Features

Creating luxury outdoor spaces with Caribbean Blinds Deluxe Outdoor Living Pod

Pro Landscaper speaks with Stuart Dantzic, managing director of Caribbean Blinds about their recent project with Virtue Projects. Caribbean Blinds recently completed a project with Virtue Projects including their product Deluxe Outdoor Living PodTM. Two of the Deluxe Outdoor Living PodTM were used in client’s project to create a covered outdoor living space fit for entertaining. Speaking of the brief, Stuart said: “The client had a vision of creating a luxurious, high-end, hotel-like outdoor space where they would be able to host friends ‘in the garden’ all-year round. It would be a place to enjoy great food, drinks and music…

Pro Landscaper Business Awards: Training and development within commercial landscaping

Training and development are much needed foundations within all businesses, and commercial landscaping companies are no different. A great example of this in action is Maylim, the winner of the 2022 Pro Landscaper Business Award for the category of Commercial Landscaping Company. Maylim “places a significant importance on sourcing and retaining top talent within the industry and also on the development, training and progression of colleagues”. A clear example of this is the implementation of its Development Journal Program introduced in 2021 with its HR partner, Aspiring HR. Breaking down its programme, Maylim said: “The programme consists of employees having…

30 Under 30: What would make the landscaping industry better?

Coming together as a community: McWilliam Studio’s Peace Garden at St Mary’s C of E Primary School, Old Amersham

McWilliam Studio, alongside generous donors, helped to create a Peace Garden for the children at St Mary’s C of E Primary School in Old Amersham. Gavin McWilliam, from McWilliam Studio, tells us about his most recent pro-bono project Gavin McWilliam first became involved in creating a garden for St Mary’s C of E Primary School when he was asked by the school to look over some of the pupils’ designs for what they would want in the school’s peace garden. From the designs, Gavin picked out the elements which could be integrated into this garden with the goal of “interpreting…

Creation of the British Association of Landscape Industries (BALI)

The seedbed for the emergence of the British Landscape Industry was created during the Second World War by the Luftwaffe’s Blitz of London in 1940. The Blitz destroyed large urban areas throughout the entire County of London, in particular the central core, resulting in over 50,000 inner London homes being completely destroyed. Following World War II, London was presented with a real opportunity to amend the perceived failings of unplanned and haphazard development that had occurred as a result of the Industrial Revolution during the nineteenth-century. The creation of new housing developments was to be mostly concentrated within areas damaged…

Introducing this year’s FutureScape Seminar Programme

Celebrating a decade of FutureScape seminars, this November’s 2022 London event will introduce its most dynamic and diverse programme to date. Hard-hitting headlines across the two-day event Those familiar with FutureScape will be planning and packing their two-day schedules to maximise their take-homes once again. Time for exhibitors, time for networking and most importantly, time for the Seminar Programme. Covering 50 tailored topics, researched and selected in tune with every segment and every sector of the UK landscape industry. View the full seminar programme here.   Design and plant Topics including: A Lighter Footprint: Building More Sustainable Show Gardens The…

Tyler Grange – Halfway there!

Tyler Grange speaks to Pro Landscaper about how its four-day work week trail is going now that it has reached its halfway mark. Tyler Grange introduced a four-day work week at the beginning of June, allowing its staff to work Monday to Thursday without a reduction in pay. The ultimate goal of the project is for TG to achieve 100% productivity with 80% of the time, and it is on track! Managing director Simon Ursell said: “Productivity is currently at 99%, measured by the work done by person.” In addition to this, despite expecting longer days as a result of…

Pro Landscaper Business Awards: Employer of the Year 2022

We take a look at award-worthy employers who vied for the top spot in the category One of the staples to a fantastic company is a fantastic employer. This category incorporates all aspects of being a well-respected employer. It celebrates the slick and professional recruitment processes, positive staff experiences and exceptional training and development opportunities as well as focusing on the employment of apprentices and their retention. A key factor of being a great employer is the ability to communicate with your team. A great example of this is the winner of our Employer of the Year Award, Elmtree Garden…

Rachel Platt’s winning debut at RHS Tatton Park

Rachel Platt won the People’s Choice Award at RHS Tatton Park for her first show garden. She talks of her experience of the awards, the challenges she faced and her next steps. She might not have picked up the title of RHS Young Designer of the Year, but you could argue Rachel Platt was the real winner at this year’s RHS Flower Show Tatton Park. The budding designer scooped a trio of awards, including the highly coveted People’s Choice Award. Her garden – The Covid Recovery Garden – also collected the Best Construction Award and a Silver-Gilt Medal. Rachel found…

#TimeForTurf: The brains behind the campaign

It’s a controversial topic, artificial grass – and one which has sparked two people within the industry to start their own campaign against its use, #TimeForTurf. The origins of the campaign can be followed back to garden designer Charlotte Howard from Capability Charlotte, who admits that she has in the past used artificial grass within her own personal garden and has regretted the decision. Charlotte went on to say: “I work with nature, I see the damage that plastic grass does first hand”, adding that the artificial grass kills the soil beneath it. Paula Warman from Aura Landscapes and The…

Hey Google, are smart gardens the future?

A lot has changed in recent years but one of the most apparent changes has been the amount of time people spend at home – an arguably forced changed thanks to the pandemic. Numerous lockdowns saw the British public seemingly want to invest more in their gardens. Alongside this has been the development of smart technology, including products for the outdoors. Are we likely to see the two trends combine? It’s hard to see why this wouldn’t be the case, after The Smart Home Garden invited me to its immersive experience day showcasing one of its smart gardens. The experience…

30 Under 30 Update: Charlotte Williams

One year into her role with AECOM, Charlotte tells us about the switch towards working on large infrastructure projects and earning her Chartership “It is challenging when undertaking assessment work; for example, larger projects which have a big focus on stakeholder engagement, so it is extremely useful to understand local opinions which can help to inform the design. It is important to remember that your role is to provide an impartial assessment of the scheme.” Fortunately for Charlotte, these DCOs make up a large part of her role at construction engineering company AECOM, which she moved to Cambridge to join…

Drought tolerant planting “isn’t all” cactuses at West Dean Gardens

West Dean Gardens’ head gardener Tom Brown shares insight into the introduction of drought proof plants and plans for future sustainability. West Dean Gardens is part of West Dean College of Arts and Conservation, which offers a wide variety of short courses – both in gardening and art and craft subjects. Being an active garden and a college, West Dean Gardens’ goal has been to be “ahead of the trend in terms of what people are going to want to learn about in the future” according to Tom. With this in mind, it doesn’t come as a surprise that Tom…

Education and Beauty: Jardin Philophrosyne

Pro Landscaper speaks with garden designer Peter Donegan regarding his design of 13th century garden, Jardin Philophrosyne. Peter Donegan Garden Design was commissioned by The Historial de la Grande Guerre to design 2 gardens for the 13th century garden. The new garden in the central courtyard was designed in celebration of the 30th anniversary of The Historial de la Grande Guerre, Europe’s largest war museum emblem in the Somme region of Northern France. The first, a peace garden, Jardin Eutychia (after the Greek Goddess of Happiness) is based in the Chateau’s dried up moat. With education at the forefront of Peter’s…

The spBI Awards: sustainability, creativity and general knowledge all mixed into one!

With the search for this year’s small project BIG IMPACT (spBI) Award winners well under way, Pro Landscaper speaks to headline sponsor Provender Nurseries’ marketing manager Liz Hughes on why people should be vying for the top trophies Now in their fourth year, Pro Landscaper’s small project BIG IMPACT Awards have become an important addition to the horticulture calendar. “I like the idea that it showcases smaller companies,” says Liz Hughes. “It’s really good to be able showcase what the average person out there would spend on a garden and what they would get for it.” The awards bring together…

How is Tyler Grange faring in its four-day week?

Tyler Grange speaks to us about how the company is getting on in its ‘four-day work week’ trial. Tyler Grange introduced a four-day work week at the beginning of June, allowing its staff to work Monday to Thursday without a reduction in pay. When asked about the biggest change this transition introduced two weeks into its new work week, director Jonathan Berry says: “The biggest change has definitely been having to alter established working practices and our daily operations… “We’ve had to analyse how we currently work and see where we are spending too much time on tasks. Through the…

Mentoring the next generation

We speak to Gareth Wilson about his mentorship of Mitchell Salthouse of Everest Garden Landscape, who is building The Covid Recovery Garden at the RHS Tatton Flower Show for garden designer Rachel Platt. To set the scene, the garden is a dam designed for patients who are recovering from long COVID. When asked what he hoped visitors will take from the garden Gareth says: “Hospitals are not the best places to be, and so if visitors to our garden can get out bed, and find this lovely tranquil space, steer away from the sterile environments of a hospital, and be…