Peter Donegan wins People’s Choice at Melbourne flower show

by Nina Mason | 25 Mar 24 | Garden Design, News

The People’s Choice Award at the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show 2024 has been awarded to Irish garden designer Peter Donegan.

Built by the Melbourne-based landscape contractor Semken Landscaping, which constructed Donegan’s first Gold-medal-winning garden at the show last year, A Moment in Time – Presented by Daisy’s Garden Supplies focuses on the challenges veterans can face when they leave the Air Force.

The nine-day build saw the team create a garden set in South-Eastern Australia in the early 80s. It journeyed a veteran pilot returning home and the mental difficulties they might be facing. A fragmented path led to an aged wood cabin with a grassed roof and a Piper PA-28 Cherokee plane which Donegan says is a project that the veteran started before he left and so is incomplete in its repair.

The garden is in support of the Defence Force Welfare Association (DFWA), which promotes and protect the interests of serving and former members of the Australian Defence Force and their families.

The Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show took place at the Royal Exhibition Building & Carlton Gardens, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, from 20-24 March 2024.