Hoses, rakes and ladders at Hampton Court Flower Show

The 150th anniversary celebrations of the London Fire Brigade continue  next week when they unveil their very own show garden at the world famous Royal Hampton Court Flower Show.

The Brigade’s entry, ‘Hoses, rakes and ladders,’ is the brainchild of green fingered Surbiton firefighter  Simon Jakeman. Simon  is the Brigade's official Green Champion  and has been at the forefront of promoting environmental work across the Service.

His  ‘fire and water’ themed garden has been in the planning since October and he is now getting ready to start putting the display together on site ahead of the first day of the show on Monday  4 July.

His entry will appear in the’ flower box’ category with a planting scheme representing blue lights, flames and the colours of the four Brigade watches -  green, blue red and white.

The garden also features red begonias, hanging baskets in the shape of fire helmets, trailing petunias and lobelias to reflect bubbling water, four white begonia ladders and a centre flower planter made from upcycled tyres representing  London Fire Brigade’s crest. All of this is topped off with a blue light and a real vintage fire engine as a backdrop.

Simon said: “I’m passionate about the environment and gardening, and exhibiting at Hampton Court has always been an ambition of mine. I wanted my entry to not only be a celebration of 150 years of London Fire Brigade but to reflect all the work we are doing to reduce our impact on the environment.”

London Fire Brigade’s new fire stations meet the highest environmental standards and are among the most energy efficient in the world. A number of the Brigade's sites generate  their own energy, with solar panels installed at 43 fire stations, solar heating at 15 fire stations, and combined heat and power at 37 fire stations.

London Fire Commissioner Ron Dobson said: “It’s a great honour to see the Brigade  represented at such a prestigious event as Hampton Court Flower Show.  Simon’s garden is a great way of celebrating our 150th anniversary and also a fantastic opportunity to showcase all the work we are doing to make London Fire Brigade the greenest and most sustainable fire and rescue service in the country. “