Our largest supply is going to the Trailfinders Australian Garden where Phillip Johnson is the talented designer on the job.  Phil has designed an innovative and sustainable garden that offers a relaxing and inviting ecosystem within an Australian urban environment.  To create his dream garden he has spent much time in the UK, with CED, sourcing the materials, please click here for full details.  Materials we’re supplying include 200 tonnes of gabbro boulders, 60 tonne of Scottish beach cobbles and pebbles, 20-30 tonne of Scottish sandstone walling, 40m2 of Cedagravel and 20m2 of reclaimed yorkstone flags.

The Telegraph Garden is the next garden we are supplying to with black basalt paving and bespoke pieces to create a water and landscape feature.  The design is intricate and lots of detail is required in the cutting of the stone.  Very careful and precise attention is to be made at the manufacturers to comply with the intricacy of the design and to allow the water to flow as intended.  The garden, designed by Christopher Bradley-Hole and being built by Crocus, is a contemporary and contemplative composition that takes inspiration from the making of the English landscape, the Japanese approach to garden design and modern abstract art.

We are supplying over 50m2 of sawn buff yorkstone paving to The Brewin Dolphin Garden, designed by Robert Myers and being built by Willerby Landscapes.  The design is inspired by sponsor Brewin Dolphin’s company ethos; bespoke and innovative, but firmly rooted in past traditions.  The natural yorkstone paving to which we are supplying, together with the planting, timber and water, will create a calm, reflective, private garden space with a simple geometric layout.

The Cloudy Bay Discovery Garden is another garden we’re supplying to.  Designed by Andrew Wilson and Gavin McWilliam and being built by Garden Link, the garden, much like the vineyard at the heart of its inspiration will be crisp, contemporary and clean.  It will appear simple and relaxed but the hard landscaping features in particular require sophisticated levels of engineering in order to appear effortless.  We are supplying gabbro boulders, which Andrew, Gavin and Dan Flynn (of Garden Link) personally selected at the CED South East depot.  We are also supplying golden amber limestone, which is normally used as a footpath gravel, but for this garden it is being used for the rammed earth walls.

Donegal quartzite crazy paving is being delivered to The Wasteland Garden, designed by Kate Gould and being built by her team of landscapers.  The paving is among many ‘old’ materials to which Kate is giving a new lease of life through being re-worked into a modern garden that is designed for communal use.  The garden offers a sense of privacy; there are spaces to sit and relax under the canopy of trees, enveloped by small shrubs and pretty perennials, with the sound of water in the background.

The Sound of Silence garden uses silver grey granite aggregate edged with silver grey granite kerb.  Designed by Fernando Gonzalez and built by Solid Surfaces Northwest Ltd, this garden enters in the Fresh Gardens category and is inspired by the austerity of Zen Japanese gardens while using the latest technologies and materials available.

BALI is exhibiting this year on stand FR36 in the Fresh area of the show.  The beautiful contemporary stand cum garden, designed by Charlotte Murrell, showcases the design and construction expertise of BALI members.  All plants and products being used are kindly being donated by the affiliate members.  Our contribution includes black Limestone paving and thin slate Tier panel walling.

We wish each and every garden the very best of luck.  CED have proudly been supplying a huge variety of materials to the Chelsea show gardens throughout our many years of trading and we are excited to see what this centenary show brings.

The garden came from an idea Tom created whilst held hostage by gun-toting guerrillas and threatened with execution.  It was during this life-threatening situation that Tom’s mind started to wander.  Allowing him to distract himself from the bizarre place in which he found himself, an idea to create a World Garden in the grounds of his family home in Kent started to take shape.  Thankfully, nine months into his ordeal Tom was released and upon his return home the design he had created was put into motion.

The garden contains plants collected from across the globe, planted out in their respective countries of origin.  CED supplied 350 tonne of rockery and stone to the garden during the build for use as boundaries and edging for each representative continent/country.  For example Yorkstone was used for Africa, Harlequin and Firebird Gneiss were used for parts of Asia and a range of Marble, Limestone and Porphyry was used for Europe.  Cedec Silver was laid in between these defined areas to represent the seas and oceans of the World as well as creating a firm and porous walking area for visitors.

It was an extremely cold day to visit and it followed the very harsh months that 2013 has had so far, therefore the plants were not at their best.  Luckily, natural stone does not need sunshine and warm weather to look alive.  It is at its best come rain or shine and it was noted that all the stone used on this unique project was weathering very nicely, collecting mosses and lichens which add age and character.  With the weather forecast looking promising for the upcoming weeks and the temperature getting back to a normal degree, it will be great to visit again in a couple of months to see all the planting come to life.

The garden, having been established for 8 years now, still continues to grow and build year on year.  Open to the public until September, it’s highly recommended that you visit.  Please click here to visit the castle’s website for opening times and prices.

The team is planning to go ‘off the grid’ with Phil’s Chelsea debut and an innovative and sustainable landscape, designed to create a relaxing and inviting ecosystem within an Australian urban environment.  The garden will be entirely reliant for energy on solar panels, while water will be taken and filtered from surrounding sites.  All plants and stone being used have been sourced locally, or are reclaimed, as much as possible.

CED Natural Stone are extremely pleased to be the main supplier to the Trailfinders Australian Garden, presented by Flemings.  Supplying approximately 200 tonne of Gabbro Boulders, 60 tonne of Scottish Beach Cobbles and Pebbles, 20-30 tonne of Scottish Sandstone Walling, 40m2 Cedagravel and 20m2 of Reclaimed Yorkstone Flags.

It was in the early part of 2012 that Phil was introduced to CED through Flemings, when they were currently working on their 2012 garden for Chelsea.  On seeing Phil’s design it was clear he was thinking big…..very big and so he returned to Australia leaving his ‘shopping list’ with CED who began the task of sourcing the stone to make his dream garden a reality. It was then in October of 2012 that Phil made his trip to Scotland, with two trusted colleagues David Long and Steven Weber.  Along with CED’s Divisional Director Gary Ewing, they travelled the length and breadth of Scotland to select the ideal stone for every position of the garden and brought them back to CED’s Scottish depot in Castlecary for the mock build.  They then spent solid days and nights building the garden and carefully placing the boulders and  recording their positions ready for the actual build up in May of 2013 at Chelsea.  Gary commented “I had no idea what this would entail, but what unfolded was in fact one of the best fortnights I have spent in the industry.  Working literally from dawn to dusk, 7 days a week, Scotland and Australia worked as one unit to create Phil’s vision.”

It was such a successful trip, not just for Phil, but for the staff at CED Castlecary as well, as they were able to witness first hand, the hard work and time involved in creating a garden worthy of the 100-year centenary Chelsea Flower Show.

Please click here to view the time lapse video of the build up in Scotland.

While the Royal Horticulture Society (RHS) did originally accept Phil’s design concept they interestingly asked for a redesign and expansion to enable the garden to be located on what is the highest profile site of the show, to accommodate the scope and impact of the design.  The garden is truly going to be something that Chelsea has never seen before and CED offer their full support to Flemings, Phil and the team in winning gold and accomplishing all they set out to achieve.

Please click here to watch Phil’s interview where he talks about his design and passion for the garden.

Gary went on to say “I have been involved in this industry for over 15 years now and I have met many interesting and knowledgeable people, working on wonderful and innovative projects.  Nothing however prepared me for my first meeting with Phillip Johnson.  Phil is an inspirational character who, to my mind, is best described as a cross between David Bellamy and that loveable Tasmanian devil, Taz.  Landscapes can achieve many things, and on this occasion it has brought two continents together and created life long friendships.  I can’t wait to see the guys again and wish Phil and his team a big GOOD LUCK for the show.”

There is no need to download an App or click through from the main website, simply just go to www.ced.ltd.uk and it will automatically connect you to the appropriate version for your device.

CED’s Marketing Director, Ian Devenish, commented, “With most of our customers spending the majority of their working days on site, we are very pleased to have got this up and running for 2013 and hope it proves to be a useful tool.”

Lewisham Council have received just over £1.5 million from the Mayor of London’s Outer London Fund to make improvements to Deptford High Street and Deptford Market.  The council is also contributing an additional £600,000 towards the scheme.  One of the main aims of the projects is to re-lay the road and pavements creating a shared surface, to address various issues including drainage and improving accessibility.

The order CED have received is to supply 30 containers of Granite Paving, Setts and Kerb to Maylim Construction.  Deliveries to site are planned to start in late April and work will begin straight away.  The architects on the job are BDP.

The second job CED are pleased to have won is the supply of Black Basalt Channels and specially produced Black Basalt split sided Setts to Oxford Brooke University.  The order comprises of nearly 40 containers of material with the first 20 due for delivery to site in May.  Vetter UK are the contractors on site and Ed Phillips from Land Use Consultants is the designer.

And finally, the third job CED have recently won is the supply of over 1400m2 of Granite and Basalt Paving to the Imperial Wharf Boulevard.  The Imperial Wharf is an exclusive residential development in the heart of Fulham.  Also included in the order is Black Basalt Cladding and a special water feature, also produced in Black Basalt.  McArdle are the contractors on site and are expected to begin work mid-May.

Tier® is a successful panel walling product that CED stock throughout their 5 nationwide depots.  The simple, yet clever ‘Z’ formation of the panels allows each one to interlock immaculately together with the next, leaving no visible joint and creating a stunning and distinctive natural stone wall.

The show, which took over the Kings Hall in Belfast from 15th to 17th Feb, was the perfect place to launch the new contemporary Tier® range.  There are four contemporary products; Ivory, Charcoal, White and Ochre.  Each offers a modern and smart walling option for both internal and external applications.  Also on display was the ever popular Cedagravel®.

This self build exhibition brings together the best in self build suppliers and is a must-visit for those who are planning to build or renovate a home.  Brian Doran, CED’s Business Development Manager, manned the stand over the three days and is extremely pleased with the numerous enquiries and interest made.  The stand was busy and full of prospective customers each day.  Brian commented, “This years show was a great success and the interest in Tier stone panel systems, especially the new contemporary range, was exceptional.  Over the weekend I spoke to hundreds of architects, builders and self-builders who expressed that quality, innovation, style and value for money were always top of the list of building material requirements – all attributes that our Tier products have in abundance.”

SuperCedec® uses Cedec® as the base material with natural and organic additives to produce a firm surface that is resistant to scuffing and being kicked around.

The permeable nature of this exciting new product combined with its stable structure makes SuperCedec® ideally suited for use in urban tree pits and footpaths.

CED have trialed and tested SuperCedec® over the past two years and the results have led to the product being supplied for use in projects across the UK.  SuperCedec® Red  was chosen by Robert Myers Associates, for use as the surface for two extensive tree pits with quite heavy pedestrian usage at Hereford Cathedral.  The standard Cedec® was also used for less sensitive areas around the Cathedral, which has resulted in a pleasing, overall uniform appearance.

Robert Myers commented, “We specified red SuperCEDEC for the informal seating areas beneath mature trees in the Close at Hereford Cathedral, where a firm but permeable surface was required.  The material has withstood heavy use and has held its shape well; it has formed a natural looking, hard wearing, porous surface that appears entirely at home in its historic surroundings.”

SuperCedec® Gold was more recently chosen to be laid at a medical centre in Hull.  This came about after the design architects expressed their concern about the new tree line and a suitable pathway material that would allow for access along the trees and give free drainage.  SuperCedec® was the solution.

• SUDS Compliant
• Hard Wearing
• pH Neutral
• Porous
• Firm Surface
• Natural Appearance
• Easy Installation

Although SuperCedec® has been designed for pedestrian application, occasional use by emergency vehicles, cars, lorries or maintenance equipment will not cause any significant damage, providing the laying instructions have been adhered to.  In order to function effectively SuperCedec® needs to be rained and walked upon, and it will also function undercover if watered.  For a copy of the laying instructions and maintenance advice please click here.

Available in three colours; gold, red and silver, SuperCedec® is stocked throughout CED’s nationwide depots.  For prices and further info please contact your local depot.

Pink grey granite paving has been chosen for the patio areas in the Woodland Lodges, Executive Villas and the Executive Lodges.  The paving is now in production with the first deliveries scheduled for January and the balance to follow over the course of 2013.

CED have successfully supplied this pink grey granite paving to all of the other Center Parcs sites, across the county in the past, and are extremely pleased this product has been chosen again.

ISG have secured the main contract to build the accommodation element across the 365 acre site in Bedfordshire, with Hiretest being sub-contracted to install the patio areas.  This will be the 5th UK village in the Center Parcs chain and it is scheduled to open in the Spring of 2014.

CED were pleased to sponsor the International Awards category where the principal award winner was Beijing Tsinghua Urban Planning & Design Institute.  CED’s Director, Giles Heap, presented the award to the worthy winners whose scheme has restored a 2km stretch of polluted land and waterways in a dynamic urban centre.

CED would like to congratulate all of the winners and hope to continue in supplying future projects with natural stone.  They would also like to acknowledge the hard work, of BALI and Horticulture Week, that went into creating this dazzling event.  It was a thoroughly enjoyable day and it provides a great opportunity for the industry to come together, to network and to be inspired.  Giles Heap commented, “With such varied entries and the level of expertise and professionalism showcased, it makes us proud to be part of this association of highly skilled designers, contractors and suppliers.”

Supplied projects:

• Water Gems (Alba)
• Category: Domestic garden construction costing £30,000 to £60,000
• Products Supplied: Buff sandstone paving
• Designer: Carolynn Grohmann of Secret Gardens

• Gavin Jones
• Category: Domestic garden construction costing £100,000 to £250,000
• Products Supplied: Pink sandtone paving, riven sandstone setts (a mix of beige, green and pink), sea flint, flat grey pebbles and scottish beach cobbles
• Designer: Arlette Garcia.

• Robert Field Landscapes
• Category: Domestic garden construction costing £100,000 to £250,000
• Products Supplied: Buff sandstone paving and yellow quartz paddlestone walling
• Designer: John Nash Associates

• The Garden Company
• Category: Domestic garden construction costing £100,000 to £250,000
• Products Supplied: Black basalt paving and black quartz paddlestone walling
• Designer: Julie Toll

• Kings Landscapes (Milton Keynes)
• Category: Domestic garden construction costing over £250,000
• Products Supplied: Buff sandstone paving
• Designer: Wilson McWilliam Studio

• Frosts Landscapes
• Category: Hard landscaping construction costing over £1.5million
• Project: Jubilee Gardens
• Products Supplied: Silver Grey Granite Setts, Seating & Walling
• Designer: West 8 Urban Design and Landscape Architecture

It includes a link to Urban Design London which holds a document they have written in conjunction with us that will be updated on a regular basis.  The document will act as general guidance that architects, councils and any other interested parties can be pointed towards when using setts in the carriageway, to try to help them understand some of the issues that may arise and how to get round them.

Here at CED we have been trying for many years to share our knowledge with clients and now having this formal document, written by an accredited organisation, will only help us in spreading the knowledge and will also help to reduce the number of schemes that end up being not quite what they should be.

If you have any questions or would like to discuss this topic further please contact us (01708 867237).