Students' urban garden design competition launched
Wednesday, 26 January 2011 4:36 PM
Celebrity gardener Diarmuid Gavin and industry expert David Domoney launched a new competition for young aspiring gardeners yesterday.
The aim of the Young Gardeners competition, which is being organised in conjunction with the Prince's Foundation for the Built Environment, is to highlight the very best examples of sustainable practice in British garden design among student designers.
Every gardening college in the UK was invited to enter - and the following eight have been selected to compete in the final, being held at this year's Ideal Home Show in March.
- Askham Bryan College, North Yorkshire
- Capel Manor College, Middlesex
- Chichester College, Sussex
- Duchy College, Cornwall
- Merrist Wood, Surrey
- Moulton College, Northamptonshire
- Shuttleworth College, Bedfordshire
-
Writtle College, Essex
What does the Young Gardeners of the Year competition involve?
Each team has a 5 x 4.5-metre, reclaimed urban plot on which they must create a garden that demonstrates a clever use of space. The design must showcase harmony and sustainability, incorporating a sense of proportion and clever use of vertical dimension.
One of the aims of the students will be to inspire city-dwelling visitors to the Ideal Home Show to bring a touch of nature to their own outdoor area, no matter how spatially limited it might be.
The students must submit their ideas before the beginning of February, and they'll then have one week to build and plant their garden outside Earls Court, where the Ideal Home Show is held, in preparation for the opening of the show - and the judging of the competition - on March 11th 2011.
When AboutProperty spoke to Diarmuid Gavin last week, he told us: "I always have great fun going to the English gardening colleges' degree shows. It's very hard to make the initial break into garden design, particularly now that people aren't as free-spending as they might have been in the past, which is why we're holding this competition. It's a bit like the Masterchef of the gardening world."
When he announced the competition to students yesterday, Gavin told them, "The Ideal Home Show has such fantastic heritage representing gardening through the years, and today it reaches over 250,000 visitors. These are your customers, and this competition is your opportunity to take control and be creative. It's your chance to really understand how to work with clients and deliver something that meets a clear brief, and display your work in London at a fantastic national event.
"Working with the Prince's Foundation is also fantastic: they are constantly evolving, dealing with natural products in their work; they are hugely interesting and inspiring - this is where the real creativity is."
Gavin concluded, "Enjoy it, make the most of the experience and make a name for yourselves."
Fellow organiser David Domoney said: "This is an exciting opportunity for young designers and landscapers as they embark on their career. It offers a chance to bring their innovative concepts to life. I believe it will showcase the new talent of our future."
To see the competition entries, visit the Ideal Home Show in London's Earls Court from March 11-27, 2011. Diarmuid Gavin is ambassador for the Ideal Gardens section, sponsored by Hydropool. Book now on 0844 415 4144 or at IdealHomeShow.co.uk. Group bookings can be made by calling 0871 230 5581. 50p per ticket goes to the Ideal Homes For Heroes appeal which supports ABF, The Soldiers' Charity.
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