An inspiring collection of innovative gardens and landscapes
were celebrated at the Society of Garden Designers (SGD) Awards at an
annual event that recognised the creative talents of a wide cross-section of
SGD Members.
Among the 21 winners on the night were Sarah Eberle FSGD who won the highly prized 'Garden of the Year' Award, Haruko Seki who took this year's Judges’ Award and Dan Pearson OBE FSGD who was presented with the annual SGD Lifetime Achievement Award.
Image: the SGD 'Garden of
the Year' by Sarah Eberle FSGD - Mark Spencer The SGD Garden of the Year Award - the most prestigious of the SGD Awards - was presented to Sarah Eberle FSGD for an Anglo-Japanese Strolling Garden in Oxfordshire which was designed to create a sense of peace, meditation, and immersion in the healing complexities of nature.
Designed with water, paths and rocks and an abundance of naturalistic planting the contemplative garden was cleverly conceived to feel very intimate with beautiful vignettes throughout.
The judges described the project as 'a garden of national importance' and said it would surely become 'one of the most important gardens in England'. Despite the age of the project, the judges felt the garden had 'a confident maturity' that reflected the designers' skill and expertise in creating such an extraordinary space.
As a triple award winner on the night, the garden was recognised in several additional categories including the Large Residential Garden Award and the Planting Design Award. The planting was a key feature of the project. The plot, which is mostly woodland and woodland edge planting, features a palette of 850 species with highlights of spring flower and autumn foliage. The judges described it as 'immensely skilful' and praised the designer's 'beautiful eye and incredible expertise'.
One special award announced on the night was the SGD Lifetime Achievement Award – an honour granted to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the landscape and garden design profession.
This prestigious Award, is gifted by the Council of the Society of Garden Designers, and was presented this year to designer, author and Fellow of the SGD, Dan Pearson OBE FSGD.
The brightest emerging talent in garden and landscape design
was celebrated last night at the Society of Garden Designers (SGD) Annual
Awards Ceremony in London, where the winners of the SGD StudentAwards 2025 were officially announced.
Chosen from an impressive shortlist of 10 finalists, this year’s winners have demonstrated remarkable creativity, skill, and a forward-thinking approach across three categories that cover Public Realm, Residential Gardens, and Sustainability.
The winning projects showcased innovative solutions to complex design challenges, with a strong emphasis on sustainability, functionality, and beauty. Judges, David Stevens FSGD, Sarah Morgan FSGD, Tom Massey MSGD and Juliet Sargeant FSGD, praised the students’ ability to balance imaginative concepts with practical design, highlighting their potential to make a significant impact on the profession.
