Landscape & Urban Design Issue 42 2020 | Page 7

SGD AWARDS 2020 GRASS STEPS If your garden is on different levels but you don’t like the idea of lots of stonework and want it to flow together seamlessly from one space to the next, take inspiration from Helen Elks-Smith MSGD, winner of the Large Residential Award. Instead of incorporating stone steps, Helen has used grass treads, integrating them into the existing lawn to connect the lower patio to the small sun terrace above. In their NHS 70 Garden for Addenbrooke’s Hospital, winner of the Healing or Learning category, landscape company Bowles & Wyer uses reclaimed oak posts to frame the view along a meandering path at its centre, positioning them at different heights and angles so that new aspects of the space open up to visitors as they make their way through. SEDUM ROOFS Green roofs, living roofs, vegetated roofs, — whatever you want to call them, planted roofs are sprouting up everywhere and can be home to an array of plants from grasses to flowers, as well as being the perfect way to bring biodiversity into your garden. In his garden in north London, winner of the Planting Award, Stuart Craine MSGD has created a stunning sedum roof in pastel powdery pinks Follow us @ludmagazine adding a softness to the abundant greenery in the surrounding garden. You can create a green roof on any flat surface or unsightly roof - from bin stores to bike sheds, and if you’re not sure what to plant simply lay a ready-seeded wildflower turf. CIRCULAR PAVING Beautiful paving can transform a garden. In her Ribbon Wheel garden, Butter Wakefield has created an elaborate paving design of ten interlinking circles, each one different in design and size and connected to one another by a ‘ribbon’ of York cobblestones. The circles, created from a combination of limestone and York stone are laid in a mix of setts and cobbles creating a stunning effect. Position planters or furniture in the centre of each circle and light from beneath for extra drama. MULTI-STEM TREES A growing trend, multi-stem trees can create an architectural showpiece in any space with the elegant canopies lending themselves to layered underplanting or, if planted exclusively, to create a striking structural statement. In this modern Suffolk garden, Caitlin McLauglin, winner of the Fresh Designer award, uses multi- stem trees and soft planting to create a deconstructed woodland environment in the front courtyard garden, while Andy Sturgeon FSGD, winner of the International award, used native multi-stem trees in his winning garden in Bermuda to enhance the scale of the space. www.sgd.org.uk www.landud.co.uk 7