Landscape & Urban Design Issue 43 2020 | Page 22

LANDSCAPE SERVICES HIGH QUALITY EDUCATIONAL EVENTS AND WORKSHOPS Garden Masterclass is an educational programme created over four years ago by garden designer Annie Guilfoyle and horticulturalist and writer Noel Kingsbury. Both Annie and Noel realised that there was simply not enough high quality educational events and workshops on offer for professional garden designers, landscape architects and horticulturalists. The Garden Masterclass programme is deliberately held in locations all over the United Kingdom, Ireland and continental Europe, as in the past there has been very little on offer outside the south-east. The tutor list includes many of the most highly respected names in the landscape design and horticultural industry such as Dan Pearson, Tom Stuart-Smith, Olivier Filippi, Nigel Dunnett and James Hitchmough. Group numbers are purposely limited to a maximum of between 20 to 30 people, 22 www.landud.co.uk ensuring that attendees receive high-quality learning with the tutor, smaller numbers also enable extremely thought-provoking group discussions. Events may be lecture based or offer a more hands-on, practical workshop approach to learning. This year there are several events specifically aimed at landscape architects, such as a seminar- based study day at Hestercombe in Somerset, with landscape and heritage consultant Deborah Evans, who will focus on design issues in the historic environment. For horticulturalists there is plenty on offer, including a day at the magnificent Exbury Gardens in Hampshire, focusing on trees and shrubs led by Jim Gardiner, the former Director of Horticulture at Wisley. James Hitchmough, Professor of Horticultural Ecology at Sheffield comes to The Horniman Museum in London to study the deep gravel herbaceous planting system that he has designed there. Tom Stuart-Smith will be explaining his approach to the large-scale planting schemes that he has designed at Chatsworth. Landscape architects Giacomo Guzzon, Ton Muller and Zac Tudor will be discussing sustainable planting for the public realm. Important new subjects this year include natural swimming pool design and specification with designer and swimming pool specialist Sarah Murch, and the transformation of a brown-field site into a ‘post-wild’ family garden with Jo Mckerr and Marina Christopher. Study days run from 10am until 4.30 and include lunch and refreshments. To find out more about this extensive programme go to: www.gardenmasterclass.org or email [email protected] Follow us @ludmagazine