Judges said the gold award, the highest handed out at the 2015 show held on Wednesday 29 July, was given because of the feeling of stillness in the garden.
 
Miss Rudd started planning the garden in late summer 2014. “The idea was to achieve an environment for people who have suffered from meningitis, where they can sit and relax quietly among the flowers,” she said.
 
The design had to be submitted before January, so Miss Rudd, who runs a garden design business called Enchanting Gardens, spent many hours painstakingly drawing and redrawing the design using the selected plants.
 
These were ordered from Howard Nurseries and arrived in early March as small plugs, which were raised in a polytunnel.
 
Miss Rudd then began the search for large shrubs to fill the back of garden. At the Romantic Garden Nursery in Swannington, she spotted a silver birch jacquemontii multi-stem and then fell in love with a Cotinus coggygria “Young Lady” (smoke bush).
 
“The last shrub I bought was the Hydrangea arborescens ‘Annabelle’”, she continued. “These plants were all grown on in my polytunnel, hoping that they would flower in time for the show.
 
“As summer progressed so did my garden. It became a small nursery and the fencing around the plants got larger.
 
“However, at the end of June the weather turned increasingly hot and this is when it all got very worrying. The plants started to flower and the Cotinus had to be put in the shade.
 
“An awning was made to keep both the Cotinus and the Hydrangea dry from any rain. The fun had started.
 
“Two weeks before the show I had some help from Trish Hawley, who cleaned all the plants that were going to be used. By this time I’d had at least four crops that had over-flowered owing to the heat wave.
 
“A mini-panic had set in. I had to get more plants from Howard Nurseries to fill in some of the gaps in the garden.
 
“I looked at the long-term weather forecast; it didn’t look good for show week. I quickly ordered a gazebo with four sides, just in case.”
 
The time had come for transporting all the plants; this started on the Friday before the show and carried through to Tuesday afternoon. Miss Rudd officially made a start on her show garden at 8 am on the Saturday, with the hard landscaping done with help from her father and Geoff Deal.
 
“The Sunday was a different matter. It rained all day, tarpaulins were fixed over the garden and we had to go offsite to get more supplies,” she said. “All the delicate plants were put under the gazebo, and we went home, very soaked and cold.
 
“We were all back on the Monday to start planting the garden. We had to keep the tarpaulins on, which were fixed to the sides of the garden fence, as we couldn’t afford to have any plants damaged. And we were a little behind owing to the weather.
 
“Tuesday came; a big push was needed as during Monday night we had a lot of rain, the tarpaulin sank in the middle of the garden and water had to be bailed out, but no damage. Extra help came to get the planting finished by 7.30 pm.
 
“Wednesday morning was show day and I was up at 5 am putting the finishing touches to the garden. This was my worst time, not knowing what the judges were going to notice.
 
“We had to be at our show gardens no later than 8.30 am and we all waited with anticipation.
 
“The judges – TV gardening presenters Chris Beardshaw and Alan Mason – asked me a few questions about the garden as we walked and chatted along the path viewing the plants. They both said they felt the sense of stillness that surrounded them.
 
“After waiting for at least an hour, the crowds had gathered round looking at the garden. While I was talking to Alan Gray on Radio Norfolk, the certificates were given out to other show gardens. I didn’t know what to expect.
 
“When I was presented with the gold award I was ecstatic; I couldn’t believe it and I was in shock. When I saw my mum and told her the news, I burst into tears of joy.
 
“I was then told I was the only one of the seven gardens to have received a gold award and also Best in Show. Mustard TV came to see me; then a little later the EDP took some pictures.
 
“The presentation was at 2.30 pm in the marquee with Chris and Alan, when I received the certificate and the trophy for EDP for Best in Show.
 
“I was completely overwhelmed as it had been an emotional journey developing this garden. I had an amazing day I will never forget.
 
“Thanks to everyone who helped and contributed to this garden over the past year to make this possible.”
 
Dominique Rudd, Enchanting Gardens