The month where the festivities commence, December was warmer and drier than usual in the lead up to Christmas. 

Before everyone starts turning on their ‘out of offices’, we had a lot to celebrate. Firstly, the Landscape Institute presented Tony Juniper CBE, chair of Natural England, with an honorary fellow.

The British Association of Landscape Industries (BALI) celebrated its National Landscape Awards 2025 as The Outdoor Room was presented with the Grand Award. 

In preparation for 2026, the Association of Professional Landscapers (APL) announced general manager Phil Tremayne will be joined by garden designer Peter Donegan to host the APL Awards next year.

On a more sombre note, the news of the passing of landscape engineer and garden designer Paul Hensey circulated the industry. Members from the APL and the Society of Garden and Landscape Designers leave tribute to the designer. 

In other news:

As the year drew to a close, we collated a list of horticultural media must-watches, must-reads and must-listens, whilst catching up with 2025 Pro Landscaper 30 Under 30: The Next Generation Award winner Chloë Webster.

During this warm and dry year, we discussed drought and the preparedness of England, whilst also ‘keeping it reel’ in a feature about the evolving digital world.