Jo Thompson Landscape and Garden Design has been awarded three gold medals in this year’s Association of Professional Landscape Designers Awards (APLD). The studio won Gold for its sea house garden in Sussex in the Details category and two Gold awards, Planting and Residential, for its naturalistic garden in Biddenden, Kent.
The sea house garden, a serene coastal garden nestled into the East Sussex shoreline, was designed for a family who love the sea, beachcombing and entertaining. The judges said it was “a space you want to be in and enjoy”. Gentle, green hues of dwarf pine and domes of rosemary sit alongside the soft tones of timber benches and stone pathways and daisy-flowered erigeron self-seed and tumble over natural stone steps. An outdoor shower is tucked in one corner and seating areas are placed throughout the space in order to provide many places to sit and enjoy the view.
The judges called the naturalistic garden in Kent a “beautiful composition of colour, texture and form.” Nestled in the weald of Kent, the large country garden draws on an expansive landscape to seamlessly link the house with the land beyond. The lawns have been sensitively framed and divided; new vistas open through woodland onto grassy plains and mounds of grasses and rich, textural shrub planting weave new routes through the garden. Perennial borders packed with eupatorium, fennel, persicaria, verbena are alive with pollinators. The garden is inspired by the idea of bringing nature right up to the doorstep.
Speaking about the three awards Jo Thompson said: “We are absolutely delighted to receive three gold awards in this year’s APLD awards and to be recognised for creating garden spaces that are inviting and timeless.”
The APLD International Design Awards recognises excellence in landscape design across eight different categories, judging projects on the basis of difficulty, craftsmanship, attention to detail and execution.
Photos: Rachel Warne
