Judging Criteria

To help applicants describe their entries, the Judges often look to see how the entries address the following:

For Landscape Installation and Renovation entries:

• Client’s desires and restrictions met
• Effective use of materials
• Creative, unique, inspiring or effective design
• Degree of difficulty
• Quality of material
• Effective use of color
• Compatibility with other materials
• Finished appearance

For Landscape Maintenance entries:

• Client’s desires and restrictions met
• Effective use of seasonal color
• Cleanliness of hardscapes
• Sharpness of edges/lines
• Degree of difficulty
• Quality of material
• Properly pruned shrubs and trees
• Overall appearance

For Landscape Irrigation entries:

• Client’s desires and restrictions met
• Nature and scope of the irrigation challenge
• Use of separately-zoned sprays, rotors and micro-irrigation
• Use of micro-irrigation in the landscape beds
• Use of water-conserving products (e.g., smart controllers, metering, check valves)
• Percentage of overhead sprinkler (high volume) irrigation used in the landscape area

Judges may also award extra points for entries which are shown to embrace some or all of the principles of Florida-Friendly Landscaping™: (1) right plant, right place; (2) water efficiently; (3) fertilize appropriately; (4) mulch; (5) attract wildlife; (6) manage yard pests responsibly; (7) recycle yard waste; (8) reduce storm water run-off; and, (9) protect the waterfront.