Yes indeed, it’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for. I so wish we had the print version of a drum-roll app to push right about now!
It’s been quite the year for entries. At first, they were coming in slowly, but once that deadline hit, we got a huge surge of submissions. I guess we have a bunch of procrastinators out there. (You can count me in as one, too.) Once we started sorting through the entries to hand over to the judges, they just blew us away.
I personally enjoyed seeing the response to our newest category, the hardscape combination with a major water-feature element. In fact, I’m already planning a follow-up article to showcase some of the entries this year. Sometimes a waterscape is all you need, but adding in the creativity of the hardscape really brings the whole yard together and allows the many elements of a contractor’s talent to really shine through.
We would especially like to thank this year’s Supreme Stream Court for lending their discerning eyes and unparalleled passion for what they do to this year’s contest. To get to know this great group of guys, make sure to check out our nod to them (link here).
As much fun as we have with the annual Water Artisans of the Year contest, we always make sure to try to balance out each issue with a useful lineup of topics to help you succeed in what you do. As a frequent attendee of industry events, including the 2019 Water Garden Expo, I found Mark Battersby’s article (link here) quite informative and helpful in trying to figure out what costs you can and can’t expense while traveling for business.
Max Taylor, who also happened to win the Best Under $15k category this year, lends us his expertise with landscaping software (link here). Demi Fortuna, a winner in our inaugural contest, provides a detailed strategy for siting water features in any environment (link here). Finally, for our newbies (and the contractors who deal with them), we have a “back to basics” feature that covers all the entry-level koi hobbyist questions and concerns.
So, hold on tight as you turn the pages to reveal the 2018 contest winners, for you are in for a wild ride!
Happy PONDering!
