Since the late nineteenth century the North American prairies have provided British gardens with a rich source of late summer and autumn flowering herbaceous plants. These grassland communities full of Asters, Rudbeckias, Solidago species and Helianthus were the starting point for the design. Only small fragments of prairie remain in the wild, and this garden celebrates the astonishing value of prairie plants, for their late supply of pollen and nectar and for their spectacular display. I designed the plantings of the North American garden in collaboration with Professor James Hitchmough of Sheffield University.