The 2010 Southeastern Flower Show has come and gone and we hope you were one of the attendees, because it was definitely worth the trip to the Cobb Galleria.  Unique Environmental built a beautiful 900 square foot garden with the theme “Come on over!!” calling out to all who strolled our way.

      There were a number of fine gardens on display, each with its own flavor and style.  Unique’s was designed to offer a feeling of comfort and casual elegance, with lushly planted backdrops framing a lower terrace, with boulder accents and specimen Japanese Black Pines.  Stone steps led to an upper seating area, which showcased a truly unique water feature, fire pit, and, of course, more lush, yet subtle plantings.  A privacy fence protected the rear of the garden and was adorned with window boxes overflowing with trailing nasturtiums, variegated ginger lilies, fleabane, Princess plant and glacier ivy.  This garden was a great example of the style of landscaping for which we are known- comfortable, colorful and, well, unique!

      Aside from inquiries about the garden itself, the most frequently asked question was “how long did it take you to put this together?”  Well, here are some figures on that:  actual production time at the show took approximately 400 hours, which accounts for set-up and break down.  Add to that the design process, the pre-construction time building stone columns, the privacy fence and so on, collecting the various components and plant materials, transportation, time in the garden during the show and finally, relocating the plants and materials back to our facilities and you can add another 200 hours or so.  Whew!!!  Quite an undertaking!

      Was it worth the time and effort?  Along with meeting thousands of very nice folks during the show, Unique also won a number of awards for their efforts, including the MALTA (Metro Atlanta Landscape and Turf Association) Trophy, the Ann Lyon Crammond Trophy, the Georgia Lighting Company Trophy, the “Best Maintenance” award, and perhaps the most gratifying, The People’s Choice Award which was determined by the votes of the shows’ attendees.  Yes, a ton of time and effort but many fine memories and most importantly, a feeling of satisfaction knowing that we were able to showcase our style and flair and capability to produce a truly Unique landscape.