Pocket woodlands are the secret to transforming shady garden corners – these are the easy planting tricks I learned from an RHS Chelsea garden designer

Woodland Trust: Forgotten Forests Garden at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2026.

Here’s something I didn’t expect to learn at the 2026 RHS Chelsea Flower Show: how to create a pocket woodland in my back garden.

There were plenty of brilliant ideas and garden trends at this year’s RHS Chelsea, but one of my favourites was the miniature ancient woodland in The Woodland Trust: Forgotten Forests Garden. The All About Plants garden celebrates the Woodland Trust’s restoration of the UK’s ancient woods, and how they can emerge after non-native conifer plantations are removed. The Garden is just eight by six metres in size, highlighting that you can create a small pocket woodland at home.