Jo-Anne's Blog

The Landscape Design Blog is written by Jo-Anne Hilliar, a professionally trained Landscape Designer with more than 25 years of international experience.

Landscape Design Blog

Developing Good Communication – Listening & Contributing

Developing good communication – listening and contribution skills (demonstration on the job)

How important it is to have good communication with regards to our landscapes and gardens.  Unfortunately, plants, spatial elements design of the garden, trees, shrubs, groundcovers, features focal points do not talk to us.  Plant material is alive, and, in all circumstances, we need to

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Landscape Training - Blog 26

Back To Landscape Training – Contractors Train Urgently

It has been an ongoing urgency for many years for efficient skills developmental training particularly at the gardening interface and higher up the line team leaders / supervisors for skills upliftment in the

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Why South African Landscapes

I am passionate about South African landscapes.  For most of the years of my career in the design landscaping / maintenance arena, I have always been a great follower for the creation and transformation into indigenous / endemic landscapes.  We are the leaders in the world for South

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Landscape design training students

Benefits of landscape design training and skills development – internationally

These are the benefits of landscape design training and skills development - internationally. Also listed here are the consultative activities involved in the work of Landscape Design Consultants

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Running your business in present day economic times

Interrupting our general blogs on the landscaping industry we thought that at this COVID times with business decreasing that we would comment on the activities from a business perspective that we need to be aware of. Some of the most important activities and go to strategies as follows:

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What is landscape design in the context of creating commercial sites?

Landscape design for commercial sites needs to be practical from an aesthetic perspective, pleasing to the eye and the wow factor needs to be well recognised before the commercial aspects of the site become evident.  These are just some of the items that need to be considered as

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Excellence and formal hard landscaping

The Green Industry Nationally and Internationally going forward

Some of the situations to consider as follows as we continue to provide a service in our profession: 1. Deteriorating Governmental and Economic issues we need to consider as follows: 1.1 Where are we with the economies of the world and the consideration for our pricing methodology in

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Negotiating a landscape design contract during Covid 19

Covid 19 has thrown a completely new dimension to the landscape design industry.  Some points to bear in mind are as follows: Gardens do not stop growing – landscapes need to be looked after from a maintenance perspective. Often new design features and aspects are required in terms of

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Covid Protocols – Landscaping Industry

The Landscape Construction industry internationally and in South Africa is back at work but strictly under the governmental protocols set up internationally in every country around the world.  Although our industry, fortunately, is conducted generally externally, we are still subject

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Sustainable Landscaping Programme presented in Mauritius – September 2019

We have run our Sustainable Landscaping Programme in Mauritius for the leading professional landscape contracting and maintenance company in Mauritius and offering the latest in practising sustainable and endemic landscaping methods. Very exciting times ahead in terms of restoration and

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