The annual fun summer garden competition is back, promoting biodiversity and sustainability in Phibsborough. It’s open from the 28th of June and the last day for entries will be on the 16th of July.
Each of the four winners will get a €50 voucher from Mr Middleton and there are commendation certificates for every entrant.
There are four categories in the competition and each section will have an individual overall winner.
The four categories are:
a) Front garden
b) Terrace
c) Balcony/apartment
d) Community garden
The competition is seeking to promote biodiversity-friendly gardening, so the winning gardens will be those that score highly in all five areas set out in the judging criteria which are:
Design
Plant selection
Biodiversity and sustainability
Height/overall scale
Overall impression
The judges will consider bonus marks for gardening with nature, creative use of space and growing their own food.
If you are looking for inspiration, there are lots of resources available on biodiversity gardening from the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan’s website — pollinators.ie
Judging is done as soon as practically possible after the closing date and prizes will be awarded soon after that. There will be a formal announcement and presentation of commendation certs at Buzzfest in September.
You can apply by sending in a photograph of the garden via email to phibsborobiodiversity@gmail.com or you can direct message your photo to Phibsboro' Village Tidy Towns Facebook or Instagram.
The competition is only open to gardens located in the Phibsboro' Village Tidy Towns catchment area (see map for reference).
The Competition Conditions:
The competition will be held over three weeks between 28th June 2023 with closing date of 16th July;
Entry to the competition must be by submitting one photo of the garden by email to phibsborobiodiversity@gmail.com or Facebook DM to PhibsboroTidyTown or Instagram Phibsborovillage;
The main categories of gardens are: house front garden (HG), terrace garden (TG), community garden (CG) and balcony/apartment garden (BG);
All gardens must be visible and/or accessible to judges from the street; balconies and/or apartment gardens must be available for viewing on the judging date to qualify;
Entries submitted by the garden owner ONLY will be eligible, except where the owner has given permission for another person to enter on their behalf;
Full address and/or Eircode should be provided by the owner to assist with location for judging; details of address will not be published;
When submitting entry the owner should advise if they wish to have name withheld in publication of competition results;
Entries must agree to have photos published by Phibsboro' Village Tidy Towns on their social media pages and displayed publicly in Phibsborough (e.g. on railings of Phibsborough Library).
Judging:
Each garden will be marked based on design, plant selection, biodiversity & sustainability element, height/overall scale and overall impression;
Bonus points may be awarded for gardening with nature, creative use of space and growing own food;
Judging will be held as close as possible to the day after the closing date, subject to availability of the judges;
Judging panel will consist of members of the Tidy Towns Biodiversity team and one external Judge;
Members of the judging panel are precluded from entering the competition;
The panel may create a short list of gardens based on submitted photos and will visit gardens to make a final decision.
Wishing the best of luck to all entrants and thanks so much for participating!
