Winning Low-Allergy Garden Design Unveiled

15 November 2005

Winning Low-Allergy Garden Design Unveiled at Ellerslie Flower Show

Flixonase and the Ellerslie Flower Show today unveiled the winning garden resulting from the Flixonase Secondary Schools Low-Allergy Garden Competition, presented by the Ellerslie Flower Show.

Lucy Lee, a Year 10 student from Epsom Girls Grammar School in Auckland was selected as the grand prize-winner from amongst 60 entries from more than 400 secondary students across the country.

For her win Lucy¹s design has been bought to life for the 2005 Ellerslie Flower show. Lucy¹s love of books was part of the inspiration for her winning garden design, so Flixonase have also awarded Lucy $500 of book vouchers.

Xanthe White was the competition judge. Xanthe is experienced in low allergy gardening as the designer of the award-winning Flixonase Low-Allergy Garden at the 2004 Ellerslie Flower Show.

White also authored the design brief for the students, challenging them to create a 6 x 6 garden that would appeal to a young, urban couple, featuring an entertaining area, two focal points and seating - all built with low allergy plants.

³Lucy definitely has a future in this field if she chooses to pursue it. And, having her design featured at Ellerslie is a pretty good way to kick off a career!² said White.

³Lucy¹s garden has a fantastic hot contemporary Mediterranean feel with a strong use of colour and dry materials reinforced in all aspects of the design. More than anything the garden has the wow factor with refreshingly original use of plant material that reinforced the hot look and, though it broke all the rules, it worked.

³Lucy gave a very sophisticated response to the brief with bold use of the Flixonase colours in the walls picked up in the planting.²

Lucy says she¹s looking forward to seeing her garden design brought to life.

³I was really surprised to win the competition. It hasn¹t really sunk in yet that 70,000 people are going to see my garden at the biggest garden show in the country,² explains Lucy.

"I thought the low allergy design brief was a fun challenge. I had no idea you could control allergies through plant choice. It was really interesting to work on because it brought design and creativity together with solving a problem."

White's complete Top 10 list includes: Lucy Lee, Winner Epsom Girls Grammar Cameron Hawke, Runner Up (tie) Rangiora High School Hoa Yang, Runner Up (tie) Epsom Girls Grammar Mount College(Group) Mount Maunganui College Jessie Linn Epsom Girls Grammar Courtenay Whitford Epsom Girls Grammar Yeunjin Jeong Epsom Girls Grammar Freya Copeland Epsom Girls Grammar Rebecca Anderson Epsom Girls Grammar Deborah Chan Epsom Girls Grammar

"The top ten designs are outstanding and all would stand up in their own right if they were to be built at the show," says White.

"The gardens showed a clear understanding of allergy free principals and a flair for design. Each design was unique and the top ten gardens represent a range of garden looks and styles, proving despite allergies, you are only limited by your imagination."

Thirty per cent of New Zealanders suffer from allergies, often as a result of airborne pollens. Many have no idea that low allergy gardening is an option.

Erla Rapsch, Managing Director of GlaxoSmithKline explains, "The Flixonase Low Allergy Garden Design Competition aims to let the thousands of New Zealand allergy sufferers know that it is possible for them to enjoy stylish gardens ­ and gardening - that are easy on their allergies."

The Ellerslie Flower Show, is open to the public between 16th and 20th November 2005. Visit www.ellerslieflowershow.co.nz for more information about the Flixonase Low Allergy Garden and other exhibitions.

Flixonase 24-Hour is a nasal spray offering relief from all the major symptoms of airborne allergies, including hay fever.

ENDS

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