Landscape & Urban Design - Issue 25 2017

Landscape & Urban Design Issue 25

May/June 2017 landud.co.uk

Designing Your Outdoor Environment

Travis Perkins

RHS Hampton Court Palace Flower Show 2017 Highlights

New Gardens announced for 2017

RHS Chelsea Flower Show

High Life TreeHouses

SketchUp 2017 is here!

The smartest SketchUp yet.

Transparency

Graphics Pipeline 2.0

We’ve made big improvement to transparency, which should now render faster and at high quality to. SketchUp is also now much better at displaying multiple transparencies to provide a more realistic sense of depth across several see-through faces.

In this release, we’ve made major improvements to our graphics pipeline, allowing for performance improvements.

Now, SketchUp, 3D Warehouse, LayOut, My SketchUp, and Trimble Connect all render models using the same under-the-hood algorithms – all tuned for buttery 3D orbiting.

High DPI Modeling

There’s more!

We’ve tuned snapping and inferencing for high definition monitors (like Apple’s Retina Display).

Edge weights have also been smart-scaled. You can back away from your screen now...

Perpendicular Face Inferencing Have you mastered parallel inferencing? We’ve added a ‘Perpendicular to Face’ inference.

Hover a face; SketchUp will helpfully snap to its perpendicular.

• Smart Offset

• High Fidelity .DWG – for easier exporting

• LayOut Tables; manage spreadsheets in LayOut

• Extension Manager

Contact Elmtec, Sketchup’s distribution Partner in the UK

E: sales@elmtec.co.uk

T: 01844 263750

W: www.elmtec.co.uk

Contents Issue 25

04

Chelsea Flower Show

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Hampton Court

Get in touch Publishing Director Martin Holmes martin@landud.co.uk

40

Gardens For Good

54

North Hill Gardens

58

Sports Park

Editor Lorna Davidson Tel: 01843 830249 lorna@landud.co.uk

Sales Director Will Reed Tel: 01227 392524 will@mhmagazine.co.uk

Creative Director Josh Holmes josh.d.holmes@me.com

Digital Manager Jamie Bullock jamie@mhmagazine.co.uk

Studio Designer James Sayer james@mhmagazine.co.uk

www.landud.co.uk T: 01843 830249 E: info@landud.co.uk

Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy and reliability of material published in Landscape & Urban Design however, the publishers accept no responsibility for the claims or opinions made by advertisers, manufactures or contributors.

No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, mechanical, electronic (including photocopying) or stored in any information retrieval system without the prior consent of the publisher.

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New Gardens announced for 2017

RHS Chelsea Flower Show

• ‘BBC Radio 2 Feel Good Gardens’ Category announced for 2017 RHS Chelsea Flower Show • New RHS Chelsea content to demonstrate that gardens are the best place to escape and indulge your senses • Garden designers are Sarah Raven, James Alexander-Sinclair, Jon Wheatley, Matt Keightley and design duo Kate Savill and Tamara Bridge

B

BC Radio 2 and the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) today announce the ‘BBC Radio 2 Feel Good Gardens’ at the 2017 world famous RHS Chelsea Flower Show, sponsored by M&G Investments.

Gardens provide havens to calm the body, relax the mind and make us feel better. The gardens will uplift the senses and encourage people to lose themselves amongst a feast of sights, scents, sounds, flavours and textures to make you feel happier, calmer and generally better about the world.

The five gardens will show how plants can enrich and indulge one of the five senses – touch, taste, smell, sight and sound.

The gardens will also celebrate BBC Radio 2’s fiftieth anniversary and are named after different BBC Radio 2 Presenters.

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RHS Flower Show text RHS Chelsea Flower Show

photo RHS Chelsea Flower Show

David Austin Roses Dame Judi Dench

On Monday 22 May Chris Evans will do an outside broadcast from the RHS Chelsea Flower Show from 0630-0930.

Chris Evans says; "I'm beyond thrilled to be taking the Radio 2 Breakfast Show to Chelsea in May and to work with Mary Berry on one of the Radio 2 Feel Good Gardens. We're going al fresco and gardening bonkers for a very special show at the world’s most prestigious horticultural happening. We cannot wait.”

We spend too long at our computers or on our phones; these gardens are a reminder that we need to give our senses a treat, get out into the garden and get close to nature.”

Lewis Carnie, Head of Radio 2 said: “Radio 2 is delighted to be broadcasting from the

RHS Chelsea Flower Show to kick off our 50th anniversary celebrations. We know many of our listeners take great pleasure from the great outdoors and I’m looking forward to seeing how the designers of the gardens interpret the spirit of Radio 2 and our presenters in flower and vegetable form!”

Sue Biggs, RHS Director General, says: “We’re incredibly excited about Radio 2 being at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show and look forward to celebrating the joy of gardening with their listeners.

“Growing plants and gardens help us to feel better both physically and mentally.

David Austin Roses Vanessa Bell

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Hillier Nurseries Malus Ă— purpurea 'Crimson Cascade'

The five BBC Radio 2 Feel Good Gardens are: The Chris Evans Taste Garden is designed by Jon Wheatley, who has asked friend of the Radio 2 breakfast show, Mary Berry, to help celebrate the tastiest plants growing in UK gardens, by growers on allotments and in many communities.

Plants that excite and stimulate your palate and enhance your lifestyle and health and well-being feature in this garden.

The Jo Whiley Scent Garden is designed by Tamara Bridge, 2015 RHS Young Designer of the Year, and Kate Savill.

Tamara and Kate have asked fragrance designer Jo Malone to help create the garden, which will include aromas that transport you to a time or place such as woodland walks, rain on warm paving, fresh earth and new leaf growth, or freshly cut flowers from the garden. Both Jo Malone and Jo Whiley will visit the show in the build to help with planting.

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Hillier Nurseries Malus Ă— purpurea 'Crimson Cascade'

The Anneka Rice Colour Cutting Garden is designed by Sarah Raven. Every square inch of space will give you flowers, flowers and more flowers. Sarah Raven has enlisted the help of one of the UK’s best known interior designers, Tricia Guild OBE, as they share a passion for colour and Tricia is renowned for the use of colour in her designs. It is a profusion of colour that will be an amazing sight and concentrates on plants that cut and come out again. Gold, the colour for 50th Wedding Anniversaries, features in this garden to celebrate 50 years of Radio 2.

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The Jeremy Vine Texture Garden is designed by Matt Keightley and is an immersive tactile garden that features bold geometric forms juxtaposed with a soft and elegant planting pallet. Varying material finishes and planting structure seemingly evolves through the space to create a garden people want to interact and relax in.

The Zoe Ball Listening Garden, designed by James AlexanderSinclair aims to reproduce the feeling when you stand too close to a speaker stack at a concert; the sensation of feeling music

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through your whole body. Whilst you can’t hear the sound of music at the garden, it will be visible in water patterns in water features and felt through the floor. The music will be from the last 50 years of Radio 2.

The BBC Radio 2 Feel Good Gardens are half the size of the big Show Gardens and will have the backdrop of the Royal Hospital Chelsea. www.rhs.org.uk

DESIGN TANK PHOTO CHARLOTTE SVERDRUP

Enjoying the outdoors since 1947 vestre.co.uk

Vestre Kong Design: Allan Hagerup

A Nordic Approach To Sustainablility Most of us believe we have a good idea of what sustainability is and what to look for, but the issue of sustainability is ever more complex. When considering a diverse range of products, a multi-faceted and holistic approach is important.

A National Approach In May 2016, Norway committed to zero deforestation, becoming the first country in the world to do so.

The protection of Norway and Sweden’s own forests (from where all Vestre’s timber is sourced) is also assured through a highly sustainable approach where felling of

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virgin forest is prohibited, and legislation encourages biodiversity as much as timber quality.

Backed by the Government’s support for renewable energy, almost all of Norway’s electricity production is provided by hydropower. This has considerable implications for production, as will be seen later.

Borne out of an area that endures the harshest of conditions, and often sees annual temperature swings of 50-60oC, quality and longevity are key if products are to last more than a few years in use.

Production

Material Selection

It’s generally understood that carrying out all manufacturing within a contained area will bring environmental benefits by keeping ’road miles’ to a minimum.

All Vestre’s production is carried out in Scandinavia, using the shortest possible delivery routes.

Choice of materials also plays a key role in sustainable production; Vestre uses only Nordic materials:

Investment in modern production facilities brings about improvements in efficiency: robotic cutting and welding, for instance, ensure high quality and precision, minimal use of resources, and less waste than traditional methods.

Vestre’s production utilises renewable energy, with major benefits: •

The use of only Nordic steel means greenhouse gas emissions for the material are 30% lower than the average global steel producer.

•

Hot-dip galvanising, which provides permanent rust protection, is carried out in a bath of molten zinc, at a temperature of 450oC. This energy intensive process has a significantly lower impact due to the employment of renewable energy.

Steel – only Nordic steel is used, which is dimensioned to cope with rough use and processed to maximise durability.

High quality steel also ensures excellent adhesion of the galvanising alloy layer that protects against rust. Polyester powder coating – the powder is solventfree and applied using advanced nozzles that ensure full coverage. The resulting high quality finish of Corrosion Class C5 will withstand the most corrosive of atmospheric conditions.

Timber - is impregnated with natural linseed oil (the eco-friendly Linax system) which offers lasting protection against rot and is virtually maintenancefree.

Whole Life Cost A long product lifecycle is good for the environment and ‘disposable’ solutions are avoided so as not to unnecessarily use finite resources. Initial outlay will ideally deliver a lengthy lifespan with minimal maintenance requirements, along with the availability of spare parts should a product be damaged.

Lengthy warranties bring certainty that a product will be fit for use for many years: Vestre’s warranties are lifetime anti-rust warranty for steel components, 15-year adhesion warranty for painted surfaces that have not been subjected to mechanical damage or corrosive chemicals etc, 15-year warranty on timber applies to damage caused by rot.

Vestre works systematically to reduce its impact on the environment and it is their aim to obtain climate certification for all products. The first supplier of climateneutral furniture for urban environments, sustainability information can be downloaded from www.vestre.com

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Gathering green Green urban spaces provide many benefits with recreational, educational, health and social aspects. Urban green is proven to reduce stress levels, stimulate physical activity and improve the air quality. Conditions that are desperately sought after these days.

Streetlife offers a wide range of products that can help create the urban green space that our cities are craving for.

By introducing green in the urban fabric the landscape architect can create attractive focal points, functioning as gathering places for leisure and social activities. Inviting people outside into a pleasurable green outdoor space helps building a healthy and connected neighbourhood.

The scale of these green interventions can vary from one easy to move planter to a luscious green isle with permanent trees. The combination of planters or steel borders with friendly wooden seats provides comfortable resting areas to catch up.

The products shown are protected by Int. Model Depots, Patents and Copyrights – FSC® licence number: FSC-C105477

Big Green Benches

The Solid Edge System is a simple way to create higher borders with Solid seats. It makes for a pleasant spot to sit shaded by the accompanying greenery. The steel base structure is available RALcoated or in CorTen. The front wall slopes back steeply to create leg space. Side walls at 70°, 90°, 110° or as an extension of the seating edges are optional.

The Solid Top Seats are available with 6, 8 or 12 slats.

The sturdy hardwood slats are mounted from above using Streetlock® comb fittings.

The Rough&Ready Picnic Set extends the robust, industrial range to providing social areas and workspaces. The set combines flawlessly with other R&R products. The picnic table top is made of FSC®100% hardwood beams with a flat, integrated steel mid-section. Available in various materials: CorTen steel, hot-dip, galvanised steel or powder-coated in a RAL colour.

Country Bridge High

Solid Seat Blocks

The Rough&Ready Shades can be used to create straight and angular shade structures.

The Podium Isles system makes it possible to add platform seating elements to public space design.

Adding to the creation of a multi-layered, lively streetscape. Each Podium Isle is made of a CorTen steel base structure and Solid slats which can be fitted to a standard maximum length of 3 meters. The slats can be mounted in staggered rows to create islands with a width larger than 3 meters.

Rough&Ready Bicycle Racks

The Shrubtubs Tree Planters offer a stable base structure for mounting Rough&Ready wall benches and form the basis for the green R&R benches: Hug a Tubs. The Hug a Tub configurations remain mobile, making temporary layout variations possible.

They are a highly attractive option equipping empty squares or concrete decks with green recreational areas. The R&R wall benches can be mounted one-sided, double-sided and corner-sided, as well as all around.

Box Bins

Giant Flowerpots

STREETLIFE Leiden, The Netherlands T +44 (0)800 62 34 56 www.streetlife.nl enquiriesUK@streetlife.nl

Streetlife BV in social media

Bespoke Bridge For Finzels Reach, Bristol 91m (5 span) x 4m wide bespoke footbridge curved in plan and elevation, Finzels Reach, Bristol

F

inzels Reach is the location for a stunning new footbridge installed

by CTS Bridges across Bristol’s floating harbour.

The new bridge provides access for pedestrians and cyclists to the new development in Bristol. The 91m bridge twists its way gracefully across the Avon waterway linking the Finzels Reach development with Castle Park.

They partnered with vibration specialists Full Scale Dynamics to design, manufacture, install and commission a bespoke tuned mass damper to position the longest most eccentric span to ensure comfort performance parameters were met for walkers, joggers and crowds alike

The client approached CTS Bridges Ltd directly to create a structural solution from their architectural aspirations, which gave earlier budget confidence and identified critical structural constraints at the outset.

The complex geometry posed challenges for design with regards to both analysis and concept. The plan curvature generated a low frequency structure easily excited and onerous access constraints during road delivery to site and pontoon delivery down the river under historic arch bridges required the bridge to be assembled in progressive stages.

CTS undertook all structural design of the scheme, its value engineering, manufacture and installation.

The structure required a design that could be assembled from a kit of parts to create a weaving stiff torsion box spine

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beam but also one which could be installed quickly over the river without extensive scaffolding or plant.

The bridge combined painted steelwork, hardwood decking with anti slip inserts (Hi-Grip Excel by CTS Bridges), hardwood handrail with stainless steel parapet infill; lighting and cladding encompassed the structure delivering a strikingly prestigious scheme.

The completed superstructure was installed in time for the official bridge opening on 6th April.

The eye-catching structure will be a lasting legacy of the Finzels Reach development – a unique footbridge enjoyed by many users for years to come.

CTS Bridges employ both skilled joiners and fabricators and can therefore provide an extensive range of bridges in a variety of materials including steel and FRP or using a combination of steel, timber or FRP materials.

Please contact CTS Bridges Ltd for more details on our design, build and installation service for bridges and structures on 01484 606416 or visit our website at www.ctsbridges.co.uk or by email enquiries@ctsbridges.co.uk

DESIGN BUILD INSTALL Delivering quality structures across the UK

• BRIDGES • BOARDWALKS • STRUCTURES • LOCK GATES • DECKING

01484 606416 enquiries@ctsbridges.co.uk www.ctsbridges.co.uk

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Kirk Raymond Dining Table & chair Range Treat yourself to the ultimate experience of luxury and comfort whilst relaxing in your garden or holiday home, our amazing Dining table and chairs are ultra-modern with a unique look as well as being to withstand any outdoor weather conditions.

The frames of our dining table and chairs are made of a powder coated aluminium for extra strength.

Also included on the chairs are our world first outdoor cooling gel material incorporated within the seat of the cushion for them hot summer days and nights, encased over the cooling gel is our luxury Sunbury aqua waterproof material, stain proof and weatherproof fabric.

Just relax with your friends and family and look at this unbelievable stunning dining table and chair range to get you in that perfect mood whilst enjoying your surroundings with class and comfortability.

Included in the dining table set is a wonderful looking toughened glass top with 4 types of tint to choose from. The Kirk Raymond Range features a luxury poly-

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carbonate/Perspex cladding that comes in a wide range of colour finishes, all of our poly-carbonate products are everlasting outdoor waterproof and weather proof products.

As an extra added benefit of all of our products with cladding can be taken off after a few years and given a face lift with new design claddings, new types of colours and materials.

6x Dining chairs.

1x Dining Table www.koulsdown.com

POWERFUL, RELIABLE AND NOW EVEN MORE AFFORDABLE.

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The Kubota RTV range features an independent suspension and ergonomic design, offering a smooth ride and excellent operator comfort. Capable of towing up to 1,000kg, these rugged and dependable off-road vehicles feature hydrostatic transmission to provide optimum safety and control on inclines and uneven ground.

Wherever you want to go, whatever the terrain, trust the Kubota RTV range to rise to the challenge. For more information about Kubota’s diverse range of world-class groundcare machines and aftersales support service, visit www.kubota.co.uk or call 01844 873190.

*Finance is restricted to business users only. Advertised offer based on a new Kubota RTV – X900 TW at RRP £13,300. Weekly payment profile of £77/week is not available and is shown for illustration purposes only. Actual rental profile is 2+22 monthly payments of £332.50. Subject to acceptance and affordability checks. Promotion valid until 31st July 2017. The finance product offered under this promotion is hire purchase. Full VAT is due on signing. An option-to-purchase fee of £100 (including VAT) will be collected with the final payment. You will own the equipment when all payments have been made. Alternative finance options are available, terms apply. An annual administration fee of £40 (plus VAT) applies. A documentation fee of £100 will be collected with the first rental.The interest-free offer is based on a maximum balance to finance of 60% of RRP. Rates and payments may vary to reflect changes in tax and cost of funds. Images are for illustrative purposes only. Alternative finance products available, terms and conditions apply. Kubota Finance is a trading style of BNP Paribas. Leasing Solutions Limited. Finance is provided by BNP Paribas Leasing Solutions Limited, Northern Cross, Basingstoke RG21 4HL. Registered in England No. 901225. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

RHS Hampton • NEW Gardens for a Changing World • Viking Cruises garden will transport visitors to worldwide destinations • More than 98 specialist nurseries including six first timers to fill the Floral Marquee • Show Features to raise awareness of UK’s declining wildlife population • Celebrities to share their horticultural and culinary passions

T

oday, the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) announces a selection of confirmed highlights at this year’s RHS Hampton Court Palace Flower Show (4 – 9 July), supported

by Viking Cruises, including new category ‘Gardens for a Changing World’, empowering gardeners to meet the challenges we face in our ever-changing, uncertain world.

Gardens for a Changing World Extreme rainfall is one of the consequences scientists claim is a result of climate change, and 21-year-old Will Williams, who made his debut at the show last year, returns with ‘Holding Back the Flood’, highlighting a natural solution to flood prevention, inspired by the village of Pickering, North Yorkshire, a town prone to flood devastation.

Increased rainfall has also inspired first-time designer Rhiannon Williams, who is promoting the increased need for sustainable rainwater management within residential areas.

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RHS Hampton text RHS Hampton

London-based Tom Massey, another up-and-coming designer, is creating ‘The Perennial Sanctuary Garden’, championing the healing power of plants, which in current turbulent times is becoming increasingly important. More than 2,500 individual plants of different colours will make up the garden, exploring the effect colour can have on our mood.

Show Gardens Show sponsor, Viking Cruises have joined forces with acclaimed designer Paul Hervey-Brooks with a garden inspired by the overseas destinations they travel to. Multi-RHS Gold medal winning, Andrew FisherTomlin and Dan Bowyer will shine a light on the work of Blind Veterans UK

photo RHS Hampton

with a community garden for members, staff and volunteers that will be rebuilt at one of the charity’s centres after the show. Zoflora returns this year with a large woodland play garden for children and adults with disabilities such as autism.

Accessible and inclusive, the garden aims to reconnect children with nature through play.

‘Brownfield – Metamorphosis’, by town planner and designer Martyn Wilson, explores the power of plants to regenerate naturally and become established among industrial ruins. Andreas Christodoulou and Jonathan Davies are dismissing the manicured lawns of modern garden design and encouraging urbanites to transform city garden spaces into natural ‘forest glades’.

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The garden resembles a woodland glade. Playful planting and the use of materials will stimulate the senses of sight, smell, touch, taste and sound, while allowing the children to experience reasonable risk as they play. The garden will be relocated to the Caudwell Children’s Centre in Shropshire.

Floral highlights More plants and flowers are sold per square metre at the RHS Hampton Court Palace Flower Show than anywhere else in the UK. This year, the Floral Marquee will house 98 specialist nurseries and National Plant Collection holders from across the UK. Six new nurseries will be at the show this year including Ottershaw Cacti (Surrey), selling their rare and unusual collection of cacti and succulents, Palms Exotics (Hampshire), for those wanting to turn their garden into a holiday oasis, and Strictly Daylilies (Cambridgeshire), the ideal

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plant for first-time gardeners as they need little or no care.

Wildlife features Wildlife is a key theme at this year’s show to raise awareness of the UK’s declining wildlife population* and encouraging visitors to ‘Green Grey Britain’ with a rich diversity of plants that are vital for the future of the UK’s bees, butterflies and other pollinators.

The tropical Butterfly Dome returns this year filled with thousands of exotic butterflies, surrounded by a wildflower meadow, accompanied by nectarrich plants for our native butterflies, and caterpillar food plants such as nettles, grasses and heather.

The Floral Design Studio will be full of wildlifeinspired floral displays, and schools from the South East of England are taking ‘a

RHS Hampton text RHS Hampton

walk on the wild side’ with their entries to the annual Scarecrow Competition.

Across the weekend, activities will be centred on wildlife conservation including face painters, a children’s cookery school, entertainers and much more.

Celebrities

London, RHS Hampton Court Palace Flower Show is the best place for budding and expert gardeners who want advice, ideas, inspiration and an abundance of plants and gardening merchandise to beautify their outdoor spaces.”

photo RHS Hampton

The RHS Hampton Court Palace Flower Show will run from 4 – 9 July with an exclusive Preview Evening** held on Monday 3 July.

For further information or to buy tickets, please visit the RHS website at www.rhs.org.uk/hamptoncourt

Experts and familiar faces including celebrity chef Jean Christophe Novelli and television presenters Chris Packham and Michaela Strachan will be sharing their horticultural and culinary passions throughout the week in the talk theatres.

Nick Mattingley, Director of RHS Shows, said: “At more than twice the size of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show and just a stone’s throw from

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Global Stone Paving G

lobal Stone is an industry leading supplier of premium natural stone and porcelain paving, committed to providing innovative, high quality paving products.

Their paving is selected by hand to ensure that it is always of the highest quality and is used by landscapers, designers, architects, and homeowners across the country, regularly featuring in medal winning show gardens. For over 15 years, Global Stone has been the brand to trust.

Their innovative product range has evolved from a simple collection of natural paving to include accessories, features and the latest in contemporary paving solutions.

As one of the first to introduce Porcelain Paving into the UK in 2014, they have developed the paving market in a new direction; one that is fit for the demands of 21st Century living.

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In 2016, they saw a major shift in how gardens are used and the products being bought, this led to increased demand in high quality, large format and easy to

maintain paving, which they were well placed to meet with the largest porcelain paving collection in the UK.

The current trend for contemporary gardens, “enjoying the space” and using the outdoor space as an extension of the home is also one their collection is ideal for.

With their external porcelain paving also available in matching internal pieces they are enabling the customer to easily take the “outside-in” or “inside-out” depending on the build focus.

Hugely popular for this look has been our beautiful Albero “wood effect” range, widely

As a result, Global Stone have extended their range further for 2017, introducing a number of exciting more natural stone looking porcelain products, including travertine, slate, cobbles and mint effect.

But perhaps most exciting of all is their unique Florence range, available in four beautiful colours and which offers a mature, aged and weathered natural stone appearance including edges

believed to be the best in the market, and which is so realistic it even comes with ridges, knots and woodworm holes.

But in recent months they have also seen a new trend in the market, which is for more natural stone effect paving.

Typically, porcelain paving has been used in contemporary designs and gardens, but the inherent benefits of being low maintenance and easy to clean has driven the desire for more products that can be used in traditional settings.

with a tumbled effect, perfect for that country cottage or period property.

To find out more about the Global Stone Collection visit their website: www.globalstonepaving.co.uk email: info@globalstonepaving.co.uk

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Cotswold Hill Stone & Masonry Ltd Cotswold Hill Stone & Masonry Ltd., based at Cotswold Hill Quarry near Ford, Cheltenham has, produced high quality building, landscaping and masonry stone for 35 years.

In 2014 Cotswold Hill Stone & Masonry took over Birch Hill Quarry, situated deep in the Royal Forest of Dean. This quarry produces Pennant sandstone, renowned for its excellent characteristics of weather resistance and strength.

It is sought after by landscape architects and garden designers for water features and rockery projects due to its attractiveness and robust nature. This stone has starred in award-winning displays at both Malvern Spring Show and Chelsea Flower Show where it has been displayed in its natural form, sitting harmoniously with freshly sawn paving.

The monumental megalith Pennant sandstone is popular for its striking appearance, weathered over many years and aged with lichen and moss. In contrast the newly dug stone shows its natural charm with strikes of blue, grey and red.

The stone extracted from the Cotswold Hill Stone & Masonry quarry is from the Guiting Group of sedimentary limestones and is available in honey and cream colours. It is suitable for many applications including walling, building, and masonry.

The building stone has been used in many prestigious locations for both conservation and renovation. Cotswold Hill Stone and Masonry are proud that their work graces such eminent buildings as the Houses of Parliament, Hampton Court Palace, Blenheim Palace, Magdalen Bridge, Oxford colleges and Alexandra Palace.

Cotswold Hill Stone & Masonry source and stock stone from other areas to give as wide a choice to their customers as possible. Experienced stonemasons are available to assist with any ideas customers may already have or help with the interpretation of architect’s drawings. www.stonequarries.co.uk

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Limestone . Sandstone .

Building Stone . Flooring . Walling . Masonry . Landscaping . Restoration .Â

01386 584384 www.stonequarries.co.uk

Travis Perkins

C

omments by Martyn Fowkes, Travis Perkins Category Manager - Landscaping and Drainage

Q: Is there more of an emphasis on hard landscaping these days with the idea that gardens should be a useable extra room?

Q: What are some of the topline things that you need to think about when planning a landscaping project?

A: “Many homeowners are starting to think of their gardens and outside spaces as an extension of their home, with projects replicating the interior design of a home outside.

A: “Cost is a major factor, it’s really important to understand your budget before you start making contact with suppliers and deciding on your product type, style and overall appearance.

Also, make sure you ask your installer how long it will take to complete the job and get some advice from them about how the style you have chosen will cope with rain and drainage.”

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One trend we have seen increasing is creating expansive kitchen-dining rooms that spill out into the garden through bi-fold doors.

This look can be achieved by using porcelain paving both indoors and outdoors, giving a seamless aesthetic and design continuation.”

Q: What sort of design cues could you take from the style of your home to influence the style of the garden?

A: “Natural riven sandstones and European clay pavers fit really well with older, more traditional properties and polished stone and porcelain paving suit modern dwellings.

Colour is important, consider the outside walls of your property as these have to work with the colour and tones of the hard landscaping.”

Q: How can you add interest to a back garden with hard landscaping (e.g. raised beds, built-in features - how is this archived, by rendering blockwork? Any other ways of building in structural features?)

A: “Using porcelain paving vertical on a block wall to create matching planters and even seating is a new idea.

Steps and different levels also create interesting zones and can break up larger open spaces.”

Q: Paving and other hard landscaping materials go in fashions - what are some of the most used materials/ styles/sizes to complement a contemporary home? (e.g. is it all dead straight, untextured, large-format tiles? What sort of materials/shades are popular?)

A: “Vitrified porcelain paving is currently in fashion with really nice textures, sizes and colours available. Large size and linear project packs are becoming more popular, but

stone is still the most popular choice as it suits most budget ranges.”

Q: Can you give an idea of the scale of pricing when it comes to paving materials - what’s cheap, what’s expensive, what’s in-between - and are cheaper materials a false economy that won’t last as long?

A: “Customers should be aware that 75 per cent of the cost of any landscaping project is usually the products you don't see and the labour.

Utility paving is perfect for functional, hard-wearing areas and offers great value for money. Where the product needs to be more aesthetically pleasing or additional

production processes are employed such as polishing, texturing and hard finishing then price will increase.”

Q: Are there any new cutting-edge materials worth mentioning? (e.g. composites that look like textured wood?)

A: “Composite decking continues to grow in popularity at a higher rate than traditional decking due to the maintenance benefits.

Italian vitrified porcelain paving is also becoming more popular in the UK due to low maintenance and outside-inside living spaces.

Products such as Natural Paving Products Vitripiazza or Marshalls Symphony range are highly resistant to attack from

moss, mould, pesticides and salt and is completely frost proof, helping homeowners to keep and maintain their outdoor spaces.”

Q: What about driveways - is permeable paving now more popular? What are some of the alternatives to block paving?

A: “Permeable paving is becoming more popular, but traditional products are still more commonly used due to cost. Managing water drainage is a necessity and using permeable block paving helps this or alternative products (e.g. Marshalls Tegula) that incorporate additional linear drainage and soakaways are very popular.”

Q: How can you add some visual interest to a driveway - so that it’s not just a flat square expanse of paving? (e.g. mixing materials or block sizes, incorporating seom curves, introducing height via lighting).

A: “To add visual interest, we recommend experimenting with mixed textures and matching colours to other elements of the exterior of your home. For example, you could coordinate product ranges to match walling, edging and paving, or you could create flower beds and patterns to make a statement.” www.travisperkins.co.uk

Landscape & Urban Design

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Fine Porcelain Pointing – Easy with vdw Epoxy Paving Grout

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nother great job by the real professionals at Arbour Design and Build, led by Richard Bickler and using GftK’s vdw 815 Paving Joint Mortar that is ideal for grouting these top quality Emperor Limerick Porcelain slabs of larger format paving (larger format generally means the paving units are larger than 400 x 400mm). In addition to its ease of application and high performance and durability in service, this advanced material is specifically designed for narrower joints (down to 3mm).

As with all of the range using GftK’s Epoxy Bound technology, ease of application also allows grouting and finishing the work in bad weather, even in the pouring rain. You actually can’t use too much water in the grouting operation, so the fickle British Weather does not stop you finishing the job (and getting paid of course!), plus it is the most durable and jet washing resistant paving grout there is!

Fine Porcelain Pointing – Easy with vdw Epoxy Paving Grout Contact: David MacKay at NCC Streetscape Limited: 01257 266696 Or email: sales@nccstreetscape.co.uk

Finally on this project the colour was very important as the owners wanted to see the paving rather than the resin and it blended in really well.

Exposed Granite Flags – Perfect Pointing Despite the Weather

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t this private development project in Perranporth Cornwall, despite the distance, they wanted the paving works completed by Fisher Builders, as they had used them for quality paving before and asked them to travel all the way down from their home town of Scarborough in North Yorkshire!!!! This prestige project used medium sized granite flags with narrow 5mm joints to suit the look and function of the steps up to the front door. The problem was what product to use to point / grout these narrow, but critical joints with, especially in this exposed location, with sometime sensitive granite paving surfaces, and in the middle of a cold, wet and windy winter.........?

Fisher referred to NCC streetscape, the flags were first sealed using GftK’s vdw 950-3in1-Protect and then the joints were wet-slurry grouted with GftK’s vdw 815 Paving Joint Mortar - An epoxy bound, graded sand, self-compacting pointing mortar specifically designed for such narrow joints, and which also produces a fast curing, strong, durable finish that is resistant to traffic, weathering and even pressure jet cleaning - unlike most pre-bagged pointing products on the market. Adrian Fisher said: “From start to finish this product is by far the easiest I have used and provided exactly what we and the client were looking for on this project, plus it will be hard wearing and looks great”

30 Landscape & Urban Design

Exposed Granite Flags – Perfect Pointing Despite the Weather

Contact: David MacKay at NCC Streetscape Limited: 01257 266696 Or email: sales@nccstreetscape.co.uk

GftK Paving Joint Mortars for Natural Stone and Concrete Paving Ideal for both NEW and REFURBISHMENT works because you can: • • • •

Work in wet weather and low temperatures (from +3ºC) Use fast wet slurry application Get off your knees and work standing up Have greatly reduced staining and cleaning work

Whilst also achieving:

• Full frost and de-icing salt resistance • Full pressure jet washing and mechanical road sweeper resistance • Permeable joints for SUDS Suitable Colours and Grades Available for ALL Types of Paving and Traffic, from Domestic Patios and Driveways to Market Squares and Highways

Save Time and Money on Every Project For more information visit www.nccstreetscape.co.uk or call David or Gary on 01257 266696 Paving Joint Mortars from

Star Rubber Environmental Ltd The UK’s only manufacturer of TigerMulch Rubber Chippings.

Made of 100% recycled rubber.

An ideal landscaping product that is permeable for tree surrounds, paths, slopes, erosion control etc.; Safety surface for playgrounds within schools/nurseries, public parks, skate parks, care homes, hospitals.

Surfacing specialists for the installation of: - TigerMulch Resin Bound - Wet pour - Graphic designs - Star Kerb

- Cap Kerb - Argi-Flex - New product - Safety Tiles/Matts (For Swing etc: wear areas)

Star Rubber are proud to announce their new product Argi-Flex. A permeable product that has been developed to resemble resin stone but is made out of 100% Recycled Rubber an ideal product for pathways and erosion.

This product will compliment our TigerMulch Product, you then need to decide would you prefer a Bark look or Stone look both giving an all year weather permitting safety surface.

Surfaces are BSEN1177 & 7188 Tested and support a 5 year Warranty.

Please contact us for more details: Belmont House, Aller, Langport, Somerset, TA10 0QN T: 01458 253 377 E: tigermulch@aol.com W: www.star-rubber.com

Flowpoint Flowpoint ECO Flowpoint Smooth

Protect your paving with UltraScape’s Paving Guard.

• Stablises jointing sand • Protects from staining • Limits chewing gum adhesion

For more information call 01827 871871 or email ultrascape@instarmac.co.uk 32 Landscape & Urban Design

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Aquadeck Proves Popular For Playgrounds Gripsure, the UK’s leading non slip decking company, produces a range of timber boards, all with the company’s innovative safety design to ensure they don’t get slippery, even in wet weather.

Its newest product, Gripsure Aquadeck®, is proving a popular choice for playgrounds. SuDS compliant, it allows rainwater to drain through the board and back into the water course below. Available in a variety of vibrant colours, the boards are also soft underfoot, so offer a more gentle landing than falling onto traditional playground surfaces, like stone or concrete.

Chew Magna Primary School near Bristol opted for Gripsure Aquadeck® to link new classrooms with the main school building. Headteacher Annie Spencer said the timber, which goes over a flood plain, has a variety of benefits: “It’s a great surface, which copes well with a lot of traffic. It is also being well used as an outdoor learning area.”

Managing Director of Gripsure, Mike Nicholson said: “Traditional rubber infill decking boards can retain up to 0.6 litres of water, which can cause algae to grow. In freezing conditions, wet decking can become even more hazardous as residual water turns to ice. With Gripsure Aquadeck® we can offer a surface that is attractive, hardwearing and safe all year round.” www.gripsure.co.uk

34 Landscape & Urban Design

LEVATO MONO porcelain paver system The Levato Mono porcelain paver system is the pinnacle of external raised flooring technology; enabling the specification of lightweight, slip resistant and attractive raised flooring solutions, combining incredible technical properties with uncompromising aesthetics; making them the ideal choice for commercial and domestic use alike.

20mm porcelain pavers 40x80 45x90 60x60 75x75 30x120 40x120 60x120 ‘Floating floor’ – installation over single ply membranes Eternal product - zero maintenance required – offering massive over-life savings

Highly abrasion and stain resistant Highly slip resistant ; R11 and achieved up to +65 wet in the BS pendulum test Lightweight – 45kgs per m2 High load bearing and impact resistance Timber & stone effects; 40+ finishes available

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Ideal for balconies, roof terraces and piazzas, for both commercial and residential use Completely non porous Fire & frost proof Height-adjustable supports from 9mm up to 550mm

Landscape Show

Landscape is the UK's leading trade show dedicated to bringing all Corners of the industry together!

Join us on 19th and 20th September 2017 at London’s Battersea Park The LANDSCAPE Show, the key industry trade show is back for another fabulous year with new initiatives being introduced across the show.

The 2017 Seminar Programme is packed with CPD accredited sessions that aim to both educate and inspire our visitors and exhibitors alike, with sessions featuring influential speakers from across the industry.

As well as a fantastic Petcha Kutcha evening led by New London Architecture’s Peter Murray.

The UK’s essential and industry leading trade show attracts the very best garden designers, architects and landscape contractors from the UK and beyond.

As well as being supported by 12 trade associations and 25 different media titles.

Online ticket registration is now open!

The show and all seminar sessions are free to attend, make sure you get your ticket at: Landscapeshow.co.uk Exhibitors: We expect this year’s show to sell out as the floor plan is already booming with a diverse range of companies already on board.

Showcasing everything from living plants and trees to lighting, water features, garden structures, outdoor furniture and decking.

36 Landscape & Urban Design

There are plenty of products and exciting ideas to discover at LANDSCAPE! Nearly 50% of our exhibitors are brand new to the show, ensuring our visitors can find the very best new and innovative products on the market from exhibitors they have never seen before at LANDSCAPE. Visitors: We see around 2,000 visitors across the two days and our international visitors include: Garden Designers, Landscape Designers and Contractors, Architects, Facilities Managers, Groundsmen, Parks Officers, Event Florists, Creative Directors, Garden Centres, Contract Gardeners, Hotels and Interior Designers.

An Industry leading seminar programme: The show hosts a free to attend CPD accredited seminar programme which is held in four seminar theatres across the two day show.

This year’s programme features some of the most respected and influential people in our industry.

New Starters Conference: Returns to LANDSCAPE 2017 featuring Will Williams, Michael Perry and Leigh Morris, this session will provide inspiration for students looking to get into the industry, through a discussion of how they got started and why they chose their respective career paths.

Check us out online for further information Website: landscapeshow.co.uk Email: info@landscapeshow.co.uk Phone: +44 (0)20 7821 8221

Planting Trees gives Peace, Beauty & Life to our Landscape & the Environment

Established in 1999, Trees Direct is a family run business based in Shropshire. We supply quality trees and shrubs to designers, councils, contactors, developers, corporate companies and educational trusts, together with plantings for private estates and individual clients. We keep many of our trees and shrubs on site while working with leading reputable suppliers both in the UK and abroad.

Trees Direct specializes in sourcing and putting together suggestions and plans for those who just don't have the time, contacts or knowledge to organise plantings. We have co-ordinated and put together many projects and are proud to have worked with The Woodland Trust, The Elm Conservation Foundation and The Royal Institute. Working on Regeneration plantings together with other environmental and commercial ventures has been very rewarding with the aim in preserving the environment and wildlife.

We are aware that every project is important to the client and our participation calls for commitment.

Therefore we are always available on the phone to discuss and advise, with help on plans and suitability before commencement of projects to ensure total satisfaction in our service. We are as happy to help source that one special tree as to working with clients for large plantings.

However small or large the job, we are here to guide, advise, plan and deliver.

www.treesdirect.co.uk

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Tel: 01584 878878

Trees Direct Ltd, Priors Halton House, Priors Halton, Nr. Ludlow, Landscape & Urban Design Shropshire SY8 2JN

37

Hardscape paves the way for Kidderminster public realm makeover Kidderminster town centre’s public realm has undergone a dramatic transformation with a £2 million project to revitalise the pedestrianised retail streets and create two striking public squares. Hardscape worked alongside IBI Group and Wyre Forest District Council to bring the designs for the ambitious regeneration project to life with a paving scheme reflecting an iconic stamp.

fan pattern created a striking colour contrast, picking out some of the stamps detailing.

The scheme was a catalyst for the regeneration of the pedestrianised shopping district, which in recent years had struggled to keep pace with the adjacent retail development at Weaver’s Wharf.

The re-surfacing of the pedestrian retail streets as well as the re-configuration of a key highway route through the town centre was also a key part of the project.

Phase one consisted of the creation of two public squares, including Exchange Place, which was designed around the form of the Penny Black postage stamp to honour Roland Hill, a local philanthropist who founded the modern postal system and whose statue stands tall in the centre of the square.

The shape of the square was based on the relative dimensions of the stamp and Crystal Black granite was chosen as the main paving material due to its durability, making it ideal for high footfall areas.

Royal White granite setts laid in a Bogen

38 Landscape & Urban Design

Originally a traffic heavy junction, the area was transformed into a pedestrian friendly public space that has redefined the beautiful Grade II listed Town Hall building, which overlooks the square, as the traditional heart of the town centre.

A gold, silver and bronze colour palette was used by Hardscape throughout. This was achieved using natural stone in the form of black and white granites, Tower sandstone as the ‘gold’ standard materials in the main squares and with the Kellen Breccia Tagenta range as the ‘silver’ standard for the retail streets and highway route footpaths.

Hardscape worked closely with the client team to help fulfil the brief to the finest detail. Councillor Tracey Onslow, Wyre Forest District Council cabinet member for planning and economic regeneration, summarised: “As part of the public realm regeneration development, feedback from residents reflected our aspiration to

highlight Kidderminster’s heritage, so this formed part of the brief to the designers.

We felt that designing the Penny Black imagery into the new paving was a striking and lasting way of paying tribute to Sir Rowland Hill and his contribution to our postal system.”

With over 20 years’ experience, technical expertise and range of ethically sourced hard landscaping materials, Hardscape provides inspiration for landscape architects for the urban landscape.

Schemes like Kidderminster demonstrate the exciting possibilities in paving that can be created to provide public realm spaces that people can enjoy for years to come.

For more information visit www.hardscape.co.uk

Royal Stamp of Approval For Kidderminster’s Shared Space The new Exchange Square in Kidderminster has been transformed by a unique paving design to reflect Sir Rowland Hill's Penny Black stamp together with an installation of an original Edward VII Royal Mail postbox.

Hardscape supplied Kellen Breccia Tagenta B, C & E and Tower sandstone paving; Crystal Black granite blister and corduroy tactiles and flush trims; Royal White granite kerbs.

Client: Wyre Forest District Council Contractor: The Casey Group Ltd Landscape Architect: IBI Taylor Young

For further information on our paving products please visit: www.hardscape.co.uk or telephone: 01204 565 500.

Gardens for good

J

oe Francis of Gardens for Good tells us about a project they recently created:

Our client had recently moved into a new build property and was keen to have a modern, easy maintenance garden to suit the style of their home.

The functional requirements were for an outdoor dining area with a built-in kitchen worktop, a location for a tandoor oven, some kind of outdoor lounge area, a lawn and a planting scheme with year round interest. One particular requirement was to screen the view of the neighbours windows to make the garden secluded and private.

Once we established the brief, the first stage was to conduct a survey along with a detailed analysis of the site. We then developed the plans with all this input in mind. We used white porcelain paving to create the patios and pathways

40 Landscape & Urban Design

around the garden, while the raised beds and low rendered walls bring a striking vertical element to an otherwise flat garden. The neighbouring windows were screened with pleached hornbeams and a cleverly positioned garden room that also obscured the view, bringing the focus purely into the garden area itself.

We developed the planting scheme be easy to maintain while looking great all year round and the lighting scheme complements the design, highlighting key features and providing a subtle yet elegant glow around the garden at night.

Our clients are thrilled with the results and we’re all look forward to watching the garden mature over the coming years.

“Employing a specialist garden designer was the best decision we could have made as the results are stunning. The design process was such fun too, particularly with the 3D computer model

of the design which enabled us to have a virtual walk round of the garden before it was even built!

From the outset, Joe at Gardens for Good really listened to what we wanted to achieve, paying careful attention to the type and style of garden we were wanted to create.

We would highly recommend Gardens for Good to anybody looking to transform their garden. In fact we have already had them redesign our front garden, which now looks stunning as well! “ Look out for Joe and Gardens for Good as they’ll be exhibiting their garden at the RHS Hampton Court Flower Show this July under the title ‘The Power to Make a Difference’.

Find out more by visiting their website at www.gardensforgood.co.uk

Before

After

Landscape & Urban Design

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Ground Reinforcement Solutions from Suregreen Suregreen have been dedicated to creating affordable products that are not only free draining and SuDS compliant but also help retain the natural beauty of Britain’s grassed areas. We offer permanent and temporary ground protection and reinforcement solutions capable of dealing with everything from pedestrian traffic to HGV lorries.

Our latest product is the PP50, a 50mm paver capable of dealing with heavier and more frequent vehicle traffic. Alongside our porous pavers we also supply grass reinforcement mesh, a solution that reinforce grassed areas to support cars and pedestrians whilst maintaining the natural grass finish.

To see our full range of ground reinforcement solutions please visit our website or call:

For more information: Call: 01376 503869 email: sales@sure-green.com Buy online: www.sure-green.com

PP50 Paver

To speak to a specialist: Call: 07703 784558 email: paul.munday@sure-green.com Technical Info: www.sure-ground.com

To see our full range of landscaping products please visit - www.sure-green.com or Call 01376 503869

42 Landscape & Urban Design

Landscape IT’S INDOORS MEETS OUTDOORS

Tuesday 19 & Wednesday 20 September 2017 Battersea Park,London The LANDSCAPE Show returns to Battersea Park in London on Tuesday & Wednesday the 19th & 20th of September 2017.

Over 200 manufacturers and suppliers, over 3,000 visitors and over 40 CPD accredited seminars. www.landscapeshow.co.uk +44 (0)20 7821 8221 @LandscapeEvent #Landscape2017

Jane Follis

As Spring coils ever-tighter and we reach Winter’s end, our gardens aren’t the only ones emerging from hibernation. With thoughts turning to the Summer that’s flickering at the end of the tunnel, we find out about Somerset-based garden designer, Jane Follis, and her approach to making more of our gardens – no matter how great or small.

Jane set up her garden design studio in 1994, and since then has been creating award-winning outdoor spaces for diverse clients across southern England, from the Home Counties to Somerset, Dorset and Devon. A fully accredited member of the Society of Garden Designers, her commissions vary hugely, from modest urban spaces to rolling country estates.

Uniting them is the same approach. Jane blends traditional and contemporary styles and techniques to create unique, timeless gardens. She combines her extensive experience of design and landscape architecture with a green-

44 Landscape & Urban Design

fingered love of horticulture, to transform and redefine outdoor spaces that transcend trends with real longevity.

Inspiration comes from the natural landscape, art, design, sculpture and texture. Combining these with environmental awareness and sustainable building practice and materials, Jane creates spaces that effortlessly unite form and function. It’s design that neither overwhelms nor intrudes; rather, it works seamlessly with the indoor space it embellishes, the outdoor space it enhances, and is a lasting expression of her clients.

Championing a hands-on, personal approach, Jane believes that each garden is an extension and embodiment of her clients as it develops, grows and evolves. She oversees every project from consultation to completion, never being afraid to get her hands dirty and indulge her love of horticulture. Working with carefully chosen contractors is imperative;

specifically, ones who share her eye for aesthetics while understanding horticulture and the all-important placement of plants.

Jane’s love of plants is described by one of her clients as ‘infectious’. She loves to create schemes to give year-round interest using texture, colour and scent with a mix of evergreens and perennials interspersed with bulbs. Herbs are also a must, not just for culinary use – they are beautiful in their own right and deservedly fit into every scheme.

On Jane’s drawing board at the moment are several exciting projects. One, An urban garden in Bristol, involves an outdoor seating and eating space, complete with roof, walls on two sides, and a fireplace and hearth for year-round use. In total contrast is a garden in the wilds of Somerset, where Jane is merging a recently purchased field and a very small garden to create a huge family space with livestock and vegetables, meandering

mown paths through wildflower meadows, and a grown-up space complete with fire pit and seating. A third is a brand-new build in Salisbury where the developer has left a couple of paving slabs and an unsightly bit of lawn. The garden is on two levels with a considerable 1.2-metre height difference. Jane is putting this to optimum use, taking the garden to an interim level of around 800mm and building a seating space with a glass barrier. Pleached hedging keeps an unsightly MoD building from view. She is looking forward to a coastal challenge in Friar’s Cliff where the sea almost meets the garden.

This testimonial from a long-standing client speaks for itself: “Nine years ago, Jane created a fabulous, high-end, multi-function garden in a challenging space. Nine years later, the planting has been refreshed but the design still looks bang up-to-date and the space works so well. Gardens can be very personal spaces and the ability to manage the client’s sense of ownership whilst creating a new and fresh approach is a delicate skill, one which Jane and her team have clearly mastered. A unique design, capturing all of our requirements and more, she provided an excellent

service from design to delivery in a personable, professional and flexible way.”

If you want to transform your garden this year, Jane is available for initial, free-ofcharge consultations to talk through your ideas and requirements.

Don’t just dream of a beautiful garden for 2017 – make it a reality.

Call Jane on 01749 860850 or visit her website www.janefollis.com

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A-Listers Of The Gardening World Headline RHS Malvern Spring Festival 2017

T

he great and the good of the gardening world will headline this year’s RHS Malvern Spring Festival 2017 from Thursday 11th – Sunday 14th May 2017.

Godfather of gardening Alan Titchmarsh returns joined

by BBC Gardeners’ World presenters Carol Klein, Monty Don, Joe Swift and Adam Frost. BBC Radio 4 Gardeners’ Question Time presenter Matt Biggs, famed florist Jonathan Moseley, British Queen of Herbs Jekka McVicar, BBC Blue Peter gardener Chris Collins and Gold Medal winning designers Jon

46 Landscape & Urban Design

Wheatley, James AlexanderSinclair and Jo Thompson all share their expert advice and knowledge.

Head of RHS Malvern Spring Festival, Jane Furze said: “We have a bumper crop of gardening experts for our visitors this year, there is literally someone for everyone.

We’re guaranteed expert advice, top tips, designer knowhow, floral facts and so much more from the very best in the industry as we celebrate all that is great about gardening.”

National treasure, Alan Titchmarsh will open the show on RHS Gold Day of RHS Malvern Spring Festival on Thursday 11th May. Festival favourite, acclaimed garden designer and broadcaster, James AlexanderSinclair returns to host the Festival Theatre promising lively conversations with all of the headliners including Carol Klein, Monty Don, Adam Frost and Joe Swift over the weekend.

RHS Malvern text RHS Malvern

Jekka McVicar will hold daily conversations from her Health & Wellbeing garden, a brand new permanent garden that has been commissioned by RHS Malvern. She will be sharing her encyclopedic knowledge of herbs and their myriad of uses with visitors whilst immersed in her beautiful scented garden.

Joining Joe Swift in the new Plant Finder Parlour in the floral marquee is Matt Biggs, who has created a unique one-man show specifically for RHS Malvern. He’s adopting the persona of great plant finders of the past, George Forrest and local man, Ernest Wilson on the Thursday and Friday of the show.

Celebrity florist, Jonathan Moseley is holding workshops over the four days celebrating British Flower Growers. Visitors are invited to have a go at creating their own floral masterpieces and to marvel at Jonathan’s magnificent Floral Fountain that is the same height and width of the average two bedroom house!

Chelsea designers Jon Wheatley, James Alexander-Sinclair and Jo Thompson will be sharing their award winning design knowledge with show garden tours and design tips that can be applied to any garden. Jon Wheatley is also heading up the Grow Zone and has designed an interactive wildflower feature garden that includes vegetables, fruit, bees and chickens.

photo RHS Malvern

Paul Hervey-Brookes launches the Paul Hervey-Brookes Growing Challenge in the Grow to Show area.

A slight departure for multiple RHS gold medal winning designer, Paul is inviting anyone to enter and demonstrate their growing skills and creativity. No prior experience is needed just enthusiasm and imagination!

BBC Blue Peter gardener, Chris Collins returns to lead the School Gardens Challenge.

RHS Malvern Spring Festival is proud to be one of the only RHS shows in the UK to have a collection of Show Gardens designed and built entirely by young people.

Chris will be on hand throughout the weekend hosting exciting and educational Plant and Grow workshops for young gardeners.

RHS Malvern Spring Festival 2017 will take place from Thursday 11 May until Sunday 14 May. Tickets are now on sale.

For more information and to book tickets, please call 01684 584924 or visit www.rhsmalvern.co.uk

Landscape & Urban Design

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ICL launch Landscaper Pro Range

New Sadolin Outdoor Varnish – puts the natural beauty of wood centre stage

The Turf and Landscape division of ICL has announced the launch of Landscaper Pro – featuring a range of unique products for landscapers and gardeners to help meet the demands of modern day lawn and landscape management.

The Landscaper Pro Performance grass seed provides the perfect foundation to get turf off to the best possible start.

Containing high quality perennial Ryegrass and Fescue, Landscaper Pro Performance produces a hard-wearing and fine blade which is ideal for areas used by children and pets.

Offering rapid germination, it is available in both 5kg and 10kg bags.

For fertilizer and grass seed application, the Landscaper Pro range features a variety of spreaders such as the

Handygreen II - with an ergonomic design to reduce wrist fatigue and the Accupro 1000 which has been designed to deliver an even and balanced spread pattern. Also included within the Landscaper Pro portfolio is Osmocote PrePlant which helps growers add value to their offering and help boost incremental sales to the landscaping sector.

For further information, please contact Mark Pyrah, ICL’s Landscape & Industrial Manager, for the UK & Ireland on 01473 237100 or visit www.icl-sf.co.uk or www.icl-sf.ie if you are in Ireland.

Call us

Offering an exciting development in superior woodcare, specifiers looking to achieve a natural, modern feel for exterior projects can now turn to Sadolin Outdoor Varnish to achieve this stylish look.

New for the 2017 season, Sadolin Outdoor Varnish taps into the growing trend towards a contemporary feel, where the beauty of wood takes centre stage.

The product’s completely clear formulation, in a choice of matt or satin finish, offers translucency with the perfect blend of protection. Ideal for use outdoors on windows, doors and conservatories, this premium clear varnish can be applied on both new wood and previously coated surfaces.

The look is also assured for the long-term with Sadolin Outdoor Varnish building a durable barrier of protection against weathering.

For more details, contact the Crown Paints’ Specification Team by calling 0330 024 0310, email info@crownpaintspec.co.uk or visit the specification website at www.crownpaintspec.co.uk www.sadolin.co.uk

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49

The Great Outdoors – how PowerBreaker ProteKt can offer you a superb opportunity… the PowerBreaker ProteKt products feature guided fixing holes isolated in a weatherproof chamber – so there is no sealing required at the screw entry point.

It’s by signposting contractors and specifiers to added-value features such as these that wholesalers can help to identify the most functional, cost effective and fit for purpose solutions.

With safety so high on the agenda, IP rated sockets with integral RCDs are a popular choice as these remove the need for an RCD adaptor and avoid the risk of nuisance tripping.

Peter Ratcliffe, Sales Director of GreenBrook Electrical, discusses the growing demand for outdoor power products and the up-selling opportunity for the wholesaler.

These days our gardens are part of our living space and a venue for our leisure time, leading to a considerable increase in the number of outdoor power applications. Exterior lighting, water features, heaters and hot tubs are all commonplace, plus seasonal electrical requirements (such as Christmas lights) have also meant that consumers are looking for better outdoor power solutions for their homes.

Demand for practical outdoor power solutions is also growing in the commercial market too as no longer is the need for outdoor power confined to locations like building sites and commercial areas. The smoking ban has seen pubs, restaurants and public halls invest in providing outdoor areas which

50 Landscape & Urban Design

are not only often lit but also heated and wired into the establishments A/V system. The PowerBreaker ProteKt range offers switches, spur units, sockets, timers and PowerBreaker RCDs, all ensuring that contractors have plenty of options for specifying a best fit solution for any application.

All PowerBreaker ProteKt products are IP66-rated and have been tested under multi-directional power hosing conditions (pressure washers) and are therefore suitable for the most demanding conditions. The IP66 rating also protects from the ingress of dust and dirt particles making them suitable for use in workshops and warehouses.

While the focus is on waterproofing and resistance to dust it is easy to forget that heat and sunlight can also cause the unit to deteriorate over time, which is why the PowerBreaker ProteKt range has been designed with UV protection to increase durability. Easy to install,

For commercial applications, the safest option is often to opt for an IP rated spur unit to avoid any possibility that electrical cables could be unplugged by mistake or due to vandalism. Meanwhile, if energy efficiency is part of the brief, an IP rated digital timer could be the most appropriate choice as this would allow devices such as outdoor lights – in either domestic or commercial settings – to be switched off automatically when not required.

Ultimately, outdoor power is an upselling opportunity for contractors and wholesalers alike. Any domestic or commercial building can benefit from the availability of outdoor power; a professionally installed socket, spur, switch or timer enhances both the flexibility and the safety of outdoor power usage when compare to the old fashioned extension lead approach. It pays, therefore to know what is out there and to maximise the opportunity outdoor power can provide.

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Lumena Lights

‘The Modular UltraSpikelight 360 in Copper’

Marine Grade Stainless Steel Ultra-Spikelight ‘Bright Innovation’ is the ultimate concept behind Lumena Lights, the Northamptonshire based Outdoor and Garden Lighting specialists established in 2010.

All products are directly imported and carefully selected for their quality and reliability. Only high end, innovative products are specified which are independently tried and tested to ensure complete customer satisfaction. Many designs are either exclusive or not widely available elsewhere, and a visit to their Daventry showroom is always welcomed by anyone wishing to inspect the lights before ordering.

Garden Lighting such as spotlights, recessed lighting and path lights crafted from Stainless Steel, Copper and Solid Brass are a main feature. Lumena have even registered their own new design named the ‘Ultra-Spikelight’.

52 Landscape & Urban Design

‘Domed Ledifice Photocell LED Bollard’ This upgrade on the standard spikelight has a strengthened neck joint, and the option to have four spotlights on one pole – a true revolution in outdoor lighting !

An immense range of LED compatible aluminium Illuminated Bollards are available, with very large stocks to cater for every requirement. There are four heights from 40cm to 1 metre high, as well as in-ground root mount options.

The bespoke Dusk to Dawn Photocell versions give extra security and instant, automated light in darkness, with customer reassurance that lights are never left on needlessly during the day. The use of LED bulbs results in low running and maintenance costs due to their high efficiency and long life.

New for 2017, Lumena offer Timber path lights made from heavy duty Radiata Pine.

The wood is chemically treated and kiln dried to give it a guaranteed life of up to

‘Post Lighting crafted from Radiata Pine’ 15 years. Solid Brass lights are housed within machined orifices in the timber sleepers or posts in order to create a robust but elegant path light. 12v and 240v options are available and all are LED compatible. These durable lights are inkeeping with the natural surroundings and aesthetics of the garden.

Lumena take pride in providing top quality customer service and advice, always with a friendly and professional manner.

The knowledgeable team are always on hand to help wherever possible, and look forward to hearing from you soon.

Website: www.lumenalights.com Email: sales@lumenalights.com Tel: 01327 871 161 Also find Lumena on Houzz, External Works, Facebook, Twitter & Instagram

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North Hill Gardens Gardens are becoming increasingly important to us, adding value to our property as well as providing another “room� to enjoy.

A

t North Hill Gardens we love designing them, creating them, building them and maintaining them and we’re rather good at it too. The whole North Hill Gardens team is passionate about creating the very best garden for each of our clients, whether they are working on a large country garden or a small city garden, a completely new look or just a few changes.

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The North Hill Gardens was created in 2008 by Michael Dumanski. Michael graduated as a Landscape Architect and Garden Designer in 2006 during which he won numerous landscape project awards.

He now runs The North Hill Gardens full time using his expertise to build and maintain inspirational gardens for clients across central Scotland.

Michael is intensely proud of the ethos behind The North Hill Gardens and the bespoke service offered to every customer. Each and every garden is unique, meticulously planned and constructed with maximum attention to detail and minimum fuss and disruption, both to its owners and their neighbours.

North Hill Gardens

As the design was in place accepted by the owner, we started our works with a proper underground drainage system, which is so important in rainy Scotland.

Stock is carefully sourced using the very best suppliers and treated with the reverence it deserves, ensuring that it is in tip top condition for your garden. In addition all elements of your project are managed in house; from appointing the designer, producing the concept drawings, detailed costings and commissioning the build, through to creating the garden and ongoing maintenance.

Nothing could be simpler.

Our last project was unusual, since it was a new build house constarcted on a modern estate, finished only two weeks before our start day.

The design challenge was to create a modern garden, using curves, and to include big lawn, a water feature and privacy.

The big lawn area that is central for this garden helps to keep the open perspective of this garden. As with many new estates a privacy was a main issue. To provide screening but doing it on a low cost we planted climbers along the fence.

The another big chalenge was to raise land level to the neighbour garden level, which was done by retaining walls, either timber or gabions.

Timber curved retaining walls made from timber sleepers were implemented to soften the shape of this modern garden.

To make the garden more interesting we used different types of material like wood for terrace and plant beds, gabion baskets with custommade sandstone pabbles, aluminium with water feature and decorative agregates.

The back blue slate slabs patio provides additional seating area.

The planting is simple but effective.

The owners request was to design it in a way, so they can maintain it but themselves as they enjoy gardening and watch the garden growing together with them.

We planted decorative grass to make the garden more structural.

In the plant beds used blooming shrubs and parenials like weigela florida royal beauty, potentilla, campanula varieties, so the garden can bloom with many colours in all seasons.

Trees like japanise maple and acer globosum ads not only clour but also interesting shape and shade.

To help the owners enjoy their gardening and reap some fruits of their hard work we planted redcurrant, black currant, gooseberry, an apple tree and design a vegetable bed.

Nature never stays still and we hope that as this garden continues to develop and grow it should give years of pleasure to the owners and their family.

To learn more about North Hill Gardens visit www.northhillgardens.co.uk Landscape & Urban Design

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High Life TreeHouses Jonathan Ross has got one. Phil Collins has one.

Even Barack Obama’s children have their own one.

A

beautiful place to watch the sunset.

A magnificent and magical playground for children. Some people even choose to get married in one.

What are we talking about? A treehouse. Not one like your dad or uncle built you when you were young, but rather a mesmerising and eye catching work of art.

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An enchanting retreat high up in a leafy bough- a place to relax and enjoy a drink with friends on along summer evening watching the setting sun and listening to the hoots of an awakening owl.

We can also provide your children with a fantasy hideaway where they can stimulate their endless

imaginations in natural surroundings by making a part of your garden their own.

Highlife treehouses specialises in hand made bespoke treehouses, of which two are never the same. We can create a variety of magical structures whether it be a fabulous treehouse, an elegant summerhouse, or perhaps a crazy ‘Hobbit Hole’.

High Life TreeHouse text High Life TreeHouse

photo High Life TreeHouse

Founded in 2003, Highlife Treehouses was started by Henry Durham in North London.

Since then treehouses have been built from the northern tip of Scotland to the southern point of Switzerland.

Since then the company has gone from strength to strength.

We are developing our own pioneering construction techniques and take pride in turning peoples’ dreams into reality. Recent projects include treehouses with log burners, copper turrets and even finger print recognition door locks. www.highlifetreehouses.co.uk

Landscape & Urban Design

57

Sports Park Willem Alexander / MoederscheimMoonen Architects

H

ow can you make a motorway section attractive and functional for the local residents? This is the question MoederscheimMoonen Architects set to work on for the Municipality of Schiedam. They devised a unique solution for a stretch of the A4 motorway between the Dutch cities of Delft and Schiedam. The result is wonderful green park and a new sports location that will definitely appeal to the imagination. Located some six metres above the motorway, the sports fields are enclosed by one of the largest canvases in Europe.

Together with Lace Fence, the

58 Landscape & Urban Design

architects created no less than 8,500 m² of colorful fencing that consists of over 1.6 million lifelike ‘pixels’.

Unique solution Initially, the tunnel and the motorway formed a barrier between the two adjacent residential areas. But the new design has now achieved the opposite. By realizing the park and sports fields on top of the tunnel itself, it has literally created new connections between the two residential areas. They offer an environment for everyone living in the area – young and old – to exercise and relax in.

Sports Play Willem text Sports play willem

Exercising above the motorway The complex and multidisciplinary nature of this assignment is reflected in the multiple use of space on top of and around the tunnel. The design features concrete canopy structures on both sides of the tunnel – creating a large enough surface area to realize sports fields on the roof of the tunnel section. Below these awnings, one finds space for car parks and

an indoor athletics, baseball and cricket facility.

The main building is situated in the heart of the park, between the elevated sports fields. As such, it has a direct relationship with the surrounding athletic activity. The building houses a sports hall, changing rooms for various indoor and outdoor sports, rooms for dance and ballet and a

photo Ronald Tileman www.tilleman.nl Courtesy of DeDots

large catering establishment with terrace seating. The terrace takes the shape of a plateau. ‘Hovering’ between the building’s different levels, it forms a transitional zone between the different street levels. The building’s overall design is characterized by the prominent expressive qualities of the fresh green roof and terrace awnings that emphasize the complex’s layered nature.

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59

Largest canvas in Europe The fields are enclosed by a screen that not only guarantees safety at the location but also mitigates the negative effects of the wind. For its design, the

60 Landscape & Urban Design

architects teamed up with the specialist firm Lace Fence, known for its innovative architectural woven fabrics.

They jointly developed a new product consisting of colorful ‘pixels’, named Dedots. These pixels are far more than

just a pragmatic solution: they lend the environment its own identity, with every square meter in the 1.2-km screen realized according to a unique design. This has resulted in a functional work of art that presents

an exciting combination of transparency, permeability to air and imagination. It merges everything that the project is about: nature, sports, connections and energy.

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Play is the only way Play is essential to a child’s physical and mental well-being; it supports development, crucial for a child as they transition through the key stages of life.

Our local parks provide the ideal environment to facilitate this. They offer an outdoor safe environment to play for children and families particularly important where apartment living for many offers no outdoor space to play at home.

Having open spaces is essential for children to run, explore, climb trees, ride bikes and let off steam with their friends, however not all children are afforded the independence to play in this environment.

‘Helicopter parenting’ is an emerging phenomenon, the outcome being that children are not given the independence and freedom of play that previous generations of children enjoyed.

This means that there is even greater pressure for play spaces to deliver a valuable and high quality experience for all children. How? Through clearly identifiable play spaces within parks.

62 Landscape & Urban Design

Traditional fixed play equipment within these spaces provides a haven for children to play alongside their parents and family. Children will experience moving sensations, such as rocking, spinning, sliding and will be able to assess risk and challenge whilst experiencing pure exhilaration through play.

Open natural landscape alongside quality play provision is crucial and highlights the importance of play to children in a society where inactivity and obesity levels are rising and threatening children’s health and wellbeing. The API (Association of Play Industries) has undertaken research which has uncovered during 2014-15

that 112 playgrounds have been closed and in 2015-16 a further 102 were shut down. The reason cited for this was 92% of local authorities reported a budget reduction over the last 3 years effecting these closures.

Therefore, we are fully supporting the #Nowhere2play campaign from the API which is lobbying for Government funding to arrest future closures and protect the accessible places to play that are so important for the health and well-being of children and families. www.proludic.co.uk

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Deep penetration aeration – The waterlogging solution that digs deeper to the walls of the fractures and fissures, swelling and contracting with the moisture content in the soil.

The machine moves on two metres and repeats the operation, completing two metre spacings on a staggered grid pattern and each shot connects with the previous ones so the whole area is aerated and treated. The Terralift can treat approximately 2,000m² of turf in a day.

It’s recommended that the probe holes are backfilled with aggregate to provide a semi-permanent aeration/ventilation shaft. The preference in the UK is to use claybaked balls which are inert, porous and allow air and water to penetrate into the probe holes.

L

andscapers, groundsmen and gardeners responsible for large grassed open space areas such as parkland, sports pitches, golf courses, bowling greens and avenues of trees, right through to domestic gardens, all share a common problem.

Compaction of the soil and panning lead to waterlogging which renders areas unusable, in many cases for long periods of time.

The usual focus will be on aeration to relieve compaction and open up the soil to allow air to get to the roots and improve drainage. Essential work to keep playing surfaces usable and maintain the grass but if the ground is too hard the tines bounce and the area remains untreated. Similarly, where aeration is regularly carried out to a depth of 300mm the effect over a period of time will be to actually create a pan layer at 300mm. What is needed to relieve the resultant waterlogging is fracturing of the soil below this depth and that calls for a specialist approach to the problem.

Deep penetration aeration has proved successful for many years and is well

64 Landscape & Urban Design

known by golf courses for relieving compaction panning on their greens, tees and even around tree roots. In fact, the technique was introduced with the invention of the Terralift machine in Germany in the early 1970’s. There is many a Greenkeeper who will testify to the success of the treatment. The first in the UK was carried out at Sittingbourne and Milton Regis Golf Club in 1985, with a return visit for just one day’s top up treatment on four greens being requested some 15 years later! Since then different chassis versions of the Terralift have been designed to work in a wide range of applications.

What is unique is the ability to hydraulically hammer a probe one metre into the soil and release a blast of compressed air at a pressure of up to 20Bar (280psi) which fractures the compacted soil. At a depth of one metre the probe has effectively passed though pans created by other aeration machines, opening up the soil and creating fissures.

On the tail end of the air blast dried milled seaweed, a natural eco-friendly product, is injected via the probe and this sticks

Typical applications for deep penetration aeration have broadened from the original golf course treatment into football and rugby playing fields, bowling greens, cemeteries, National Trust properties, estates and private gardens. The longterm solution causes little surface disruption and allows immediate play on sports pitches and greens after treatment.

In the case of public parks the deep penetration treatment is often used around trees which suffer from compacted ground due to heavy foot traffic. Deep aeration is carried out one metre inside and one metre outside the canopy drip line as this is where the growing roots lay.

By going to one metre depth excess water is taken away from the root zone to stop anaerobic conditions.

Well aerated soil around the root zone allows a better uptake of oxygen for the trees and a better access for rainwater, in turn resulting in a stronger root growth and canopy spread. Phytophthora can also be stopped by using the Terralift to aerate the soil, keeping the soil open with the injection of the seaweed, with fissures opened to allow liquid fungal treatment product to be watered over the top surface.

The Terralift deep penetration aeration service is owned and operated by Terrain Aeration 01449 673783 www.terrainaeration.com

Miria Harris is a landscape designer and garden designer based in Hackney, East London H Working with private and public clients Miria Harris offers a tailor made approach to delivering beautiful designs in an informal contemporary naturalistic style.

66 Landscape & Urban Design

er designs are informed by her former 10 year long career as a contemporary art curator as well as an enthusiasm for the history and context of a place and it’s architecture.

Her practice also encompasses exterior styling and the sourcing of new, bespoke or vintage furniture and garden accessories. She has collaborated with a number of furniture designer makers, architects and interior designers, including Studio Ilse, P-Joseph, DMFK, Surman Weston, Morales Finch Architects, Lia Kiladis Architecture and David Blair Ross Design.

Recently completed projects include a family garden in East London with a Surman Weston designed garden studio and a 100ft south facing garden in Hampstead Heath for clients who had recently worked with McLaren Excell architects to renovate their Grade II listed Georgian house.

Miria Harris text Miria Harris

Current projects include a garden for a recently renovated Grade II* listed Georgian house in Spitalfields which will include the siting of a trio of 40 year old espaliered Pear Trees, a large communal garden for luxury apartments occupying an old Tannery building in Bermondsey and a 500m2

photo Miria Harris

garden in West London inspired by a 1970s aesthetic.

Miria Harris has run her own design practice for 6 years. www.miriaharris.com

Landscape & Urban Design

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Spa Town Spectacle For RHS Malvern Spring Festival 2017 Live Well Newly introduced for the very first time, this dedicated zone interprets and explores the theme of health and wellbeing in the 21st century.

Jekka Mcvicar’s Health & Wellbeing Garden The centrepiece of the Live Well zone, British Queen of Herbs, Jekka McVicar designs and builds a specially commissioned permanent garden, bringing to life the role gardens continue to play in our health and sense of wellbeing. Jekka’s garden is a living working space for mind, body and senses.

An entirely new vision brings RHS Malvern Spring Festival into full bloom for 2017, taking inspiration from the event’s Spa town heritage. The landmark four-day spectacle, taking place from Thursday 11 – Sunday 14 May at the Three Counties Showground, welcomes all new features and exhibits and a vibrant line up of the finest in gardening, food and lifestyle.

Jane Furze, Head of RHS Malvern Spring Festival, said: “We are so excited to share the glorious plans that are afoot for RHS Malvern Spring Festival 2017. It really is going to be a sensational year for our leading event with plenty for everyone.

Whether you’re a newcomer to gardening, a veteran horticulturalist or simply looking for a family day out, RHS Malvern Spring Festival has it all. We look forward to welcoming visitors to our stunning showcase of spring in May.” The new vision for RHS Malvern Spring Festival takes inspiration from Malvern Spa’s Victorian heyday as a fashionable health resort – a place where day-trippers descended to take advantage of the clean air and to enjoy the health giving waters amongst the romantic beauty of the hills and into a town of pleasure gardens, assembly rooms and numerous eatingplaces.

68 Landscape & Urban Design

Promising a bountiful day out for everyone, visitors can expect: New For 2017 Floral Marquee RHS Malvern Spring Festival boasts the UK’s longest Floral Marquee at over 195 metres – the equivalent length of four Olympic swimming pools. The Floral Marquee welcomes more than 65 leading UK and international nurseries, setting the horticultural standards with impressive displays of prized blooms and new varieties.

Exhibitors in the Floral Marquee represent the very best in plants and advice available. Here visitors can browse and buy from the very best.

Joe Swift’s Plant Hunter Parlour BBC Gardeners’ World presenter and acclaimed garden expert, Joe Swift brings to life a new centerpiece of the Floral Marquee – Joe’s Plant Hunter Parlour.

This immersive experience like no other features daily talks from award winning nurseries and welcomes budding gardeners big and small to discover, learn and indulge their inner plant hunter.

The garden is both a tranquil seating space where visitors can spend time amongst the aromatic herb beds, and a place to learn and explore what living well meant in yesteryear and what it means today.

Visitors are invited to join daily ‘herbal conversations’ with Jekka herself and explore the awe-inspiring world of alternative therapies. The garden is in support of Pathways, a day service for adults with learning disabilities and difficulties.

Grow A horticultural experience by Jon Wheatley, RHS Gold Medal winning gardener and Chairman of RHS South West in Bloom, Grow takes inspiration from interactive Country gardens and wildflower borders, showcasing a variety of edible beds and bountiful Grow To Show competitions.

Spa Gardens A brand new category introduced for the very first time to RHS Malvern Spring Festival, offering a unique platform for emerging gardening talent. Glorious gardens from up and coming designers bring to life the new vision and reflect the thirst for knowledge, new horizons and innovative technology at the heart of Malvern’s Victorian heritage.

Gold Medal winning Chelsea garden designer, Jo Thompson is mentoring the new talent as they embark on this exciting new challenge. The Spa Gardens category also features one garden from an international designer supported by the esteemed Moscow Flower Show.

This is part of a newly introduced exchange programme, which in return offers one selected British Spa Garden designer the once in a lifetime chance to showcase at Moscow Flower Show in July.

Indoor Shopping Arcades

Festival Theatre

A premium quality shopping experience, it is here that visitors can pick up unique pieces in fashion, furniture, homewares, horticulture, gifts and more from independent designers, craftsmen, artisans and artists.

Hosted by RHS Malvern Spring Festival favourite and award winning writer and broadcaster, James Alexander-Sinclair, the Festival Theatre plays host to a lively line up of leading experts and familiar faces. Visitors may take a seat and enjoy demonstrations, talks and exciting features as personalities share their knowledge and passion for all things gardening and food. Confirmed experts include Carol Klein, Joe Swift, Jekka McVicar and Jon Wheatley with plenty more to be announced soon.

Plant Arcades An exciting open-air shopping experience with over 35 nurseries, each showcasing a wonderful array of plants. Plant steals aplenty can be found here, especially during the famous sell-off on Sunday.

Making A Welcome Return Festival Green The heart of RHS Malvern Spring Festival featuring a colourful array of pleasure gardens, a bandstand of live music, an impressive collection of classic cars, an array of global flavours from the International Street Food Market, and plenty of places to picnic.

It is here visitors rediscover the Victorian love of amusement, surprise and delight, alongside enjoying unique show gardens unlike any other.

British tastes with bountiful offerings from the country’s best-loved artisan producers.

Expect the freshest field produce, big cheeses, bread of heaven, specialty gins, decadent bakes and more.

Kitchen Garden Theatre This animated live kitchen, hosted by Mark Diacono, showcases a line up of delicious cookery demonstrations from culinary experts and the country’s top chefs. Mark shares advice from his home farm cookery school, Otter Farm and experience as head gardener at River Cottage.

Show Gardens

Young Gardener

The highest standard of garden design is showcased in the Show Gardens of RHS Malvern Spring Festival 2017. Leading designers create awe-inspiring gardens as they compete for prestigious RHS accolades including Gold medals and the coveted Best In Show. RHS Malvern Spring Festival is famed as the show that raises the bar for design and horticultural talent with numerous RHS Gold medals awarded in 2016. This year is tipped to be no exception.

A hive of activity tailored to inspire the next generation of gardeners and horticulturalists with fun hands-on activities to help children learn and explore the wonderful world of plants and gardens.

Food & Drink Pavilion A foodie hotspot, the Food & Drink Pavilion is a magnificent celebration of

Family Day Budding gardeners great and small are invited to get green fingered with a dedicated Family Day on the Sunday of RHS Malvern Spring Festival. This exciting and educational day with plenty of hands on activities is the ideal opportunity to engage children in the fun of gardening and the great outdoors. Expect Kids Cookery demonstrations, make and take crafts, Kids Plant and Grow workshops with BBC Blue Peter Gardener, Chris Collins and more.

School Gardens RHS Malvern Spring Festival is one of the only RHS Shows in the UK to have a collection of Show Gardens designed and built entirely by young people. This year sees over 12 schools and educational groups from across the three counties taking part, led by BBC Blue Peter Gardener, Chris Collins.

RHS Malvern Spring Festival 2017 will take place from Thursday 11 May until Sunday 14 May. For more information, please call 01684 584900 or visit www.rhsmalvern.co.uk Landscape & Urban Design

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Vision 2017 Explores The Future Of Architecture, Landscape Design And Products Aimed at architects, designers, specifiers and their clients, Vision 2017 provides an international focus for innovative products and building solutions, bringing together some of the best designs and leading figures from across Western Europe. Across two days in June, the show will host the best and brightest from established practices and new start-ups, providing a matchmaking service to help facilitate meetings between companies that can work together to create better buildings for the future.

70 Landscape & Urban Design

The exhibitors at Vision cover a range of products, materials and solutions, including research and development into the latest software, bringing together industry leaders to discuss challenges in today’s complex market and ways to deal with changing legislation.

Woodscape – widely known for their beautiful hardwood street furniture and external structures for the UK’s most vibrant public spaces – will display features from their #designthenation projects that demonstrate the breadth of our urban design experience and

working relationships with architects and landscape designers. Argex is an ecofriendly clay from Belgium that can be used for building, horticulture and public spaces, such as the Place Saint-Lambert, a square in the centre of Liège, Belgium.

This year Vision has also partnered with various international trade authorities, from countries including Belgium, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Latvia and the Czech Republic. These nations will be represented at the event through a number of pavilions, each housing

Vision

multiple participants. Live demonstrations and networking will provide opportunities to meet and exchange ideas with our continental counterparts.

Key professional and cultural organisations will also be represented, such as the RIBA, BRE, the London Festival of Architecture, New London Architecture and the Museum of Architecture. The CPDcertified event is designed to educate and inspire, with international solutions to local problems. BRE have curated a series of talks aimed to target the main issues facing the construction industry today.

The RIBA is also taking centre stage, targeting housing and sustainability as the focus of a number of presentations and debates. New London Architecture will return to Vision with their annual PechaKucha, this time considering the

global ways of working and how that might affect efforts closer to home.

All the talks and presentations at Vision will take place under the umbrella topics: Materials Innovations, Technological Insight and Architectural & Design Evolution. This framework will help delegates rethink the built environment and the manner in which we can shape places and spaces. Speakers have been sourced from the best practices in the country and around the world, both small and large. Roger Ridsill from Foster + Partners will discuss the role of engineering in a global firm while Benjamin Garcia Saxe, based in Costa Rica, will explore new sustainable materials used in tropical architecture.

Zaha Hadid Architects’ Stefano Paiocchi will reveal a new design approach that blends techniques between fashion and

architectural processes, and Caroline Bos of UNStudio will talk about their research into the circular economy.

The free-to-attend exhibition is open for registration and will take place at Olympia from 6-7 June, featuring established companies alongside the brightest startups.

For more information about exhibiting at Vision, contact Elliot Gard or Andrew Brabazon today on +44(0)20 3409 0623 or visit www.visionlondon.com.

Register today for your free ticket to Vision 2017 at www.visionlondon.com/register Vision 2017 – 6-7 June Olympia London – www.visionlondon.com – @visionldn

Landscape & Urban Design

71

Kubota Revs Into Action At Euromec Rtv Ride And Drive Day K

ubota UK, one of the UK’s leading manufacturers of agricultural, construction and groundcare equipment, made a fast paced return to Rockingham Castle earlier this month for the eagerly anticipated Euromec customer Ride and Drive day.

In its third year, 100 nationwide guests from a range of sectors including commercial, industrial, private estate and local councils were invited to enjoy off road driving experiences provided by both the Sturgess Group and Kubota UK. Speaking about the day, Peter Crewe, Managing Director at Euromec said: “It’s not every day that our 4x4 customers are given the opportunity to be behind the wheel of a Kubota utility vehicle, or vice versa for that matter. Our Ride and Drive Day is designed specifically to let both our Sturgess and Kubota UK customers enjoy a driving experience that we can guarantee they’ll have never tried before.”

Kubota’s RTV1140 was a popular addition to the day, allowing groups of four to be

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driven around the track by an experienced member of the Kubota team or get behind the wheel themselves. Kubota’s RTV-X900, RTV500 and RTV400 models were also put to the test by users, along with a range of 4x4 vehicles.

Michael Blissett, a Euromec customer from Harrington said: “I’m familiar with the Kubota brand as I own a Kubota compact tractor which I use for log splitting and grass cutting.

However, I’ve never driven a utility vehicle before, so being

given the chance to take their RTV1140 for a spin around the track really opened my eyes to just how powerful they are.”

Situated in the rugged grounds of Rockingham Castle, which boasts the official Land Rover Experience track, the course featured steep hills, winding paths and boggy terrains, with heavy rainfall on the day adding to the fun.

Ken Williams from Gloucester said: “Being given the opportunity to get behind the wheel of both machines and

Kubota

experience their capabilities when stretched to the limit was an absolute joy. As a Sturgess customer, I’ve never driven a Kubota RTV and I was really surprised at just how rugged and resilient they are.

I own a large piece of farm land so will definitely consider purchasing an RTV500 for getting around with ease.”

With the grounds team at Rockingham hosting eight Kubota utility vehicles within their own fleet, the vast grounds and muddy elements created the perfect setting for the day. Peter continued: “The event really allows customers to experience just how powerful the machines we have on offer are. When visitors come to a showroom, its hard to explain the sheer capabilities of the vehicles, so it’s a fantastic opportunity to really put them through their paces and see what they can do.”

To find out more about Kubota and its market-leading range of machinery solutions, visit www.kubota.co.uk.

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Pitches Go ‘Pro’ At St Joseph’s College Thanks to two new Toro mowers Toro machinery is trusted to maintain many premier-league quality pitches, from those at Leeds Rhinos Rugby Club’s Headingley Stadium to West Ham United FC’s London Stadium, and has now been brought onto the superb sporting facilities at St Joseph’s College. The Ipswichbased school purchased two Toros, a Groundsmaster 3280-D and a Reelmaster 5510-D, as well as a TYM T433 compact tractor to cover the 60-acre site and make the pitches look “professional” for its annual rugby festival.

St Joseph’s College Rugby Festival is a 30-year-old event, which brings the country’s top 16 rugby playing schools and colleges together every October in one of the biggest school tournaments of its kind. The event will be streamed live and, with all eyes on the pitch, there is pressure to get the turf “spot on”, says head groundsman Peter Hamilton. “We’ll be cutting the pitches every day in the lead-up to the Rugby Festival, and with the 5510 I can even cut the pitches in two directions the day before so they look as good as a professional rugby pitch.”

The Reelmaster 5510-D was chosen to perfect the pitches and stands out as the true “favourite”: “The machine is so fast, but also delivers beautiful results. The 5510 cuts the rugby pitches at 30mm and always gives a clean, professional finish,” Peter enthuses. St Joseph’s rugby first team train and play hard – four times a week to be exact – and up to 70 cricket games take place in a season on the school’s grounds. With such heavy and frequent use, it’s important to maintain the sports surfaces with an efficient machine, which the 5510-D is, according to Peter: “The 5510 has seen us halve our cutting time, and setting it up for cutting is easy with its quick click-in system. Another thing I love is its low fuel consumption, which I didn’t expect from such a large machine.”

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The grounds at St Joseph’s College include four rugby pitches, three cricket outfields, and many other sports surfaces that cater to a wide range of sports on offer – from netball, hockey and rounders to tennis, athletics, and cross-country.

Peter says: “We are a big sporting college and require machines which can keep up with it all. When we looked at what was out there, we felt Toro was more than up to the challenge and its competitive prices were the icing on the cake.”

The school chose Toro’s Groundsmaster 3280-D in particular to mow the amenity grass surrounding the college and collect leaves across the entire site, and it’s already making a difference to the grounds team’s daily routine, saving both labour and maintenance time. “Before we had a machine for each job, but now the GM3280 can do both operations and we have more space in the shed,” says Peter.

“With our previous outfront mowers you had to remove grass cuttings manually, but with this one you just reverse, press a button, it tips out the offcuts, and off we go again without even having to get off the machine! Simple things like that, and only having to swap out individual blades instead of an entire cutting deck, are proving to be real time savers.”

Meanwhile, the TYM T433 tractor is the perfect choice for aerating the pitches and relieving compaction. It is powerful enough to pull attachments such as a deep tine aerator without damaging the turf.

Peter is confident that the new machines will “help create surfaces that the girls and boys will continue to enjoy their sport on.” He comments: “Given how they’ve performed already, I’ll definitely be looking at Toro if we decide to expand our kit again in the future.” www.reesinkturfcare.co.uk

THE TORO GROUNDSMASTER 3400 OUT-FRONT ROTARY

Powerful by design

THE GROUNDSMASTER 3400 OUT-FRONT ROTARY MOWER Groundscare machinery from Toro – brought to you by Reesink Turfcare, award-winning UK distributors of Toro for more than 30 years.

The Groundsmaster 3400 out-front rotary mower from Toro – a highly versatile and heavy-duty workhorse delivering speed, power and performance to keep you out in front.

Effortlessly powerful mowing for councils and contractors – the GM3400 features a powerful and fuel efficient Kubota diesel engine that delivers all the power needed to handle the most difficult of mowing conditions and provides a high 25.5 km/h transport speed for fast transportation between sites for extra productivity. With a super strong 157cm or 183cm steel cutter deck, longlasting highspecification tyres – designed for clearance to aid kerb climbing – and fully hydraulic 4WD on-demand transmission system, this workhorse really will keep you out in front when it comes to performance.

ASK FOR A FREE DEMO CALL 01480 226800 OR GO ONLINE

Put us to the test. For a free onsite demonstration visit reesinkturfcare.co.uk or call 01480 226800

GM7200 ZERO-TURN

GM360 QUAD-STEER

CT2240 COMPACT TRIPLE

LT3340 HEAVY-DUTY

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Reesink Turfcare UK Limited 1-3 Station Road, St. Neots, Cambridgeshire PE19 1QH T 01480 226800 E info@reesinkturfcare.co.uk W reesinkturfcare.co.uk Reesink Turfcare IRE, Kilboggin, Nurney, Co. Kildare T 045 241963 E info@reesinkturfcare.ie Reesink Turfcare UK Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Frilford Heath Opts For Otterbine Air Flo 3 Diffused aeration system brings significant improvement to reservoir Water conservation is a hot topic at the moment and any way to re-use, recycle and utilise that resource on a golf course is good news.

Working towards a degree of water self-sufficiency, Frilford Heath, a 54-hole championship golf course complex seven miles south of Oxford, has had an Otterbine Air Flo 3 installed in its 6m, 10 million gallon reservoir to aerate the water and make it good enough quality to irrigate the course.

Course manager Sid Arrowsmith, who has been at the helm of Frilford Heath since 1994 and is one of only 70 BIGGA Master Greenkeepers, tells us the

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improvement the diffused aeration system has made to the water quality since installation is “significant”: “The Air Flo has had a big job to do. Our holding reservoir is a fantastic resource, but the water at the bottom had become too unhealthy to go on the turf.

of day for up to 10 years; as a result it was starting to smell and turn black in colour.”

“Under licence from the Environmental Agency, the water is piped from a brook down stream through farming fields, bringing pollutants such as waste and silt with it. So, even as it arrives, it’s ready for a clean. Because it’s not feasible to empty the old reservoir water out before the new water arrives, the water at the bottom was very old and probably hadn’t seen the light

Sid says it’s this circulation that will clean the water: “Churning the water up from the lower levels will allow the aerobic bacteria to do their work and metabolise the nutrients. This process takes time considering the volume of water but we had water ready to use within 12 weeks, which is a significant improvement.”

The Air Flo 3 pumps air to diffusers on the lake or pond bed to release oxygen, creating mass circulation to the bottom and top water layers without affecting the water’s surface.

The ultimate aim is for a degree of self-sufficiency and Sid and the club have been working with the Environmental Agency every step of the way towards ensuring the reservoir is a sustainable entity; holding good quality water accumulated throughout the year and ready for irrigation in the summer and whenever else needed.

Already a Toro machinery customer, Sid decided to stay with Reesink Turfcare and opt for Otterbine for the job. The fact that the Air Flo 3 is also energy-efficient, quiet and requires minimal maintenance were additional benefits. www.reesinkturfcare.co.uk

Otterbine’s Gemini Adds Striking Focal Point To Xerox Lake In Dublin A Gemini aerating fountain from water specialist Otterbine transformed a lake at the Ballycoolin branch of digital printing company Xerox in Dublin.

Chosen by facilities management company Acacia and installed by irrigation specialists Aquaturf Solutions, the 3HP surface spray aerator was favoured for its dual ability to circulate the water, which was at risk of becoming stagnant when the previous 12-year old fountain broke, and provide a striking feature for the business park’s canteen diners to enjoy.

Gavin Osborne, facilities engineer at Acacia who had the job of finding the perfect fountain, says: “We’d been looking into the right fountain for three to four months before we were recommended the Gemini by a colleague who’d recently installed one at a local golf club.”

According to Gavin the Gemini ticked all the boxes: “It was important we found something with a practical purpose to maintain a clean and clear lake and provide an attractive focal point in the commercial landscape of the business park.”

The Gemini is both functional and beautiful, as its power can move over three times more water than decorative pattern fountains, yet its simple beauty provides an appealing aesthetic.

Before

“The level of power and spray were exactly what we were looking for,” says Gavin. “The water is kept aerated and healthy and the 1.5m vertical spray pattern is really striking.”

And with that Gavin perfectly summed up the Gemini, for with it you do not have to sacrifice the pretty for the practical.

After

www.reesinkturfcare.co.uk

The secret of healthy lakes and ponds?

Transform your problem lakes, ponds and water features into healthy, sparkling attractions with Otterbine water management systems.

Reesink Turfcare UK Limited 1-3 Station Road, St. Neots, Cambridgeshire PE19 1QH T 01480 226948 E info@reesinkturfcare.co.uk W reesinkturfcare.co.uk Reesink Turfcare UK Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

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Ego Power+ Continues To Break The Rules Petrol power has met its match in the garden with the new line up of EGO Power+ products

T

he EGO Power+ range, launched under three years ago, has already established itself as a UK brand leader and the only specialist in battery powered garden machinery. In such a short time, this new brand’s industry-leading cordless system has made a massive impact, and changed the sector forever.

its rival, as well as stylish and striking product design, and unrivalled capability that has all the power of petrol with less noise, fuss and fumes.

This phenomenal success is largely attributed to the brand’s innovative and ground-breaking battery technology that out performs

“We have total confidence in our products and don’t have to support them with petrol and main electric options.

Whilst other brands have jumped onto the cordless band-wagon, EGO Power+ remains the only brand to consist solely of battery products.

Unlike other manufacturers, we are 100% cordless and our innovative 56volt battery is the industry’s highest energy capacity battery, and is the most sophisticated and technologically advanced power pack on the market,” says Steve Roskell, EGO’s European marketing director.

As part of its new product line up for the 2017 season, EGO has announced new products that are suited for both professional and municipal applications, whilst also offering extra power,

performance and strength to the domestic gardener, as well as key developments to its existing product range.

Three totally new additions to the EGO range for 2017 are the multi-tool, the backpack blower and the backpack battery that can be used with selected products in the range. The multi-tool offers the power, ease and comfort of battery technology applied to a long-reach system that is line-trimmer, brushcutter, hedgetrimmer, pole saw and edging tool all in one.

For more information visit www.egopowerplus.co.uk

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2017

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Landscape & Urban Design

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Looking Great For Solihull - Urban Flowers Reduce Maintenance Carbon Footprint The visual and financial success of a Rigby Taylor Euroflor urban meadow flower planting scheme at a public park in the West Midlands is spurring the local council to consider the further widespread use of the flowers for other open spaces and highway verges in the borough.

In a project instigated by Amey’s regional groundscare contracts manager, Tim McGibbon, in conjunction with Rigby Taylor’s area representative, Andria Backhaus, the planting of the Euroflor Sarah Bouquet urban meadow flower seed mixture has created a colourful, monthslong display of wildflowers that has attracted many complimentary comments by visitors to the park.

In addition, the scheme has also generated significant reductions in the carbon footprint of the park’s maintenance regime.

Tim McGibbon explains: “By sowing the urban flower mix in an area that is traditionally grass and cut by Amey 18 times a year, we’ve created a visually impressive area that has transformed an area of dull grassland. Not only has it attracted positive comments but has reduced the cutting frequency down to just once every 12 months.“ “With Amey being responsible for around 60 million square feet of open space, grassed areas and highway verges for Solihull Council, any increase in our Euroflor planting schemes will help brighten up the parklands even more.

And, as a welcome by product, generates significant savings on cutting regimes for the authority in the future”.

He adds, “This change to open space management practice makes sound economic sense but also creates for Solihull’s residents and visitors, parks that are a more pleasant place to visit.”

Councillor Ken Hawkins, Solihull Council’s Cabinet Member for Environment, Housing & Regeneration, said: “The flowers have

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transformed an area which was previously short grass and has provided an excellent bed of colour on which park users have complimented us. Thanks to Amey’s idea we now hope to sow more seeds next year to make our parks even more attractive for people and wildlife - in support of our aim of managing all of our open spaces to Green Flag Award standard.”

Amey’s Solihull Groundscare division – part of a nationwide, 21,000-employee operation that “creates better places for people to live, work and travel” The use of Rigby Taylor’s Euroflor urban meadow flower seed mixture has not only created a colourful, months-long display of wildflowers in the park, but the planting scheme has also generated significant reductions in the carbon footprint of the park’s maintenance regime Now, following the success of the urban flower mixture, Euroflor

will be added to Tim McGibbon’s annual shopping list – and, after hearing about the project, other Amey Groundscare divisions look set to follow suit. www.rigbytaylor.com

The War on Weeds - with Water?! occasions, with limited success before opting for Cardley’s hot water solution.

Professional gardeners need not to worry about damaging surrounding areas: “The hot water system can be applied accurately and the heat penetrates the root of the weed, killing it in a way that has no negative impact on our water, environment, staff or wildlife.” – Tom Clare, Reserve Manager, WWT Martin Mere.

Not only this, but using 100% hot water poses no restrictions in and around public areas and requires no protective clothing or specialist licenses, allowing for community involvement and reduced downtime – a must for those facing rising budget cuts.

Until a couple of years ago, the thought of watering weeds would be viewed with raised eyebrows. However watering weeds with boiling water is the latest organic approach to weed killing without using any chemicals.

Cardley are the UK and Ireland’s most established herbicide-free weed control providers on the market; offering effective, efficient and ecological weed control in a range of weed killing machines using 100% hot water.

Heating the water to an optimum temperature of 98° ensures the cellular structure of the plant is destroyed by thermal energy at low pressure. Weeds are becoming more resistant to traditional herbicides such as glyphosate, which is

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why there is a need to consider a more modern and sustainable approach to tackling those troublesome weeds.

An increasing amount of industry professionals are opting for a more organic method of weed control, due to the ongoing uncertainty of chemical weed killers with glyphosate being the latest chemical to expire from the market

by December 2017 unless if it granted a license extension.

Environmentally friendly weed control is nothing new, but getting right technology to be effective and efficient is, with imitation hot steam machines often failing to get to the root of the problem.

Likewise, WWT Martin Mere trialled a hot foam weed control machine on several

Increased revenue is now obtainable with just one machine, due to Cardley’s machines having the capability to be used for high pressure cleaning of paved areas, street furniture and signs, as well as, chewing gum and some graffiti removal, just by a change of the lance.

“We are also benefiting from the machine being dual purpose so we are able to power wash at the same time as we have been weeding. That is reducing time by not having to revisit the area.”

– William Spence, Executive Manager – Environmental Services, Shetland Islands Council.

Try something new this weed killing season! www.cardley-group.com/cardley-weed-control info@cardley-group.com | 01254 707407

E V R U S ™

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MEN T A E TR

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VAL O M RE E T N A UAR

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