Newtown Garden Club picks winners of housing association competition

Newtown Garden Club has selected the winners of a gardening competition run by Barcud, a housing association with properties in Newtown, Welshpool and across north Powys. 

The club was invited to judge photographs submitted by Barcud tenants from across mid and west Wales, following a summer of prolonged hot and dry weather.

Barcud manages more than 4,500 properties across the region, providing affordable rented housing and support services.

The annual competition offered £50 garden centre vouchers in four categories, covering private gardens, hanging baskets and containers, vegetable gardens and communal spaces.

Newtown Garden Club members said the standard of entries had made judging difficult, particularly given the weather conditions gardeners had faced.

The judges said the photographs demonstrated the work tenants had put into maintaining their gardens despite the prolonged dry spell.

Miss Davies from Aberporth, Ceredigion, won the private garden floral display category.

The judges said her garden stood out for its "lush growth of a great variety of plants in beautifully constructed raised beds which created a wonderful restful space."

The hanging basket, container or window box category was won by Miss Michelle from Llandysul.

The Newtown judges praised the variety of flowers, colours and heights in her display, as well as the inclusion of a bee structure highlighting the importance of pollinators.

Mr Thomas from Llechryd, near Cardigan, won the vegetable garden category for the range of crops he had grown.

The communal garden award went to Mrs Jones from Llys Hen Ysgol in Aberystwyth, where hanging baskets and flower tubs were judged to have created a colourful and welcoming shared space.

Sara Woodall, Barcud's Director of Communities, said: "Congratulations to all the winners and thank you to everyone that took the time to take a photograph of their garden and enter the competition.

"We strongly believe a colourful and interesting garden not only makes a difference to people's own homes but also benefits the community and environment people live in."

Barcud operates across Powys and Ceredigion, with its wider group also including Care and Repair in Powys, which provides support to older and vulnerable residents to help them remain living independently in their homes.