Judges Comments
The judging of the 2004 LASA Awards witnessed a strong collection of domestic and commercial landscapes.
The judging comprised detailed background notes on most projects coupled with each site visited. Each Judge then read the background notes and made independent inspection of each garden. While in some gardens more time spent enabled each Judge to absorb the desired feel, texture and experience of each garden on offer.
The overall standard of the residential gardens was quite high with some in the outstanding category. There appears to be no end of effort and resources that some people are prepared to put into their private landscapes.
There were a number of nominations in the commercial categories. While some provided some real interest and points of difference I would have expected some more substantial entries considering the construction boom over the last few years. Nevertheless there were a few commercial gardens that were certainly worthy winners and make a significant contribution to their surrounds.
In terms of the ideas that stood out in this year's gardens, there appears to be a strong push to provide quality feature fencing, decking and incorporating more art and sustainability principles into gardens. There was also a noticeable lack of water features.
