As the closing date of June 15 for this year’s Laurel’s entries ticks closer, we continue our celebration of past Laurel winners with some words from Trevor Nottle, who was a Hall of Fame winner 2022, and writes to encourage all members to enter the HMAA awards.
Having been associated with The Laurels awards since their inception at the first conference in Adelaide, I have always tried to support the awards by entering books I have written and other activities covered by the horticultural media in Australia that I have done such as bilingual garden talk back. I haven’t always been successful but that is not my reason for entering. My first objective is to enter something in which I have something to say to my readers, the judges and members of the association. Whether my subject matter refers to cottage gardens, old roses, perennials, gardens in changing climates or dry gardens, I’ve always strived to present works based on my own experiences as a practical home gardener. My second aim is to gently guide my readers to making changes in what they do and what they grow, again based on my own experiences and observations.
More broadly I have encouraged individuals to tread that path to self-discovery and actualisation, which I believe everyone has the capacity to do with mentoring and sensitive leadership. As members of the media we have all set out to pursue a course in that field but almost certainly, we have found it necessary and, indeed, interesting to undertake new pathways and develop new skills as years pass. I hope my track record demonstrates that I have shown the resilience necessary to develop as a garden writer and the integrity to hold on to my original commitment to always having something to say as a first principle. Why else would you do it?
