Pro Landscaper March 2022

MARCH 2O22

THE

ISSUE

SHORTLIST REVEALED

LET’S HEAR IT FROM

BAROMETER SPECIAL

TACKLING WASTE

Pro Landscaper Business Awards 2022

James Hitchmough, University of Sheffield

How are suppliers striving for sustainability?

Top tips on reducing waste onsite

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WELCOME

W E LCO M E T

So, how do you know which claims are true and which are greenwash? Whilst it’s far from being this black and white, the best way to find out if your suppliers are making sustainable choices is to ask them. From where are they sourcing their materials? How are they reducing their greenhouse gas emissions? And what steps are they taking to become carbon neutral?

It’s not just suppliers, though, which are under pressure. Clients may be asking similar questions to prospective garden designers and landscapers.

Similarly, garden designers and landscapers may be encouraging their clients to adopt a more environmentally friendly garden.

The roadmap to sustainability might not be clear, and mistakes may well be made along the way, but as Rachel Bailey says, we have to work together to make a difference. Trial and error is better than doing nothing at all.

NINA

IT’S BECOME MORE AND MORE APPARENT THAT A ROADMAP TO SUSTAINABILITY IS FAR FROM STRAIGHTFORWARD

Photographs ©John Campbell at Room of Light/Living Landscapes

his is now our third annual Green Issue, an edition of Pro Landscaper dedicated to the industry’s approach to becoming more environmentally friendly.

Since our first in 2020, it’s become more and more apparent that a roadmap to sustainability is far from straightforward. For instance, whilst some might see using recycled and recyclable plastic as a step in the right direction, others will accept nothing less than a move away from plastic altogether.

There are also concerns, as you’ll read in our interview with garden designer Rachel Bailey, that greenwashing is rife following COP26, as pressure rises for companies to lower their carbon footprint.

According to our UK Landscape Barometer special on sustainability this month, a whopping majority (80%) of the suppliers who responded to our survey on their green credentials reckon that they’re going above and beyond to be environmentally friendly. Even more (90%) said that they were making an effort to become a carbon neutral business.

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

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CONTENTS

INFORM

IQ 49 53 57

19 10 16 19 25 33 36 38 40 42 45 6

Barometer Special How far are suppliers going to be green?

A Flying Start Neil Edwards

News Our monthly roundup of industry news

61

PLBA Shortlist Companies in the running for this year's titles

INSPIRE

Let’s Hear it From James Hitchmough Inside Rachel Bailey Garden Design Don’t Be The Frog Marcus Watson

25

A Digital Experience Adam White Age and Experience Andrew Wilson Harnessing an Exciting Opportunity For Growth Pete Jones “I’m Walking Here!”

Christopher Martin Early Engagement Laurie Chetwood

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UK Landscape Barometer Industry feedback and statistics for December 2021

75

61 67 75 79 85 86 89 93

Rural Reclamation Living Landscapes Room With A View Simon Orchard Garden Design Waste Made Worthwhile Anji Connell Life/Style Adrian Wickham PLBA Winner Profile Mitie Group Plc PLBA Winner Profile Ground Control Lighting The Way Lightpro's low voltage lighting range Planters A selection of lightweight planters

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

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CONTENTS

MARCH 2022 NURTURE

E D U C AT E

97 98 102 104 107 109

113 114 115

Natural Solutions Lindum Turf Feature Garden Nunnington Hall Winter Wonders Nick Coslett Horticulture’s Hurdles Lewis Normand Spring Means Daffodils Noel Kingsbury Wildflower Woes?

Answering burning questions

117 118 121 123

Read the Instructions Gareth Wilson No Jab, No Job? Oracle Solicitors Where Are You On The Adoption Curve?

Alison Warner Getting To Grips With Google Ben Shaw, Adtrak Vehicle Tracking Creating greener fleet operations

67

It Actually is Rocket Science!

Moasure's measuring tool Go and See At FutureScape Spring Noteworthy exhibitors for 2022 MARCH 2O22

127

102

128 130 132

109

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134 138

Make Your Gardens Swing!

The future of outdoor entertainment with Habitech

THE

Fantastic Eco-Plastic Helping projects become more sustainable with TigerTurf

ISSUE

Tackling Waste Tips from industry experts Composite Decking Suppliers reveal their methods for becoming more eco-friendly Materials Focus Reclaimed timber Little Interviews Questions with the individuals who make up our industry

SHORTLIST REVEALED

LET’S HEAR IT FROM

BAROMETER SPECIAL

TACKLING WASTE

Pro Landscaper Business Awards 2022

James Hitchmough, University of Sheffield

How are suppliers striving for sustainability?

Top tips on reducing waste onsite

Cover final.indd 1

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To receive a copy of Pro Landscaper, please contact Katie Bone.

Email katie.bone@eljays44.com or call 01903 777 585.

Pro Landscaper / March 2022

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CONTRIBUTORS

CO N T R I B U TO R S Adam White Join Adam White as he leads us through the latest virtual reality exhibition to hit London, designed to introduce visitors to the world of plants and hosted by none other than a virtual Sir David Attenborough. The Green Planet AR Experience explains the incredible and vital role plants play in our environment.

P36

W W W.DAVIESWHITE.CO.UK

MARCUS WATSON P33

@DAVIES_WHITE

Laurie Chetwood

CHRISTOPHER MARTIN P42

In the built environment, the landscape can sometimes be an afterthought, despite its importance and the value it can add. Artist and designer Laurie Chetwood shares his experience of how closer collaboration from the outset can help to avoid this and how a holistic approach leads to a more successful scheme.

P45

W W W.CHETWOODS.COM

@LAURIECHET WOOD1

NOEL KINGSBURY P107

Lewis Normand This year will not be without its challenges, says Lewis. The industry will have to juggle an increasing amount of paperwork to import plants along with a switch from Points of Destination to Border Control Points. There are also a number of environmental considerations, such as growing focus on using peat-free compost.

P104

W W W.IPLANTSMAN.COM

GARETH WILSON P113

@IPLANTSMAN

Ben Shaw

ORACLE SOLICITORS P114

Marketing and advertising specialist Ben Shaw kicks off a three-part series from Adtrak to help businesses improve their online presence, starting with Google’s Core Web Vitals. Ben explains what these are and why they could be important for your business’ website by improving the customer experience.

P117

W W W.ADTRAK.CO.UK

Design – Kara Thomas, Kirsty Turek

EDITORIAL Editorial director – Lisa Wilkinson lisa.wilkinson@eljays44.com Tel: 01903 777 579

Senior sales executive – Millie Genner millie.genner@eljays44.com Tel: 01903 777 582

CONTACT

Eljays44 Ltd 3 Churchill Court, 112 The Street, Rustington, West Sussex BN16 3DA Tel: 01903 777 570

ADVERTISING

Head of content – Nina Mason nina.mason@eljays44.com Tel: 01903 959 393

Horticulture Careers – Dan Riley daniel.riley@eljays44.com Tel: 01903 777 570

Editorial researcher – Gemma Lloyd gemma.lloyd@eljays44.com Tel: 01903 777 594

Managing director – Jim Wilkinson jim.wilkinson@eljays44.com Tel: 01903 777 589

Senior subeditor – Katrina Roy katrina.roy@eljays44.com Tel: 01903 959 391

Director – Jamie Wilkinson jamie.wilkinson@eljays44.com Tel: 01903 777 585

Subeditor – Sam Seaton sam.seaton@eljays44.com Tel: 01903 959 391

MARKETING AND CIRCULATION Tel: 01903 777 570 Subscription enquiries – Katie Bone katie.bone@eljays44.com Tel: 01903 777 585

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

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ALISON WARNER P115

@ADTRAK Printed by Pensord Press Ltd, Gwent, UK Published by ©Eljays44 Ltd – Connecting Horticulture. Pro Landscaper’s content is available for licensing overseas. Contact jamie.wilkinson@eljays44.com Pro Landscaper is published 12 times per year

by Eljays44 Ltd. The 2022 subscription price is £100. Subscription records are maintained at Eljays44 Ltd, 3 Churchill Court, 112 The Street, Rustington, West Sussex BN16 3DA, UK. Articles and information contained in this publication are the copyright of Eljays44 Ltd and may not be reproduced in any form without the written permission of the publishers. The publishers cannot accept responsibility for loss of, or damage to, uncommissioned photographs or manuscripts.

Whilst every effort has been made to maintain the integrity of our advertisers, we accept no responsibility for any problem, complaints, or subsequent litigation arising from readers’ responses to advertisements in the magazine.

We also wish to emphasise that views expressed by editorial contributors are not necessarily those of the publishers. Reproduction of any part of this magazine is strictly forbidden.

Pro Landscaper is proud to be an affiliate member of BALI

The Association of

Professional Landscapers

Pro Landscaper is proud to be an associate member of the APL

MANAGEMENT Managing director Jim Wilkinson Director Lisa Wilkinson Business development manager Jamie Wilkinson

Pro Landscaper / March 2022

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INFORM

NEWS #GOSCHOOLSUCCESS CAMPAIGN PROMOTES LANDSCAPING AND HORTICULTURE CAREERS IN SCHOOLS

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ALI’s careers initiative GoLandscape and The School Gardening Success Plan have come together to form the #GoSchoolSuccess campaign. The campaign will aim to bring horticulture and gardening education to primary schools all over the UK and promote horticulture and landscaping as a career to a younger generation, early on in their gardening adventure.

Over the past decade, Lee Connelly – known for his work on CBBC Blue Peter and

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his gardening podcast Skinny Jean Gardener Podcast – has worked on many children’s gardening campaigns. These have been successful in promoting gardening in the moment but lacked follow-up support for the schools or teachers to continue the good work.

As well as teaching children how to Grow Your Own and care for wildlife, Lee believes it is important to show children from primary school age that horticulture and landscaping can be a possible future career. As a result, The School Gardening Success Plan, GoLandscape and the companies that support it came together to form #GoSchoolSuccess.

Along with garden tools, the campaign also includes a raised bed, seeds, weekly video tutorials, all aimed at giving a seamless package to get every child in class working, learning, and growing. Best of all, it provides the teachers with 24/7 online support, meaning no matter what or when, teachers can ask questions to the School Gardening Success Plan team to help with full gardening success.

Connelly says: “This is the most important time to get this into education so that once the subject of future careers comes up in secondary school, children already have knowledge of what is available and an interest in gardening. I’m very excited about working with GoLandscape to get the plan around the country and be part of a changing movement of children’s gardening.” www.skinnyjeangardener. co.uk/goschoolsuccess

NATWEST LAUNCHING GREEN LOANS TO HELP UK BUSINESSES GO AND GROW GREENER

N

atWest has announced it is launching green loans, and through Lombard, green asset finance propositions for qualifying SMEs, with no arrangement fee, to help them achieve their sustainability ambitions.

Following the announcement of the bank’s ambition to provide £100bn of Climate and Sustainable Funding and Financing to customers by the end of 2025, green loans and green asset finance were open for applications from 18 February 2022. Together, these propositions aim to help qualifying SMEs finance the business assets to support their sustainability ambitions, such as solar panels, electric vehicles, or heat pumps on commercial buildings that fall within the eligible list developed by the bank on an ongoing basis.

Customers do not need to be existing NatWest customers to apply, and the green loan proposition will be available across NatWest, Royal Bank of Scotland, and Ulster Bank NI brands, whilst the Green Asset Finance will be available through the Lombard brand.

The new propositions are designed to open up opportunities for sustainable growth options for qualifying SMEs and reflect the societal benefit of delivering climate action. To apply, qualifying SMEs will work directly with a NatWest or Lombard Relationship Manager to discuss their needs and check their eligibility.

Paul Thwaite, CEO of Commercial Banking, NatWest Group says: “Climate change is one of the biggest global challenges we face, and SMEs have a critical role to play in helping the UK realise its green ambition. The reality is that while SMEs want to help by reducing emissions, they face many barriers. We’re working to remove these barriers; providing incentives like loans and asset financing that aim to support sustainability ambitions and benefit businesses.” www.natwest.com/climatehub

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17/02/2022 12:01

INFORM

MITIE GROWS LANDSCAPING SERVICES WITH THE ACQUISITION OF BIOTECTURE

M

itie is growing its landscaping business with the acquisition of Biotecture, a leading specialist in ‘living walls’. Biotecture designs, builds and maintains sustainable vertical gardens, which transform indoor and outdoor urban spaces by improving air quality and biodiversity, while also enhancing workspace design.

Biotecture’s current clients include JC Decaux, Grosvenor Estates, MTV Viacom, Network Rail, Canary Wharf Management, The Crown Estate and Land Securities. Its managing director, Richard Sabin, will be joining Mitie Landscapes’ senior leadership team as part of the acquisition.

Mitie Landscapes offers tailored horticultural and landscaping services, including grounds maintenance, landscaping, gritting and snow clearance, interior office plants and a Christmas decoration service.

With its strategy to be the UK’s greenest commercial landscaping provider, the acquisition of Biotecture is part of Mitie’s Plan Zero commitment to reach net zero carbon operational emissions by 2025. Mitie Landscapes’ new Hub in Hampshire has also

been designed with this in mind, and includes ground source heat pumps, water recycling systems and energy efficient lighting which is powered with renewable energy, to ensure the site is as sustainable as possible.

Mitie’s managing director of Landscapes, Tim Howell, says: “As more companies realise the benefits of green spaces for people and the planet, interest in installing living walls is on the rise. Welcoming Biotecture to the Mitie team ensures we can offer traditional landscaping services whilst also helping customers make the most of their vertical spaces. With this expansion of services, we’re now even better placed to support a cleaner, greener Britain through the power of plants.” www.mitie.com

GREEN-TECH SPONSORS PRO LANDSCAPER’S 30 UNDER 30: THE NEXT GENERATION AWARDS

G

reen-tech will be sponsoring Pro Landscaper’s 30 under 30: The Next Generation Awards this year, for the fifth year in a row.

The awards, back for the eighth year, highlight the up-and-coming talent and the immense diversity of horticulture and those working within it. So far, they have celebrated 210 winners from a variety of sectors – from sales to arboriculture, construction to design, or maintenance to landscape architecture.

Propelling winners into the limelight, the awards offer a great opportunity to kickstart your career and have your work recognised.

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Kris Nellist, managing director of Greentech, says: “The Pro Landscaper 30 Under 30: The Next Generation is a fabulous initiative, and I am delighted that Green-tech is sponsoring it for the fifth year running. It’s important the younger generation see our industry as a rewarding and respected career choice and these awards demonstrate the fulfilling careers that past winners are enjoying.

“The initiative showcases and rewards the achievements of young people. It provides an excellent platform to shine the spotlight and can help springboard a young person’s career to the next level. To be named as a 30 Under 30 winner is an incredible achievement that will open up a host of opportunities. I would encourage anyone who meets the criteria to seize the opportunity.”

Could you or a colleague be a winner?

Keep an eye out for updates coming soon. www.green-tech.co.uk

NEWS IN BRIEF LONDON STONE APPOINTS NEW DIRECTOR Hard landscaping materials supplier London Stone has announced it is adding a sixth director to its board, with the appointment of Diana Catrinoi-Cornea ACIM as marketing director. Diana, a previous winner of Pro Landscaper’s 30 Under 30: The Next Generation Awards, joined the business as an admin assistant in 2016. Now, Diana takes full responsibility for London Stone’s marketing, ecommerce and web development departments. www.londonstone.co.uk

20 TOWN AND CITY CENTRES IN ENGLAND TO BE TRANSFORMED Towns and cities across the country will be transformed thanks to a radical new regeneration programme that will breathe fresh life into disadvantaged communities. Under plans set out in the Levelling Up White Paper, derelict sites in towns and city centres will see the creation of new homes, jobs and new communities across England. Wolverhampton and Sheffield will be the first of 20 places. www.gov.uk

NEW WELLBEING SERVICE FOR PEOPLE IN HORTICULTURE People working in horticulture now have access to a free health and wellbeing app and 24/7 support helpline. Perennial, the charity helping people in horticulture, has partnered with leading experts Spectrum Life to provide the service as part of its commitment to build better futures for people in horticulture and their families. www.perennial.org.uk

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INFORM

Online Exclusives FIVE YEARS OF THE LANDSCAPE SERVICE As The Landscape Service approaches its fifth-year anniversary, we speak to company director Luke Mills, and landscape designer James Smith, to find about what they’re working on, the latest trends, their website rebranding, and life working in the industry. www.prolandscapermagazine.com/ five-years-of-the-landscape-service

THE DREADED TAX RETURN DEADLINE With the tax return deadline having just passed, Kim Sones – director at Sones Accountancy Services Ltd – explains how the next deadline could be made a little less daunting. Did you manage to submit your tax return on time this year? What would you do differently, so it goes more smoothly next time? www.prolandscapermagazine.com/ the-dreaded-tax-return-deadline/

BRITISH SUGAR TOPSOIL ADDS SOIL CARBON DATA TO PRODUCT INFORMATION We speak to Andy Spetch, national TOPSOIL manager, to find out about why TOPSOIL have decided to undertake soil carbon research, the benefits the addition of this information will provide, and the importance this step can have in helping mitigate climate change. www.prolandscapermagazine.com/ british-sugar-topsoil-adds-soil-carbondata-to-product-information

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PLANS ANNOUNCED FOR GREEN CORRIDOR TO LINK HISTORIC CITY CENTRE TO COUNTRYSIDE

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he National Trust has announced a new project that links city centres directly to the countryside by knitting together patches of green space to create a “green corridor” to rural areas.

By connecting towpaths, parks, woodlands and green spaces, the conservation charity aims to remove barriers that might prevent people from inner city neighbourhoods feeling like they can access large green areas.

The first confirmed corridor will be in Bath, where residents will benefit from a new three-mile recognised route connecting the historic city to the surrounding green spaces echoing the fashionable Georgian pastime of spending time in the countryside.

The announcement follows two years after the National Trust’s director general first announced ambitions to create 20 accessible “green corridors” across England, Wales and Northern Ireland by 2030.

Hilary McGrady, director general of the National Trust says: “These routes will improve access to nature for those living in urban areas who may feel disconnected from the countryside or cannot access rural areas easily. Research has shown that engaging with nature is good for our wellbeing, and that those connected to nature are likely to do more to help protect it.

“Many of us have felt the benefit of spending time in the outdoors and close to nature especially over the past couple of years. We want to make it easier for more people to spend time in nature, and to give people in cities the chance to access the countryside more easily.

“Connecting up green spaces isn’t just good for people, it’s also good for wildlife, allowing animals and birds to move from one habitat to another.” www.nationaltrust.org.uk

BBC GARDENERS’ WORLD AUTUMN FAIR TO LAUNCH IN SEPTEMBER

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mmediate Live, organisers of BBC Gardeners’ World Live and the BBC Gardeners’ World Spring Fair, has announced details of the new BBC Gardeners’ World Autumn Fair at Audley End House and Gardens.

The first-ever Autumn Fair will be set in the grounds of Audley End, in Essex, from 2 to 4 September 2022. Rachel Poletti-Gadd, portfolio director gardening division at Immediate Live, says: “After a very successful launch of our Spring Fair in Hampshire we are delighted to launch an Autumn Fair in the East of England. Set in another stronghold of BBC Gardeners’ World subscribers, the event will extend the opportunities for gardening enthusiasts to experience the BBC Gardeners’ World brand coming to life, plus a wealth of expertise and content for gardeners as they head into the autumn season.

“To launch the event in the BBC’s 100th anniversary year feels very meaningful and,

BBC GARDENERS’ WORLD LIVE 2021, WOODLAND FALL: BEST SHOW GARDEN

BY ANTONY LIONEL LANDSCAPES

now with three events spanning offering gardening direction and inspiration in spring, summer and autumn, we look forward to meeting more hands-on gardeners around the country this year than ever before.”

The Autumn Fair completes a trio of BBC Gardeners’ World events in 2022. The season starts with the BBC Gardeners’ World Spring Fair which returns to Beaulieu in the New Forest from 29 April to 1 May. The flagship BBC Gardeners’ World Live then returns to Birmingham’s NEC from 16 to 19 June for its 30th year. www.bbcgardenersworldfair.com

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

17/02/2022 12:00

Make Your Gardens Swing!

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Millboard: Live. Life. Outside.

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INFORM

Friday 22 April 2022 EAST WINTERGARDEN, CANARY WHARF

shortlist 2022 WWW.PROLANDSCAPERBUSINESSAWARDS.COM AWARDS PARTNER:

HEADLINE SPONSOR:

Supplier and Service Provider

Sponsored by

• CORE Landscape Products • Adtrak Media Ltd • Azpects Ltd • Caribbean Blinds UK Ltd • HL Services

Arboriculture Company • Artemis Tree Services Ltd • Beechenlea Maintenance Limited • Beechwood Trees and Landscapes Ltd • Gristwood & Toms Ltd • Wolverhampton Tree Service Ltd

Commercial Landscaping Company • Carrier Landscapes Ltd • Tony Benger Landscaping Ltd • Acre Landscapes Ltd Sponsored by • Elmtree Garden Contractors Ltd • Maylim

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Design and Build Company

Sponsored by

• Rose Hill Design & Build Ltd • Gartenart Swimming Ponds • Landscapia Ltd • Selby Landscapes Ltd • The Garden Design Company Limited • The Garden Company Ltd

Employer of the Year

Sponsored by

• Green-tech • John O’Conner (Grounds Maintenance) Ltd • Tim Moya Associates (TMA) • Elmtree Garden Contractors Ltd • Maylim

Grounds Maintenance Company

Sponsored by

• Tony Benger Landscaping Ltd • Beechenlea Maintenance Limited

Industry Collaboration

Sponsored by

• Bestall & Co Landscape Design • Bridgman & Bridgman • Composite Prime • Victoria Wade Landscape Architecture • Howe Green • Maylim Ltd

Garden Design Company • Consilium Hortus Ltd • North Leeds Garden Design (NLDG) • Garden Aspect • Matt Haddon Gardens Limited • Matthew Wilson Gardens Sponsored by • Ruth Willmott Associates Ltd • Harrington Porter Ltd

Landscape Architecture Studio Under 10 Employees • Studio 31 Landscape Architects • Mei Loci Landscape Architects

Sponsored by

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

17/02/2022 16:04

INFORM

T

he shortlist has been announced for this year’s Pro Landscaper Business Awards, taking place on Friday 22 April at East Wintergarden in Canary Wharf, London.

Pro Landscaper’s managing director Jim Wilkinson comments: “Firstly, Lisa and I would like to congratulate the companies shortlisted in this year’s Pro Landscaper Business Awards. It’s an amazing achievement and one that you should all feel very proud of.

“This year – our fifth – has seen an influx of entries across the board, and these awards really do reflect all the different aspects of all the UK landscaping sector.

“Good luck to the judges who now have to choose the overall winners in each of the 15 categories. We look forward to seeing you all in person on Friday 22 April 2022.”

LAST YEAR’S WINNERS

Landscape Architecture Studio Over 10 Employees • BBUK Studio Ltd • Groundwork London

Landscaping Company Under £1m Turnover

Sponsored by

Sustainable Company of the Year

• Ground Control • Landform Consultants Ltd • Elmtree Garden Contractors Ltd • Mitie Landcapes • Wright Landscapes Ltd

• Eco Sustainable Solutions Ltd • Ground Control • Studio 31 Landscape Architects • Growing Revolution • Mitie Landscapes

Sponsored by

Trade Nursery of the Year • W Crowder & Sons Ltd • Hillier Nurseries Ltd

• Adam & Eve Landscaping • New Look Landscapes • Rose Hill Design & Build Ltd • Ashworth Landscapes Ltd • Land Technology Ltd

Landscaping Company £1m-£5m Turnover

Landscaping Company Sponsored by Over £5m Turnover

Sponsored by

• Tony Benger Landscaping Ltd • The TP Group • Panoramic Landscape Contractors • Vegetation Management Services (VMS)

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

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We will exhibit at FutureScape Spring.

See you at stand # 81.

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INFORM

Let ’s Hear it From

JAMES HITCHMOUGH JAMES HITCHMOUGH HAS SPENT NEARLY THREE DECADES INSPIRING THE NEXT GENERATION OF LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTS AND, DESPITE RETIRING THIS YEAR, HAS PLENTY MORE PROJECTS ON THE DRAWING BOARD

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fter nearly 26 years at the University of Sheffield, James Hitchmough will be retiring later this year. The professor of Horticulture and Ecology has become renowned within the Department of Landscape Architecture, despite not being a qualified landscape architect himself. But this is where his strength – and the strength of the department – arguably lies.

When James first joined the university, the department was nowhere near the size it is today. He’d just returned from teaching in Melbourne, Australia, where he held his first “real job” since graduating from university himself. He’d studied Horticulture at the University of Bath and went on to do his PhD there too, researching computer databases for plant selection in landscapes. James then travelled to Australia, taking on the role of lecturer in amenity horticulture at University of Melbourne. It was here that he started challenging his own existing views, something he’d been taught to do whilst studying at Bath on a course which James says was “forward-thinking”.

“It was about a social and ecological view of horticulture,” says James. “It wasn’t just about how good it is that we grow plants; it encouraged asking questions about why we do things, because we don’t do it for its own sake

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– we do it to achieve either ecological progress or cultural or social progress.”

Far from seeing things as black or white, James refers to himself as an “iconoclastic edge dweller”. “I’m neither fish nor fowl. I live on the edge of boxes and on the edge of everyone’s bubble, which partly came from me and partly from this initial course which encouraged me to

think in these ways. That’s one of the things about me – either through inclination or opportunity, I’ve often had the capacity to want to look at things differently and try to look at the world slightly anew,” says James.

The University of Melbourne encouraged this approach and James recalls the institution as a “stimulating and interesting place to be.”

When he returned to the UK, he sought a role where his multi-disciplinary view might also flourish, and Sheffield stood out. “It was a very small department then and, in many ways was rather conflicted, but it had potential and I liked the idea of being in a research university; I wanted to spend a lot of my career using research to fly kites and to challenge. Most of the other landscape architecture schools in the UK were in the old polytechnics and they seemed at that time to be more about holding up mirrors to the industry and training people to be like that. Sheffield seemed like a place where someone like me could flourish.”

Since then, the department has grown significantly, with a variety of disciplines teaching under the umbrella of landscape architecture, which James believes is hugely beneficial. “We have a great diversity of people.

1 The Legacy of the 10ha of native wildflower meadows at the London Olympic Park, 10 years post creation, getting better and better

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If you have a landscape architecture school with only four staff, the chances are they are going to be relatively similar. It’s not until you get really big that you can afford to have a historian, some ecologists, social scientists, horticulturists, those from arts and humanities backgrounds, and some standard landscape architects, if such a thing exists. That’s one of the big advantages of being in schools with a lot of staff – you get multiple perspectives. Now, as

IN WESTERN DEMOCRACIES, LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE IS PROBABLY STRUGGLING – IF NOT STRUGGLING, THEN FINDING IT DIFFICULT TO GROW, WHICH IS RATHER ODD BECAUSE YOU WOULD HAVE THOUGHT THAT THE 21 ST CENTURY WOULD HAVE BEEN THE CENTURY OF LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE I’m retiring, we’re employing even more diverse staff. There were a lot of us older, white men and woman, but we now have greater diversity coming through. It’s so important.”

The students are diverse too. In fact, James says the department has not been able to grow thanks to an increasing number of home students keen to study landscape architecture, but because of an influx of overseas students.

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“The real challenge when I was head of department was how to get more home students to be interested in landscape architecture, and it’s a real mystery – it’s a really interesting subject, they’re all likely to get jobs, the jobs are reasonably well paid, and the work is mostly about making people’s lives and the environment better. What’s not to like?

But there are a limited number of people in the UK who really want to be landscape architects.”

As with most professions in the landscape and horticulture industries, a lack of interest could stem from career advice in schools.

“If you’re interested in design and the built environment, a lot of career advisors appear to suggest architecture, rather than landscape architecture – there’s no sign of architectural

demand drying up in universities. I also think that many parents see architecture as a profession with medicine or law, professions with high levels of status.

Landscape architecture is a gentler discipline.”

Landscape architecture is a popular career choice in China, where most of the department’s overseas students are from. “In western democracies, landscape architecture is probably struggling – if not struggling, then finding it difficult to grow, which is rather odd because you would have thought that the 21st century would have been the century of landscape architecture. I was a visiting professor at Berkely a few years ago, just before COVID-19 hit when I was on a sabbatical after finishing as head of department, and they were

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minds and get a mass interest in the ideas of how, say, a natural landscape might look in the city. Millions of people saw that site, either directly or indirectly, which did give a boost to these ideas.”

NIGEL AND I WERE BOTH VERY AWARE OF THE FACT THAT THIS WAS A FANTASTIC OPPORTUNITY TO GRAB HEARTS AND MINDS AND GET A MASS INTEREST IN THE IDEAS OF HOW, SAY, A NATURAL LANDSCAPE MIGHT LOOK IN THE CITY having the same issues of struggling to recruit in the US. The pie is static or shrinking, but it tends to be expanding in developing countries, like China.

James himself has spent much of the last decade working in China as a consultant, challenging traditional views and encouraging more of an ecological focus and more of an interest in biodiversity, character and localness.

“One of the things we’ve tried to say at Sheffield for the last 20 or so years is that we’re not just here to teach people the skillset to go and practice as landscape architects and be good people to be employed in the industry, but to challenge and not simply accept things as they are. It’s really important to be driven by utopian notions, to ask how we can do things better. Sometimes, it’s not possible, but it’s important to ask the question.”

Encouraging a different way of thinking extends beyond the University of Sheffield.

James and his colleague Nigel Dunnett led the planting design at the Olympic Park, which arguably changed the status of the landscape in large-scale developments. James says that the duo were approached by John Hopkins, the late landscape architect behind the Olympic Park who had read the pair’s book, The Dynamic Landscape.

“He read it and thought: ‘that’s the vision for the 21st century, this is the role plants can play’.

So, our role was to implement those ideas. Nigel and I were both very aware of the fact that this was a fantastic opportunity to grab hearts and

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One aspect for which the Olympic Park was renowned was its enhancement of biodiversity. To ensure more developments in the future have such a focus, the government is making it mandatory for developers to increase biodiversity on sites by at least 10%.

James says that Biodiversity Net Gain can be useful in conversations such as those at the Barbican, where a design competition to reimagine the iconic building is taking place, and one option might be to retrofit it to be ecologically very rich.

There is the possibility that Biodiversity Net Gain could become a box-ticking exercise, admits James, but it’s more of an opportunity.

“One of the advantages of being old is that you have this long-term perspective of how change takes place; it’s not a linear process, it moves forwards and backwards, and sometimes change is invisible, but it’s real. For example, the UK bird fauna over the past five centuries, and the past 50 years in particular has catastrophically reduced, but each generation normalises that collapse as being the norm, as being the base. So, Biodiversity Net Gain could push this in the opposite direction.”

James’ concern, though, is that it might encourage narrow views. “We’re going into a climate change episode. London’s going to become Barcelona by 2050; that’s then really difficult for some of the native flora to live with, but there will still be people who will not want to embrace European native species because they’re not UK native species since the end of the last ice age and they will use things like Biodiversity Net Gain to support this view.

2 Deep gravel mulching planting at the Hornimann museum, London 3 Teaching vegetation management outside at the Green Estate, Sheffield 4 Talking at conferences around the world (more local post COVID-19, has generally been the case) – UCD Dublin in 2021 5 Plant expedition – one of dozens around the world, looking at plants in the wild, here with German designer Cassian Schmidt in Kyrgyzstan

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“Some of the native species will get through climate change, perhaps Quercus robur, but there will be species particularly in the South East that will fall by the wayside. In cities, where climate change is exaggerated by things like urban heat islands, some native flora [will struggle]. Research data is increasingly pointing towards most native fauna being perfectly able to adapt to many non-native species too, and especially geographically near natives.

In the Great Dixter biodiversity audit of the estate, the area of land with the greatest animal biodiversity is the garden, not the ancient

IT’S IMPORTANT TO NOT IMAGINE THAT YOU’RE GOING TO FUNDAMENTALLY CHANGE HOW THE WORLD IS IN THE SHORT TERM, BUT YOU CAN CERTAINLY CONTRIBUTE SOMETIMES TO MAKING IT MORE THOUGHTFUL woodlands or ancient meadows. So, the evidence is stacking up behind us, but of course it’s very difficult to get people to change their views on this.”

James is soon to have his own test bed for native and non-native species and climate change, having purchased a house in Somerset with land on which James plans to plant wood

pastures and create meadows. “It will be my sixth garden since I “stole” my parent’s garden as a child, and each has been part of my obsession at the time. The one in Australia was about reconciling the native with the non-native and the cultural world, rather than pretending we lived in ‘the bush’ in the middle of Melbourne. This latest garden will be about dealing with climate change and not using irrigation; it’ll be about maximising biodiversity and looking at this from a view of native and non-native species; it’ll be about creating habitats like wood pastures and trying to find new types of vegetation for cities and rural landscapes.”

Retirement will seemingly be just as busy for James, who will be continuing his consultancy roles in China whilst working on other projects, such as a private residence in the south of England with Piet Oudolf.

But James is also looking to write more books and carry out further research, with one focus at the moment taking him back to his PhD roots. “We’re looking at decision-making tools for balancing plant tolerance of changing environments, like drought, whilst maximising eco-system services at the same time, through working with AI. So, we’re trying to create a system which can find plants which are fit for certain environments. It’s really radical and would give us the capacity to make more informed judgements about which trees to use and why. That then leads to how you distil this into the professional literature.”

This will take time, admits James.

“It’s important to not imagine that you’re going to fundamentally change how the world is in the short term, but you can certainly contribute sometimes to making it more thoughtful.” This sentiment – one of ambition but not naivety – arguably sums up James Hitchmough, the iconoclastic edge dweller who appears to step into each area of research with an open mind and by doing so has had a greater influence on the industry than he would perhaps be willing to admit.

6 The 10ha of native wildflower meadows at the London Olympic Park – 10 years post creation 7 Working on a design project in collaboration with Piet Oudolf 8 Planting the new rewilding garden at Knepp with Tom Stuart Smith, November 2021

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RACHEL BAILEY GARDEN DESIGN RACHEL BAILEY IS DETERMINED FOR HER DESIGN PRACTICE TO BE AS GREEN AS POSSIBLE AND FOR THE TEAM’S PROJECTS TO HAVE A POSITIVE IMPACT ON THE ENVIRONMENT

T

he more you put into a professional body, the more you get out of it.

That’s why Rachel Bailey has joined the Society of Garden Designers as its sustainability officer, having recently become a registered member of the

NOW IS REALLY THE TIME FOR JOINED UP THINKING SO WE CAN ADDRESS THE CLIMATE EMERGENCY, THE BIODIVERSITY CRISIS AND THE OVER-CONSUMPTION OF NATURAL MATERIALS association. She has also joined the APL’s sustainability working group.

“We’ve got to work together across professional organisations and as an industry

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to provide support, guidance, resources and education to help designers and landscapers to run more sustainable businesses as well as creating lower impact gardens,” says Rachel.

“Now is really the time for joined up thinking so we can address the climate emergency, the biodiversity crisis and the over-consumption of natural resources.”

Rachel herself is striving for her business to be as sustainable as possible. The Scotland based garden design practice has had an environmental policy in place for years, which sets out its approach to each project it undertakes. It aims to create gardens with a low environmental impact but a positive contribution to biodiversity, for instance, as well as to minimise carbon emissions and waste.

Travel is also kept to a minimum – presentations to clients tend to be via an online meeting and site visits are out of necessity; otherwise, onsite photos are sent through regularly. The office has a green energy supplier, and the business uses a bank which has strong environmental and ethical principles.

Taking this further, Rachel intends to create an environmental action plan for the

THE TEAM business, putting together a strategy with the help of consultants to figure out how to address the more difficult aspects of becoming a greener business.

A long-term interest in sustainability and the environment is partly what led Rachel to garden design, having previously worked as an academic scientist in a variety of subjects, starting in zoology and then carrying out a PhD in environmental toxicology. “Like a lot of people, it started with getting my own garden and becoming interested in shrubs and flowers, but also edible plants and growing my own vegetables. I ended up doing a permaculture design diploma – it wasn’t all garden design based, but during that process I really loved that side and wanted to learn more.”

This led Rachel to training at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, which she says 1 Design and photograph by Rachel Bailey MSGD

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introduced her to the vast range of plants which can thrive in Scotland.

“We’re very far north, on the west side of Scotland, so it’s cold, but we have this east/west divide in terms of the climate. You can grow plants which some people might not consider could be grown this far north and which could never be grown on the east side, for example.

So, it opened my eyes to what can be grown in Scotland and appreciate how the environment can change from one part to another. It’s a combination of what can be grown here and the natural landscape of Scotland – the mountains, the coastline and temperate rainforests that highly influence my style.”

Straight after graduating from the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh in 2015, she set up her own studio in the area and joined the SGD and the APL for guidance and to build a network.

“When you’re working on your own, you need something to give you a feel for where you are in the wider scheme of things. You can learn so

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much from other people, and hopefully I’m giving back to other people, sharing information and knowledge too, so professional standards can increase across the board.”

Becoming a registered member of the SGD recently is a proud achievement for the

A GARDEN IS A LIVING THING; IT WILL CHANGE AND DEVELOP, AND I WANT TO BE INVOLVED IN THAT DEVELOPMENT. THE BEST WAY TO BE INVOLVED IS BEING PART OF THE AFTERCARE TEAM designer. “It’s given me loads of confidence knowing that my work has been scrutinised by experienced garden and landscape designers and that my work is of a high professional standard, and hopefully it gives clients confidence too that we know what we’re doing.”

Over the last few years, she has noticed that the idea of having a garden designed has increased in Scotland and budgets are potentially increasing along with this. “The pandemic has had a massive impact on people having a greater appreciation of outdoor space and with more people working from home, we’re probably seeing the effect of this as well.

After the first lockdown, a lot of people wanted

to do something with very little money, but this seems to have died down and we’re left with the people who are really serious about designing and upgrading their gardens.”

As Rachel’s work has picked up over the years, she began working with freelancers to help with the planting on some of her projects but decided that it might be easier and more beneficial to work with those with a vested interested in the business rather than running their own. So, Rachel decided to go down the employment route.

“Marissa [Carrara, Assistant Designer] came as a student. She put a call out asking if anyone wanted any help. I had a small, relatively straightforward job that I knew I could oversee, so she came to do some work with me on a voluntary basis and then I took her on as an employee.”

For the first year, Rachel took advantage of Scotland’s Business Gateway, a publicly funded service which offers a range of resources for businesses, including grants and HR support, which eased the jump into being an employer.

Marissa joined the practice as Scotland went into its second lockdown. “That was quite a challenge, but if someone can start a new job, learn the business, work with somebody new, all remotely, it says quite a lot about a person.”

Katie [O’Neill] works part-time on planting and aftercare. She came through recommendation having worked voluntarily in a local hospital’s garden. Both employees are career changers, like Rachel. Marissa worked in the film industry as an assistant director and Katie is a trained medical doctor. “There are an awful lot of transferrable skills. For example,

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Katie loves working with people, which is fantastic and understands the therapeutic benefit of gardens to people; garden design, at the end of the day, is about the plants and the environment but it’s hugely about people”.

Utilising the team’s skills, both horticultural and otherwise, Rachel says the studio is looking to build on its aftercare offering, not so much because of a growing demand but because it’s such an important aspect. “A garden is a living thing; it will change and develop, and I want to be involved in that development. The best way to be involved is being part of the aftercare team.

“It started with giving advice and meeting up with clients, having a genuine interest in how the garden has settled in and is progressing in the first year, so I’d always pop by for a quick look.

But now I’m actually selling this as a service; we can give advice and give the client confidence.

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So, it’s been progressive; people don’t put enough value on aftercare of gardens, so it’s trying to reverse that.”

The projects Rachel Bailey Garden Design undertakes are across west and central Scotland, and vary from small domestic gardens to large estates, from commercial projects to pro bono work for the community. They all have one thing in common, though – they are all plantfilled and offer habitats for wildlife.

“I’ve been involved in environmental and sustainability groups within my own community since 2010; we set up a local ‘transition town’.

As I’ve gotten more established and more confident, I’ve spent more time researching how we can create gardens that not only have a low environmental impact, but which positively enhance the environment. I’m still learning, but from my research and discussion with others, I try to design more sustainable gardens.”

About three years ago, Rachel was asked by the SGD to be a regional co-ordinator for Scotland along with fellow designer Becca Duncan from Blossoming Gardens. Both were eager to offer a CPD day on sustainable design, so organised a day for this to go ahead – then the pandemic hit.

“It actually gave us an opportunity. It gave us a bit more time to find out more information and we ended up taking it online instead, which

meant we could reach a much wider audience and have speakers who would not have been able to do it had it been an in-person event.”

Sharing information and ideas is a big driver for Rachel taking on the role of sustainability officer at the SGD. But as well as helping associations, there are plenty more immediate changes the industry can make to help in the climate emergency, including carefully considering what is being put in a garden and what is being taken out. “It’s about being more mindful of the impact you’re having and asking questions about products you’re specifying.

Don’t be fobbed off by greenwash or businesses saying they’re offsetting their carbon footprint but continuing business as usual.”

One useful tool is Pathfinder, a carbon calculator. There are limitations to this, 2 Carriage Lodge. Design: Rachel Bailey MSGD 3 Cotcastle: reused pavers. Design: Rachel Bailey MSGD 4 Gold medal winning long border at RHS Chatsworth 2019. Design by Rachel Bailey MSGD and Nicola Sweeney 5 West End, Glasgow. Design: Rachel Bailey MSGD 6 West Coast, Scotland. Design: Rachel Bailey MSGD 7 Gold medal winning long border at RHS Chatsworth 2019. Design: Rachel Bailey MSGD and Nicola Sweeney 8 Bearsden: reused pavers. Design: Rachel Bailey MSGD Photography ©Rachel Bailey Garden Design

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admits Rachel, such as it not including other environmental impacts such as biodiversity and water management. “But it gives us a feel for what we’re putting in and taking away from the garden and the impact of using one material over another and the amount of planting we’re putting in. We know that planting, even if it’s a grass lawn, can sequester carbon to a certain degree. The Pathfinder can also tell us how long it will take for the garden to become carbon positive, so sequestering carbon rather than have a negative impact.”

Unfortunately, clients aren’t always going to opt for these carefully chosen materials. “It’s not always possible to convince them. Some clients are adamant that they want something like artificial turf in their gardens. I now have a blanket rule that I won’t be putting it in, but I have had situations before where I have come up with every possible and sensible alternative that could be used, and I still couldn’t get them to change their minds.

“The majority of clients come to me, though, because of the type of gardens I’ve designed.

I don’t tend to have people approach me who want wall-to-wall paving because all of my gardens are filled with plants. If clients do come to me with a less than sustainable idea, I will suggest alternatives and why their idea is not the best way of approaching something. As designers, we play a really important role in educating our clients and most are happy to go along with a sustainable approach but hadn’t thought about it or didn’t know. They see adverts for a particular product which leads them to believe they’re doing the right thing,

but there is a hell of a lot of greenwashing which has escalated since COP26. Everyone’s jumping on that bandwagon and so it’s crucial that greenwashing is stopped, and that garden magazines and TV programmes step up and do their bit and are educating people correctly.”

There are also a few misconceptions around sustainability too. Rachel cites a popular trend

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she’s spotted for repurposing old pallets and scaffolding boards. Whilst reclaiming timber is a positive step, you need to be careful of the type you’re using, warns Rachel. “There is a lot of really good, reclaimed timber out there, so it’s knowing what you’re using and ensuring the right timber is being used for the right job.

There’s no point creating a garden that is going to fall to pieces or look tatty within a few years.”

She says reusing materials in the garden isn’t always the cheaper answer, either: “A lot of people think that reusing materials on site is

AS DESIGNERS, WE PLAY A REALLY IMPORTANT ROLE IN EDUCATING OUR CLIENTS AND MOST ARE HAPPY TO GO ALONG WITH A SUSTAINABLE APPROACH a way of saving money, but that’s often not the case because the material needs to be cleaned for it to be repurposed which takes time, skill and effort, so can end up costing more in labour.

It’s not a bad thing, but I just wouldn’t sell reusing or reclaiming materials as a way of saving money. It won’t cost less financially, but it will cost less on the environment.”

Despite the wealth of knowledge Rachel has on sustainability, she’s not an expert on Biodiversity Net Gain; however, we were still keen to hear her views, which is yet to include Scotland. “It could improve biodiversity as well as protecting biodiverse habitats, but only if the mitigation hierarchy is adhered to. So, to minimise impacting the biodiversity or habitats that are already onsite over restoration; with compensation or offsetting being a last resort.

From what she has seen on Biodiversity Net Gain, though, she does have some concerns around the process of the initial survey, where an expert will visit the site to ascertain the existing biodiversity. “This has to be scrutinised by independent experts, not the council which has a vested interest. There was a development built nearby recently where the initial environmental report had been carried out in January. The expert had stated that the report needed to be repeated as January is not a good time to do the assessment, but the box had been ticked. So, it would have seemed as though the site had little biodiversity, which is not true at all.”

Rachel adds that the 30-year timeframe for looking after and monitoring the site postconstruction is too short too, as habitats take time to establish, and that Biodiversity Net Gain should be chosen as well as other environmental benefits, not instead of other benefits. Quick and easy options should not be favoured over those which have a higher value to wildlife.

Whilst not an expert on sustainability – and, arguably, no-one is – it’s crucial for the industry to have designers such as Rachel challenging initiatives to go the extra mile, and to have garden design practices such as Rachel’s which are looking for further ways to go green and are willing to share this information as they discover it. As Rachel says, the more you put in, the more you get back.

9 Planting around existing pond. Planting design

by Rachel Bailey MSGD 10 Cotcastle. Design by Rachel Bailey MSGD Photography ©Rachel Bailey Garden Design

C O N TA C T Rachel Bailey Garden Design Ltd Tel 01436 671 359 Email info@rachelbaileydesign.co.uk

www.rachelbaileydesign.co.uk

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M A R C U S WATS O N DON’T BE THE FROG

MARCUS WATSON OF GROUND CONTROL EXPLAINS HOW WE CAN ALL PLAN FOR AND CONTRIBUTE TO THE TRANSITION TO A MORE SUSTAINABLE FUTURE

C

OP26 appears to have become a long and distant memory as the focus of the world has moved onto other things. Just as portrayed in Netflix’s film ‘Don’t Look Up’ (it is worth a watch if you have not seen it), we are in danger of burying our collective heads in the sand, preferring instead to consume news casts filled with lesser issues or irrelevant guff designed to divert the attention of our clickbait generation.

Just like the boiling frog metaphor,1 society appears to have an inability to react to significant changes that occur gradually, such as with climate change and biodiversity loss.

In the metaphor, the frog fails to notice the gradual increase in temperature and is boiled alive. What killed the frog? Many of us would say the boiling water, but the truth is that its demise lies within: it is unable to decide when it must jump out.

Similarly, humanity needs to adjust to climate change and biodiversity loss before it is too late. We cannot wilfully ignore an increasingly dangerous situation, telling ourselves that we will do something about it

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“soon”. COP26 told us that we have to make very significant change within a decade.2 The good news is that, unlike frogs, humans have the power of complex thought; we understand the situation, we can predict the consequences of our inaction and we know the solution, at least in part. All we have to do is act upon this knowledge. Of course, humans

WE ALL HAVE THE POWER TO ALTER THE FUTURE AND THAT, HOWEVER LARGE OR SMALL OUR BUSINESSES MIGHT BE, HOW WE CHOOSE TO SHOW UP AS LEADERS, AS COLLEAGUES, AS FELLOW HUMAN BEINGS HAS A REAL IMPACT knowing something is different to humans acting on that knowledge. And so, I believe that, in addition to the leadership required from all governments (see my March 2021 Pro Landscaper article3), we can all play our part in leading change at the grassroots.

“What can I do about it? I’m just a small business,” I hear you say. The task is far from impossible. The first thing to do is to acknowledge that we all have the power to alter the future and that, however large or small our businesses might be, how we choose

to show up as leaders, as colleagues, as fellow human beings has a real impact.

Secondly, we can embrace the soft power leadership that we have by virtue of people choosing to work in or with our businesses.

Communicate broadly, often and with purpose on what you are doing to help tackle climate change and biodiversity loss. And don’t stick to just business; encourage colleagues, their friends and families, your customers to consider how they can make a positive impact in their personal lives also. After all, the business air and the personal air that we breathe is exactly the same.

The most crucial thing here is to act. Don’t be the frog. Create your climate change and biodiversity loss plan, with clear milestones and outputs, and deliver it. In the words of Norfolk’s motivational coach Alan Partridge: “Plan, do – that’s it!”. To cater for the various possible futures, I recommend that your plan be multifaceted and includes the following key themes.

An acknowledgement of the best science available with targets and milestones that are relevant to your business and align with the science. Failure to do this could be misconstrued as “greenwashing” which employees and customers will rightly see through.

Include natural solutions as well as technology in your plans. All too often, the debate is polarised into one or the other yet these focal points are complementary and, I believe, necessary to achieve sustainable outcomes at speed. For example, your plan could include always offering natural solutions to your customers as your first port of call.

Think native plants rather than concrete. In this way, as professionals and educators working

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daily with the natural environment, we will be helping our customers understand how they too can become more sustainable in their lives.

With technology, think about IT to help your business be more efficient, reducing travel, waste and re-work. Think low environmental impact tools and biodegradable chemicals.

Perhaps the easiest of all is to be clear on your policies and rules. This is about you saying: “This is what I/my business stands for and this is how we make decisions.” This alone will be incredibly powerful in helping people follow your lead. It could be as simple as having a set of rules which states that “we will never use domestic

flights”, “100% of our energy will be sourced from renewables”, “we will only use low-carbon concrete”, “we will only buy electric vehicles”, “we will be Net Zero by 2025”.

THE MOST CRUCIAL THING HERE IS TO ACT. DON’T BE THE FROG. CREATE YOUR CLIMATE CHANGE AND BIODIVERSITY LOSS PLAN, WITH CLEAR MILESTONES AND OUTPUTS, AND DELIVER IT

©Philip King/Shutterstock.com

The above themes point to mitigation, i.e. how we can help prevent the worst impacts of climate change and biodiversity loss from happening.

A final theme worthy of serious consideration is adaptation. If mitigation fails, and it looks like the lower target of keeping average global temperature increases to below 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels will likely not be met, then how will we cope in a warmer future with the consequent impact on our environments? Think about adapting to high inflation and migration, planning for more frequent harmful weather events, planning to move away from flood-prone areas, helping our customers and communities adapt to such possible futures.

You would be forgiven for thinking that I am being somewhat gloomy. In truth, I am optimistic and there are rational reasons for my optimism.

34 Pro Landscaper / March 2022

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For example, despite an apparent loss of momentum since COP26, the race to the top appears to be continuing. Sustainability businesses, on average, tend to grow significantly faster than the total market.

Investment in green business is trending significantly upwards and funds are divesting themselves of fossil fuel-based businesses (albeit too slowly). Another reason for my optimism is that, mercifully, the world may have reached peak emissions of CO2 in 2021.

Whilst insufficient in themselves, these are realistic indicators that action is being taken.

And just because we are not doing enough, it doesn’t mean we should do nothing or give up.

1

“Boiling Frog”, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/Boiling_frog 2 “COP26 Launched a Decade of Action for Climate Empowerment”, United Nations, 16 Dec 2021, https:// unfccc.int/news/cop26-launched-a-decade-of-actionfor-climate-empowerment 3 M. Watson, “Accelerating the Pace of Change”, Pro Landscaper, March 2021.

A B O U T M A R C U S W AT S O N Marcus Watson joined Ground Control in 2011 and led the company for close to a decade, handing over the reins to Jason Knights in January 2021. Marcus remains with Ground Control as non-executive director and a shareholder. Marcus believes that business is a force for good and that business leaders have the opportunity and indeed duty to build a vibrant and more sustainable economy that cares for our environment and the communities we live in, allowing us to lead prosperous, fulfilling lives without mortgaging our children’s futures.

www.ground-control.co.uk

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

17/02/2022 13:27

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17/02/2022 13:46

INFORM

A DA M W H I T E A DIGITAL EXPERIENCE

FOLLOWING ON FROM THE SUCCESS OF THE BBC TV SERIES THE GREEN PLANET PRESENTED BY SIR DAVID ATTENBOROUGH, ADAM WHITE LOOKS AT HOW AUGMENTED REALITY IS HELPING TACKLE WHAT IS KNOWN AS ‘PLANT BLINDNESS’

B

ack in February I was lucky to be invited to again spend the morning with David Attenborough, but this time it was a virtual Sir David who had been transformed into a 3D hologram.

I attended the launch of The Green Planet AR Experience on London’s Regent Street (it is open to the public until mid-March) which provides a window into the secret kingdom of plants through an immersive augmented reality journey.

Sir David and I travelled through six digitally enhanced worlds – including rainforests, freshwater and saltwater worlds, the changing seasons and desert landscapes – culminating in the human story and how we can all affect positive change.

After stepping off Regent Street you are transported into a living rainforest complete with hundreds of tropical trees and plants.

With the magic of augmented reality and 5G technology, you discover the world of plants on their timescale and from their perspective.

As Sir David explains: “You’ll see that plants can be as aggressive, competitive and dramatic as any living thing on the planet, and how they form intriguing relationships with animals. And you’ll discover why plants are so

36 Pro Landscaper / March 2022

Adam White.indd 36

vital for the future of our planet. Your device is a window into a secret world.”

The first of the biomes offers visitors the chance to join a virtual David Attenborough under the canopy of the Amazon Rainforest to witness the wonders of this intricately balanced ecosystem and watch as the giant balsa BALSA TREE tree grows from a digital seed to join the canopy as a towering virtual tree.

The augmented reality allows you to see years of rapid balsa tree growth in a matter of seconds.

The augmented reality magic continues in the second biome, where you venture into the depths of the Amazon Basin where you learn the secrets of the Giant Amazon Water Lily and follow the journey of the scarab beetle as it’s captured for pollination.

In the third biome, you wander through the underwater meadows of Neptune Seagrass, learning about this amazing plant that captures incredible amounts of carbon and plays a valuable role in cleaning up our oceans.

You then discover the Saguaro Cactus of the Sonoran Desert of Mexico in the fourth biome, GILA WOODPECKER hearing from Sir David about this pillar of the community and how many animals depend on it for food and shelter. You will be awestruck at the scale of this cactus as you watch the Gila Woodpecker make its nest.

In the Seasonal Biome, I entered my all-time favourite landscape, the South African Cape,

home of the FYNBOS Fynbos, one of the richest and most diverse ranges of flowering plant species on the planet, before being engulfed in a huge digital fire.

The environmental conditions created by the fire prompt the AFTER THE FIRE mysterious Fire Lily to bloom, filling the biome with opportunistic pollinators including the Table Mountain Butterfly.

Concluding this virtual journey through some of the world’s most fascinating plant life, you enter the Human Biome where you learnt how domesticated plants are impacting thousands of wild species.

It is obviously not the same as being on location in person, but through this technology, it certainly engages the audience with plant life in an immersive and intimate way, allowing them to witness the extraordinary nature of plants and, in doing so, learning why they are so vital for the future of our planet. Let’s hope they extend the exhibition run in London or better still take it on tour around the UK. Find out more at: www.thegreenplanetexperience.co.uk

ABOUT ADAM WHITE PLI Adam White is a chartered landscape architect and director at Davies White Ltd. He is a past president of the Landscape Institute and now the chair of the Landscape Institute’s College of Fellows.

Social media: @davies_white

www.davieswhite.co.uk

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

17/02/2022 15:09

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17/02/2022 15/02/2022 09:09 11:42

INFORM

ANDREW WILSON AGE AND EXPERIENCE

ANDREW WILSON EXPLORES THE CONCEPT OF YOUTH AND THE CAMPAIGN TO WIN OVER THE HEARTS AND MINDS OF OUR YOUNG PEOPLE

N

ext month I come to the end of my membership of the RHS Education Committee. It has been an interesting period in which the RHS, like other horticultural organisations, has campaigned vigorously for the attraction and recruitment of younger people to horticulture as a career. This has not been an easy task with so many career options open now to lure people away at the point at which they, together with their parents, are considering educational options.

I have supported these endeavours whole heartedly, but I also have a great deal of experience in interviewing, teaching and supporting new graduates coming into garden design – more than 33 years, to be exact. This gives me a different perspective more supportive of the career changer coming into this profession later in life.

My youngest students are often in their early 20s having explored a degree course perhaps or still in the early years of a first career. I have many students in their late 20s or early 30s, although the average age of my students has risen recently as older students too decide to change track.

38 Pro Landscaper / March 2022

Andrew Wilson.indd 38

What the majority of applicants say at interview is how much value they now place on the garden, plants and the outdoor environment after having been out of touch with them and their sense of creativity. At this point they are

ENCOURAGE THOSE WHO HAVE REALISED THE IMPORTANCE OF THEIR EARLY EXPERIENCES IN GARDENS, PLANTING AND GROWING AND WHO NOW WANT TO RE-ENGAGE IN THOSE OR RELATED ACTIVITIES more independent and financially stable and essentially a step away from parental advice which can often be a deciding factor in teenage years. Many have already started to turn to horticulture by the time we meet for interview, selecting RHS Level 2 as a common way of preparing for a different skill set. Many couple this with gardening or garden maintenance to deliver practical experience.

The concept of making a career in horticulture or its related fields is perhaps a slow burner but if we have a substantial group of willing candidates who are perhaps circa 25 rather than 16 or 18, then what is the problem? I think most people would consider someone in their mid-to-late twenties as young. They would at that stage have a long career ahead of them and would perhaps be more capable of establishing that career having gained greater life experience.

Many applicants cite the influence of parents and grandparents on their early experiences of gardening and planting, but it is only a later realisation that this could lead to career options. To some extent I suspect it is those same parents and grandparents who advise their offspring to explore different pathways.

It seems certain that gardening itself is not seen as a viable career – so why sell that option?

Why emphasise that to youngsters who are simply not listening or being guided elsewhere.

Move on a decade or so and the RHS for one would have a different and much more receptive audience I would say. I am not only talking from the garden design perspective but a wider horticultural view. Encourage those who have realised the importance of their early experiences in gardens, planting and growing and who now want to re-engage in those or related activities. They might also be bringing with them transferable skills in business, marketing, design and IT – ideal for would be entrepreneurs.

There is a remarkable range of talent in this group of career changers and an eagerness to be part of this profession – we are in effect pushing at an open door when perhaps in those teenage years the door is resolutely closed. Just saying!

Pictured: Two Wilson’s and a gaggle of LCGD garden design students all standing on a single piece of Yorkstone

ABOUT ANDREW WILSON Andrew Wilson is a landscape and garden design consultant, director of the London College of Garden Design, and an author, writer and lecturer.

www.lcgd.org.uk

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

17/02/2022 10:22

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17/02/2022 09:09

INFORM

PETE JONES

HARNESSING AN EXCITING OPPORTUNITY FOR GROWTH PETE JONES EXPLAINS WHY CULTURA HAS MOVED INTO THE PRIVATE GARDEN SECTOR AND HOW HEADING UP THIS SIDE OF THE BUSINESS IS THE RIGHT ROLE FOR HIM

I

t has been a long while since I last changed employer way back in 2005. So, when the opportunity to head up the new private garden construction capability for landscape specialist Cultura was first discussed, it was clear to me that this was a chance to be part of a driven and focused business harnessing an exciting opportunity for growth.

The pandemic, and subsequent working from home, has led to a huge demand for outdoor living and how gardens are being used, which has created an unprecedented rise in the numbers of enquiries received by garden designers and specialist landscape contractors who are able to deliver a high-end product. (Last year, Pro Landscaper’s barometer reported a 166% increase in enquiries and a 140% increase in turnover by garden designers).

Cultura had quickly identified this ‘signal of change’ in the industry and moved to develop and expand its existing landscaping specialism and in doing so created my new role. The private garden capability will sit side by side with the existing commercial landscaping capability which has also seen an impressive growth in enquiries and conversions over the past 12-18 months, particularly from high-end landscape architects and Tier One main contractors.

Personally, this new position is both incredibly exciting and challenging in equal measures. It enables me to take my strong background experience and use it to build a private construction capability which will

40 Pro Landscaper / March 2022

Pete Jones.indd 40

deliver high-end residential schemes with leading landscape architects and garden designers across the south east.

Our goal is to establish ourselves at the top end of the industry as a market leader in the private construction sector whilst providing safe and rewarding positions for all staff.

AT THIS EARLY STAGE, WE HAVE THE FREEDOM AND FLEXIBILITY TO BUILD ROLES AROUND THE RIGHT PEOPLE When heading a new venture, it is imperative that the culture is right. And in line with Cultura’s ethos, it is firmly founded on collaborative working relationships, with our supply chains and with key clients in the industry. Garden designers and landscape contractors working in open and transparent partnerships is the key to achieving the designer’s vision for a project and delivering a consistency of service with an unrivalled quality of product.

One of the things I am most looking forward to is continuing to work with those whom I have already built lasting relationships with over my 25 years in the industry, and to establish new collaborative partnerships for the future.

A key focus in the new capability will be our people.

People already sit

at the heart of Cultura and we are recruiting, training and retaining the very best individuals to deliver our vision. With our ambitious targets for growth for the future, we continue to commit to finding the right places for the right people and rewarding them accordingly.

In resourcing our new capability, we are able to offer those staff that join our business at this exciting time boundless opportunities. Those who feel they may have reached the ceiling of personal progress within companies where there is no opportunity for onward progression should take control of their own futures, be brave and come and discuss their aspirations for their careers with us. At this early stage, we have the freedom and flexibility to build roles around the right people, as well as recruiting for specific roles with specific requirements.

The year ahead is already looking extremely encouraging, even at this early stage. We are currently engaged in two incredible private construction projects and the team are delivering the necessary high-end finish to the works on site for our clients and designers.

There is no doubting the enthusiasm for success at Cultura and I am looking forward to the coming years and continuing to build a well-respected and successful business alongside a team of people who sit at the very top of the industry in their respective fields.

ABOUT PETE JONES Pete Jones is head of Private Construction at Cultura Group. He is a former Chairman of BALI South Thames region and committee member of the National Contractors Forum.

www.culturagroup.co.uk

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

17/02/2022 11:08

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’’VertEdge, a revolutionary new artificial grass edging system.’’

Fixing the perimeter of an artificial lawn is one of the most important parts of an artificial lawn installation. Traditional methods are dated, flawed, and improvised. When the lawn perimeter is nailed, screwed or stapled, just 10% of the lawn edge is fixed. This has the potential to lift and become dangerous, leaving 6 inch nails in the ground to secure the lawn is clearly dangerous and should be avoided.

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17/02/2022 09:50 09:47

INFORM

C H R I STO P H E R M A RT I N “I’M WALKING HERE!”

CHRISTOPHER MARTIN EXPLORES THE RECENT CHANGES TO THE HIGHWAY CODE AND HOW THESE PUT PEDESTRIANS AND CYCLISTS AS TOP PRIORITY

I

t’s 1969 in New York City and Joe Buck is walking down the street with Ratso Rizzo.

Surrounded by well healed, elegant pedestrians, Rizzo is dressed in a mismatching light suit with a red polo shirt buttoned to the top. Buck, wearing his suede tassled jacket, cowboy shirt, and tan chinos held up by a large gold metal buckled belt, walks beside Rizzo hanging on his every word. As they walk down the street, they go to cross over a side street, only to have a yellow cab slam on the brakes honking and hollering for them to get out his way.

In response, Rizzo exclaims: “Hey, I’m walking here, I’m walking here!” – making clear his opinion that he has the right to walk down the street more than the cab has the right to cut him up.

Fifty-three years on, I am asking you to all get a bit more Ratso Rizzo, because of the simple yet hard won fact that, earlier in the year, the UK Government made some seemingly small but highly impactful updates to the Highway Code; that document we all pretend to read when we take our driving test, but in fact has a huge bearing on how we need to behave behind the wheel.

The first change speaks to an increase in compassion. All of us on streets have a duty to look out for those more vulnerable than us, and the Highway Code now ranks street goers as such, according to how vulnerable they would be in the

THIS IMPORTANT CHANGE TO THE HIGHWAY CODE MAKES CLEAR THAT PEOPLE WALKING DOWN THE STREET ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT ASSET A STREET HAS – THEY OFFER ACTIVITY AND LIFE IN ONLY A POSITIVE SENSE

event of a collision. What this says is that if today you are cycling to work, you have to look out for people who have chosen to walk or wheel today, making sure your actions don’t negatively influence their experience.

Likewise, if you’re driving today, you have to make sure that your choice doesn’t harm or damage the experience of those people who have chosen to cycle, walk, scoot or skip to school today.

With this sense of compassion underlined, the GET PLANNING FOR NATIONAL WALKING MONTH THIS most impactful change, the MAY TO ADD A LITTLE LIFE TO OUR STREETS change that Ratso Rizzo would

42 Pro Landscaper / March 2022

Christopher Martin.indd 42

be most supportive of, is the new rule stating that if a driver is turning into a junction or side road and a pedestrian is waiting to cross the road, just standing on the pavement looking worried or striding toward it in a white suit like Rizzo, the driver must now stop before completing their turn, give way, and let the more vulnerable person who today has decided to walk, cross.

Previously, this would only happen if a pedestrian was already crossing the road, in theory, but now even if they’re waiting on the pavement, it is a driver’s duty to stop. Some people have suggested that this could cause collisions, as cars wait to exit busy roads, but that claim isn’t backed up by any data. Equally, some have suggested that it might lead to pedestrians feeling overly confident and stepping out in front of vehicles but that is a surrender, not a solution.

This important change to the Highway Code makes clear that people walking down the street are the most important asset a street has – they offer activity and life in only a positive sense. So, stride down the street like you own it, because pedestrians rightly now have all the power. Be more Ratso Rizzo.

A BOU T C H RISTOP HER MARTIN Christopher is an influential urban designer and planner working all over the globe to help communities improve their public spaces; as well as supporting cities and governments to develop strategy, change policies, and make great places possible. He is co-founder and director of Urban Strategy at Urban Movement; a trustee of the UK charity for everyday walking – Living Streets; vice chair of the UK Urban Design Group; and is a member of the United Nations Planning and Climate Action Group.

www.urbanmovement.co.uk

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

17/02/2022 17:19

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INFORM

L AU R I E C H E T WO O D EARLY ENGAGEMENT

T

LAURIE CHETWOOD CONSIDERS THE ART OF MIXING ARCHITECTURE WITH LANDSCAPE, AS WELL AS ITS VALUE

he relationship between architecture, art and landscape architecture has not always been clear-cut but has undoubtedly been key to the successful design of virtually any project in the built environment.

We know from experience that the bestdesigned projects are invariably those which have successfully integrated their buildings into the spaces between and around them from the outset. Rather than treating landscape and artistic elements as ‘add-ons’ or self-contained parts within the overall design of a built scheme, we seek to engage from the earliest stages with our partners to explore ways of ensuring that each component of a design approach is not only integrated but also complementary.

Closer collaboration represents a significant opportunity for landscape architects as much as it does for architects. In practice, however, too few architects consciously think about ‘art’ in the design process and the impact that powerful, well-positioned sculptures, murals, installations, and other artworks can have.

CHETWOODS’ DESIGN FOR CHELSEA DEMONSTRATES HOW ARCHITECTURE AND LANDSCAPE CAN COMBINE TO SUPPORT THE ENVIRONMENT

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Laurie Chetwood.indd 45

Ideally, buildings should be designed as pieces of art in their own right; art should not simply be an afterthought but rather integrated into the overall design from the outset. Shapes and colours should inform our buildings and the spaces around them and demonstrate an

IDEALLY, BUILDINGS SHOULD BE DESIGNED AS PIECES OF ART IN THEIR OWN RIGHT understanding of science as much as of art.

Our buildings should appeal to wider sensibilities and encourage strong, positive associations.

The pandemic has given millions of people a new awareness of the significance of their immediate surroundings. At Chetwoods, we recognise the growing importance of the link between nature and our working environment through the more sensitive incorporation of biodiversity – and particularly biophilic – measures in our design approach.

The effective use of biophilic design is not just about the introduction of a few plants here and a green wall there. It is just as much about the ‘texture’ of the materials which are used; even the finishes of the surfaces of man-made materials such as concrete can be patinated to resemble surfaces found in nature. Adopting a ‘holistic’ approach which links the building and landscape designs is fundamentally about making users feel positive towards the environment they occupy.

We should recognise that architects are often designing installations that move biophilic and nature-based elements away from the periphery of building designs and put them at the centre of schemes. This has certainly been the case with our project for the UN’s 2021 COP15 Biodiversity

Conference in Kunming China. Here, a Chetwoods-designed installation (titled ‘Future City Garden: Nature & City’) encouraged delegates to reconnect with nature while experiencing the latest technology – including the use of a hydrogen-fuel-cell-powered Sun – that will help protect and save the environment.

And our design for a conceptual show garden for the RHS Chelsea Flower Show demonstrates how art, architecture and landscape (AAL) can combine to support the environment, delivering local and sustainable food growing spaces.

Responding to the dependence on a food supply chain which is vulnerable to disruption, the design explores how elements of a traditional allotment can be located in a wide range of urban settings. It offers cities new approaches to self-reliance as primary producers of food, and was delivered in partnership with Patrick Collins and with the support of B&Q. We should continually seek to improve the ways we approach our designs. Increasingly, we find that we are including landscape and art within our architectural approach; the three are intrinsic and need to be considered together.

We anticipate that this will be a requirement going forward with a mandatory Biodiversity Net Gain of at least 10%.

A BOU T LAURIE CHETWOOD Laurie Chetwood is an innovative artist and designer who founded Chetwoods in 1988 and continues to lead the practice as chairman and head of its creative studio. Chetwoods has won an array of awards and Laurie’s art has been exhibited at the V&A. His work is regularly selected for the Royal Academy’s Summer Exhibition, where Laurie has won Best Architectural Drawing. His show gardens at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show have earned three Gold medals.

www.chetwoods.com

Pro Landscaper / March 2022 45

17/02/2022 10:30

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LEADING

BY DESIGN

17/02/2022 16:51

IQ

I

n this issue of the UK Landscaper Barometer, we are focused on the trading month of December 2021. Christmas was on the way, Omicron was spreading, and the winter season began.

As we approached the end of the year, anecdotal evidence suggested there was a strong feeling of uncertainty for what could be on the horizon. The booster vaccination programme was launched to move the country forward and prevent disaster, and many expressed they were looking forward to lockdown restrictions fully lifting. But, inflationary pressures are causing concern and material price rises are still causing difficulty as they continue “going through the roof”.

It is important to note how different things are this year compared with the last. December 2020 was rife with COVID-19, worry, and lots difficult restrictions. Whereas now, we are moving forward with more freedom, safety, and confidence. Some participants mentioned they were seeing a stronger conversion of quotes, and overall things seems to be easing.

If you would like the full report or would like to contribute to the UK Landscape Barometer moving forward, please send an email to Gemma Lloyd on gemma.lloyd@eljays44.com or call on 01903 777 594.

Please note that all statistics are based on those surveyed and compare December 2021 to December 2020.

NATIONAL TURNOVER

29%

Higher 57%

Equal Lower

14%

PERCENTAGE OF RESPONDENTS MORE CONFIDENT COMPARED TO LAST MONTH 100%

2022

90%

2021

80%

2020

70% 60% 50% 40% 30%

ENQUIRIES

20% 10%

Higher

33% 50%

0%

Jan

Equal

Feb

Mar

Apr

Lower

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

8% 46%

PROJECTS 46%

27% 46%

Equal Lower

Higher

27%

Equal Lower

Higher Equal Lower

24%

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

UK Landscape Barometer.indd 49

Jul

CONVERSION

Higher

41%

Jun

STAFF

17%

35%

May

This month, turnover saw the highest percentage of participants reporting an increase (57%).

Enquiries improved on last month’s data, although a significant number of participants still reported a decrease (33%). It is positive to see participants’ confidence levels have increased as it reaches its highest point in eight months (57%). One respondent explained they are “swamped” with new enquiries, and another mentioned they are seeing a good number of new clients.

Pro Landscaper / March 2022 49

17/02/2022 13:40

IQ

CONVERSION

TURNOVER

ENQUIRIES

THE SOUTH

THE SOUTH

THE SOUTH

THE MIDLANDS

THE MIDLANDS

THE MIDLANDS

SCOTLAND AND THE NORTH

SCOTLAND AND THE NORTH

SCOTLAND AND THE NORTH

GARDEN DESIGN

GARDEN DESIGN

GARDEN DESIGN

DESIGN AND BUILD

DESIGN AND BUILD

DESIGN AND BUILD

COMMERCIAL LANDSCAPING

COMMERCIAL LANDSCAPING

COMMERCIAL LANDSCAPING

DOMESTIC LANDSCAPING

DOMESTIC LANDSCAPING

DOMESTIC LANDSCAPING

0%

20%

40%

Higher

60%

80% 100%

Equal

0%

40%

Higher

Lower

PROJECTS

20%

60%

Equal

80% 100% Lower

YEAR ON YEAR

THE SOUTH

ENQUIRIES THE MIDLANDS DEC 2021

SCOTLAND AND THE NORTH DEC 2020

0%

GARDEN DESIGN

20%

40%

60%

80% 100%

Higher DESIGN AND BUILD

PROJECTS

COMMERCIAL LANDSCAPING

DOMESTIC LANDSCAPING

0%

20% Higher

40%

60%

Equal

80% 100% Lower

50 Pro Landscaper / March 2022

UK Landscape Barometer.indd 50

0%

20% Higher

40%

60%

Equal

80% 100% Lower

Domestic landscapers seemingly took a hit this month, with 100% reporting a decrease in enquires – although 50% did report an increase in conversion rates. Companies in the South continued to display encouraging figures, and, after a rocky November, business is improving for companies in Scotland and the North. Indeed, where projects and enquires saw no increases last month, December presented small rises.

Comparing enquiry and conversion rates with figures from last year, there are small but positive changes. Respondents reporting an increase in enquires increased by 15%, and conversion rates saw 11% more respondents report a rise.

DEC 2021

DEC 2020

0%

20% Higher

40%

60%

80% 100%

Interested to see an in-depth analysis or find out what the confidence and staff statistics look like? Please email gemma.lloyd@eljays44.com or visit the Pro Landscaper website to download the full report.

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

17/02/2022 13:37

IQ

NURSERIES

ON AVERAGE

December marks the start of the winter season and tackling the cold weather certainly isn’t easy for the sector.

Nevertheless, anecdotal evidence suggested December was a busy and positive month for nursery respondents, and results have shown 100% saw increases in their turnover and quotes.

Be that as it may, one respondent mentioned that work did feel slightly slower under new work, but potential clients can “usually take the Christmas break to consider our proposals.”

National turnover increased by

CONFIDENCE

Higher

100%

100%

QUOTES

100%

SOIL Things were evenly split across turnover and quotes, with 50% of respondents reporting increases and 50% seeing decreases. One respondent voiced their concern stating: “there are still many challenges ahead of us before the new normality is realised.” For the 50% seeing decrease, perhaps the future challenges are already taking a toll.

There appears to be growing confusion over soil bag sizes, with “volumes seeming to be ever more inconsistent”, the respondent explained they are seeing more misleading bag sizes, which is indeed posing an issue.

TURNOVER

More

50%

50%

100%

QUOTES

50%

50%

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

UK Landscape Barometer.indd 51

Higher Lower

25% 13% Conversion rates rose by

13% 19%

Projects increased by

Conversion rates for commercial landscapers increased by

Higher

CONFIDENCE

INCREASE OF 42%

Enquiries increased by

TURNOVER

More

Soil suppliers saw an in turnover

Higher Lower

Projects for commercial landscapers increased by

31% 42% GARDEN DESIGNERS saw a decrease of 5% IN TURNOVER

Design and build companies saw a decrease of

Enquires dropped by

53% 13% in turnover

Quotes increased

for garden designers

Nurseries saw an increase of

13% 10% for nurseries

in turnover

Turnover for soil suppliers decreased by

11% Enquiries increased by

50% for commercial landscapers

Projects for design and build companies decreased by

13%

Conversion rates for domestic landscapers increased by

30% Quotes

INCREASED 39% for soil suppliers

Pro Landscaper / March 2022 51

17/02/2022 13:37

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7 7

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17/02/2022 11:25 09:14 14/02/2022

IQ

Gr een

SUPPLIERS SPECIAL

W

ith the effects of climate change showing up around us, the industry is certainly under pressure to help tackle the issue. Sustainability, perhaps a buzzword at the moment, is key in lowering all our environmental footprints, but how far are suppliers going to be green? What measures are being taken? Well, we asked, and here’s what we found out.

WOULD YOU SAY YOUR COMPANY GOES ABOVE AND BEYOND TO BE ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY? 5% 15%

Yes No 80%

Not sure

A strong majority (94%) stated that showing they are committed to becoming carbon neutral has grown in importance over the past five years. This could tell us that not only Yes is becoming carbon neutral important to suppliers, but that customers are No actively searching for this commitment when buying.

On the other hand, 6% explained they 94% hadn’t noticed a difference. One respondent said: “Customers don’t think about carbon neutral.” Another said: “For the local authority market, showing commitment is important, but this is a slower burner in other sectors of the industry.”

6%

A significant 80% of respondents believe they are going above and beyond to be environmentally friendly. However, 15% said they are not, and 5% said they are ‘unsure’ which could imply they are doing some things to care for the environment but feel that they could be doing more.

ARE YOU MAKING AN EFFORT TO BECOME A CARBON NEUTRAL COMPANY? Referring back to 80% of 10% respondents believing they are going above and beyond to be environmentally friendly, here Yes 90% have answered that they are making an effort to become a carbon neutral No company. Therefore, it could be said that the extra 10% – 90% though committed to becoming carbon neutral – still believe they aren’t going above and beyond to be environmentally friendly.

One respondent said: “Carbon neutral is a bit misleading as a concept. We seek to minimise carbon emissions but paying money for carbon credits to persuade customers that we aren’t damaging the environment is not okay. All trade damages the planet. We just try our best and devote a lot of time and thought to this end.”

IF NOT, DO YOU PLAN ON BECOMING CARBON NEUTRAL IN THE NEXT 10 YEARS?

HAVE YOU LAUNCHED ANY NEW PRODUCTS SOLELY WITH SUSTAINABILITY IN MIND? Split evenly, 50% have launched new products with sustainability in mind and 50% have not. It is important to note that this does not necessarily mean suppliers don’t want to launch sustainable products, especially 50% as 90% are making an effort to become a carbon neutral company. Other reasons could be at play – perhaps focusing on one thing at a time and reaching carbon neutral first is a priority ahead of launching new products.

Yes No 89%

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

50%

Yes No

HAS YOUR COMPANY REDUCED THE AMOUNT OF WASTE IT PRODUCES IN THE LAST FIVE YEARS? 10%

11%

Barometer special.indd 53

IS SHOWING YOU ARE COMMITTED TO BECOMING CARBON NEUTRAL MORE IMPORTANT TO YOUR CLIENTS NOW COMPARED TO FIVE YEARS AGO?

It is hugely positive to see 89% are planning to become carbon neutral in the next 10 years. Just 11% don’t plan on reaching carbon neutral any time soon.

90%

It is understood reducing waste can be one of the key factors in being an environmentally friendly business. It’s clear Yes the majority set their targets and put in the work to reduce, and now a dominant 90% No can say they have reduced the amount of waste they produce. Respondents commented they have little to no waste in production.

Pro Landscaper / March 2022 53

17/02/2022 14:50

IQ

HAS YOUR COMPANY REDUCED ITS GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS OVER THE PAST FIVE YEARS? Results have made clear that the majority of respondents have targeted (and succeeded in) reducing their greenhouse gas emissions over the past five years. With 80% stating they have reduced their emissions, some respondents said working alongside environmental management systems has been key in helping them drive down their carbon footprint.

HAVE YOU INTRODUCED ELECTRIC VEHICLES TO YOUR FLEET?

20%

Yes

45%

Yes 55%

No

No

80%

ARE YOU LOOKING INTO SOURCING YOUR ENERGY FROM ZERO CARBON COMPANIES?

ARE YOU PLANNING ON INTRODUCING ELECTRIC VEHICLES TO YOUR FLEET? 18%

20%

50%

Yes

Yes

No

No 82%

We use zero carbon companies

30%

IS IT IMPORTANT TO WORK WITH CARBON NEUTRAL ENERGY SUPPLIERS?

IF NOT, HAS THE COST OF ELECTRIC VEHICLES PUT YOU OFF?

20%

33%

Yes No

Yes No

67%

80% It is positive to see 20% of respondents are already sourcing their energy from carbon neutral suppliers, though there is still room for improvement as 80% have answered they are looking into sourcing energy from zero carbon companies moving forward. Following on from this, it may be disappointing to see 20% believe it isn’t important to source from carbon neutral energy suppliers.

54 Pro Landscaper / March 2022

Barometer special.indd 54

It’s great to see 55% have already introduced electric vehicles to their fleet, especially given how much travel can be involved in the sector – and of those who do not have electric vehicles, 82% said they are planning on introducing them. This is a very telling indicator of the positive direction the sector could be heading in.

It may appear surprising to see the cost of electric vehicles is not the reason why some respondents have decided not to introduce electric powered vehicles to their fleet. One respondent commented: “We want to use more battery powered equipment as and when we need to replace, but vehicles just aren’t a feasible option at the moment due to distances travelled and loads.” It could be, perhaps for the smaller businesses, circumstances have not made the switch seem worthwhile. Another respondent mentioned: “My business is so tiny; I do most of my work within a 10-mile radius.”

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

17/02/2022 14:49

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17/02/2022 14.02.2022 09:15 10:13

I

t could have been so very different. The UK construction industry could have returned from the festive break hungover and lethargic, and weighed down by economic expectation. Instead, the sector has hit the ground running, lodging £6.2bn in new construction contract awards in a month that also saw several regional sectors enjoying a welcome resurgence.

Powering to the top of the BCLive league table for the month of January 2022 was a Lovell Partnership and Suffolk County Council joint venture established to deliver around 3,000 affordable homes in Lowestoft, Mildenhall, Bramford, West Row and Newmarket. Valued at £700m, the 50:50 partnership will run for 15 years and will also include the construction of new schools, employment land and open spaces.

In second place – again courtesy of a single landmark contract award – was Downing Developments with a £400m mixed use development scheme at Plot 11, First Street in Manchester. That project comprises four buildings from 10 to 45 storeys in height containing co-living bed spaces, amenity services and ground floor commercial space, restaurants, gym, car parking and landscaping.

Kier Group took both the number five position on the BCLive league table plus the monthly crown for the highest number (13) of new contract awards during the month.

The most notable of the Kier projects is a £70m new build that will see the former BBC Television Centre in London’s Wood Lane repurposed to provide 142 residential dwellings across a multi-level tower block.

The project will also include a landscaped courtyard, car and cycle parking.

Other notable projects that will have landscaping professionals rubbing their hands together in anticipation include a £170m new build centre for humanities in the Observatory Quarter of Oxford University.

That new facility will include academic faculty space, a concert hall, lecture hall. It will also include a new public realm and landscaped space together with open cycle spaces. Laing O’Rourke has received the green light from client the University of Oxford.

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

Neil Edwards.indd 57

IQ

A FLYING START

THE BCLIVE LEAGUE TABLE ENDED 2021 ON AN UNSEASONAL HIGH, AND IT HAS STARTED 2022 IN SIMILAR FASHION, WITH MORE THAN £6.2BN IN CONTRACT AWARDS GETTING THE NEW YEAR OF TO A FLYING START. NEIL EDWARDS LOOKS BACK AT YET ANOTHER MONTH OF POSITIVITY AND OPTIMISM

Landscapers in the south east will also be eyeing a £90m new build of 1,452 new homes that is part of the regeneration of the Cambridge Road Estate in Kingston upon Thames. Those homes will be spread across 10 blocks and the project will include extensive landscaping and other public real works.

HOUSING (£2.5BN) WAS STILL THE MOST ACTIVE PART OF THE UK CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY, NOTCHING UP 129 NEW CONTRACT AWARDS IN A MONTH The project will be carried out by a joint venture comprising Countryside and Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames Council.

Despite the announcement of several major projects outside the south of England – most notably in East Anglia and the North West – London retained its crown as the most active and affluent region. London contributed 91 new contract awards worth a combined £1.35bn, pushing the North West (£1.2bn) into a creditable second place. East Anglia (£837m) Yorkshire (£389m) and Scotland (£352m) also experienced a resurgence while Wales remained in the doldrums with just £79m in new contract awards.

The breakdown of projects by sector reveals that housing (£2.5bn) was still the most active part of the UK construction industry, notching up 129 new contract awards in a month shortened by the New Year festivities and a slow return to work.

There are, of course, threats to the construction sector’s current stability and confidence. Materials shortages have largely given way to materials price hikes. Together with a marked rise in labour costs, this has raised the unwelcome spectre of inflation.

The switch from red to white diesel in April could impact further upon the sector, while a potential conflict between Russia and Ukraine places further uncertainty on energy process.

But with all that being said, the UK construction industry shook off its Christmas excesses and returned to work with a renewed vim and vigour. Long may it continue.

A B O U T N E I L E DWA R D S Neil Edwards is CEO of Builder’s Conference, the construction industry’s leading trade body. It provides its members to sales leads and market intelligence, as well as statistical data and networking opportunities. BCLive is a real-time league table of construction contract award activity. Operated by the Builders’ Conference, the BCLive league table monitors more than 6,000 new contract awards each year with a combined value of over £80bn. www.buildersconference.co.uk

Pro Landscaper / March 2022 57

17/02/2022 10:34

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INSPIRE

RUR AL RECL AMATION P R I VAT E R E S I D E N C E , K E N T LIVING LANDSCAPES

D

esigned by Marian Boswall Landscape Architects, this impressive 33-acre property is situated within the Kent hills.

Originally a Georgian property, the house has since had farm buildings and a cottage added to the grounds.

Sustainable approach Living Landscapes embarked on this transformative project with clear goals for sustainable construction, which were supported and complemented by Marian’s

sustainable design approach. “There are many ways to make a landscape project sustainable, but it requires effort and thought,” says Living Landscapes’ managing director Tecwyn Evans.

“Given our world’s climate struggles it is important that we within the horticultural industry make every effort to adapt and change, so that we can continue creating wonderful landscapes for people to enjoy, with the knowledge that we have done so with care and consideration to the local environment and the international

environment that materials can be supplied through shipping and land transportation.

The supply of internationally sourced materials also has its own associated damages to its local environment, which in turn may affect their own climate situation.”

Around the property itself was fairly level ground, and this was to be the main focus of the hard landscaping work. The surrounding fields and woodland were sloped, but this worked in their favour; it gave an opportunity for surface water to be collected and directed through filter gravel beds and into a newly built lake.

PROJECT D E TA I L S Project Value (inclusive of VAT): >£500k Build time 16 months Size of project 33 acres Contractor Living Landscapes Landscape Architect Marian Boswall Landscape Architects

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

Portfolio 1 Living Landscapes.indd 61

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INSPIRE

Living Landscapes’ main goals are to conserve water and energy, reduce its waste and to decrease water run-off. To achieve this, it treats water as a valuable resource. It views the existing site soil as the foundation for all the growth within the garden project, taking great care to protect its qualities and helping reinstate it as a life supporting resource. On this project no soil or rubble was removed from site; soil in its various forms was carefully stored for re-use within the landscape. Where necessary soil was graded and reinstated with specialist equipment. Rubble collected from the project, both through the building works and the landscaping works, was crushed for re-use within the farm access roads, which in turn will prevent over compaction of the soil areas used for vehicle access.

“There are many ways to make a landscape project sustainable, but it requires effort and thought”

“The other way to reduce the waste is not to over order on your materials. Accurate sourcing of material quantities will always reduce what you must manage and what is potentially left over.”

Reusing materials Crucially, no skip was used – Living Landscapes is a “no skip” company, meaning it actively looks at effective recycling of packaging.

“We cannot rely on others to manage our waste disposal. It’s our responsibility; we create it, we deal with it,” says Tecwyn.

Locally sourced The majority of the materials used in this Kent-based project were reclaimed, and if not reclaimed then they were supplied from local UK sources. All aggregates for sub-base use were from local suppliers. Concrete was also used for foundation work and a small hard access area into a newly built barn, but Living Landscapes is actively looking at alternatives to using concrete.

A large 180m2 reclaimed yorkstone paved area was installed as a grand entrance to the property, flanked by large beds on either side and impressive dry-stone walls, supplied by a local quarry. The walls were constructed with a particularly rustic feel, in keeping with the environment.

The main forecourt area is gravel, edged with reclaimed gritstone sets. All the access roads and parking to the property are

T E CW Y N E VA N S

62 Pro Landscaper / March 2022

Portfolio 1 Living Landscapes.indd 62

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

17/02/2022 12:26

gravel, allowing For the water to free drain, or be captured by the land drain system to exit further downhill into the filter beds before entering the newly built lake. This lake is a conservation lake and is used for water source heat for the house.

The boundary wall on one side is a reclaimed stock brick wall, running for 100m at nearly two metres in height, leading to the new pedestrian access into the forecourt area. The bricks were chosen specifically to complement the building and laid with lime mortar, in keeping with the property itself.

A large, sawn Yorkstone paved area was installed around the existing, refurbished swimming pool. Its outer retaining wall constructed with reclaimed bricks and local Kent ragstone, finished with lime morter and topped with reclaimed, site found, metal handrailing.

To add to the country grandeur of the entrance to the building a ‘no dig’ access road was installed to reinstate the old lime tree entrance to the property. Running for 150m, this access road is edged with Corten metal edging, pinned into place on top of a Cellweb system, which was filled with gravel and seeded down the centre, creating a structurally sound drive, with a very rustic feel which does not cause soil compaction on the tree roots.

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

Portfolio 1 Living Landscapes.indd 63

Photographs ©John Campbell at Room of Light

INSPIRE

Bringing in biodiversity The surrounding ground works required careful management so that soil resources could be reused with minimal impact to the surrounding areas. From the building down to the lake

1 Grounds and lake as seen from above 2 Reclaimed yorkstone paving 3 Plan view – new barn access 4 Lake house on the bank of the newly-built conservation lake

Pro Landscaper / March 2022 63

17/02/2022 12:27

INSPIRE

REFERENCES

construction, the land was formed to not only assist the transition of collected water into the lower lake but also to roll and undulate, emulating the wider surrounding countryside.

This created small, unique bio-habitats, as well as larger land habitats for insects, small mammals, and local wildlife to flourish. Large areas of land were seeded, trees planted to develop into wind breaks, fruit trees and edible hedging were planted to attract wildlife into the surrounding areas and finally ornamental planting around the house created a sustainably designed, sustainably constructed private garden for the clients to enjoy.

5 Cottages and the new barn 6 Gravel drive and gated entrance

Contractor Living Landscapes www.livinglandscapesuk.com

A B O U T L I V I N G L A N DS CA P ES Living Landscapes is committed to sustainable and environmental construction practices, which has supported its long history in becoming BALI and RHS multi-award winners. It collaborates with landscape architects and garden designers who also support its core values. Managing director Tecwyn Evans firmly believes that landscape construction should complement the natural location it’s within.

If wildlife and local habitats are created or enhanced through land forming and planting this should be done with careful consideration and thorough site analysis, ensuring the final creation naturally compliments the surrounding environment.

www.livinglandscapesuk.com

Landscape architects Marian Boswall Landscape Architects www.marianboswall.com Reclaimed stone, gritstone and stock brick T Caudwell www.reclaimedbricksandyorkstone.co.uk Sub-base materials Brett Aggregates www.brett.co.uk Sawn Yorkstone WS Crossley Gravel Breedon Aggregates www.breedongroup.com

Photographs ©John Campbell at Room of Light

Groundworks Performance Foundations www.performancefoundations.co.uk Specialist groundworks McKie Construction Dry stone walling Horsham Stone & Reclamation www.horshamstone.co.uk Planting Palmstead Nurseries www.palmstead.co.uk

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PROJECT D E TA I L S Project Value (inclusive of VAT): £55k Build time 6 weeks Size of project 360m2 Designer Simon Orchard Garden Design Landscaper Brian Hamilton, Hortus Landscaping

ROOM WITH

A VIEW

LO N G N A R R OW G A R D E N SIMON ORCHARD GARDEN DESIGN

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“Long, narrow plots are always a challenge, and you need to use tricks to make the space look wider” SIMON ORCHARD

S

imon Orchard was tasked with making the view from a new annexe one to behold, incorporating existing features and in keeping with a traditional style.

The client had a long, narrow garden with an outbuilding that had been renovated and connected to the main house with a brand-new annexe. The annexe would become a home office and had full length glass doors, the view out of which was paramount.

Right outside of the annexe, the client hoped to have a seating area at the same level as the internal finished floor, incorporating the same porcelain plank tiles that were used indoors for a seamless transition from inside to out.

From there, the client wanted the garden to be a relaxing and calming space, with a traditional, formal and soft look that avoided the linear look. They also wanted there to be multiple spots to sit and enjoy the sun. To fulfil this, Simon used curved Serpentine paths to

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connect the different parts of the garden, created with warm-toned clay pavers from CED Stone for a traditional feel. A third terrace was adding to the existing two, halfway along the serpentine paths to break up the space and act as a visual ‘comma’, encouraging people to pause before moving on.

An existing circular pond was kept towards the bottom of the garden, with upgrades being done to the electrics and lining, while existing boundary walls were given a new lease of life with the addition of square trellis panels.

1 2 3 4

A serpentine path links features within the garden Agastache ‘Blackadder’ flowers are a bee magnet Porcelain plank paving creates seamless transitions Cerise-flowered Achillea ‘Summerwine’ is a great addition to any cottage garden 5 Topiary swirls and cones add a regal touch

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“Use focal points at various points along the length of the garden so that the eye is drawn to these, rather than the long view” SIMON ORCHARD

One hit & miss fence was added parallel to the annexe, with an oak gravel board and trellis panel on top to add height.

Drawing the eye away from the length of the garden and making it appear wider was a key consideration for Simon. He explains that: “Long, narrow plots are always a challenge, and you need to use tricks to make the space look wider. Straight paths from one end to the other should be avoided. Instead, opt for curved paths or paths set at an angle to the boundaries.”

Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Jelena’ (Witch Hazel) were used to add height to the scheme, acting as a focal point and drawing the eye upwards.

“Use focal points at various points along the length of the garden so that the eye is drawn to these, rather than the long view. These could be trees, specimen shrubs, a bench, sculpture or a water feature, for example,” Simon adds.

Along the edges, Simon added Ilex creneta to line the pathways and planted borders with cottage garden plants such as Salvia, Verbena, Agastache, Fennel, Delphinium and Geranium to provide seasonal interest while maintaining the overall traditional theme.

6 Clay pavers give the paths and pond an aged feel 7 Tight radii achieved by using 100x100mm setts

BEFORE WORKS

To soften the landscape, Simon added an array of traditional plants. The existing topiary in cone and spiral shapes, potted bay trees and olive trees were to be kept in the new design, along with low level Buxus hedging which was replanted.

Specimen trees and shrubs including Amelanchier lamarckii, Cornus kousa and

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ABOUT SIMON ORCHARD G A R D E N D ES I G N Simon Orchard Garden Design is a boutique design studio creating tailor-made gardens for clients in London, Surrey, Hampshire and Sussex. The studio has just been awarded ‘Best in Design’ and ‘Best in Service’ for the 5th year running by Houzz. Simon creates stunning gardens that clients can enjoy all year round – not just for 3 months of the year.

www.simonorchardgardens.com

REFERENCES Designer Simon Orchard Garden Design www.simonorchardgardens.com Landscaper Brian Hamilton, Hortus Landscaping www.hortus-london.com Clay pavers and porphyry setts CED Stone www.cedstone.co.uk Porcelain tiles Client’s own Hit & miss fence Jacksons www.jacksons-fencing.co.uk

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17/02/2022 12:31

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Creating Climate Resilient Spaces: Breda, Netherlands The medieval inland city of Breda, in the Netherlands, has long recognised the potential issues that climate change will create for its residents and workers.

Much of the historic city centre is hard paved, and with the increasing summer temperatures, the heat island effect is making the streets unpleasant during hot spells. Whilst the city is fortunate in that it is surrounded by canals and the convergence of two rivers, so there is some evaporative amelioration to high air temperature, it was recognised by the municipality that more needed to be done to make the city climate change resilient.

The city applied for funding from the EU Interreg project called “Cool Towns”, where different options for reducing urban temperatures were considered and trialled as pilot schemes to test the effectiveness of these interventions. GreenBlue Urban was pleased to be able to help the city with one of these pilot schemes.

One mixed-use street, Menno van Coehoornstraat, close to the city centre and the main railway station, was chosen to demonstrate how urban greening can not only make urban streets more pleasant and healthy places but create cooler pockets in hard paved areas. This road was planted with 16 trees in full GreenBlue Urban ArborFlow tree pit systems, taking stormwater from the hard paved areas, and storing this asset within the growing medium. This storage of water not only assists the trees in their early establishment phase but allows the tree to access additional water to enable evapotranspiration: the process by which trees return water into the atmosphere when the weather warms up and/or wind speeds rise.

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This evapotranspiration has been proven to cool surrounding spaces significantly, in addition

Before

to the shade that trees give – and without the use of any energy!

The GreenBlue Urban products that were used on this project included the innovative RootSpace soil cell complete with the Air Deck allowing for free gaseous exchange, the ArborCell water storage crate for additional water attenuation during extreme storm

After

events, the ArborVent 150mm aeration inlets and the ArborGuy underground guying system. The whole design was carefully detailed so that drainage from the base of the tree pit could flow by gravity to the main sewer, but in most rainfall events there would be limited or no discharge at all. This use of rainwater has been shown to drastically reduce pressure on drainage networks that are near capacity, as well as bringing us all the multiple benefits that only healthy green urban infrastructure can.

The effectiveness of this nature-based solution will be monitored over the next few years. This long term commitment to research by GreenBlue Urban and our European partners is what sets us apart from other companies. We invest large sums of money each year to increase knowledge and understanding of the value of green infrastructure and then help others disseminate this into the wider world, for the benefit of us all, and future generations.

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17/02/2022 02/02/2022 09:22 08:40

THE NEW RAW’S THE ELEMENTS RANGE

INSPIRE

COAST BENCH, BY ALLAN HAGERUP

MATER OCEAN TABLE AND CHAIRS

WA ST E M A D E WORTHWHILE ANJI CONNELL HIGHLIGHTS INNOVATIVE, INSPIRATIONAL AND – MOST IMPORTANTLY – SUSTAINABLE OUTDOOR FURNITURE OPTIONS

THE NEW RAW

S

ustainable gardening is a way to give back to the Earth. At the same time, nurturing a sustainable garden encourages us to get back in touch with nature and tune in with our environment.

As garden professionals, we should all be committed to keeping our impact on the planet to a minimum. We need to think hard about how we positively and negatively impact the spaces we encounter. We are all aware of how best to create an eco-conscious space, moving away from the current linear economy, which follows a take-make-use-dispose principle, towards a circular economy (CE).

We should all strive for a ‘positive footprint’ concerning energy, water, topsoil, and material use, designing out waste, and using the circular economy to build sustainability in our landscape architecture.

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Consider using traditional and local green materials like cob, rammed earth, woven willow, log walls, oak, and chestnut paling when building.

• Commit to 100% organic • Find creative ways to reuse resources • Source local • Conserve water • Use permeable paving • Passively harvest water • Create a zero-waste garden • Choose plants wisely • Save seeds and propagate • Build healthy soil • Engage in eco-friendly construction • Choose eco-materials As it requires artisans and craftsmen, these specialist skills are kept alive. Bamboo is a versatile and replenishable material for creating simple yet dramatic spaces, such as a pavilion, a garden office, or a folly. Plus, once the building reaches the end of its lifespan, it can be

composted and turned into soil. Ensure you’re doing your due diligence and asking your builder to provide you with safe and eco-friendly options.

If you must ship goods, ensure all parties undertake best practices: • Make sure the company you are shopping from offers a ‘green’ shipping option • They use less packaging materials • Use biodegradable packaging materials • Use recycled shipping materials Interestingly, in her manifesto for Dezeen 15 festival, artist and designer Es Devlin proposed architects and designers sign an ethical code of practice promising not to do any harm to the planet in their practice.

A surprising and rather lovely new initiative is the world’s first animal gardening service; if your lawn needs a trim, you can now hire ex-dairy cows to maintain your garden by doing what they love to do – eating grass. Real Deal Milk launched the service to help keep ex-dairy cows from

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INSPIRE

slaughterhouses when their milk-producing capabilities are no more. Just sign up online and the team will deliver a cow to you free of charge.

There’s no catch – all you need to do is keep your cow in the garden, leave out some water, and you’ll have a picture-perfect lawn in no time.

And sometimes the old ways are the best, and the benefits of hedgelaying (plashing or pleaching) are remarkable. This age-old craft is a seasonal job that has been practiced for centuries, taking place between October and March when trees are dormant. It is a living fence that promotes regrowth from ground level. It helps prevent soil erosion, captures pollution, and is vitally important for wildlife as a refuge, food source, and a wildlife corridor.

Another inspiring company on my radar is Nature Squared who uses material innovation and artisanal skills to upcycle grass, seeds, bark, nuts, seashells, eggshells, and feathers transforming these sustainable, natural materials into extraordinary, innovative surfaces for interiors, and architecture, from luxurious, durable finishes in yachts, hotels, and homes to an inaugural statement-making collection of tiles made of eggshells.

As far as furnishing our spaces, a conscious choice does not mean it can’t be stylish. The Verner Panton Cloverleaf sofa is without a doubt a statement piece that elevates any space. The name references the shape of a cloverleaf and is 100% recyclable polyethylene plastic, suitable for both outdoor environments and indoor areas that are high traffic or require a hard-wearing material.

Emeco makes outdoor furniture from polypropylene. It uses the leftover bits that wind up on the floor at plastic factories and mix it with discarded wood and sawdust from lumberyards.

3D printing is a way to give discarded materials a new life. This technology wastes significantly fewer resources and energy and makes production much more efficient. Dirk Vander Kooij’s Pulse Chair is a 3D printed chair made from melted-down discarded refrigerators.

In 2018, Panos Sakkas and Foteini Setaki of The New Raw launched a Zero Waste Lab in the centre of Thessaloniki, Greece, in collaboration with Coca-Cola to motivate citizens to be involved in the recycling process of plastic and the co-creation of public space. They invited residents to bring plastic waste and make 3D -printed street furniture.

The New Raw’s NATURE SQUARED The Elements is

76

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PORKY HEFER NESTS

HUMAN NEST BY JAYSON FANN

ENDLESS CHAIR BY DIRK VANDER KOOIJ

ZA BY NAOTO FUKASAWA

a limited-edition range of furniture digitally crafted from up-cycled marine plastic waste by robotic 3D printing. The encoded 3D textures act as ornaments and functional components to achieve ‘climatic comfort’ and cooling through natural air ventilation, light irradiation, water drainage, and cooling. The collection includes a fitting room, footpath, and sunbed in the colour tones of Aqua and Sand.

Danish furniture manufacturer Mater has been committed to circular and sustainable production since 2006, RUN BY SAM HECHT matching timeless design AND KIM COLIN with the latest in material innovation. The recently reissued Ocean garden chair and table by acclaimed mid-century Danish designers Nanna and Joergen Ditzel uses recycled plastic from fishing nets. Plastix – also Danish – buys maritime waste and turns it into pellets for virgin plastic products. Plastix customer, ScanCom International, uses pellets for chairs and tables in its Lifestyle Garden range. The DuraOcean chair’s one-piece tub base is moulded in recovered plastic and sits on FSCcertified eucalyptus wood legs.

Vestre, in collaboration with environmental initiative Ogoori, developed what it calls the world’s first bench made from ownerless marine plastic. The Coast bench uses plastic collected from Norway’s beaches by volunteers.

Since 1944, Emeco and Nendo has been making furniture often by hand and last a lifetime. It started with scrap aluminum; now it uses material as varied as Coke bottles, industrial sweepings, wood, or energy efficient concrete.

Dutch startup Plasticiet produces sheet plastic, similar to stone terrazzo, from recycled plastic collected and processed in collaboration with recycling companies.

Newtab-22 uses waste seashells salvaged from seafood and aquaculture industries to develop a sustainable material named Sea Stone. Due to variations in sizes, textures, and colours, each piece is unique.

Porky Hefer’s human nests mimic the genius of the weaver bird’s nests. Hefer collaborates with expert weavers and sources the most sustainable materials he can find. Jayson Fann, nest maker and artist, has built 30-plus nests. His human pods are engineered structures made from found materials.

ABOUT ANJI CONNELL Internationally recognised interior architect and landscape designer, Anji Connell, is a detail-obsessed Inchbald graduate, and has been collaborating with artisans and craftsmen to create bespoke and unique interiors for a discerning clientele since 1986. Anji is a stylist, feature writer and lover of all things art and design.

www.anjiconnellinteriordesign.com

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

17/02/2022 11:26

Enjoy the beauty of a Majestic Tree!

Team Majestic excel from their front of house team and horticultural advisors, through to the scheduling and delivery crew – consistently reliable job after job - especially during the pandemic and through a period of great demand in our industry!

Our clients are inevitably impressed when we take them to visit the nursery and they always offer a warm welcome!

Karen McClure Garden Design | www.karenmcclure.co.uk

Grower of the Year: Nursery Stock 2008 • 2011 2015 • 2017

Come and explore our 27 acre nursery, where you can personally select your trees with the assistance of our experienced horticultural advisors.

Over 450 varieties of semi-mature and mature trees and hedging, grown in 35 to 4,000 litre AirPot containers.

Supplier of the Year 2020

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Tel: 01903 777583 17/02/2022 22/07/2021 09:23 15:35

INSPIRE

SNAPSHOT ADRIAN WICKHAM WO R K

A D R I A N J O I N E D G L E N DA L E L A ST S U M M E R A S C O R P O R AT E D I R E C T O R , H AV I N G TA K E N A T WO -Y E A R B R E A K F R O M T H E C O M PA N Y W H I L ST H E WO R K E D FO R A L AW F I R M . N OW H E ’ S B AC K I N T H E I N D U ST R Y W I T H ST R O N G A M B I T I O N S . F I N D O U T A B O U T H I S C A R E E R TO DAT E A S W E L L A S H I S LOV E O F FO OT B A L L , H I S PA S S I O N FO F O R F O O D F R O M A R O U N D T H E W O R L D, A N D H I S I M P R E S S I V E T R AV E L G OA L S

I’ve had lots of different projects and worked across loads of boroughs. It’s the landscape construction I really like – the big boys’ toys element – and putting in areas that are going to last forever. My first client was in Bracknell and the scheme has been there for nearly 30 years – I love that you can leave a legacy.

One of the most memorable projects, and one which has come more to the front of my mind recently, is the Desmond Tutu Peace Garden in 2009. I worked with Suzanna Clarke, who’s now a councillor for Lewisham Council. She lived in the same house as Desmond Tutu when he was working in the UK, so she wanted to create a peace garden for him. She’d built a relationship with Chris Beardshaw, who had a garden at RHS Chelsea that year and said he’d donate that garden after the show. We then went around to exhibitors at Chelsea telling them what we were doing, and they donated items as well. Desmond Tutu then opened the garden when he came to the UK.

Tony Hewitt at Glendale was always one of my biggest mentors, and Andrew Hold who was the chief executive of Parkwood Leisure.

There have also been people from our competitors – Nick Temple-Heald, Craig Davis, Richard Burton – who have put their arm around my shoulders and helped me to develop.

I’ve been really fortunate to have so many mentors, and I’ve still got more to look up to going forward in my career.

One of the lowest points in my career is the passing of Tony Hewitt and Andrew Holt.

In the five years or so before Tony passed away, we worked really closely together. We had a lot of respect for each other. I was a bit stuck with knowing what I would do going forward, so I stepped into a different industry altogether. I would never have gone to a competitor – I would have hated to ruin that relationship with Glendale.

There are a few issues in the industry, some of which are across the board in other industries. One is climate change. The onus is being put on us as green service providers, so we have to address it as organisations and as an industry. We need to think about what we can do to improve the environment, for ourselves, our clients, and the environment itself.

We need to get more diverse people into our industry. We have a skills shortage, but also a shortage of people. We need to perhaps rebrand or refresh our marketing – if we only advertise for staff on Indeed, we’ll only find people who use Indeed. We should look at advertising in local cultural magazines in certain areas or on job panels more likely to be seen by diverse groups.

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It can sometimes be a race to the bottom trying to win work. Under-pricing is unsustainable for organisations. It doesn’t benefit staff or the industry as a whole. We should be saying how skilled and knowledgeable our staff are – we need clients to realise that they’re paying for a skilled service.

Always leave at the end of the day having made a positive impact; it doesn’t need to be only financial.

When I left the industry for a while, I realised I had it in my veins, I’ll always be involved in the industry.

We’re hoping to achieve organic growth at Glendale. We work in lots of different areas, and we want to strengthen and grow each of them, but sustainably and profitably. We also want to be known as the best employer – everyone says that, but we really do.

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INSPIRE

T R AV E L

I N S P I R AT I O N S People who are persuasive and influential really inspire me. I’d love to have met Jesus, for example – how did he manage to capture the imagination and passion of all those people to follow him and hear his words?

©Peter Rhys Williams/Shutterstock.com

One of the best people I have heard speak was Desmond Tutu.

Those people, who can really lead others and take them somewhere and make others believe in them, I really admire them.

Some of the CEOs I’ve worked with have inspired their company, they’ve inspired employees to follow them, work hard, feel rewarded and wanting to be part of a team.

I really admire them and it’s what I’m inspired to do as well. I really want my team to feel that they’re part of something special and that we’re all working for one goal.

I admire some of our competitors – the strides they’re making and the way they’ve grown their businesses and the work they’re doing. You have to respect people for what they have achieved and are achieving.

I recently went to an exhibition about the Windrush generation. It was really quite inspirational. It was about how people from the Windrush generation got involved in gardening and growing food because in the West Indies it was all about agriculture – somebody who has land and is growing their own fruit and vegetables is highly regarded there.

The Chelsea Physic Garden is somewhere I really enjoy going to and the RHS Chelsea Flower Show too, looking at the different gardens and ideas and inspirations.

I haven’t really got any hobbies. I’d love to say that I fly planes or something like that, but I really don’t. My hobbies are football – I love football. I support Arsenal, for my sins.

I like wearing suits, shirts and nice shoes – I like that corporate look. Casually, I’d normally go for jeans. I have some designer items, but nothing flashy; they can sometimes be a waste of money.

My favourite food is obviously going to be my mother’s cooking, which is Caribbean – curried goat, curried chicken and rice, there are so many different dishes.

But I generally like eating food from all over the world. Wherever I am in the world, I’ll want to try the most famous dish from that area.

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St Vincent is one of my favourite places. It’s where my mother comes from, so it’s definitely one of favourite islands in the Grenadines, which are beautiful.

I’ve been to so many places that I’ve really liked – Rome, Turkey, New York, Ohio. When I went to St Petersburg, I watched the ballet – Swan Lake – which was amazing. My favourite, which I thought was lovely (before George Clooney moved there), is Lake Como.

I still like to play football, more for the banter. Everyone that I train with seems to have gotten a lot quicker than me, but I still like going and it forces me to keep fit and focused during the week. I’ve played more games in goal this year, though, than I’ve ever played in a football season!

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I really like sailing. I don’t have a boat, but I’ll always hire one when I go away. I’d like to get my powerboat licence this year – that’s one of my New Year’s resolutions.

I was blown away by Egypt and the pyramids. If I go away, I like to find out the history of the place, so I’ll go to a museum and see the sites.

PERSONAL

My most treasured possession is a photo of me, my kids, my mum, my sister and my nephew. It was taken at my second graduation ceremony; it was the first time my mum had seen me graduate.

Lads’ holidays and stag weekends have probably been some of my most fun trips, but I can’t put any of them in print!

I’ve been learning German on Babble for the last 18 months or so. I’m still nervous to speak to a German, but I’ll understand a lot of what they say, which is the main thing. I’d like to go back to Germany; Berlin is somewhere I’d really like to go.

My aspiration for holidays is to see the seven natural wonders of the world and the seven manmade wonders of the world. Out of 14, I’ve seen four, but I’ve still got a few years to do the other 10!

I really like Europe. I like the fact that you can drive somewhere and it’s a different culture, language, history.

There’s so much to look at and learn.

We probably take it for granted.

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18/02/2022 08:54

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ADVERTORIAL

London Stone’s Big Plans For 2022 And Beyond Leading hard landscaping materials supplier London Stone have gone from strength-to-strength in recent years and 2022 will be no exception. Managing Director Steve Walley shares some of London Stone’s exciting plans for 2022.

Steve, what have the last twelve months been like for London Stone?

I’ve never experienced demand like we saw last year.

At times it was quite tough, but everyone did their jobs and in terms of our service levels, I think 2021 was our best year. I’m proud of the whole team.

It was also great to see industry events finally coming back on stream. I was lucky enough to go to Chelsea and Hampton Court and a few of my teammates enjoyed

the SGD & BALI Awards, not to mention Futurescape in its new home at ExCel. I’m really looking forward to the APL Awards in March.

What challenges did you face in 2021?

Unprecedented demand for products and limited supply caused a perfect storm for suppliers. Fortunately, our infrastructure is solid, so we were able to continue trading without our service levels dipping. In fact, on the contrary, our service in 2021 was the best it has been.

How has the global shipping crisis affected the business?

It has had a huge effect on the business and the wider industry, resulting in significant upward pressure on prices. Before COVID,

London Stone had worked extremely hard to freeze our prices for three consecutive years, but unfortunately we had to pass on some of the shipping increases from 2021 and put some of our prices up. We have tried to limit price increases as much as possible though, by absorbing some of the shipping increases and finding cost savings within the business. When global shipping prices start reducing, rest assured we will pass the reductions straight onto customers.

What are you excited about this year?

I’m pleased to say that we are pushing forward with our nationwide expansion.

In April we are opening a 15,000m2 Northern Distribution Centre & Trade Counter in Altrincham, Manchester. We will finally be able to service the north using our own fleet of HIAB vehicles instead of using third party haulers. Opening a northern HQ is a game changer and means that all our customers, wherever they are in the UK, will be able to enjoy award winning London Stone service.

We are also opening two new showrooms.

Our Birmingham Showroom opens its doors in April, boasting an impressive 850m2 display. I am confident that this will be the best hard landscaping display centre the UK has ever seen. We are also opening a showroom in Eastleigh, Hampshire in the Autumn. We’ll also be announcing the location of a third new showroom later in the year.

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ADVERTORIAL

How else has the business expanded?

People are the most valuable asset to any business and that’s why we are continually investing in our teams. That means bringing in more people and making sure they get the right training. We were getting feedback from customers that we were taking too long to answer the phone during our busiest periods. In response to that we introduced a dedicated ‘call centre’ team of staff whose only job is to answer the phones.

This has resulted in a huge improvement in our front-line service. Our sales team also continue to undertake practical landscaping training at The Landscape Academy in Cheshire. By learning to lay natural stone, porcelain, clay pavers and vertical solutions like DesignClad, the team are better able to assist our clients, further improving our service levels. Our team of Landscape Consultants – dedicated to assisting the trade – has grown, and will continue to grow in 2022.

What is London Stone doing to counteract your carbon emissions this year?

We have carbon-mapped around 50% of our core product range and this data will be going live on our website imminently (the rest will follow this year). We want to be open with our customers about the environmental impact of our products, so we will also be offering contextual carbon data on our website – i.e. 50m2 of Italian Porcelain uses the equivalent carbon of two return flights from the UK to continental Europe.

We continue to implement a range of environmental and sustainability improvements across the business.

Recent advancements include; ensuring that movement is reduced around our sites in line with our Lean business philosophy, operating a fuel efficient fleet of lorries and ensuring that over 90% of our forklift trucks are electric-powered. We are also leasing electric cars for staff members and installing staff-and-customer electric car charging points across our sites.

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Landscape Consultants

What steps do you plan on taking to further reduce your carbon footprint?

We need to understand the impact our business has on the environment. In addition to carbon mapping our product range, we are also mapping the carbon footprint of our entire UK operation over the next twelve months. We will then take the necessary steps to make London Stone carbon neutral, which is our biggest priority.

Which new products are you introducing this year?

As always, there are plenty of new products launching this year. We’re really excited to introduce a new range of Italian Porcelain paving. Supplied in three colours and exclusive to London Stone, it’s our lowestever priced porcelain, at just £27.20 + VAT m2 when purchased online.

Don’t forget that all our Porcelain ranges come with free nationwide delivery and free grout and primer. We have also expanded our range of aluminium pergolas, all of which are competitively priced and available on a free next day delivery service - watch this space for more info soon!

Finally, we are expanding our range of Corten Steel and fibreglass garden planters to include more colours and sizes. Our planters are held in stock and are available on a ‘next day’ delivery service. Don’t forget that trade customers qualify for a 15% discount for all orders placed online.

Thanks to all of our customers for their support in 2021. We look forward to another prosperous year for the UK landscape industry.

For more information on how London Stone can enhance your next scheme: 01753 212 950 | info@londonstone.co.uk www.londonstone.co.uk

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INSPIRE INTRODUCED FOR THE 2021 AWARDS, THIS CATEGORY LOOKS FOR COMPANIES WHICH ARE LEADING THE WAY, AND MITIE GROUP PLC UNDOUBTEDLY STRIVES TO DO JUST THIS

A

iming to deliver ‘the exceptional, every day’, Mitie Landscapes goes above and beyond with staff and clients, as well as in its approach to the environment. Its Plan Zero initiative, launched in February 2020, sets out the company’s commitment to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2025. Over the next three years, Mitie will be decreasing its CO2 emissions and waste to landfill, as well as increase the percentage of zero-carbon fleet.

As part of its carbon commitment, Mitie announced it would offer a Plan Zero City Landscaping Service to reduce emissions in high-pollution areas. The contracts use electric vehicles and battery-powered equipment, as well as avoid using single-use plastic and generate zero waste for landfill. In February 2021, Mitie announced it would be launching a Zero Emission Gritting Service in Nottingham, a first of its kind for commercial use.

It’s not just environmental innovations which Mitie has introduced. For a national company

with more than 650 landscaping projects on the go, efficiency is key. So, to ensure quick and easy communication across colleagues and clients, Mitie Landscapes has implemented its own technological solutions. Take Live Landscapes, its client portal, which provides accurate and reliable data on all its services across the sites it maintains. For staff, the IPM app makes interaction easy, as well as enabling the team to access previous and planned activity for the site.

Improving how staff interact is one thing, but it also empowers staff with opportunities to progress. Each is set up with their development plan, with personal targets and training requirements. Mitie more than doubled its training budget for 2021 from the previous year, investing significantly in its employees’ careers. In the 12 months leading up to the company entering the Pro Landscaper Business Awards, staff had completed an impressive 674 training courses in total. It’s not just for show either; 45% of Mitie Landscapes’

T HE P RO L A N DSCA PER BUSINESS AWARDS 2021 WINNER PROFILE

Mitie Group Plc

LANDSCAPING COMPANY OVER £5M, SPONSORED BY GLENDALE SERVICES

senior management team were promoted to senior positions within the business.

Employment is one of Mitie’s five ‘social value pillars’. Aiming to promote skills and employment opportunities, Mitie focuses on

WE TAKE OUR RESPONSIBILITY AS ONE OF THE UK’S LARGEST EMPLOYERS SERIOUSLY AND RECOGNISES THAT IT IS ONLY RIGHT TO GIVE BACK TO THE COMMUNITIES IN WHICH WE WORK apprenticeships, diversity and the Real Living Wage, with one of its targets being to increase the percentage of BAME colleagues and women on its group leadership team as well as its executive leadership team.

The other four pillars are: responsibility, community, environment and innovation.

Each pillar has its own focus and target. For example, through commitment to create safer communities, Mitie aims to increase health and wellbeing training and paid volunteer hours.

“We take our responsibility as one of the UK’s largest employers seriously and recognise it is only right to give back to the communities in which we work,” says Mitie.

In order to continue making a difference, Mitie relies on building strong relationships with its suppliers, with contract extensions leading up to its award entry including NHS Property Services, Lloyds Banking Group and Wm Morrison supermarkets. One client, JLL, announced a new seven-year contract with Mitie last year having worked with the landscaping company since 2004.

A JLL representative said that “the support from the landscaping team is second to none,” showing how Mitie is following through on its pledge to deliver the exceptional, every day.

REGISTER YOUR INTEREST FOR THE PRO LANDSCAPER BUSINESS AWARDS 2022 AT: WWW.PROLANDSCAPERBUSINESSAWARDS.COM

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

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INSPIRE GROUND CONTROL SCOOPED THE FIRST EVER AWARD FOR SUSTAINABLE COMPANY OF THE YEAR FOR ITS IMPRESSIVE GREEN ACHIEVEMENTS AND GOALS

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ecoming carbon neutral is no easy task, and yet Ground Control achieved it last year an impressive four years ahead of schedule. It’s now setting itself even bigger goals – net zero science-based targets to contribute to the UK’s commitment to become net zero by 2050. So, it’s perhaps unsurprising that Ground Control became the inaugural Sustainable Company of the Year at the Pro Landscaper Business Awards last year.

The new category was introduced to celebrate and showcase companies dedicated to the environment, within the businesses themselves and through their work, and Ground Control has been doing both for years. Just over fifteen years ago, it not only adopted the tagline ‘Caring for Our Environment’ but everything this entails and has been striving to do as much as possible to be more sustainable ever since.

KEW CHILDREN’S GARDEN

This extends beyond the company, too.

In May 2020, Ground Control launched the Evergreen Fund, with 5% of its annual net profits going to a £5m Impact Venture Fund which is dedicated to environmental initiatives and carbon sequestration. As part of this, £100k per year is going towards tree planting, with a goal of planting one million trees by 2025. For instance, Ground Control recently funded the creation of a new woodland in Lincolnshire to mark National Tree Week, working with Openreach to plan 3,339 young trees at Old Bolingbroke.

On top of this, Ground Control has created its own 9ha woodland in Essex, where the company is based.

Around 22,000 native trees and shrubs have been planted, which are

T HE P RO L A N DSCA PER BUSINESS AWARDS 2021 WINNER PROFILE

GROUND CONTROL

SUSTAINABLE COMPANY OF THE YEAR, SPONSORED BY BOURNE AMENITY

predicted to capture and store 3,150t of CO2 by 2070.

As a national green service provider, Ground Control also regularly reviews how it can lower its environmental impact through its fleet. This has led to the company now having 150 Teslas, the UK’s largest fleet of these

JUST OVER FIFTEEN YEARS AGO, IT NOT ONLY ADOPTED THE TAGLINE ‘CARING FOR OUR ENVIRONMENT’ BUT EVERYTHING THIS ENTAILS AND HAS BEEN STRIVING TO DO EVERYTHING POSSIBLE TO BE MORE SUSTAINABLE EVER SINCE electric vehicles, and it aims for all company cars to be converted to electric vehicles within the next twelve months and to cut the use of higher emission vehicles in its commercial fleet as soon as possible. Route planning is also reviewed annually and optimised to reduce the miles travelled by the team to

deliver services across the UK, and petrol hand tools are being converted to battery.

It’s even introducing automated mowers on suitable sites, such as the Tower of London.

TREE PLANTING

Biodiversity Net Gain is being incorporated across its projects too, such as Highway England’s Pathways project in Cumbria, for which 115ha of wildflower verges were delivered across 62 sites.

Ground Control’s green initiatives are impressive, but so is the company in other regards too. Last year, for instance, it was acknowledged in the Best Companies List – it ranked fifth in the business services sector and 30th in the East of England. Just weeks before, it won the Queen’s Award for Enterprise for the second time in five years.

With such big ambitions over the next few years, it seems likely Ground Control’s list of accomplishments, both green and beyond, will only grow and it will continue to be an exemplar within the industry.

REGISTER YOUR INTEREST FOR THE PRO LANDSCAPER BUSINESS AWARDS 2022 AT: WWW.PROLANDSCAPERBUSINESSAWARDS.COM

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www.prolandscapermagazine.com

17/02/2022 10:52

ADVERTORIAL

The importance of soil organic matter in a healthy soil S

oil organic matter is the organic component of soil. It consists of organic material from plants and animals, and material that has been converted by microorganisms in the soil at different stages of decomposition.

Soil organic matter has direct benefits not only for horticulture, but also agricultural and forestry production.

Healthy soils with stable levels of soil organic matter are also better equipped to prevent and fight soil-borne diseases.

Soil organic matter plays a vital part in enhancing soil fertility and quality, on three levels: CHEMICAL Soil organic matter significantly improves the soil’s capacity to store and supply essential nutrients (such as nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium and magnesium), and to retain toxic elements. It allows the soil to cope with changes in soil acidity and helps soil minerals to decompose faster.

PHYSICAL Soil organic matter improves soil structure. This ultimately helps to control soil erosion and improves water infiltration and water holding capacity, giving plant roots and soil organisms better living conditions. The obvious benefits are great water retention especially during periods of drought but also water management during extreme weather events, which are on the rise.

BIOLOGICAL Soil organic matter is a primary source of carbon (C) which gives energy and nutrients to soil organisms. This supports soil functionality because it improves the activity of microorganisms in the soil, and it can enhance biodiversity as many of the microorganisms feed off the captured carbon within the soil. Capturing carbon in the soil also lowers emissions of CO2 to the atmosphere, and this mitigates climate change, through the growth of strong healthy plants absorbing CO2 from the atmosphere.1 Our soils at Boughton Loam are 100% re-purposed Natural Soils, the benefits of which are re-using a natural, finite and very precious commodity, but also one that in its raw state can often contain 5-6% organic matter on harvest. However, our enhanced Natural soils on average contain double that at

11-14%, derived from 100% recycled/ organic matter either with PAS 100 or plant based digestate making them ideal for extensive planting schemes.

Whilst important, it’s not just organic matter that makes a healthy soil and certainly too much organic matter can have negative impacts if the available nutrients cannot be fully utilised.

Organic matter is just one of several components that create a ‘Healthy Soil’, which is a fine balance between.

BIOTA – Soil biota comprises an enormous diversity of organisms, including microorganisms (i.e., bacteria, fungi) and soil fauna (microscopic and macroscopic animals). Soil organisms interact with each other, with the plant roots, and with the environment. They constitute soil food webs and contribute to nutrient cycling, which is important for plants.2 ORGANIC MATTER/SOIL CARBON – As discussed WATER/AIR SPACE – Vital for healthy plant growth, improve drainage and reduce soil erosion.

NUTRIENTS – Soil nutrient composition plays a key role in determining the “goodness” of a soil.

A healthy soil will have all the essential elements in the right proportions to support healthy plant growth throughout its life cycle.

STRUCTURE – Allows air and water movement, which is vital for healthy plant growth, without good structure soils can suffer anaerobic conditions, waterlogging and nutrient lock-up which will lead to plant failure.

These five components though are inextricably linked, for a soil to be

healthy they require each other in the right balance.

Boughton are an established company that has been supplying the Amenity, Landscape and Construction Industry since 1985, we pride ourselves in the service and commitment given to each one of our many customers over the last 30 years of business.

We operate from a purposebuilt production facility in Kettering, Northamptonshire, an area well known for its excellent source of loams and topsoil, we also recover soil from development sites Pre-Construction & Green Field sites in the surrounding neighbouring counties of Leicestershire, Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire.

An experienced team with over 30 years’ experience in the landscape, horticulture and sports turf markets include MD Simon Hedley; who has a wealth of technical in-depth product knowledge and more recently Jason Lock who has valuable experience in specifying and delivering projects from a design and build contracting background. Backed by an experienced sales team Boughton are well placed to support all your needs.

We have a variety of products include a range of Natural Topsoils, Green Roof Substrates, Urban Trees soils, Composts/Turf Dressings and rootzones all available loose tip, bulk bag and 25kg bags.

www.boughton.co.uk • Tel: 01536 510515 • info@boughton.co.uk

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17/02/2022 20/01/2022 09:31 09:49

ADVERTORIAL YOU CAN SEE THE ATMOSPHERIC EFFECT OF GARDEN LIGHTING

LIGHTING THE WAY

THE OBERON HI IS DIMMABLE

LIGHTPRO’S LOW VOLTAGE LIGHTING RANG E IS GROWING AND EVOLVING. HERE, IT E XPL AINS WHY ITS PRODUCTS STAND OUT AND THE NE XT INNOVATION COMING SOON

Why pick Lightpro for your client’s garden lighting?

Lightpro is one of Techmar’s many brands and has a very extensive range of lights to suit all tastes and applications. The brand is now available in more than 40 countries. It is the best choice for gardeners, garden designers and landscapers.

Company owner for Contact 19 Limited, the UK distributor for Techmar, Nigel Weir, explains why Techmar’s market share is growing so enormously: "It is Techmar’s mission to make the outdoor living environment attractive and safe. Techmar has been developing and selling garden lighting systems for over 20 years, so it really knows this market. It strives to continuously stay ahead by developing new and innovative products every year.”

WITH THE CASTOR 4 YOU LIGHT UP OBJECTS IN AN ATTRACTIVE WAY

Can landscapers install garden lighting themselves?

Yes, of course. In the development of the high-end brand Lightpro, a conscious choice was made for a 12v system. As a result of this, no specialist electrical knowledge is required and a landscape gardening company can install the system quickly, simply, and safely. This ensures that a consumer not only has a safe system, but also only one point of contact for

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

Light Pro Advertorial.indd 89

their entire garden construction. For the landscape gardener, this is an excellent opportunity to increase the margin on their projects. Thanks to the low voltage, consumers can rest easy knowing that their outdoor lights are safe for children or pets.

THE WHOLE RANGE IS BUILT USING ENERGY EFFICIENT QUALITY LEDS, SO VERY ECONOMICAL TO RUN AND THIS MEANS IT IS KINDER ON THE ENVIRONMENT From Dutch soil All Lightpro products are designed in the Netherlands, and this is reflected in the design of the light fixtures. They are stylish, functional, robust and meet the latest trends.

Nigel mentions another important topic: “Because Techmar controls the entire chain itself, it is confident in the quality of the Lightpro range to be able to provide a five-year warranty on all products.

"And although it was always said that dimming 12v was not possible, Techmar has managed to do it.”

The award-winning connector Whether you choose a ground spot, a post light, an LED strip or a wall fixture, they all have one

connecting element – the Lightpro developed, awardwinning connector.

This easily connects all lights quickly and without any problems. As a landscape gardener you want to work quickly and efficiently and Lightpro's connector certainly contributes to this.

Smart lighting The latest developments focus on home automation; everything, including outdoor lighting, is ‘smart’ these days. Lightpro is leading the way with its NXT series. The first smart phase has been on the market since the end of 2019: the Lightpro NXT Switch. By adding one or more NXT-Switches, you can control your system with an app. You can easily create zones and switch them on and off individually. The new phase will come this year – smart lights.

You can then control the smart light individually with a smart phone app. You can, for example, dim the smart light and switch them to any desired colour. Do you want yellow light for the rhododendrons, blue for the pond or red for the roses? It is possible, and the possibilities are endless.

All Lightpro products are available from UK distributor Contact 19 Limited. They will have everything you need for your garden lighting project. Why not give them a call on 01276 903 430 or visit the UK website www.lightprotrade.co.uk for more information?

Pro Landscaper / March 2022 89

17/02/2022 11:34

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BRING THE NIGHT TO Bring your fountain to life at night with Otterbine’s Lighting Systems.

Introducing MIDI-RGBW Lights for Otterbine’s Fountain Glo™. These 9-watt light sets offer a cost-effective way to add rich colour to your fountains.

Pairs perfectly with Otterbine’s 1-5hp aerating fountains to give lavish, vibrant light to accentuate any pattern with a variety of coloured displays and sequences. Takes your venue from day to night in style.

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15/02/2022 17/02/2022 16:18 09:32

INSPIRE

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FURNS STREET FURNITURE FLORIDA Flowerpot FLORIDA planters are manufactured from 3mm thick aluminium. Important characteristics of aluminium are that it’s light, strong, and wear- and corrosion-resistant. After the planter is produced, it is powder coated with a strong adhesive primer. Then the planter is finished with a scratchresistant colour coating. The FLORIDA planters have a double folded top edge and can also be carried out without a bottom.

Price POA WWW.FURNS.NL/EN

BAILEY STREET FURNITURE GROUP Loop Cone Planter These colourful, lightweight, conical XL planters help create a cheerful atmosphere, both inside and out.

Place them in squares, schools, courtyards, urban spaces or shopping areas to make these settings vibrant and welcoming. The hollow rotationally moulded planters are available in a variety of colours and a 100% recycled anthracite version.

Size Diameter: 1130mm.

Height: 700mm. Weight: 26kg Price POA

Eyam planter The Eyam is an organic shaped feature planter. This image shows the Eyam made from GRP in a granite effect.

It has all the beauty of granite but with all the benefits of GRP lightweight, durable and easily maintained to name a few. Perfectly sized for planting trees and shrubs.

Size 1300mm Diameter, 800mm high Price £895 for trade customers (including VAT) WWW.EUROPLANTERS.COM

PLANTERS LOOKING FOR A LIGHT WEIGHT PL ANTER? CONSIDER THIS STANDOUT SELECTION

IOTA Enclave Trough 1200 Enclave is a range of premium quality fibreglass (GRP) planters in the mid-grey colour of polished concrete, with a subtly weathered and pitted appearance. The Trough 1200 is one of a good selection of sizes of rectangular planters in this finish, from window boxes up.

Price £206.25 (including VAT) WWW.IOTAGARDEN.COM

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17/02/2022 14:43

ADVERTORIAL

WHAT DO YOU LOOK FOR WHEN LOOKING FOR NEW SUPPLIERS? IS AN ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY IMPORTANT TO YOU?

P

inning your colours to the mast with an environmental policy is a brave move, but can you afford not to? Just because you should, does not mean you have to.

However, should you choose to highlight your environmental policy, it should be true to your colours: workable, adaptable and core to your company values.

Of course, having an environmental policy allows you to stay within environmental legislation, defines working practices within the business, aims to reduce wastage and allows you as a business to demonstrate that you are practicing what you preach.

At Provender Nurseries our environmental policy aims to follow the principles of; reduce, reuse, recycle, review, remove and reinforce.

Each principle is aimed towards

reducing our overall impact on the environment that we work hard to improve whilst supplying plants and related sundries to the horticultural industry.

These principles are reflected in some of our everyday business practices now in terms of purchasing, selling and services that we require as a business. Some of the ‘going green’ principles we have adopted are highlighted in the following columns. There are many more in the pipeline.

We can always do more and strive to do so at our production units where all of our grown stock is planted in peat free compost in 10L pots and below. We also use blue kerb-side recyclable pots too.

Within the Rosedale brand, exclusive to Provender Nurseries, we recently introduced a new ‘Rosedale Peat Free multi-purpose compost’ and also reduced the peat content in our ‘Rosedale multi-purpose compost’ too.

REVIEW We regularly review our suppliers to ensure that their green credentials match our requirements in order to purchase and promote any relevant changes in their product.

REDUCE For deliveries out, all of our own fleet vehicles are EURO 6 compliant, reducing our carbon emissions in London, one of our most popular delivery areas. For deliveries in, we now purchase full lorry loads of product to reduce the number of deliveries and fewer carbon miles.

REUSE We regularly attend auctions to purchase office furniture, storage containers, buildings and machinery for use on site, reducing the amount of material going to landfill.

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RECYCLE We now use recycled paper for all marketing material and produce our trade cards on recycled plastic.

Our five production sites use kerb recyclable blue pots in 2L, 3L and 10L.

REMOVE We have removed the plastic wrap used on Danish trollies for orders collated in house and now use green trolley jackets.

95% of lights on site are LED. REINFORCE We reinforce our policy to use more target specific chemicals on site with regular training.

Having attained our Plant Healthy Certification in early 2021, we reinforce these values to all of our staff and regularly train and update staff on changes in the industry.

Looking ahead, we are considering installing solar panels on the new barn, installing air source pumps for heating the offices and to reduce our paper printing within the business itself.

Is your environmental policy worth the paper it is written on?

If is recycled paper, then the answer is yes! Prevent, Reuse and Recycle Policy. www.provendernurseries.co.uk

17/02/2022 11:58

N U RT U R E

FEATURE GARDEN NUNNINGTON HALL

P98

INSIDE NURTURE THIS MONTH PAGE 97 LINDUM TURF: NATURAL SOLUTIONS, PAGE 98 FEATURE GARDEN: NUNNINGTON HALL, PAGE 102 NI C K COS LET T, PAGE 104 LEWIS NORMAND, PAGE 107 NOEL KINGSBURY, PAG E 10 9 WILDFLOWER WOES? Nurture Cover-2.indd 95

17/02/2022 16:07

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17/02/2022 09:36

ADVERTORIAL

NAT U R A L SOLUTIONS L I N D U M T U R F ’ S M A N AG I N G D I R EC TO R ST E P H E N F E L L P R O M OT E S T H E P OW E R O F G R AS S A N D W I L D F LOW E R S I N O U R C L I M AT E C H A N G E C H A L L E N G E

I

am a turf grower and farmer – I grow grass for a living. Some of the grass is for lawns and various amenity uses, and some produces the finest grass-fed beef and lamb. I was also chairman of LEAF – Linking Environment and Farming – and so I have championed sustainable land management for a long time.

Soil is our greatest asset, and we have a duty to look after it and improve it for the generations to come. The miracle of photosynthesis means that the grass plant absorbs sunlight and carbon dioxide to produce energy for the plant and oxygen. This is one of the most efficient ways of sequestering carbon – better than trees, as it is working all year round. Whether it is on a lawn or public space, or a pasture grazed by livestock, grass is improving the soil, locking up the carbon, and maintaining a thriving population of microbes.

We grow grass in my business as naturally as possible, using organic fertilisers when we can, applying nutrients through the leaf which avoids leaching into watercourses, and applying irrigation during periods of water stress pumped using solar power. We do not use plastic as a turf reinforcement under any circumstances. Who, in this era of reducing pollution by plastics, would

knowingly entertain the idea of placing plastic mesh in the ground? Biodegradability is often claimed, but what does it degrade into? Plastic micro-granules which find their way into watercourses, adding to the problems that

DECLINING POPULATIONS OF POLLINATORS HAVE RIGHTLY ATTRACTED A LOT OF ATTENTION. EVERYBODY CAN PLAY THEIR PART IN ARRESTING THESE DECLINES BY PLANTING AREAS OF WILDFLOWERS IN THEIR GARDEN OR PUBLIC SPACE David Attenborough so vividly highlighted. The message is, when buying turf, insist that it does not contain plastic mesh.

Declining populations of pollinators have rightly attracted a lot of attention. Everybody can play their part in arresting these declines by planting areas of wildflowers in their garden or public space. This has become much easier to

Lindum Turf Ltd, West Grange, Thorganby, York, YO19 6DJ

www.turf.co.uk www.prolandscapermagazine.com

Lindum Turf Advertorial.indd 97

do with the development of growing wildflowers in a ready to lay mat. Sadly, many growers are producing this in a plastic mesh, which seems to me to be completely at odds with the concept of planting an environmental product. We have now pioneered the production of a wildflower mat which contains no plastic at all, and which is wholly biodegradable.

So, my threefold message is quite simple – grow and manage grass to sequester carbon, plant wildflowers to help pollinators and biodiversity, and at all costs avoid putting plastic in our precious soils.

A B O U T L I N D U M T U R F LT D Lindum Turf has been growing specialist turf for more than 35 years. Its different turf grades are suitable for a wide variety of uses, and it has also created a unique range of specialist products for green roofs, wildflower meadows, landscape architecture and soil stabilisation. The Lindum Turf strapline is ‘taking grass a step further’; Lindum’s green innovation is helping to combat climate change, enhance biodiversity and improve sustainability by greening urban spaces. It is proud to have developed a team dedicated to producing turf to the highest standard backed up by high quality technical support and excellent customer service.

www.turf.co.uk

TELEPHONE: 01904 448675 EMAIL: lindum@turf.co.uk SOCIAL MEDIA: @lindumturf

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17/02/2022 11:32

NURTURE

F E AT U R E GARDEN NUNNINGTON HALL FOR THE LAST 20 YEARS, THE GARDEN AT NUNNINGTON HALL HAS BEEN MANAGED ORGANICALLY. HEAD GARDENER NICK FRASER SHARES SOME OF ITS SECRETS FOR SUCCESS

N

unnington Hall is a playground for organic practices. For the last two decades, its gardeners have explored sustainable techniques – both old and new – to manage the garden around the magnificent building, and it’s these techniques which have made Nunnington Hall a flagship garden for the National Trust’s commitment to sustainable gardening.

Resting on the banks of River Rye, North Yorkshire, the garden has been owned by the National Trust since the 70s, when the charity became custodian of around three quarters of

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the estate. There remain parts on the outskirts which formed the original grounds but are not owned by the Trust, like Lady Grey’s woodland – which would've been a fruit garden and still includes espalier apple trees and currant bushes – and a Christmas tree plantation.

“We hope in the future there may be a chance for us to include them back into the ownership of the whole garden and we can redevelop them into what we know was there originally,” says Nick Fraser, Nunnington Hall’s head gardener.

Since the Tudor building first started to act as a dwelling in 1249, the house and the gardens

have evolved, but more so with the Trust’s intervention. “The garden was quite basic,” explains Nick. “It was a second family home up until the 20s, so it wasn’t the focus of attention.

It was relatively plain, with a lot of evergreens, and lacking in seasonality.

“When the Trust first took it over, we weren’t open during the wintertime, so there was a lot of focus then on providing seasonal interest throughout the spring, summer and autumn, but not so much interest in winter.

But as we are now opening for longer periods, there has been a big push to create seasonal

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17/02/2022 12:06

NURTURE

interest throughout the whole year, including the winter.”

Take “The Avenue” – borders have been developed along this sloping grass path to provide more interest in the autumn and winter, with more foliage, berries, dogwood, viburnums, wild roses and cotoneasters to create what Nick calls a “seasonal loop”.

Nick became head gardener 14 years ago and manages two other National Properties alongside Nunnington Hall – Rievaulx Terrace and Ormesby Hall. He first joined Nunnington six years prior to this as assistant head gardener, one year after the gardens had turned organic – it was one of the main reasons he applied for the role. Nick was already an avid organic gardener and had completed one of the first permaculture courses in the UK around 10 years before joining Nunnington, which felt like the perfect fit.

“I already knew the head gardener here, having seen her in publications. It seemed like the dream job for me and, 20 years later, it’s still my dream job.”

The former head gardener is the one who requested for the garden to become organic.

“At that time, some people thought organic gardening meant hands-off maintenance and letting nettles and weeds go. So, we’ve tried hard over the years to prove that you can manage a formal garden without the use of chemicals.”

To do this, Nick says that it's important to keep some parts of the garden looking very formal in order to get away with more natural and organic planting within the borders and the meadows.

“The gravel has to be well raked, well weeded and well presented; topiary is used to create the infrastructure and has to stay well clipped, with clean and crisp edges; the lawn has to be well striped. But then right in the middle of the main formal garden are our orchards which are also wildflower meadows – that very natural planting is contrasts with the clean, straight lines of the formality. If we didn’t have that formal element, then it would all blur into one and you wouldn’t have the benefits from either side. There are different approaches in gardening; some people are aiming for a very natural garden – we have that, but we want it within a formal framework.”

Both Nick’s and his predecessor’s desire to manage the garden organically has led to Nunnington Hall becoming a “test bed” for other National Trust properties, most of which are now using as few chemicals as possible, says Nick.

He manages the three sites with as few pesticides and herbicides as possible, though these are not completely organic. “One of them is an important 18th century landscape. We had an outbreak of Japanese knotweed there about

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20 years ago so had to get a contract for one application of glyphosate.”

At Nunnington Hall, “absolutely everything” would be done to avoid using chemicals. “We’re trying to lead the way and give examples of what works and what doesn’t, so if others are trying to be chemical free, we can potentially help out.

WE’VE TRIED HARD OVER THE YEARS TO PROVE THAT YOU CAN MANAGE A FORMAL GARDEN WITHOUT THE USE OF CHEMICALS “Nunnington Hall doesn’t have the greatest plant collection in the National Trust or the most well known garden, which has all worked in our favour. Being a fairly hidden gem in the middle of Ryedale, a lesser-known part of Yorkshire, we can experiment more and, as a result, our techniques and philosophy on gardening have become quite high profile. All that hard work over the last 20 years is coming to fruition.”

Some of its techniques are not new innovations, either. Nunnington Hall is rediscovering traditional gardening techniques.

Rather than applying chemicals to gravelled areas to control weeds, for instance, Nunnington rakes large, gravelled areas using chain harrows attached to a tractor or a pull-behind drag rake, as well as hoeing and hand weeding throughout the year. This isn’t necessarily more timeconsuming than chemicals either, says Nick.

“By the time you put on your spray suit, calibrate your mixes and wash down afterwards, it’s not necessarily more intense to regularly rake the gravel once you get into a cycle of doing it little and often.”

Composting is a key part of its organic management too. “Composting is fundamental to gardens, whether they are organically managed or not. It is something which has always been done traditionally, and gardeners or those who manage land always try to recycle and reuse as much as possible – it is in our nature. It seems fundamental and sensible to reuse a lot of the garden waste and turn it into 1 The Buzz Border at Nunnington Hall ©National Trust Images/Nick Fraser 2 Bumblebee approaching a foxglove ©National Trust Images/Chris Lacey.

3 Tree bumblebee (Bombus hypnorum) ©National Trust Images/Rob Coleman 4 Children in meadow areas at Nunnington Hall, North Yorkshire ©National Trust Images/Paul Harris

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useable compost which then serves several different purposes.”

Waste is finely chopped for a more consistent compost, and then goes through a five-way composting system. By the time the waste reaches the fourth bay, it is the finished product, with the fifth bay added for storage, so by the end of the year, the last two bays are filled with compost. Towards the end of winter, the whole garden will then be mulched. A no-dig system is in place for the vegetable beds, so the compost helps to create a good soil structure and suppress weeds.

“If the soil is healthy, then the plant is going to be healthy and is going to be able to cope with a small number of problems – I try to not say the word ‘pests’ because it’s not fair to encompass one particular animal as a ‘pest’ when they’re only a ‘pest’ occasionally. They’re all valuable parts of our biodiversity.”

Nick says a lot of people are in fear of moving away from chemicals in case it causes more ‘problems’, but he argues that by moving away from chemicals, a natural balance can return to the garden. At Nunnington, aphids descend in the spring and visitors often approach Nick to tell him about the ‘pests’ on the roses and ask what is being done to get rid of them. “We advocate patience,” he explains. “Two weeks after the aphids appear, the blue tits will be hatching and will feed on the bounty of aphids. So, within weeks, there is not an aphid to be seen. If we had stepped in, by using a chemical or washing them off with an organic soap, then there wouldn’t have been any aphids for the young blue tits to eat, so they probably wouldn’t have survived in such numbers and there wouldn’t be an increase in the population of blue tits the following year.”

Chemicals are also avoided in the garden’s tree orchards – apple, pear and stone fruit.

These are all underplanted with perennial wildflower and grass meadows, which are left to

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grow throughout the spring and summer. In late August, a power scythe is used to chop it down and all clippings are removed. This is to avoid having a nutrient-rich soil, which could encourage plants like nettles and hogweeds – or “greedy natives”, as Nick says – to take over.

The challenge is when they plant new fruit trees, which will initially be in competition with anything planted around them. Nunnington has a solution for this too, though. “We place sheep fleece around the base of the young fruit trees within the meadow which acts like a mulch

OUR TECHNIQUES AND PHILOSOPHY ON GARDENING HAVE BECOME QUITE HIGH PROFILE. ALL THAT HARD WORK OVER THE LAST 20 YEARS IS COMING TO FRUITION mat. We use the dag end of the fleece, which is manure encrusted and no good for spinning, so it’s a by-product. It takes around 18 months to break down and provides a slow-release fertiliser to the young fruit tree but stops the wildflowers growing immediately around the base.”

Along with practicing organic management, the team at Nunnington also wants to improve biodiversity with the garden and to use this as an engagement tool for visitors, such as by hosting bird box-making days or running tours to show visitors the different bees and insects in the garden.

“Gardens aren’t just about plants; they’re also about what we can attract into the garden, so introducing plants with seasonal interest to wildlife can only be a positive.”

A couple of years ago, Nick came up with the idea of creating a ‘Buzz Border’ to support the Big Bee Challenge, a collaboration between BBC Radio 2 and the RHS to encourage listeners to create more biodiverse environments for bees and other pollinating insects. There are already plenty of plants around the garden for wildlife and bees, but Nick wanted to reimagine one corner of the garden as a dedicated border for pollinators.

“We planted it up and put a lot of of bee hotels around the border. It’s a really good engagement tool because we can show people the different flowers which the bees and insects love, but we have also included a red mason bee

observation home on the wall adjacent – it has been fascinating to see the red mason bees going straight from the flowers, collecting the pollen, then going into the little bee shelter's hollow tubes and putting the pollen in for their eggs or larvae. You can watch them throughout the year including when they hatch and emerge.

“The red mason bee observation homes are also right next to the apple orchard. Apples rely on pollinators to set the fruit, and we know that red mason bees can do the pollination work of a hundred honeybees because they fly earlier in the year, so it is a great way to show that symbiotic nature and the importance of bees and insects.”

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NURTURE

One thing Nick says the garden is lacking is still water. “We have a river running through the garden, but we’d really like to have a little wildlife pond somewhere, so we’re hoping to start looking at the feasibility, not only to help us with biological control but also it will be brilliant for engagement. We can do pond dipping and see what creepy crawlies live in the pond.”

The garden is also always trialling new products and techniques to try to move away from plastic as much as possible. Wooden seed trays are made out of old pallets and sustainablesourced, FSC-certified rubber seed modules are being tested. “If there is something out there that is plastic free or is a new, innovative solution, we will try it and feed back to our colleagues to say whether it worked or not.”

This is Nunnington’s USP, if you like, and it means always having to stay at least one step ahead of other gardens. It recently started exploring lawn art for a point of difference too.

Patterns such as swirls or concentric circles are created in the grass, and a love heart with ‘125’ in the middle appeared to celebrate the National Trust’s 125th anniversary in 2020.

No-Mow May kicked off the idea for lawn art initially. “Leaving grass long wouldn’t appeal to

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a lot of people but creating textures within the lawns by using different cutting techniques makes it look more purposeful; cutting a pathway into it or a shape makes it look like it

GARDENS AREN’T JUST ABOUT PLANTS; THEY’RE ALSO ABOUT WHAT WE CAN ATTRACT INTO THE GARDEN, SO INTRODUCING PLANTS WITH SEASONAL INTEREST TO WILDLIFE CAN ONLY BE A POSITIVE

and incorporating biodiversity. The gardens at Nunnington Hall are undoubtedly a step ahead and are leading the way in bringing the natural back to nature, so much so that it also featured in the sustainable gardening chapter of The National Trust School of Gardening, published last year.

5 A hummingbird hawk-moth feeding. ©National Trust Images/Nick Upton 6 Clematis montana ©National Trust Images/Pete Tasker 7 The Buzz Border at Nunnington Hall. ©National Trust Images/Nick Fraser 8 Common columbine in flower ©National Trust Images/Chris Lacey

has been landscaped and you have these wonderful textures and biodiversity associated with these longer grasses.”

These creative ideas not only enable Nunnington Hall to evolve and standout, but also act as a teaching tool for organic gardening

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CORNUS MIDWINTERFIRE GLOWING EN-MASSE IN WINTER SUNSHINE

NURTURE

WINTER

WO N D ERS

NICK COSLETT SUGGESTS A FEW RELIABLE SHRUBS TO OFFER COLOUR THROUGHOUT THE COLDER MONTHS

I

noticed over the years, on the nursery, that deciduous shrubs were falling in popularity and that evergreens were increasing in popularity. This was especially the case with developers, who wanted their projects to be green throughout the year and so, sadly, gave low importance to flowers and seasonal colour and variation.

The influence of horticultural professionals on these new house build projects was limited because their role ended with planning approval.

There was therefore no person to refer stock availability shortages to and to steer the choice of alternatives. For the landscaper, any change was perceived by the project QS as a reason to deduct money. This sad state of affairs has led to predictable landscapes within our new housing estates – an almost uniform treatment whatever the location, soil, rainfall etc, and no genius loci.

This need not be the case, as there are plenty of good reliable shrubs to suit the so called “soils” of newly built estates; however, to perform at their best, they do need some management. For winter colour, the dogwoods

FORSYTHIA , WHEN PRUNED AFTER FLOWERING, DISPLAYS WONDERFULLY IN SPRING. THIS IS F. MARIEE DOR, A LOWER GROWING VARIETY WITH DWARF HABIT, SO GOOD AT FRONT-MID BORDER

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are excellent value. There are flame coloured stems (Cornus sanguinea 'Midwinter Fire', pictured above), bright red (Cornus alba 'Sibirica'), lime yellow (Cornus serica 'Flaviramea') HAMAMELIS and an almost black 'JELENA' AGM (Cornus alba 'Kesselringii').

CORNUS SANGUINEA There is also the native AUTUMN COLOUR shrub Cornus sanguinea up of shrubs from the with green and red tinted neat and tidy brigade – stems and good autumn colour (pictured an unskilled Americanism right), which you’ll recognise from roadside I hate, which prevents flowering or fruiting and plantings. These Cornus’s show their best does nothing to promote good winter colour.

Whilst the deciduous Forsythia may be a retro shrub it does deliver colour now when it is most needed. It then steps back into anonymity for the rest of the year apart from a flurry of colour in autumn.

The witch hazels (Hamamelis) are a more expensive shrub because they are grafted, but deliver tough frost resistant winter colour, and there is a range of colours yellow through orange to red to select from. Planted in a sunny position they also deliver on providing a wonderful autumn colour.

So, be different, do build in some deciduous shrubs for structure and at least some seasonal variety which evergreens tend not to deliver.

THERE ARE PLENTY OF GOOD RELIABLE SHRUBS TO SUIT THE SO CALLED “SOILS” OF NEWLY BUILT ESTATES; HOWEVER, TO PERFORM AT THEIR BEST, THEY DO NEED SOME MANAGEMENT

colour on one – and two-year wood and on older wood the colours becomes duller. The appropriate treatment is to coppice them every two years around about now, as the winter ends and buds begin to break with new growth.

A shrub two years after planting will be sufficiently robust to withstand this treatment.

Coppice now and let your clients enjoy better colour over the next two winters. This will also save the mindless frequent trimming and boxing

ABOUT NICK COSLETT Nick is now retired but has worked in landscape offices, parks management and horticultural nurseries. For the past 20 years, he has also run soft landscape workshops at Coblands and Palmstead. He has been involved in BALI at a regional and national level, and is a trustee of the BALI Chalk Fund, as well as an awards judge.

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17/02/2022 10:57

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17/02/2022 13:47

NURTURE

HORTICULTURE'S

HU RD L ES

THE HORTICULTURE INDUSTRY HAS A HOST OF OBSTACLES TO OVERCOME THIS YEAR, AS LEWIS NORMAND EXPLAINS

T

here's lots going on in horticulture in 2022 and I’m sure much more to come for the UK. Let’s have a little look at just a few of the issues bubbling over.

Peat The majority of large volume compost users are burying their heads in the sand rather than making a transition and supporting the peat-free compost manufacturers. I’ll happily concede that availability of peat-free alternatives is significantly less than overall need, but much of this is the result of a lack of demand. The nursery that I work for has been a peat-free grower for nearly 10 years now and it is a completely viable option which growers need to embrace.

Paperwork Since our exit from Europe, paperwork has increased exponentially for those importing plants. Some estimates indicate a 20% increase in costs to nurseries in both direct costs of importing and indirect costs from administrative processes now required to purchase, import, health check and sell plants to the end user. Naturally, this cost has to be passed on to the end user and consequently plants in 2021 and for the foreseeable future are more expensive than they have ever been.

Being realistic, prices won’t drop – ever. Import costs do have the long-term advantage of making British-produced plants much more competitive and we can hopefully strengthen our nursery industry with some support from government.

Plastic The RHS recently imposed a ban on single-use plastics at its shows, encouraging visitors to bring a reusable bag to carry away purchases during visits.

They have backtracked on this

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policy but are keen to wipe out plastic use in general – admirable, if unlikely, with plastic in horticulture a necessary evil in terms of pots and labels, if nothing else. The issue, for me, is the need to make everything recyclable and ideally from recycled plastic in the first place.

Rather than changing plastic colour of pots, we should be looking to replace sensors in domestic recycling plants. After all, horticulture is by no means the only source of black plastic out there. Just look at the food industry and think about the scale of the problem.

SKILLS SHORTAGES HAVE BEEN AN ISSUE FOR MY ENTIRE TIME WORKING IN THE INDUSTRY Availability of plants COVID-19 and Brexit both have a part to play in plant availability. During lockdowns, demand for plants went through the roof, but also most nurseries weren’t able to pot up plants for the following seasons. As such, shortages began and nurseries throughout Europe started selling smaller plants than normal compounding the issue of future availability. For herbaceous perennials, we should be able to get back to necessary quantities within a couple of seasons, though trees and large shrubs could take a decade to reach that point. The consequence here is a more competitive marketplace, higher prices and a need for specifiers to work more closely with suppliers to make necessary changes.

Skills shortages In January we lost the iconic Peter Seabrook and sadly a number of our great horticulturists over the last couple of years. Skills shortages have been an issue for my entire time working in the

industry and, unfortunately, we are yet to make horticulture a desirable career prospect. Viewing, as I do, Gareth Wilson’s expert witness images of poor-quality landscape construction, I can see that there are significant issues within construction too – not from professionals, but from the ‘cowboys’ who undo the public confidence we should have in our professionals.

Whichever way we look at it, we still have a great deal to do to make landscape an industry that people should be ambitious to enter.

PODs to BCPs That is Points of Destination to Border Control Points. One really workable idea that the UK government came up with in 2021 was to allow people to become PODs, whereby plants and goods could be delivered into registered PODs and health checked on site by plant health inspectors.

This was in response to failing to consider the volume of plants passing through UK ports and this on-the-hoof change was largely very successful.

On 1 July 2022, PODs will be replaced by Border Control Points, more similar to traditional ports. Currently, we only know that these will be privately-owned businesses rather than state-run facilities. As such, care of handling plants, costs to the exporter and importer, timescales and pretty much every other detail about their use remain unknown. This is a worry.

Expect delays and cost rises, with the only guarantee given so far being that the BCPs and the government won’t be responsible for any damages to plants that they cause.

ABOUT LEWIS NORMAND Lewis has worked in a wide variety of roles within horticulture over a 20-year career. He has lectured on garden design and horticulture, and designed gardens in the UK, Europe and the Middle East.

Since 2011, Lewis has focused on nursery sales, now working as sales manager at Bernhard’s Nurseries, and has helped to launch a number of new plants into the UK plant market. He is a specialist supplier to show gardens, supplying more than 100 gardens at major shows.

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18/02/2022 10:27

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NURTURE

SPRING MEANS

DA FFO D I LS THE RELIABILITY OF THESE FLORAL DELIGHTS SHOULD MAKE THEM A POPULAR CHOICE FOR LARGE-SCALE PLANTING, BUT THERE ARE PITFALLS TO AVOID, SAYS NOEL KINGSBURY

W

hat can the landscape or garden professional do, and which will last and give pleasure for decades and quite possibly centuries?

1. Plant trees, and 2. plant daffodils.

The scale between trees and bulbs may be enormous, but in fact, in some cases, it is the latter that will last longer. Bulbs vary enormously in their lifespans and ability to cope with conditions in low maintenance environments. Using them effectively in designed landscapes needs a basic understanding of their growth patterns, and since we live at a time when the availability of bulbs is wider than ever, now is a good time for some evaluations of what we are planting.

The number one factor in using bulbs on a medium to large scale is price. Only a limited range of commercially available varieties are available cheaply enough. One reason for this is simply that bulbs are very slow to propagate.

They do not breed true from seed, and there is no easy way to get large numbers of new plants quickly; the result may be decades between the development of a new variety and its production in large numbers. Narcissus ‘Tête-à-Tête’ is a case in point; the result of a Scilly Islands fruit grower, Alec Gray, breeding it in the late 40s, but it not becoming a clear commercial success until the 90s.

Bulbs vary enormously in their longevity, which is linked to their ability to reproduce themselves through multiplying their bulbs, as few seed themselves effectively.

Daffodils always produce offset bulbs, so every year their clumps get bigger.

Since they start in growth so early, they are ahead of the

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grass and whatever other herbaceous vegetation is around them. So, they have a huge advantage, and they are perfect for the British climate, because their long growing season enables them to take full advantage of a relatively moderate climate.

All this means that they can persist in rough grass for many years. Indeed, for centuries.

Snowdrops also manage to reproduce themselves and in grass-inhibiting shade; their ability to get going early also gives them an advantage. Animal digging only serves to distribute the bulbs further, so they too can spread and reproduce potentially ad infinitum.

SINCE WE LIVE AT A TIME WHEN THE AVAILABILITY OF BULBS IS WIDER THAN EVER, NOW IS A GOOD TIME FOR SOME EVALUATIONS OF WHAT WE ARE PLANTING Most other bulbs, however, are nothing like as long-lived – tulips in particular.

So, what does all this mean for us doing large-scale plantings? In most cases massed daffodils are a welcome sight in spring. However, we need to bear in mind that the traditional varieties available in bulk are large plants, whose foliage dominates their immediate surroundings for months often collapsing into an unattractive yellow mush in May or even June. Fine in low-maintenance rough grass, but potentially competitive to less vigorous wildflowers in meadow style plantings. They are dominant visually and, in those areas where we have

wild daffodils, they drown them out with a big yellow noise. The risk of them interbreeding with the wildlings, however, and diluting the natural gene pool, is probably not worth worrying about.

Hybrids are almost unknown and successful seeding of ‘garden daffodils’ very rare.

Bulb growers will tell you how tastes are changing, with the gardening public turning against the traditional large varieties, and being more appreciative of the smaller, almost miniature ones. ‘Tête-à-Tête’ is beginning to appear in grassy areas managed by local authorities, and it does a wonderful job of imitating the wild species (which, by the way, are not particularly easy to propagate commercially), and probably compatible with a richer wildflower flora. Anyone planning new planting should bear in mind that their project may be around for a long time to come and should ask themselves: What will future generations want to see?

ABOUT NOEL KINGSBURY Noel Kingsbury is a freelance designer, writer and researcher who has long promoted naturalistic planting design. He also teaches at Boston Architectural College.

www.noelkingsbury.com

Pro Landscaper / March 2022 107

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R E W O L F D L I W ?

S E O W

NURTURE

J O H N C H A M B E RS W I L D F LOW E R S E E D

Q L E A D I N G W I L D F L OW E R T U R F A N D S E E D S U P P L I E R S S E E K TO A N SW E R S O M E O F T H E M O ST F R E Q U E N T LY A S K E D Q U E ST I O N S O N E N S U R I N G T H E S U C C E S S O F A W I L D F LOW E R M E A D OW

How do you prepare the ground for wildflower seeds?

The cleaner the soil of vegetation/grass the better the results. Having as much bare soil possible present is ideal. To achieve this, over-turn the top layer of soil (rotavating) by two to three inches; any deeper than this allows existing ‘weed seeds’ sat in the seed bed, to germinate. Weeds and other vegetation will typically appear within two weeks of rotovating – clear these away and repeat until weeds and other vegetation have been cleared.

Your site is now ready to be sown with your wildflower mix.

A

Q

Can you control weeds within a wildflower meadow and how?

It is possible, it just requires a keen eye to detail.

Do regular spot checks of your wildflower meadow, at least once a month and pull weeds out, removing as much of the root as possible. In wetter seasons, double the amount of spot checks as these conditions favour weed growth. Pulling weeds from damp soil is easier and enables you to remove more root. When seeds are first establishing, weed seedlings can be difficult to differentiate from the wildflower seedlings; let them grow until the foliage has more recognisable features. Weeds tend to spread vigorously through seed dispersal, so ensure you remove them before they flower and set seed. Yellow rattle (Rhinanthus minor) can be sown into an area to help control grasses growth.

Once established, it feeds from grass roots, weakening the growth helping other wildflower species to flourish. It is often referred to as the ‘meadow maker’ as without it, and its semi-parasitic growing habits, weaker wildflower species would struggle to establish within vigorous grasses.

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W I L D F LOW E R T U R F

Q

How do you prepare the ground for wildflower turf?

All existing vegetation should be killed or removed. Dig over or rotovate the soil to at least 100mm deep and rake over to create a reasonably fine tilth. Remove large stones, roots or clods of earth as it is important that the roots of the plants in the turf are all in close contact with the soil. Ensure soil is not waterlogged or compacted prior to laying the turf. The soil does not need to be fertilised before or after laying the turf. Once laid, water the turf thoroughly, for the first couple of weeks (weather dependent), until the turf is rooted in.

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Q

How often does wildflower turf need to be maintained?

For the annual maintenance cut in the autumn, it is important to cut the meadow down to 25mm to 50mm off the ground and remove all cuttings.

This can be done by strimming and raking or using a mower and collecting the cuttings. The annual maintenance cut should be done in late September/early October. On fertile sites or where you might have species dominance or too vigorous early growth, a second cut at the end of May/beginning of June can be introduced. This high cut should leave approximately 200mm to 250mm of growth with all cuttings removed. www.wildflowerturf.co.uk

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Q

When is it best to sow wildflower seeds?

The optimum sowing period for wildflower seeds differs depending on the species. Softer shelled species (mainly annual species) are best sown in spring, whereas harder shelled species (mainly perennial) can be sown in autumn for optimal results. Autumn sowing is recommended for perennial mixes, so their shell coating has more time to be softened and crack through the freeze and thaw. Autumn sowing can often present an earlier flowering time, but most mixes will flower from June time.

Though these are optimum times, sowing can still be done during both seasons. However, germination may not happen until year two or three. www.johnchamberswildflowers.co.uk

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READ THE INSTRUCTIONS

SEEKING ADVICE ON FACEBOOK HAS ITS BENEFITS, BUT MAKE SURE YOU CHECK INSTALLATION GUIDES OR CALL A SUPPLIER’S HELPLINE TO BE SURE, SAYS GARETH WILSON

O

ver the years, social media has served as a great tool for my businesses. I’ve been a member of many of the landscaping groups for a long time and I’m now in a role of ‘moderator’ and ‘group expert’ on many of the groups. Social media is also a great platform for advertising people’s own work too.

The most-asked question on social media landscaping groups in the winter months is: What temperatures can we lay paving in? My advice here would be three degrees and rising; don’t use frozen materials and be very wary of overnight frosts. Now, I would consider this sound advice and something I’ve always worked to. However, on the very same posts there are contractors claiming they lay paving below zero degrees and never have a problem!

Now the point I’m getting at here is social media has its place and good advice can be sought on there; but with such a wide variety of answers, which one should a landscaper take?

It’s a real minefield when asking questions on social media.

Recently I visited two expert witness commissions.

On the first commission there were found to be some issues with some stacked porcelain cladding where the cladding had

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popped off the wall in places. Again, this was a joint commission with landscaper and client splitting my fees between them.

THESE ARE COSTLY ERRORS FOR LANDSCAPERS THAT CAN BE EASILY AVOIDED SHOULD THEY READ THE INSTALLATION GUIDE AND OR CALL THE MANUFACTURER’S HELPLINE The landscaper explained that he had never used this particular exterior tile adhesive product before and had sought advice off Facebook.

This is where the problems started, as many contractors had used this adhesive before and gave their advice on how to use it.

My next port of call was to ring the manufacturer’s helpline and ask their own experts on the installation process.

The landscaper had failed to use the manufacturer’s primer in accordance with the adhesive, so not only did he not get any warranty, but he’d have to do it all again at his own cost.

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The second situation was where a contractor had used adhesive to prime sandstone instead of a slurry primer onto a wet bed of mortar which had caused some discolouration issues with the natural stone.

Once more, the contractor had taken this advice off Facebook and had not gone directly to installation guidelines or called the manufacturer’s helpline for advice. Again, these are costly errors for landscapers that can be easily avoided should they take the time to read the installation guide and or call the manufacturer’s helpline.

I have to say that the phone call I made to the manufacturer of the exterior tile adhesive for the porcelain stacked cladding was more around the 20-minute mark as the online expert I spoke to was incredibly knowledgeable and was teaching me things I wasn’t aware of myself regarding many of their products.

The manufacturer’s guidelines and helpline must always be your first port of call – you could save yourself thousands of pounds from just one phone call!

ABOUT GARETH WILSON Leaving college at 17, Gareth has worked in the landscape industry since 1989. Progressing onto highend projects over the years, he has picked up 30 RHS medals, including Gold at Chelsea. Now a retained consultant to The Landscape Academy, Gareth is a member of multiple professional bodies. He provides technical and product advice to companies, mentors and trains landscapers across the UK, and provides arbitration and mediation services.

www.gkwilsonlandscaping.co.uk

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NO JAB, NO JOB? ALL EMPLOYEES BEING FULL VACCINATED MIGHT SOUND IDEAL, BUT CAN YOU MAKE IT MANDATORY? JASON MCKENZIE AND WINIFRED MBIELI OF ORACLE SOLICITORS HELP US TO UNDERSTAND THE LEGALITIES BEHIND SUCH A POLICY.

C

oronavirus (COVID-19) has affected all of us in some way.

Businesses are understandably looking at the best ways to protect themselves. Increasingly, many are considering the implementation of policies that require vaccinated staff, either in particular stated roles, or across their organisations. This article looks at the areas that businesses should take into account if considering this option (sometimes colloquially referred to as a “no jab, no job” policy, or “mandatory vaccination").

COVID-19 vaccination became compulsory for many workers in the social care sector and was planned for NHS staff. However, at the time of writing, this requirement is under review and may be reversed (either partly or completely).

What types of policy are there?

“Mandatory vaccination” spans a number of different types of policy that employers may look to implement. For example: ● A policy which requires certain specified roles to be occupied by vaccinated staff only; ● A blanket policy which essentially says: “from a specified date, we are only going to employ people who have fully vaccinated status or are medically exempt"; ● A recruitment policy where job offers will only be made to candidates that are vaccinated (or medically exempt).

Risk of legal claims There is currently no binding case law specifically on the issue of the introduction of COVID-19related policy.

However, perhaps some of the most likely legal challenges will fall under the following headings: ● Indirect discrimination: this is where a practice, policy or rule is implemented which applies to everyone in the same way, but puts certain protected groups at a disadvantage (e.g. those with particular religious beliefs, certain racial groups, pregnant women).

An employer can defend indirect discrimination if they are able to prove that the policy is a “proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim”;

THE GENERAL GUIDANCE IN THIS AREA PROMOTES ENCOURAGEMENT RATHER THAN ENFORCEMENT ● Unfair dismissal: if the reason for dismissing an (unvaccinated) employee is not sufficiently articulated, and/or a reasonable dismissal procedure is not followed; ● Breach of contract: where an existing employee objects to the change in their contract terms and a proper process of implementing the change has not been followed.

When considering such a policy…

Of course, the vaccine is just one measure of protection and employers are likely to be

expected to also consider whether alternative measures can be implemented alongside, or instead of a mandatory vaccination policy.

For example: ● working from home, ● redeployment options, or ● flexibility of shift patterns/working days.

The general guidance in this area promotes encouragement rather than enforcement.

However, depending on the needs of a particular business, a vaccination policy could potentially be justifiable for good business or health and safety reasons; employers will be aware that there is a duty of care placed on them to provide for their employees a safe place to work, and that duty arises under statute (the Health & Safety at Work Act 1974 etc.) as well as being an implied term in every employment contract.

The COVID-19 landscape and restrictions are updated frequently and should remain on the radar. However, if you do decide to make COVID-19 vaccination mandatory in your organisation, it is advisable to follow these steps (as a minimum): ● Carry out a detailed risk assessment and explain why COVID-19 vaccination is required, further to COVID-19 measures already in place. These reasons may be strong commercial ones, as well as health and safety related. ● Communicate clearly to staff members to avoid any misinterpretation, including a timetable and plan for any decision making.

Also, consider any potential impact on staff morale and/or publicity. ● Consult with workplace representatives or trade unions (if applicable). ● Consult with up-to-date medical guidance.

A B O U T O R AC L E S O L I C I TO R S Oracle Solicitors is an award-winning law firm with a deep understanding of the landscape industry and expertise in employment, commercial, litigation, property and contract law. Oracle Solicitors, founded in 2002 has since grown to include offices in London, Belfast, Birmingham, Manchester, Frankfurt, and Addis Ababa – please visit:

www.oraclesolicitors.co.uk

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Y E O R U A O E N R E T H HE W ©Geran de Klerk/Unsplash

ADOPTION CURVE? ARE YOU HORIZON SCANNING OR HUNKERING DOWN IN THE DAY-TO-DAY ?

HERE ARE ALISON WARNER'S TIPS ON EMBRACING CHANGE IN THE INDUSTRY

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©Stuart Pritchards/Pexels

n adoption curve is a simple model to help us understand how people respond to innovation and change.

At the beginning of the curve we have innovators and early adopters; those that jump onboard industry developments, eager to implement change.

Next, we have the early majority; those that wait a little longer but are still early to get involved. Then, at the end of the curve, we have the laggards; those that are much more resistant to change.

Why am I telling you this? Well, if you’re sitting towards the end of the curve now is the time to turn over a new leaf. Make the change from a laggard to a ‘leading learner’ as my mentor once said. It’s important in this industry to be on top of new developments – e.g. the green agenda – so that you can be seen as a company that is innovative, forward-thinking and adapting to customer demand.

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Here are my top tips before taking on any new initiative: Conduct thorough research Doing your homework is key. Before jumping in, make sure that you know all the facts including current and likely future demand, cost of any adaptations that would be needed in your business, cost of training, logistics and the full impact analysis.

IT’S IMPORTANT IN THIS INDUSTRY TO BE ON TOP OF NEW DEVELOPMENTS Budget for an increase in cost This may be the cost of training in new qualifications or equipment, for example. It is essential that this is planned and scoped out early on. If the investment is significant, consider how this will be financed, i.e. using your own working capital or finding external investment. A great reference book is ‘Add Then Multiply’

by David B Horne.

Have a marketing plan It is crucial that you have a strategy to promote your new product or service.

This is about the clarity of message, timing and positioning your product and benefits carefully. Consider the market size potential and how you will target new audiences.

Explore partnerships This can be one of the quickest, most efficient routes to market. This isn’t about going into business with someone, but promoting each other for mutual benefit. This enables you to access each other’s customer base via a trusted relationship. As long as you choose your partners correctly – e.g. right culture fit and relationship with the right customers – this can be a very cost effective way to market your offering.

Red tape Be aware that if a new initiative is being backed by government funding, such as ecoboilers, it can involve a lot of red tape. Read the small print so you are clear about the process, eligibility and any paperwork required. The benefits may not be as substantial as they first appear.

I hope you find these tips thought provoking and helpful.

To measure the health of your business, take our free BUILD system scorecard, available on our website: www.evolveandgrowcoaching.com

A B O U T A L I S O N WA R N E R Alison Warner is the founder of Evolve and Grow, a business coaching firm that specialises in the trades and construction industry. She is also the author of bestselling book ‘How to go from Tradesperson to Managing Director in the Construction and Trade Industries’. https://amzn.to/2QIb467 www.evolveandgrowcoaching.com

Pro Landscaper / March 2022 115

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s we move forward into 2022, building and maintaining a healthy website for your business is an absolute must.

In the last couple of years, there has been a surge in consumers moving to online channels due to the pandemic, so it’s crucial to stay up to date and relevant when it comes to the digitalisation of your business.

GETTING TO GRIPS

WITH GOOGLE WHAT ARE GOOGLE’S CORE WEB VITALS AND WHY SHOULD YOU CARE ABOUT THEM? ADTRAK’S BEN SHAW HAS THE ANSWER

What are Core Web Vitals?

Google issued an update in June 2021 that added more criteria on which websites are assessed and ranked, otherwise referred to as the ‘page experience update’. The aim of this is to reward pages that offer better user experience (UX) based on various ‘page experience signals’, of which Core Web Vitals is one. This is made up of three main areas: Largest Contentful Paint Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) measures the point in the loading process where the page’s main content has appeared; the quicker this happens, the more userfriendly it is. For context, the main content should show within 2.5 seconds of the page loading to be looked upon favourably

by Google.

First Input Delay First Input Delay (FID) refers to the time it takes for a visitor to the website to carry out an action – such as clicking on a link – and the page beginning to process that action. This should be no longer than 100 milliseconds for a good page experience.

Cumulative Layout Shift You’ve opened a website and attempted to click on a link, only for the page to move, causing you to click on something else by accident. Sound familiar? Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) is a term used for how much the site moves when it is loading.

Why should you care about Core Web Vitals?

In a nutshell, if you neglect your vitals, then you’ll end up neglecting your users.

Businesses should care about Core Web Vitals because it provides a better user experience which helps to foster trust in a brand and is

BUSINESSES SHOULD CARE ABOUT CORE WEB VITALS BECAUSE IT PROVIDES A BETTER USER EXPERIENCE FOR VISITORS TO THEIR WEBSITE, WHICH HELPS TO FOSTER TRUST IN THEIR BRAND AND IS REWARDED

BY GOOGLE rewarded by Google. When combined with other website improvements, such as safe browsing and mobile-friendly design, it can also contribute towards a gradual climb in organic rankings.

How can Adtrak help?

When it comes to website design, development and marketing, at Adtrak we place user experience at the heart of every project. We recognise that website speed and page content

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are key parts of Google’s page experience signals, which is why we offer many ongoing technical upgrades to improve your website.

This includes the creation of extended landing pages that feature longer, more detailed copy content to help increase organic traffic to your website and convert visitors into customers.

With multi-discipline teams all operating in-house, we have a wealth of digital marketing experience at our fingertips.

Talk to Adtrak if you want a bespoke report running for a gauge of your website’s Core Web Vitals and to ensure it isn’t hindered by Google’s latest updates. We are a leading Nottinghambased digital marketing agency serving the whole of the country. We offer a full range of digital services and are proud to work with many landscaping and garden supplies companies, creating bespoke marketing strategies which build brands and grow businesses.

A B O U T B E N S H AW Adtrak’s account director Ben Shaw is a marketing and advertising specialist who delivers strategic digital services to businesses across the UK. With more than 24 years of experience, Ben has extensive knowledge within the media and marketing industry.

He has been instrumental to Adtrak’s partnerships with BALI, FutureScape and Pro Landscaper, and has helped countless landscaping companies grow their businesses online.

www.adtrak.co.uk

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CREATING GREENER FLEET OPERATIONS SEAN MAHER, SALES DIRECTOR AT QUARTIX, EXPLAINS HOW VEHICLE TRACKING CAN HELP YOUR FLEET TO BE MORE SUSTAINABLE, WITH A TESTIMONY FROM CLIENT WJ ROAD MARKING

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good vehicle tracking system will help any business to improve its carbon footprint.

One way it does this is through providing reports and tools that measure driver performance, a key factor in reducing overall emissions.

Achieving a better performance on the road while considering the safety and wellbeing of drivers was critical for WJ Road Marking’s transport manager, Scott Logan. The largest independent road markings organisation in the UK with approximately 420 vehicles working throughout the night across the country used the Quartix vehicle tracking data to transform the carbon efficiency of its fleet operations.

WJ set ambitious sustainability goals to be reached through an extensive driver training plan with telematics at its core.

Valuable reports on driver behaviour are intrinsic to WJ’s sustainability agenda and allow the business to operate a safer, greener and

“Quartix driver behaviour reports have saved us £160,000.

A 12% improvement in MPG and reduced CO2 emissions, plus fewer vehicle breakdowns and far less workshop hours…

Results like these are precisely why we use telematics.“ Scott Logan, Transport Manager at WJ

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more cost-effective fleet.

“We use Quartix to measure driver performance, MPG and carbon emissions alongside accident statistics, maintenance costs and insurance claims.

These KPIs give us a complete picture of the overall progress and show just how much of a difference the project is making,” explains Scott.

Quartix provides a simple score for each vehicle or driver in a fleet to allow fleet managers to instantly recognise which drivers need to improve their skills. The score is calculated by looking at two important areas of driver performance: acceleration and braking.

To get the driver score, the Quartix system: • Adds up all the weighted acceleration and braking events; • Calculates the total driving time; • Works out the acceleration and braking indexes; • Averages these and subtracts from 100.

The driver score is calculated each day based on the amount of driving for that day or shift and colours are used to rank these scores: • Green: Scores greater than 80 represent the best 30% of driving performance.

• Amber: Scores between 50 and 80 represent the middle 50%.

• Red: Scores of 50 and below represent the bottom 20% of driver performance.

“In the first months of using Quartix, we had no drivers with green (good) scores. We started publicising the results and were inundated with questions from them about how to improve,” says Scott. A year on and almost every driver has a green score. “Now, they are all competing

for the top position – it’s always very tight each month, with most drivers scoring between 95-99.”

WJ has hybrid model company cars, but since its trucks are mainly specialised and custom built, the electric counterparts would cost in the region of 500% more to source. “Our equipment also runs hydraulically and needs the engine running – so we can’t install an anti-idling policy”, explains Scott. The key area of focus for WJ to bring about greener operations had to be encouraging fuel-efficient driving styles and Quartix offered a flexible solution that supported Scott and his teams’ needs, as well as its existing systems, such as FuelTek – allowing WJ to automatically marry odometer readings with the amount of fuel that’s put into a vehicle.

Quartix is recognised as one of London’s top green businesses and has qualified for the London Stock Exchange’s Green Economy Mark; 117 companies now hold the Green Economy Mark, which champions London-listed companies that are driving growth in the global green economy. To qualify, companies must generate at least 50% of their total annual revenue from products and services that significantly contribute towards the transition to a low carbon economy.

ABOUT SEAN MAHER Sean has been with Quartix for over a decade and has 20 years of experience in the vehicle tracking industry. He understands customer needs and is able to help companies realise the savings that can be achieved through utilising a vehicle tracking system.

www.quartix.com/en-gb

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

17/02/2022 10:47

“The SXG326+ did more than we hoped for, it cuts and collects our parks at a low height of cut, then tackles the road verges and clears the wildflower meadows leaving the same finish. They really do cut and collect even in the wet with no blockages. It is very reliable and we have had no issues with it, I would recommend ISEKI to anyone and have done to local councils already.“ Paul Isom, Parks & Premises Manager, Chesham Town Council Contact your local dealer to book a demo on your site today! www.iseki.co.uk

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ots of new products are launched into the landscaping sector, especially as we are all becoming more reliant on technology for our day-to-day work.

After seeing an excellent demonstration of the product at FutureScape, we wanted to understand more about the Moasure measuring system, so we caught up with inventor and CEO Alan Rock. Alan’s background is in electronic engineering, and he had previously run a business producing products with dashboard technology used in Formula 1 cars through to hill climbing technology.

The original idea for Moasure came in 2002, but at the time the size and price of the technologies needed to manufacture the product were way too expensive. As the advancement in technologies driven by mobile phone development brought the price down

THE COMPANY HAS HAD EXCELLENT FEEDBACK FROM LANDSCAPERS, WHO HAVE SAID THEY HAVE GOT THEIR MONEY BACK WITHIN THE FIRST JOB AND IT PORTRAYS A PROFESSIONAL IMAGE FOR THE COMPANY

IT ACTUALLY IS

ROCKET SCIENCE!

THE TECHNOLOGY BEHIND MEASURING DEVICE MOASURE COULD SAVE YOU TIME AND MONEY The extremely handy piece of kit, which is the We asked Alan what he sees as the real size of a tape measure, gives you the ability to: value for a landscaper, and he believes the • Measure accurately of main benefits are speed and accuracy, plus plus/minus 0.5% the fact that the app puts the measurement • Measure irregular shapes into a drawing and can calculate quantity, as easily as a rectangle measurements, and elevations.

• Measure and draw simultaneously The company has had excellent • One-year warranty • Measure elevations feedback from landscapers, who • Five hours of • Measure circles, arcs have said they have got their continuous measuring and curves money back within the first job • Two hours charge time • Calculate area and it portrays a professional • IP67 sealed micro-USB connection • Export measurements and image for the company. Time is (waterproof) drawings (PDFs/DXF) a massive benefit not just on the The cost of the unit is just jobs won but it should reduce time under £250 and for an extra £55 only spent on unsuccessful quotes. you can have the addition of a handy stick As with all technology, Moasure is which avoids the constant necessity of bending constantly looking to improve the products with down. It’s also very simple to set up; after feedback from users, and these improvements purchasing the product you download the app will be updated via the free app. on iPhone or Android, and you are ready. www.moasure.co.uk

CAPTURE ELEVATION CHANGES

considerably and reduced the necessary physical size, Alan was able to revisit the concept in 2014. The development of the technology also significantly improved the accuracy of the measurements.

Moasure uses the same technologies as are used in rocket guidance systems to keep track of movement, adopting the same principles with accelerometers, gyros and magnetometers to plot its 3D space.

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MEASURING A CURVED LAWN

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The Landscapers Outdoor Lighting Choice The advantages of our 12 volt system: • Easy to connect (without an electrician) • Energy efficient and sustainable • Cable does not have to be buried • Very safe for children and animals

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GREEN-TECH

Find Green-tech on stand 64. Its stand will feature the John Chambers Wildflower Seed range, a selection of soils and substrates from the Green-tree brand and information about when and where to use them. It will be showcasing the latest in ground reinforcement technology to ensure pitches, greens, fairways, festivals and temporary carparks are adequately protected against heavy footfall and vehicle use. Visitors can see the recently launched Bodpave 40 from Terram Direct, a ground reinforcement paving grid made from 100% recycled and recyclable material. Green-tech will also be running a ‘guess the weight’ competition on its stand to win £250 worth of Makita vouchers.

1pm – 1:20pm SYSTEMology The purpose of SYSTEMology is to free business owners from the daily stresses of running their business whilst working less hours and making more money. Nick will take you through the ‘Four Stages of Business Systemisation’ and you can decide what stage you’re currently at, where you want to get to and what you need to do to get you there.

1:20pm – 1:40pm Vectorworks Vectorworks Landmark offers industry-leading tools that streamline landscape and garden design workflows.

Whether you’re transitioning from hand drawing or a general CAD application to a landscapespecific design solution, Landmark lets you maintain your signature style while helping your clients visualise your plans. Join Katarina Ollikainen at 1.20pm to discover Vectorworks Landmark.

1:40pm – 2pm Tilers Tools Tilers Tools is demonstrating how to cut through 20mm porcelain with ease. Its wet saws are used extensively in the landscaping industry and the demonstration will show how simple it is to cut through various materials if you have the correct equipment and you maintain your blades.

WWW.GREEN-TECH.CO.UK

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EDUCATE

STAND

41

GROWING REVOLUTION Interested in living walls? The Growing Revolution team will be showcasing their cleverly simple vertical garden system at FutureScape Spring. PlantBox is a stackable and modular living wall made with 100% recycled materials. It’s quick and easy to install and designed to appeal to everyone from novice gardeners to expert landscapers. Each trough includes in integrated reservoir and a cascading overflow system makes it easy to water. The team will be available to answer any questions on the system and its trade partner benefits.

WWW.GROWINGREVOLUTION.COM

©Simon Orchard Garden Designs

NCC STREETSCAPE

STAND

HAYDEN SCOTT LTD

52

Hayden Scott Ltd is an outdoor living space company, specialising in outdoor kitchens. It will be on stand 52 and has built a small bespoke outdoor kitchen as a display, featuring a Big Green Egg BBQ, Whistler Grills’ built-in Burford four-burner grill, Beefeater fridge, and a pizza oven by Alfa Forni. There will be a Quan Garden Art fire pit BBQ on display. The kitchen will feature in different stages of construction, showing the trade how Hayden Scott builds its kitchens. It will be offering help and advice to the trade on how it can assist in your future projects.

WWW.HAYDENSCOTT.CO.UK

STAND

5

GftK Paving Joint Mortars from NCC are the unique, global ‘State-of-the-Art’ for all types of paving jointing in all types of paved areas.

For domestic patios and terraces, through driveways and parking areas, to retail and leisure developments, as well as for the more heavy-duty paving requirements of town centre roadworks, and historic market squares. This includes the ideal solutions for repointing due to failure of other jointing products – GftK takes pride in offering top quality repointing solutions. Owners, specifiers, and their paving contractors, can all save both time and money, using the GftK range of paving joint mortars – talk to NCC.

POLIS CERAMICHE

On the Polis stand you will see a wide cross section of its two-centimetrethick porcelain pavers both in terms of colours and effects, and in full size pieces. Slabs with surface effects such as stone, marble, slate and concrete will be on show in 45x90cm, 90x90cm and 60x120cm formats. A factory representative and the UK & Ireland agent will both be on hand to answer your questions and discuss any aspects of the Polis range.

STAND

92

WWW.POLIS.IT

WWW.NCCSTREETSCAPE.CO.UK

ADEZZ

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Sponsored by

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www.prolandscapermagazine.com

17/02/2022 15:24

THE ETESIA RANGE OF PEDESTRIAN MOWERS

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Available from 46cm – 53cm cutting widths and push, single or variable speed options, there is an Etesia pedestrian mower for any use.

All this adds up to machines that are purpose built professional mowers for professional use.

Full product details at www.etesia.co.uk or put us to the test and contact us for a free onsite demonstration on 01295 680 120

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Stand 20 STOP BY HABITECH ON STAND 20 AT FUTURESCAPE SPRING TO EXPLORE THE FUTURE OF OUTDOOR ENTERTAINMENT

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herever you look, new market dynamics are targeting the home as the pivot for a profound shift in the work/life balance. A greater love for outdoor living is recasting garden spaces as multifaceted playgrounds of social wellbeing.

This means that the opportunities for outdoor AV entertainment have never looked quite so rosy.

On Stand 20 at FutureScape Spring, Habitech is ready to help you deliver the audio-visual design that completes the new living landscape.

As a leading value-added distributor of AV products and systems for residential and commercial custom design, we’re proud to offer the industry’s most dedicated support, on-line, on-call – even on-site – to ensure that you achieve flawless results in any environment, from cottage gardens to country estates.

Meet with us at FutureScape to explore Samsung’s ‘The Terrace’ TVs, which offer the latest Samsung 4K QLED smart technology for SONANCE OMNI SPEAKER

exceptional clarity and brightness, turning everyday viewing into an epic entertainment experience – even on the sunniest of days. Available in 55”, 65” and 75” sizes, ‘The Terrace’ partners beautifully with Sonance sound systems, or the completely bespoke

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

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James Loudspeaker line, giving you unrivalled all-weather AV performance, custom designed for every project – bar none.

Cover the ground with sound The pioneering Sonance design format of super durable, ultra-discreet satellites and in-ground subwoofers delivers peerless install practicality, versatility, and astonishing full-range sound quality, which can be directed inward towards

WHATEVER THE CHALLENGE, YOU’LL LOVE THE ANSWER FROM THE WORLD’S ORIGINAL AND MOST SUCCESSFUL ALLWEATHER SPEAKER BRAND the listening area, rather than over neighbouring gardens. What’s more, Sonance’s superior audio resolution means that detail and dynamics are reproduced at lower volume levels for a noticeable quality premium.

Latest product additions include a sat-sub range for smaller areas – dubbed the Patio Series – and the Omni-6T, an all-weather omni-directional in-ground speaker perfect for commercial applications around hotels and large resort gardens. Add these innovations to the flagship Landscape Series (SLS) sat-sub systems for the largest estates, the Garden Series (SGS) sat-sub line-up for all but the biggest projects, and the timeless ‘Rocks’ range

of rock-like speakers, and it’s self-evident that whatever the challenge, you’ll love the answer from the world’s original and most successful all-weather speaker brand – consistently voted number one for outdoor speakers by custom install professionals.

SONANCE PATIO SERIES

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Ultimate outdoor AV at FutureScape Spring Amid surging demand for luxury outdoor living, we’ll help you to explore all that custom AV design has to offer your business. Look forward to seeing you! www.habitech.co.uk

Pro Landscaper / March 2022 127

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ADVERTORIAL

FANTASTIC ECO-PLASTIC

brand from TigerTurf which includes two key products – permeblox and trekboards.

These are essentially “plastics blocks”, says John, made from recycled plastic which would otherwise go to waste but with certain characteristics which make them extremely useful in various applications, and not just artificial grass applications either. For instance, whilst trekboards can be used as a substitute for timber TIGERTURF OFFICE

TIGERTURF BRAND tiger up! – ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY MADE SIMPLE ON ANY LANDSCAPING PROJECT

T

en years ago, the problem with plastic was not such a hot topic. Sir David Attenborough soon changed that with a hard-hitting episode of Blue Planet II, but arguably, prior to this, not much thought was given to where an empty plastic bottle of water might turn up. That’s not true for the team at TigerTurf, though. Where plastic ends up at the end of its life has been on the artificial grass manufacturer’s radar for some time, and around a decade ago it started

to ramp up research into how it could save billions of tonnes of plastic from ending up in landfill, being incinerated or – perhaps worst of all – finding its way into our oceans.

One of the biggest issues TigerTurf uncovered was around mixed plastics. “When you put your recycling out at home, it goes to a sorting centre, which takes out everything of high value or which is easy to identify but leaves

the rest. Only around 50% of what goes to the sorting centre gets recycled and the remainder is a mix of different types of plastics,” says John Grindrod, research and development manager at TigerTurf.

IT’S NOT JUST THE ENVIRONMENTAL CREDENTIALS WHICH MAKE THESE PLASTIC BLOCKS STAND OUT... THEY’RE UNIQUE – THERE IS NOTHING ELSE ON THE MARKET LIKE THEM So, having identified the problem, TigerTurf went about searching for a solution. It started to look into innovations which could utilise waste plastic, including old artificial grass, and how to give it another life in the construction or landscaping sectors – in which TigerTurf already worked – or even branch out into new sectors. The result is tiger up!, a sustainable

kickboards around artificial grass pitches, they can also be used for edging and planters – as featured at TigerTurf’s own office in Kidderminster – and as decking subframes.

Unlike timber alternatives, trekboards are weather and rot resistant, making them more durable and without the need to cut down trees.

A lifecycle assessment on tiger up! products revealed that, thanks to utilising waste materials and due to the low energy of the manufacturing process, its carbon emissions are a negative amount. “For every 180 pieces of permeblox, we recycle one tonne of recycled material and save around 600 kilos of carbon emissions,” says John.

And it’s the same for every 45 trekboards, which have a lifespan of more than 50 years and, like permeblox, are able to be recycled at the end of their lifespan into new tiger up! products.

It’s not just the environmental credentials which make these plastic blocks stand out.

For a start, they’re unique – there is nothing else on the market like them. But they’re also

trekboards

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ADVERTORIAL

extremely versatile. Trekboards can be used as a timber or concrete replacement, whilst permeblox’s porous nature makes it suitable for drainage and planters on green roofs, decking and living walls.

Permeblox boards, which are one metre long and 220mm wide, can also be used to provide stabilisation on driveways and pathways and for managing surface and sub-surface water.

WE’RE ENCOURAGING DESIGNERS, SPECIFIERS AND END USERS TO COME AND TALK TO US ABOUT THE PROJECTS THEY’RE WORKING ON AND HOW TIGER UP! CAN HELP, WHETHER THAT’S WITH EXISTING BLOCKS OR DEVELOPING A NEW VERSION A wide range of independent testing and accreditation has also taken place to make sure there is no negative environmental impact from having permeblox or trekboards in contact with the natural environment or ground water.

The more natural, raw look of permeblox and trekboards allows it to be sold at a competitive price too. “We’ve developed a product which is not polished or finished, because this would require more energy to manufacture, and it would increase the price.”

At the moment, we’re focusing on landscaping applications, so we’re encouraging designers, specifiers and end users to come and talk to us about the projects they’re working on and how tiger up! can help, whether that’s with existing blocks or developing a new version.”

It’s just the start of possibilities for tiger up!

It originally started as an idea for saving plastic from going to waste and has now developed into a new, sustainable brand with products which not only utilise waste materials but also serve a purpose for various hard and soft landscaping applications.

permeblox

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www.prolandscapermagazine.com

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DRAINAGE

GREEN WALLS

Pro Landscaper / March 2022 129

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EDUCATE

TAC K L I N G WA ST E WE ASKED SOME OF THE INDUSTRY’S MOST SUCCESSFUL COMPANIES TO TELL US ABOUT WHAT THEIR TOP TIPS ARE FOR TACKLING WASTE ON SITE

EDUCATE YOUR WORKFOR CE

JAY KELLY

HSE ADVISOR, MAYLIM

TIM HOWELL

MANAGING DIRECTOR, MITIE LANDSCAPES

“Maylim’s top tip for tackling waste on site is educating our workforce on sustainability. We believe that leading by example, providing good incentives, and promoting a culture that has a positive impact on our ecological footprint is key. Integrating sustainability within all projects is our responsibility and we all have a custodianship to leave the natural environment in a better state than we found it.”

“There is no better way to improve the environment than by using the ‘waste’ produced from our operations to improve plant health or biodiversity. Pallet-style bug hotels are a great way to reuse all sorts of waste on site. Not only can you use green waste, such as medium-sized branches cut E GET CREATIV to size, dry leaf litter, twigs, or small amount of grass E WITH WAST clippings, but also bricks, small rocks, and canes – even some plastic pipe can be a useful home for a bug.”

DAVE TWIST

MANAGING DIRECTOR, ACRE LANDSCAPES

MANAGING DIRECTOR, ELITE LANDSCAPES “At Elite Landscapes we understand how important it is to be a sustainable contractor, and, a big way we ensure we are one is through minimising waste on site. Our top tip is to reduce the amount of single-use materials REDUCE which will mean material can be kept on site in SINGLE-USE circulation for longer through reuse or recycling. Our MATERIALS plant supplier takes back their pallets to be recycled or reused, ensuring they don’t end up in the skip.”

JAMES SCOTT

MANAGING DIRECTOR, THE GARDEN COMPANY

CREATE FUNCTIO NAL DESIGN

“When I am designing, I carefully consider the site’s starting point and aim to integrate its natural landforms with the proposed design solution.

This allows me to create a visually pleasing, functional and costeffective site. During the landscaping phase, I firmly believe the secret to tackling waste on site is to plan projects carefully in advance. This, making it easier to reuse, repurpose and recycle materials wherever possible. For example, it is important to consider suitable storage of topsoil and subsoil that can be re-used.”

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FIND LOC AL RECYCLIN G PROJECT S

NIGEL BOWCOCK

“One of the biggest waste production products is used pallets, and unfortunately, it’s easy to see skip after skip being inefficiently filled with them.

This is adding great cost to the client, contractor and the environment. We researched and found a local recycling project that has turned all our used pallets into finished products to benefit the local people and the environment.”

PL AN AND STORE AS YOU GO

MARC LANE

MANAGING DIRECTOR, LANDSCAPIA

“In an effort to reduce waste, we have a pallet disposal programme which avoids pallets going to landfill. Instead of using skips, we store left over materials to be reused or donated. And, to prevent materials being on site for longer than necessary, we align deliveries with our project construction stages and ensure materials are stored correctly to eliminate the risk of waste that can be caused by weather damage.”

KEEP TIGHT ON YOUR O R D E RS

NIK EDSER

DIRECTOR, LANGDALE LANDSCAPES LTD “At Langdale Landscapes, we try minimise waste by keeping tight on our ordering to make we don’t have a lot of unused material leftover. We design gardens with good layouts to avoid having a great deal of offcuts, and, waste that is unavoidably generated is dealt with by licensed waste removal companies and taken to a waste transfer station where waste is recycled and excavations are screened and mixed with soil improver which is then sold back for topsoiling.”

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

17/02/2022 10:48

The UK’s best selling and most frequently specified turf

2022 Spring Open Days

14th - 18th March 2022 To attend our 2022 Spring Open Days and take advantage of our exciting promotions, offers and to view the 2022 range please visit: www.riversidenurseries.net or call 01628 484 855 or scan the QR code

Find out why Medallion® is the first choice for professional landscapers and domestic gardeners who demand Britain’s finest turf

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17/02/2022 09:41

EDUCATE

COMPOSITE DECKING WANT TO KNOW THAT THE COMPOSITE DECKING YOU’RE USING IS FROM A SUSTAINABLE SUPPLIER? FIND OUT WHAT A SELECTION ARE DOING TO BE MORE ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY...

Ecodek

MILLBOARD

The entire Ecodek Wood Polymer Composite (WPC) decking range is manufactured from 95% recycled and sustainably sourced raw materials, and the finished product can itself be recycled repeatedly.

Millboard is Fair Tax accredited, recognising its responsibility to contribute to society by paying its taxes on time and in full, which it always does.

In addition to its standard range of composite decking, Ecodek also offers a ‘cut to order’ service, which helps to eliminate waste and reduce environmental impact even further.

Ecodek is currently working towards a ‘Zero to Landfill’ policy and has achieved ‘carbon negative’ status for the production of its composite decking.

Ecodek is FSC (Forestry Stewardship Council) certified demonstrating that it complies with the highest social and environmental standards on the market.

Ecodek also holds the PEFC (Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification) chain of custody certification, which further demonstrates its commitment to using only the most sustainably sourced raw materials in its products. www.ecodek.co.uk

Millboard is certified to ISO 14001 and aims to go above and beyond in fulfilling the requirements set out by the standard.

Over a third of the raw materials used for making the structural core of Millboard is recycled, diverted from waste streams and reprocessed to create premium ingredients for our boards. It aims to recycle all waste from its business activities that can be recycled.

A properly constructed Millboard deck over open ground provides a permeable surface that can return surface water to the ground more-or-less where it lands, a SuDS strategy known as Source Control.

Having signed up to the Ten Principles of the UN Global Compact, we uphold the highest standards in relation to Human Rights, Labour, and Anti-Corruption. www.millboard.co.uk

Composite Prime

Talasey Group

Composite Prime decking and cladding products are created using recycled plastic and FSC® 100% certified hardwood timber from well-managed, sustainable sources utilising ‘end of life’ trees which can be traced back to the forest they were derived from.

Piranha Composite Decking is 100% FSC®, ensuring the entire supply chain is audited to ensure the timber based products are made with materials from ethical and responsibly sourced.

In the last seven years of operation, Composite Prime has saved the equivalent of 176 million plastic milk bottles from landfill and over 1.8 billion bottle top caps.

Each square metre of composite decking contains the equivalent of more than 3,000 plastic bottle caps or 280 plastic bottles.

132 Pro Landscaper / March 2022

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Composite Prime products are much more durable than traditional timber and need replacing far less frequently, providing a much more sustainable and environmentally friendly solution for consumers.

As global challenges around plastic waste and deforestation increases, composite products provide a sustainable alternative to timber and plastic materials. www.composite-prime.com

Piranha Composite Decking is made from a mixture of 60% hardwood powder, 30% recycled HDPE plastic materials and 10% additives.

For every 323 boards it manufactures, it saves 1,000kg of plastic from polluting our oceans of landfill, by incorporating 6.2kg of recycled HDPE plastic into 1m2 of Piranha decking.

Talasey Group, supplier of Piranha Composite Decking, is certified in line with ISO 14001 Environmental Management to help support its drive towards making its business more sustainable and reducing our impact on the environment.

Talasey Group invests wholeheartedly in its supply chain, and is a proactive member of the Ethical Trade Initiative. www.talasey.co.uk

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

17/02/2022 15:20

HERE TO HELP YOU

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15/02/2022 15:57 17/02/2022 09:42

EDUCATE

M AT E R I A L S F O C U S

D

RECLAIMED

uring the colonial times, tropical hardwoods such as Greenheart, Ekki and Jarrah were imported from around the world, including South East Asia, South West Australia, West Africa, and British Guyana (what is today Northern Brazil). Given the hot climate in these regions, these trees take hundreds of years to grow, resulting in extremely dense and exceptionally durable timber. Because of the unique properties of this timber, this was the preferred option for marine construction and sea defences at that time.

In more recent times, this timber has been replaced in marine construction and sea defences, and while it is illegal to dispose, burn or compost tropical timbers, sadly tropical can

TIMBER

ASHWELLS TIMBER REPURPOSES RECLAIMED TIMBER, WHICH HAS A NUMBER OF USES IN LANDSCAPING PROJECTS Reclaiming timber involves rescuing it from an undesirable state to avoid it going to waste, and Ashwells strive to reclaim as much timber as possible. In order to achieve this, Ashwells travels to all four corners of the UK to

KEY FACTS ABOUT RECLAIMED TIMBER • It is illegal to throw away, burn or compost tropical timber for which there is a market • Originally imported from South East Asia, South West Australia, West Africa, and British Guyana (what is today Northern Brazil) • Reusing timber helps reduce our carbon footprint by at least 25 kgs of CO2 per year per reclaimed tree

often be indiscriminately mixed with nontropical timber, which in turn is chipped or burned. To combat this prohibited waste, Ashwells is on a mission to give tropical timber the second life it deserves with a circular economy process. This will help prevent further deforestation, save energy, save mineral resources, and generate salvage profit.

IT GIVES US PERSONAL SATISFACTION TO KNOW OUR TIMBER HAS A NEW LEASE OF LIFE AND THAT WE’RE DOING OUR PART TO HELP PRESERVE THE WORLD’S TROPICAL FORESTS personally reclaim timber. Depending on the state of the timber, different actions can be taken: some sections may need to be de-metaled, while others can be immediately resawn. However, every single

RECLAIMED TIMBER STREET FURNITURE

piece of timber will need to be FSC certified before it can go back to work.

Tropical timber has a distinct story, retaining its beautiful character and colour over time.

Ashwells works closely with a range of landscapers who use reclaimed timber in their work, helping them throughout the project lifecycle- from initial sourcing through to delivery for final installation.

Ashwells says it thrives on the satisfaction of knowing its timber has a new lease of life and

THE PROCESS

TIMBER IN THE YARD

134 Pro Landscaper / March 2022

Materials Focus.indd 134

CROSSING T IMBERS

THE RESAWING PROCESS

, FRESH CUT TIMBER RY VE LI DE READY FOR

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

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CAS E ST U DY

MAIN BENEFITS OF RECLAIMED TIMBER

The Finnish Soul Garden, RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2021

• Sustainable design at its best, helping to save our tropical forests • More naturally colourful timber to help add character to your design • The strongest and most durable timber on the planet • Structurally sound and versatile for garden structures, play equipment or furniture • Naturally aged and weathered wood has a distinctive story to tell

that it is doing its part to help preserve the world’s tropical forests. Ashwells’ track record with reclaimed timber includes use in a number of Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) gardens, including RHS Back to Nature Garden, The Facebook Garden, and the Arcadia Balcony Garden.

Overall, reclaiming and reusing timber is an excellent option for achieving viable sustainability while maintaining a natural look for any project involving tropical timber.

W

TIMBER IN SITU, BOURNE END

FINISHED TIMBER

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orking on RHS Chelsea Flower Show gardens is always incredibly special for Ashwells – the reclaimed timber can be enjoyed by thousands of visitors daily.

“One of our favourite showcases was The Finnish Soul Garden created by Taina Suonio and Conquest Creative Spaces for RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2021. We supplied reclaimed timber which was previously used as jetty boards from a Thames River Police jetty.

The jetty was damaged by a pleasure boat hitting it; however, it made for the perfect material to be reused as strong, hefty decking.

“RHS Chelsea judges saw that the beautiful garden had many key features including the contemporary Finnish sauna with a vegetated roof, water feature, and of course reclaimed decking made from our tropical timber. The communal sanctuary reflected the traditional seaside life in harmony with the surrounding nature.

“Once reclaimed from the original site we transport the timber to our yard.

TAINA SUONIO SELECTING TIMBER FOR THE GARDEN

Once on site, our team of craftsmen undertake the lengthy process of getting the timber ready for reuse. It must have all metal removed (known in our industry as ‘de-metaling’). This is done to ensure there are no breakages later. Once de-metaled, the timber is then either chamfered and/or resawn to make repurposing it much more efficient.

“This process was followed for the sanctuary garden. After consulting with Taina, we hand-picked the timber sections we felt met the brief and were most appropriate for the garden.

“This wonderful showpiece won a Silver Gilt on awards day, and it was lovely to see our timber play a part in it.

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JOBS

For full details on all jobs, please go to www.horticulturecareers.co.uk Call 01903 777 570 or email daniel.riley@eljays44.com with your vacancy.

SOFT LANDSCAPING SITE MANAGER

LANDSCAPE GARDENER

NT Killingley Ltd, an award-winning landscape company and family-run business that currently has more than 100 employees, is recruiting for experienced soft landscaping site manager due to continued growth. Working within a well organised, managed, and supportive environment, you will be an important part of the operational management team. Reporting to a contract manager and working in conjunction with estimators and quantity surveyors, you will be responsible for on-time delivery of a variety of landscaping projects, working to the highest standards, and maintaining an excellent health and safety record.

Distinct Landscapes is actively looking to recruit a fully skilled landscape gardener to work in a small team within a small but very busy company. It constructs gardens for mainly private homeowners in and around the Walton on Thames area with attention to detail and a very high standard of work. It is also looking for labourers. Hours are 8am-4pm, Monday to Friday, with the option of some Saturdays. The hard landscaper gardener applicants should have a minimum of 10 years’ hard landscaping experience, a full clean driving license and their own transport. They must be able to read and set out designs and plans and be passionate about landscaping.

For more details, please go to www.horticulturecareers.co.uk

For more details, please go to www.horticulturecareers.co.uk

SENIOR GARDENER

LANDSCAPE LABOURER

The new senior gardener will be in charge of managing the site operation of getting trees, hedging and plants delivered to site, then setting out (using plans provided by the in-house design studio) and planting to a high-quality horticultural level. This will include staking, mulching and any other sundries applications required of a similar nature. Soft landscaping clearance, turfing and planting bed preparation work will be required occasionally. All works on site will be executed to a high level of horticultural practice, cleanliness and efficiency. Once gardens have been completed, you will be in charge of creating and delivering a maintenance programme.

The London Lawn Turf company is one of Rolawn’s premier stockists, working in partnership to provide outstanding value quality and service. Established for more than 20 years, it supplies and installs quality Medallion turf, premium topsoil, bark and compost, throughout London and the Home counties for trade and retail customers. It is looking for a hardworking and enthusiastic individual to join its rapidly growing landscaping company. As is the nature of the job you will be travelling to various locations to complete landscaping projects each day, collecting materials and or staff from one of its depots.

For more details, please go to www.horticulturecareers.co.uk

For more details, please go to www.horticulturecareers.co.uk

ARBORICULTURAL AREA MANAGER

HARD LANDSCAPER – EAST LONDON

RSK Hi-Line is looking to recruit an experienced arboricultural/horts area manager who would play a pivotal role in the expansion of its London operations. Previous experience in the arboricultural industry, strong leadership skills, excellent work ethic and a proactive approach are essential. You will be responsible for managing and expanding its client base and workforce in London. The successful applicant will be responsible for pricing, planning and managing projects; line management of your team; ensuring health and safety measures are adhered by all members of the team; and managing large commercial projects as well as public sector ones.

Farm Lane Landscaping is looking for a new landscaper to take charge of its various hard landscaping jobs and work as part of its ongoing team. As an RHS award-winning garden design and landscaping company, Farm Lane Landscaping strives to build gardens to the highest standards, with interesting and exciting challenges in each. It requires an experienced landscaper who has good knowledge of construction details and techniques whilst managing a team. Being able to schedule your work so projects and site orders can run on time will be integral for the successful candidate. A driving licence would be a necessity.

For more details, please go to www.horticulturecareers.co.uk

For more details, please go to www.horticulturecareers.co.uk

ASSISTANT GARDENER

LANDSCAPING FOREMAN

You will be assisting your supervisor with offloading trees, hedging and plants delivered to site, then setting out (using plans provided by the in-house design studio) and planting to a high-quality horticultural level. This will include staking, mulching and any other sundries applications required of a similar nature.

Soft landscaping clearance, turfing and planting bed preparation work will be required occasionally. All works on site will be executed to a high level of horticultural practice, cleanliness and efficiency. From time to time, you may be required to assist with the assembly and installation of simple irrigation systems.

Due to continued growth, an exciting opportunity has arisen for a landscaping foreman to join its well-established young team. Working mostly in and around St Albans and Harpenden, it has been landscaping gardens for 19 years this year.

Its company works with designers to deliver exceptional quality gardens for its customers and has recently won a BALI Award for a project undertaken in 2021.

The purpose of the landscaping foreman role is to manage all on site project work in an organised and productive manner ensuring the end results are to the highest of standards.

For more details, please go to www.horticulturecareers.co.uk

For more details, please go to www.horticulturecareers.co.uk

NT KILLINGLEY LTD Location: Derbyshire

HENDRIX GARDENS Location: Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Suffolk

HI-LINE Location: London

HENDRIX GARDENS Location: Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Suffolk

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DISTINCT LANDSCAPES Location: Surrey

THE LONDON LAWN TURF COMPANY Location: Kent, London, Surrey

FARM LANE LANDSCAPING Location: London

LANDESIGNS Location: Hertfordshire

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17/02/2022 11:36

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17/02/2022 09:42

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T H E L I T T L E I N T E RV I E W

PRO LANDSCAPER ASKS QUICK-FIRE QUESTIONS TO GAIN A SMALL INSIGHT INTO THE PEOPLE WHO MAKE UP OUR INDUSTRY. TO TAKE PART, EMAIL CONTENT@ EL JAYS44.COM

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M AT T L I N D S AY

TA RY N F E R R I S

General Manager, Growing Revolution

Owner, Taryn Ferris Gardens, Horticulture & Design

www.growingrevolution.com

www.tarynferris.com

If you weren’t in the horticulture industry, what would you be doing?

I’ve actually got a visual arts/design background, so probably either working as a designer or with artists in a gallery setting.

If you weren’t in the horticulture industry, what would you be doing?

Earning more money!

Garden shows/show gardens – inspirational or not?

Absolutely. Garden shows provide a platform for innovation and help steer industry trends. It’s great to see living walls starting to be integrated in more and more designs.

What would you blow your budget on?

Mental Health First Aid training for the team. (If it had to be material – living walls of course!)

One thing that you think would make the industry better?

Competitive pay scales for young people starting out in the industry.

Role model as a child?

My grandparents.

Best invention in recent years?

Has to be PlantBox. Favourite tipple?

Caipirinha.

What three things would you take to a desert island?

My wife Sarah, our 18-year-old cat Lola and the stand-up paddle board!

Your favourite joke?

What do you call a magic dog?

A labracadabrador.

Other than the UK, which country’s landscape inspires you the most?

Oddly, the US – Arizona or New Mexico.

Highly evocative and cinematic.

The one person in the industry you’d love to meet?

Sarah Price, but I’d become an embarrassing fangirl.

Newest gardening trend in your opinion.

Lockdown dogs, rapidly destroying everything you created.

Role model as a child?

I was an Aussie bush kid obsessed with horses. I wanted to be ‘The Man from Snowy River’ (It’s a ballad by Banjo Patterson), Best invention in recent years?

Epilady flea zapper – probably not a new invention. My cat mixes in filthy circles.

Favourite tipple?

Bubbles. All of them. But I drank too much cheap Cava during lockdown and spoiled it.

Who would play you in a movie of your life?

I’d say Tilda Swinton. Aim high.

Karaoke song of choice?

I’d probably go for a classic duet – ‘Islands in the Stream’ by Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers. For my solo, ‘Witchita Lineman’ by Glen Campbell.

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17/02/2022 12:20

EDUCATE

SHAWN LANGTON

K AT R I N A R OY

SIMON ROTHERAM

Founder/CEO, Kujo Yardwear

Senior subeditor, Pro Landscaper

Managing director, Beechwood Trees

www.kujo.com

www.prolandscapermagazine.com

www.beechwoodtrees.co.uk

If you weren’t in the horticulture industry, what would you be doing?

I’ve always dreamed of starting a shoe company. Besides that, it would be cool to own a brewery.

If you weren’t in the horticulture industry, what would you be doing?

Being a Hollywood stunt double would be pretty cool…

If you weren’t in the horticulture industry, what would you be doing?

I love training and the gym, so I’d probably be a gym owner – this may even happen in the future!

Other than the UK, which country’s landscape inspires you the most?

The United States! Here in North Carolina, we really take pride in beautiful landscapes.

The one person in the industry you’d love to meet?

Ed Wright.

One thing that you think would make the industry better?

It’s a great industry....maybe more people/workers in the industry.

Newest gardening trend in your opinion?

Shopping online for plants/seeds.

Role model as a child?

My dad, Jeff Langton.

Best invention in recent years?

Kujo Yard Shoes.

Favourite tipple?

Bell’s Two Hearted (IPA Beer) Who’d play you in a movie of your life?

Will Ferrell.

Your favourite joke?

Why did the orange lose the race?

It ran out of juice.

Karaoke song of choice?

American Pie by Don McLean.

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Other than the UK, which country’s landscape inspires you the most?

Italy! It’s so diverse and beautiful from north to south.

What would you blow your budget on?

An epic campervan and save what’s left for travelling the world in it.

The one person in the industry you’d love to meet?

It would’ve been Gertrude Jekyll if I could go back in time.

Best piece of trivia you know?

A group of penguins in the water is called a raft but on land they’re called a waddle.

Role model as a child?

Mulan.

Couldn’t get through the week without…

Coffee and work snacks (which are currently Brunch Bars, Pringles, cookies and Jelly Babies).

Who would play you in a movie of your life?

Scarlett Johansson (as she often does her own stunts, which is awesome).

Your favourite joke?

My dog is called Rolex. He’s a watch dog.

Karaoke song of choice?

‘Born This Way’ by Lady Gaga (or ‘The Real Slim Shady’ by Eminem).

Garden shows/show gardens – inspirational or not?

I love seeing what the designers and landscapers can create; they can be very inspirational, but not always functional as an everyday garden.

Other than the UK, which country’s landscape inspires you the most?

We recently travelled to Sweden and the views were sensational.

One thing that you think would make the industry better?

Companies investing in more training for their staff; there is currently a skills shortage in arboriculture.

I think companies have reduced training budgets which isn’t helping.

Newest gardening trend in your opinion?

Rewilding. We are noticing more of our customers leaving areas un-kept. Sometimes it’s because they can’t be bothered to maintain it, but it’s nice to see.

Best piece of trivia you know?

A group of frogs is called an ‘army’.

Role model as a child?

My rugby coaches; they taught me a lot about teamwork and commitment.

Karaoke song of choice?

‘Fast Car’ by Tracey Chapman.

Pro Landscaper / March 2022 139

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