John Claudius Loudon - father of the English garden - His legacy

His legacy

Today there are only a few surviving gardens designed by Loudon in their original form. However his main contribution was that he truly took gardening to the masses. ‘He made (garden) owners realise what was possible – what they might aspire to and how it might be achieved’.[19]

His predecessors had largely confined their attention to large estates, but Loudon tried to ensure that everyone had the chance to enjoy plants and a pleasant environment. He promoted horticulture in smaller (usually suburban) gardens and provided public parks and ‘green belts’ around large cities. Through the development of his ‘gardenesque’ style and his improvements to the design of greenhouse, Loudon helped encourage the diversity of plant material within gardens that continues today.