2009 APL Award Winners, sponsored by Bradstone

The Gardenmakers Announced Supreme Winner At The APL Awards 2009, sponsored by Bradstone

Supreme Winner - The Gardenmakers

The Gardenmakers is the winning contractor in the over £50,000 category and the supreme winner of the Association of Professional Landscapers 2009 Awards. Their work on a major Warwickshire house and garden renovation won the top accolade at this year’s awards.

APL Vice chairman and chair of the judging panel, Mark Gregory, commented “I was very pleased to see the continued high quality of work that is being entered. It is also fantastic to have the new Young Achiever Award now so that we can recognise some of the newest talent in the industry. Many congratulations to Will Dann from Frogheath Landscapes – the first winner of this category”.

Chris Young who announced the 2009 Association of Professional Landscapers Awards at the Sketchley Grange Hotel in Leicestershire said “It was really interesting to see the range of schemes submitted, and the variety of the work included. On the whole, I thought the standard was high – landscaping really does benefit from attention to detail and many schemes showed this. As ever with these awards, it is quite difficult to separate good design and good landscaping (the two should always go hand in hand), but where it worked - for example the overall winner - it worked superbly."

The judging panel consisted of Chair of the judges Mark Gregory, APL members Roger Gladwell, and Richard Bernard, Chris Young of The Garden magazine and Ian Wright of Bradstone.

The Award categories for 2009 were Front Garden, Project value (under £10,000, £10,000 - £20,000, £20,000 - £30,000, £30,000 - £50,000 and over £50,000), Soft Landscaping, Overall Design and Build, Commercial Garden, Garden Maintenance, Special Feature, APL Young Achiever (new for 2009) and the supreme winner.

The Winners

The Gardenmakers

Supreme Winner - Project over £50,000

The Gardenmakers is the Supreme Winner of the 2009 APL Awards. The client’s brief was to contribute to a major house and garden renovation. The terraces overcome what used to be a steep, unusable slope and maximise stunning views of the surrounding countryside. The steps and paving are new riven York stone. The lime rendered retaining walls have sawn York stone skirts, quoins and coping. Stepping stones through the garden lead to the swimming pool. The judges commented that there was “great detailing on the steps and walls. The mix of both soft and hard landscaping really complement eachother and fits beautifully with the house. The quality really shines through.”

Hambrooks Landscapes

Winner – Project value under £10,000

Hambrooks Landscapes was the winner in the project value under £10,000 category. Their clients brief was to transform a small and neglected back garden space into a mainly hard landscaped garden to entertain and also have the ‘wow’ factor. The client wanted the garden to incorporate the design of the new garage and to harmonise with the doors from the newly extended and modernized house. Some planting was requested so that the garden did not look too harsh, but it needed to look good all year round. The judges commented that the work done was “very good value for under £10,000. It’s great to see people in the pictures as it really brings the project to life.”

Marshall Landscapes

Winner - Project £10,000 - £20,000

Marshall Landscapes’ design brief was to create a contemporary low maintenance garden which complimented a newly extended house. The flooring of the new kitchen was to match the paving in the garden as the client had fully opening patio doors which would connect the house to the garden. The clients were not keen gardeners and away from home a lot so the planting needed to be as low maintenance as possible. The judges commented that the garden had “good hard landscaping and fence detail. Very crisp decking and a good wood design that fits the budget.”

Pantiles Landscapes

Winner - Project £20,000 - £30,000

Pantiles Landscape Design undertook a domestic project in Wokingham, Berkshire which won them the £20,000 - £30,000 category award. The client requested that the gardens were in a courtyard style, incorporating existing features, single leveled and allowed easy access for a wheelchair user. The judges commented that this was a “very good submission” and that the gardens looked “well made with a good level of expertise.”

Gardens For Life

Winner - Soft Landscaping

Gardens for Life Ltd were the winners in this category by effectively creating a garden from a blank canvass. The house had been built just four years ago with no attention given to the garden. The clients wanted a newly leveled garden with a planting scheme to include colour and movement provided by grasses and perennials with a contrast of some architectural shrubs and topiary. The judges commented that the garden had “good structure and scope of planting with healthy plants in good strong blocks with a contemporary feel.”

Bell Gardens

Winner - Commercial Garden

Bell Gardens were the winners in this category for their work on the Collector Earl’s Garden at Arundel Castle. The trustees brief was to produce a scheme which would transform the existing car park into a garden whilst keeping it distinct from productive flower and vegetable gardens in the other two thirds of the grounds to provide something of interest to visitors. This was a feature garden area designed by Isabel and Julian Bannerman. The features included green oak temples and pergola, a rock mound, grotto, ponds, waterfall, fountains, a ‘dancing crown’ water feature and exotic planting. The judges commented that this was an “amazing job, testing a range of skills for contractors, logistics and the project manager. A lovely scheme.”

Hambrook Landscapes

Winner – Maintenance

Hambrook Landscapes’ entry for this category showcasing their work at a large country garden in Southampton won them the award for maintenance. The previous owner of the property originally planted the garden many years earlier but by the time the current owners purchased the property the garden was very over-grown and neglected. They wanted the garden to look like it had originally and to be maintained to a very high standard. Being their second home, the clients were not able to do much maintenance on a regular basis. The garden was restored and large lawns, formal beds, orchard, pool garden and drive area maintained regularly. The judges commented that there was “good structure, horticultural input and care and attention.”

Woodhouse Landscapes

Winner – Special Feature

Woodhouse Landscape Limited constructed a formal natural swimming pool with gazebo and surrounding garden construction and planting which won them the award for this category. It was designed in a formal style with West pennine grit stone radiating around the pool, with the natural swimming pool being the highlight of a spectacular garden. Utilising natural cleaning properties of plants, the pool maintains clear and safe water for swimming. Further feature include oak gazebos, terraces and modern perennial planting. The judges commented that this was a “good structure and very well made.”

Will Dann, Frogheath Landscapes

Winner – Young Achievers Award

Frogheath Landscapes nominated employee Will Dann for this award who is a worthy winner of the title. Not being academic and dyslexic, Will left school at 16 and has, by his own determination completed a college and work place apprenticeship and the HTA Landscape Training Award. He also recently scooped the Horticulture Week Apprentice of the Year award. He is now 19 and the judges commented “for his age he has achieved a lot already. He seems to enjoy the work and takes pride in it.”

Arun Landscapes

Judges Award

Arun Landscapes received a judges award for a £1million project they undertook completely renovating an abandoned garden at a property in Surrey. This special award was given as it had a very high budget and was such a vast scheme compared to the other projects. The project involved the installation of all landscape work designed by Robin Templar Williams and took 16 months to complete. The judges commented that it was “a fantastic yet simple piece of work which brings together many elements” and “ An amazing scheme with great detail.”

Highly Commended and Commended

Front Garden

Commended - Tendercare Nurseries

Project Value under £10,000

Commended - Gardens By Design

Project Value £10,000 - £20,000

Highly Commended - Hambrook Landscapes
Commended - Twigs & Generating Gardens

Project Value £20,000 - £30,000

Highly Commended - Hambrook Landscapes
Commended - Bosworth’s Garden Design & Construction

Project Value £30,000 - £50,000

Highly Commended - Charles Hogarth Landscapes Ltd
Commended - Archley Landscape Solutions & Silva's Gardens

Project value over £50,000

Highly Commended - The Garden Builders
Commended - Wreford Ltd

Soft Landscaping

Highly Commended - The Essential Earthmen

Overall Design and Build

Highly Commended - Arun Landscapes
Commended - Tendercare Nurseries

Commercial Garden

Commended - Generating Gardens

Maintenance

Commended - The Essential Earthmen

Special Feature

Highly Commended - Nascentia Landscapes Ltd
Commended - Frogheath Landscapes

Young Achievers Award