two disused bowling greens at Victoria Park had been returned to the council by Edinburgh Leisure in 2023, with the site chosen following local consultation in which residents expressed a desire for sensory planting.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe name Drakkar\u2019s Drift comes from the Norse word for the dragon-headed Viking longship \u00a9 Tom Duffin<\/p>\n

Luke Coleman said: \u201cWinning at the RHS was a dream come true, but seeing Drakkars Drift find a permanent home in Victoria Park is even more rewarding.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe garden was always intended to connect people with nature, and it\u2019s been incredible to see volunteers, schools and the local community come together to help bring that vision to life.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Drakkar'sDrakkar\u2019s Drift celebrates Scotland\u2019s ties with Scandinavia \u00a9 Tom Duffin<\/p>\n

The original show garden design has since been adapted and expanded, with particular attention paid to texture, movement, colour, scent and sound. Features include accessible pathways, seating areas, mature trees, wildlife habitats and sculptural elements.<\/p>\n

A neighbouring bowling green is also being transformed into a community croft by Earth in Common, forming part of the council\u2019s wider programme to bring disused bowling greens back into community use.<\/p>\n

\"\"\u00a9 Tom Duffin<\/p>\n

Councillor Margaret Graham, Convener of the Culture and Communities Committee, said: \u201cI\u2019m delighted that Drakkar\u2019s Drift has found its permanent home here in Edinburgh alongside the fantastic work being undertaken by Earth in Common.<\/p>\n

\"\"\u00a9 Tom Duffin<\/p>\n

\u201cThis project perfectly demonstrates how underused spaces can be transformed into something truly special for local communities.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat began as an award-winning show garden has evolved into a beautiful and accessible community asset that will be enjoyed for many years to come.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy thanks go to Luke and the volunteers who gave their time and creativity to bring it to life.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"\u00a9 Tom Duffin<\/p>\n

Further improvements are planned, including a braille map and additional accessibility features, with fundraising continuing to support the work.<\/p>\n

\"\"Children have already been enjoying the new garden \u00a9 Tom Duffin<\/p>\n

\"\"\u00a9 Tom Duffin<\/p>\n

\"\"\u00a9 Tom Duffin<\/p>\n

\n\tRelated<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"AN\u00a0award-winning garden\u00a0has opened permanently in Edinburgh after a community fundraising drive brought it home from a flower show…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1047747,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[8816],"tags":[748,30441,1102,37802,288036,13537,4884,53758,712,16,15,2302],"class_list":["post-1047746","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-edinburgh","tag-britain","tag-city-of-edinburgh-council","tag-edinburgh","tag-edinburgh-council","tag-florist","tag-garden","tag-great-britain","tag-leith","tag-scotland","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-yorkshire"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/116806973797367610","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1047746","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1047746"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1047746\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1047747"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1047746"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1047746"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1047746"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}