Cllr Paul Turner joined residents and employees from local charity and care provider, The Fremantle Trust, for a ‘blooming’ good day at its annual gardening awards, which took place at The Heights nursing home in Downley.

More than 50 entries were submitted to the Fremantle in Bloom competition from keen gardeners across the Trust’s older people services in Bucks, competing in five hotly contested categories.

Residents came together to open the event by singing ‘All Things Bright and Beautiful’, which set the tone for the rest of the afternoon.

This year’s competition featured a discerning panel of judges, including Cippenham-based Barbara Clark who is a relative from Lent Rise House, an experienced gardener and member of the Royal Horticultural Society. Leon Walton, a representative from the floral division at the local Sainsbury’s branch in Taplow also cast a vigilant eye over the submissions as part of the judging process.

The winners and runners up are as follows:

Best floral garden:

Winner: Sir Aubrey Ward House, Marlow

Runner up: Icknield Court, Princes Risborough

Best sensory garden:

Winner: Lent Rise House, Burnham

Runner up: Carey Lodge, Wing

Best balcony / courtyard:

Winner: Chesham Leys, Chesham

Runner up: Sir Aubrey Ward House, Marlow

Best indoor garden:

Winner: Fremantle Court, Stoke Mandeville

Runner up: Mulberry Court, Chalfont St Peter

Best vegetable / herb garden:

Winner: Farnham Common House, Farnham Common

Runner up: Chesham Leys, Chesham

Outstanding garden (overall winner of the Stan Flowers Cup):

Cherry Garth, Holmer Green

Winners and runners up were presented with certificates and trophies for attentively nurturing plants, gardens and displays for all to enjoy in their living environments.

Junior Walker, leisure and lifestyle manager for the Trust, added:

It’s always a joy to see the incredible submissions from across our services, and the level of talent and enthusiasm that is put into this event each year. Gardening is a wonderful way to express creativity and can naturally bring people together as a social activity, or equally allow quiet contemplation for individuals.

We’d like to thank everyone for their involvement in Fremantle in Bloom 2019 and hope we continue to enjoy the rewards of our collective gardening efforts throughout the rest of the summer.