As a team that deeply loves nature and the great outdoors, we get excited about all our projects. But when the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) contacted us about pumpkin sculpture, we were extra excited.
The RHS is a prestigious institution we admire greatly, and they asked if we could help them add a special layer of “orangey pumpkin fun” to their October half-term events. The brief? To bring our live carving expertise to all five of their iconic locations: Bridgewater, Harlow Carr, Hyde Hall, Rosemore, and Wisley.
To be asked to work with the RHS was a total privilege. To be asked to be at all five of their sites was a fantastic, logistical, and creative challenge that we couldn’t wait to sink our tools into.
🐞 The Brief: A Bespoke, Multi-Site Insect Invasion
It all starts with what the client needs. The RHS team was brilliant; they wanted a live pumpkin carving display at each location, but with a unique, educational twist. The designs wouldn’t just be spooky faces; they would be based on insects prominent at each specific garden.
This turned the project into a wonderful collaborative partnership. We spoke with the teams at each individual garden to discuss which insects they have and which would make the best inspiration for a large-scale sculpture.
This bespoke approach also came with a technical challenge: longevity. Each garden had different needs for how long the pumpkin sculpture had to last.
- For shorter display times, we could go all out with deep, fully-sculpted 3D details.
- For displays that needed to last longer, we would use a surface-level relief design, which doesn’t cut as deep into the pumpkin, protecting its integrity and ensuring it looks fresh for the needed time.
With the plans in place, our team packed their tools and set off on a grand pumpkin tour of the UK.
The Events: A Five-Garden Carving Chronicle
🐝 25th October – RHS Bridgewater: A Family Affair
Peter kicked off the tour at RHS Bridgewater. He said the atmosphere was brilliant, set up in a permanent marquee with paper flowers surrounding him and the wonderfully helpful RHS team. Peter’s task was to create a relief sculpture of a worker bee during the day.
His day was made all the more lovely however by his mum, sister, and brother-in-law coming along to see him in action. His mum fully embraced the event, involving herself by speaking to all the families who came in, explaining what Peter was doing, and making it a real family affair!
🐞 28th October – RHS Harlow Carr: Dave’s Happy Place
Next up, Dave headed to RHS Harlow Carr to carve a Forest Shield Bug.
He was set up in a prime spot right outside the library, which hosted various events throughout the day, guaranteeing a constant and frequent flow of curious visitors.
Dave reported that the day was incredibly busy, with loads of people stopping to engage with him and his sculpting. Anyone who knows Dave knows he is our biggest fan of insects, so this brief was, in his own words, his “happy place.”
🕷️ 29th October – RHS Hyde Hall: Braving the Elements
Peter and Dan teamed up for RHS Hyde Hall. Their brief was to create a Wolf Spider sculpture.
To make it more humorous and play with scale, they decided to sculpt the spider sitting on top of a human head—not particularly realistic in size, but a lot of fun!
They were initially set up in the prettiest garden setting, but unfortunately, the heavens opened and the rain came pouring down. As they were getting very soggy, a kind mother who was watching saw their predicament and alerted a member ofs staff. This was a huge help, as the team quickly got them relocated inside the food hall, where they could finish off the sculpture in the dry.
🦋 31st October – RHS Rosemore – A Giant Moth Sculpture (with a Peacock Audience!)
Dave was our man at RHS Rosemore for their live Halloween carve. He said he absolutely loved the location, describing it as “so pretty,” and he even had a peacock and a scarecrow there to keep him company!
He was placed inside a fun outdoor mud hut, protected from the elements. Here, Dave used five different-sized pumpkins to create the most exquisite Elephant Hawk Moth for the gardens.
🪲 30th October – 1st November – RHS Wisley: The Grand Finale
The biggest event was saved for last: a massive, three-day sculpture build at the flagship RHS Wisley. Peter and Dan headed down to create a spectacular sculpture of a Devil’s Coach Horse Beetle and a Black Clock Spider.
The Wisley team, considering the rainy forecast, had already prepared a new location, setting them up next to a building with a nice covering. This kept the sculpture and the team protected while staying perfectly visible.
The sculpture got “wows” immediately, as Peter had constructed the large framework before the event started. Over the three days, Peter and Dan meticulously worked, ultimately using 17 pumpkins of varying sizes to create the final piece. The more pumpkins they added, the bigger the “wows” got!
Peter led the carve while Dan assisted with construction. They sculpted a Devil’s Coach Horse Beetle, which is found at all RHS sites and has a scorpion-like curled tail (which, we learned, is just for show to ward off attackers!). On the other side of the mound was a Black Clock Spider, which is found at Wisley. To create a different tone and differentiate the insects, the Devil’s Coach Horse Beetle was left with its pumpkin skin on—a detail that really made it pop.
It was a wonderful three days, surrounded by other fun activities, including a man who brought in live insects for families to see, including spiders and beetles. A very appropriate neighbour for us!
We had the best time helping the RHS bring their gardens to an orangey fun glow with pumpkins this half-term and want to say a huge thank you to all the friendly and helpful teams at all five sites. We hope to be back!
